James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn

His Grace The Duke of Abercorn KG PC
File:James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn.jpg
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
In office 13 July 1866 – 1 December 1868
Monarch	Victoria
Prime Minister	The Earl of Derby Benjamin Disraeli
Preceded by	The Lord Wodehouse
Succeeded by	The Earl Spencer
In office 2 March 1874 – 11 December 1876
Monarch	Victoria
Prime Minister	Benjamin Disraeli
Preceded by	The Earl Spencer
Succeeded by	The Duke of Marlborough
Personal details
Born	21 January 1811 (1811-01-21) Westminster, Middlesex, United Kingdom
Died	Baronscourt, Tyrone, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Lady Louisa Russell (1812–1905)
Children	14
Alma mater	Christ Church, Oxford
Religion	Anglican

James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn, KG, PC (21 January 1811 – 31 October 1885), styled Viscount Hamilton from 1814 to 1818 and the Marquess of Abercorn from 1818 to 1868, was a British Conservative politician and statesman who twice served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

In 1860, The Times noted that Hamilton was one of only three noblemen to hold peerages in all three Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland.

Background and education

Born at Seymour Place, Mayfair, Abercorn was the son of James Hamilton, Viscount Hamilton, himself the eldest son of John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Abercorn. His mother, Harriet, was the second daughter of the Hon. John Douglas, himself the son of James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton. His father died when Abercorn was only three. In 1818, aged seven, he succeeded his grandfather in his titles and estates. He was educated at Harrow School and Christ Church, Oxford. In 1856, he received an Honorary Doctorate of Civil Laws from the University of Oxford.

Political career

In 1844, Lord Abercorn was made a Knight of the Garter at the relatively young age of 33, becoming that same year Lord Lieutenant of Donegal. Two years later he was appointed a Privy Counsellor and Groom of the Stole to Prince Albert, and remained a prominent figure in the royal court for the next two decades. In 1866, he was appointed Viceroy of Ireland, and two years later was created Marquess of Hamilton (in the Peerage of the United Kingdom) and Duke of Abercorn (in the Peerage of Ireland), resigning shortly after Gladstone won the 1868 general election. He was reappointed to the post in 1874, and the Duke served as Viceroy until his resignation in 1876, partly on account of his wife's ill health. In 1874, he was chosen Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Ireland, a post he held until his death. Abercorn was Envoy-Extraordinary for the investiture of King Umberto I of Italy with the Order of the Garter on 2 March 1878. He was elected Chancellor of the University of Ireland in 1881, and died four years later at his home of Baronscourt, County Tyrone.

He is buried in the cemetery at Baronscourt Parish Church, the traditional burial place of the Dukes of Abercorn and their families.

Family and children

File:James Hamilton 1st Duke, Lock & Whitfield woodburytype, 1876-84.jpg

James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn

Abercorn married Lady Louisa, second daughter of John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford, in 1832. They had fourteen children, thirteen of whom survived infancy:

• Lady Harriet Georgiana Louisa Hamilton (1834–1913), married in 1855 to Thomas George Anson, 2nd Earl of Lichfield. They had eight sons and five daughters.
• Lady Beatrix Frances Hamilton (1835–1871), married in 1854 to George Frederick D'Arcy Lambton, 2nd Earl of Durham
• Lady Louisa Jane Hamilton (1836–1912), married in 1859 to William Montagu Douglas Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch
• Lady Katherine Elizabeth Hamilton (c. 1838–1874), married in 1858 to William Henry Edgcumbe, 4th Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
• James Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Abercorn (1838–1913)
• Lady Georgiana Susan Hamilton (1841–1913), married in 1882 to Edward Turnour, 5th Earl Winterton
• Lord Claud Hamilton (1843–1925)
• Lord George Hamilton (1845–1927)
• Lady Albertha Frances Anne Hamilton (1847–1932), married in 1869 to George Charles Spencer-Churchill, 8th Duke of Marlborough. The marriage was annulled in 1883.
• Lord Ronald Douglas Hamilton (1849–1867)
• Lady Maud Evelyn Hamilton (1850–1932), married in 1869 to Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne
• Lord Cosmo Hamilton (1853–1853, on the same day)
• Lord Frederick Spencer Hamilton (1856–1928)
• Lord Ernest Hamilton (1858–1939)

Abercorn died in October 1885, aged 74, and was succeeded by his eldest son, James. The Duchess of Abercorn died in March 1905, aged 92. Through his son, the 2nd Duke, Abercorn is a great-great-great grandfather of Diana, Princess of Wales. Through his daughter, Lady Louisa, Abercorn is a great-grandfather of HRH Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, and a great-great grandfather of Sarah, Duchess of York.

Ancestry

Family of James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn

16. James Hamilton, 7th Earl of Abercorn               8. Captain The Hon. John Hamilton                       17. Anne Plumer               4. John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Abercorn                             18. James Craggs               9. Harriet Craggs                       19. Elizabeth Richards               2. James Hamilton, Viscount Hamilton                                   20. Joseph Moyle               10. Sir Joseph Copley, 1st Baronet, of Sprotbrough                       21. Catherine Copley               5. Catherine Copley                             22. John Francis Buller               11. Mary Buller                       23. Rebecca Trelawny               1. James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn                                         24. George Douglas, 13th Earl of Morton               12. James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton                       25. Frances Adderley               6. The Hon. John Douglas                             26. Sir John Heathcote, 2nd Baronet               13. Bridget Heathcote                       27. Bridget White               3. Harriet Douglas                                   28. Edward Lascelles               14. Edward Lascelles, 1st Earl of Harewood                       29. Frances Ball               7. Lady Frances Lascelles                             30. William Chaloner               15. Anne Chaloner                       31. Mary Finny

References

• Dictionary of National Biography
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External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Duke of Abercorn
• Portraits of James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn at the National Portrait Gallery, London

Political offices
Preceded by The Earl of Kimberley	Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1866–1868	Succeeded by The Earl Spencer
Preceded by The Earl Spencer	Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1874–1876	Succeeded by The Duke of Marlborough
Honorary titles
Preceded by The Marquess of Donegall	Lord Lieutenant of Donegal 1844–1885	Succeeded by The Duke of Abercorn
Court offices
Preceded by The Marquess of Exeter	Groom of the Stole to Prince Albert 1846–1859	Succeeded by The Earl Spencer
Masonic offices
Preceded by The Duke of Leinster	Grandmaster of the Grand Lodge of Ireland 1874–1885	Succeeded by The 2nd Duke of Abercorn
Peerage of Great Britain
Preceded by John Hamilton	Marquess of Abercorn 1818–1885	Succeeded by James Hamilton
Peerage of Ireland
New creation	Duke of Abercorn 1868–1885	Succeeded by James Hamilton