Sir James Forrest, 1st Baronet of

Comiston Comiston (, IPA: �paleˈxaɫ̪ɯim is a suburb of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It is south of Morningside and west of the Braid Hills, linking the suburbs of Oxgangs and Fairmilehead. The main road through the area, Comiston Road, i ...

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(1780-1860) was a Scottish baronet and Whig politician who served as

Lord Provost of Edinburgh The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Edinburgh is elected by and is the convener of the City of Edinburgh Council and serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city, ex officio the Lord-Lieutenant of ...

1837–1843. The family crest is three oak trees. Forrest Road in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

is named in his honour.

Life

He was born in

on 16 October 1780 the son of James Forrest WS (1744-1820) a lawyer (son of John Forrest (1704-1778) of Grange House in Edinburgh). His mother was Katharine Forrest, the only daughter of James Forrest of Comiston, cousin to his father.The Baronetage of Britain, John Debrett She died when he was two years old, and he inherited the large estate of Comiston House.The Gentleman’s Magazine vol 208 He attended the high school then studied law at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. He was created an advocate in 1803. He was elected

in 1837, succeeding Sir James Spittal. He was created a baronet in 1838 by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

during his period as Lord Provost. In 1842 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

. Controversially having served as the Ruling Elder of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

at the

Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of Sc ...

he left the established church to join the Free Church of Scotland in the

. He had previously (1838 to 1840) been Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Freemasons of Scotland. His home in later life was 18 Manor Place in Edinburgh's West End, a substantial terraced townhouse. He continued to also own the large country mansion of Comiston House. He died whilst on a visit to

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

on 5 April 1860 and was returned to

for burial in

Greyfriars Kirkyard Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 1 ...

Family

In 1810 he married Charlotte Horsburgh (d.1852). Their children included Sir John Forrest (1817-1883) 2nd baronet and Sir William Forrest (1823-1894) 3rd baronet. Thomas (b.1815) died young. Daughters included Violet (b.1820) and Catherine (b.1825). His youngest daughter, Elizabeth Charlotte Forrest (b.1827) died in Clifton near Bristol in 1858.The Gentleman’s Magazine and Historical Review, vol4, 1858

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forrest, James 1780 births 1860 deaths Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Nobility from Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Lord provosts of Edinburgh Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Scottish Freemasons Burials at Greyfriars Kirkyard