William Douglas, 10th Earl of Angus (15543 March 1611) was a Scottish nobleman. He was the son of William Douglas, 9th Earl of Angus (1533–1591).

Career

Douglas studied at St. Andrews University and joined the household of the

Earl of Morton The title Earl of Morton was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1458 for James Douglas of Dalkeith. Along with it, the title Lord Aberdour was granted. This latter title is the courtesy title for the eldest son and heir to the Earl of Morton. ...

. Subsequently, while visiting the French court, he became a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, and was in consequence, upon his return, disinherited and placed under restraint. Nevertheless, Douglas succeeded to his father's titles and estates in 1591, and though in 1592 he was disgraced for his complicity in Lord Bothwell's plot, he was soon liberated and performed useful services as the King's Lieutenant in the north of Scotland. In June 1592 he was injured falling from his horse while hunting with

James VI James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

and sent for drugs from the surgeon Gilbert Primrose. In July 1592 he asked for help from

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen B ...

in a plot with the

Earl of Erroll Earl of Erroll () is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1453 for Sir William Hay. The subsidiary titles held by the Earl of Erroll are ''Lord Hay'' (created 1449) and ''Lord Slains'' (1452), both in the Peerage of Scotland. ...

and other lords against John Maitland of

Thirlestane Thirlestane Castle is a castle set in extensive parklands near Lauder in the Borders of Scotland. The site is aptly named Castle Hill, as it stands upon raised ground. However, the raised land is within Lauderdale, the valley of the Leader Wat ...

, the

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

. Lord Maxwell accused him of misdemeanours including meeting the rebels James Douglas of Spott and the Countess of Bothwell. He protested his absolute rejection of Spanish offers, but in October he signed the Spanish Blanks. On the discovery of this treason he was imprisoned in

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age. There has been a royal castle on the rock since the reign of Malcol ...

on his return to Scotland in January 1593. Douglas escaped from Edinburgh Castle on 13 February 1593 with the help of his Countess, joining the Earls of

Huntly Huntly ( or ''Hunndaidh'') is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, formerly known as Milton of Strathbogie or simply Strathbogie. It had a population of 4,460 in 2004 and is the site of Huntly Castle. Its neighbouring settlements include Keith ...

and Erroll in the north. They were offered an Act of "oblivion" or "abolition" provided they renounced their religion or quit

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. Declining these conditions they were declared traitors and "forfeited." They remained in rebellion, and in July 1594 an attack made by them on Aberdeen roused James's anger. Huntly and Erroll were subdued by James himself in the north, and Angus failed in an attempt upon Edinburgh in concert with the

Earl of Bothwell Earl of Bothwell was a title that was created twice in the Peerage of Scotland. It was first created for Patrick Hepburn in 1488, and was forfeited in 1567. Subsequently, the earldom was recreated for the 4th Earl's nephew and heir of line, F ...

. Subsequently, in 1597 they all renounced their religion, declared themselves

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

s, and were restored to their estates and honours. Angus was again included in the Privy Council, and in June 1598 was appointed the King's Lieutenant in southern Scotland, in which capacity he showed great zeal and conducted the "Raid of

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

," as the campaign against the Johnstones was called. At Christmas time in 1598 the English diplomat George Nicholson heard that people were saying Angus wore a jewel resembling a cross in his hat (which might be taken a sign of Catholicism), but the king said it was not and laughed at their daftness. Angus, offended at the advancement of

to a Marquessate, recanted, resisted all the arguments of the ministers to bring him to a "better mind," and was again excommunicated in 1608. In 1609 Douglas withdrew into exile, and died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, on 3 March 1611. He is buried at the

Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The co ...

Household accounts

A household account for the Earl survives. It commences on 11 June 1608 when the Earl moved his lodging in Glasgow from the house of George Lyon to that of John Ross. In October he moved to the Canongate of Edinburgh. On 5 November he moved to

Tantallon Castle Tantallon Castle is a ruined mid-14th-century fortress, located east of North Berwick, in East Lothian, Scotland. It sits atop a promontory opposite the Bass Rock, looking out onto the Firth of Forth. The last medieval curtain wall castle to b ...

.Alexander Curle, 'Kitchen and Buttery Accounts of the Earl of Angus's Household in Glagow and the Canongate', ''Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries Scotland'' (Edinburgh, 1909), pp. 191–207, extracts only.

Quotation

From ''The Scottish Nation'': :

Marriage and children

Douglas married Elizabeth Oliphant, a daughter of

Laurence Oliphant, 4th Lord Oliphant Laurence Oliphant, 4th Lord Oliphant (1529–1593) was a Scottish nobleman. Early life He was the eldest son of Laurence Oliphant, 3rd Lord Oliphant and the former Margaret Sandilands. Among his sibling was Peter Oliphant (ancestor of the Olipha ...

, in spring 1585, and they had three sons and three daughters. His second son, James, was created Lord Mordington in 1641. His daughter Mary was married to Alexander Livingston, 2nd Earl of Linlithgow. Douglas was succeeded by his son William, as 11th earl of Angus, afterwards 1st marquess of Douglas (1580–1660). The title Earl of Angus is now held by the

Duke of Hamilton Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Duke of Rothesay, Dukedom of Rothesay held by the sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the pr ...

, and is used as a courtesy title for the eldest son of the ''heir apparent'' to the current dukedom.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Angus, William Douglas, 10th Earl Of 1554 births 1611 deaths Burials at Saint-Germain-des-Prés (abbey) Converts to Roman Catholicism from Calvinism Alumni of the University of St Andrews Earls of Angus William Douglas, 10th Earl of Angus Members of the Privy Council of Scotland Scottish Roman Catholics