An influential military leader during the Thirty Years’ War, he returned as Charles’ principal Scottish adviser when the conflict ended.īut life was not always kind to the first Duke of Hamilton. James Hamilton, then Earl of Arran, was ennobled for services to Charles I. The first Duke of Hamilton was created in 1643. The family were also scholars and romantics, generous patrons of the arts, loyal soldiers and advisers, just sheriffs and judges, ardent supporters of the local community, charitable fundraisers, successful sportspeople and aviation pioneers.
They were involved in political intrigue and the struggle for Scottish independence, plagued by insanity and disastrous financial dealings, accused of treason and illegitimacy, derided as usurpers, adulterers and egotists, and even executed and exiled from their own country.īut that’s only one side of the story. These men and women were kingmakers and kingbreakers, tied to British royalty by marriage and blood. Tracing their lineage from 1375 – when ‘David de Hamylton, son and heir of David fitz Walter’ first signed a writ – for 800 years the Hamiltons' power and importance shaped Scottish history and society. It is the third oldest in the United Kingdom, surpassed only by the Dukes of Norfolk and Somerset.Īnd the House of Hamilton has a family history to match such illustrious heritage. Created in 1643 for James Hamilton, the Dukedom of Hamilton is the premier Peerdom in Scotland.
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