James Steuart of Coltness
James Steuart of Coltness | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Steuart by David Scougall (c. 1658) | |
| Lord Provost of Edinburgh | |
| In office 1658–1659 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Andrew Ramsay, Lord Abbotshall |
| Succeeded by | Robert Murray |
| Commissioner for Edinburgh | |
| In office 1649–1650 | |
| Preceded by | Sir John Smyth |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Desborrow |
| Lord Provost of Edinburgh | |
| In office 1648–1649 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Archibald Tod |
| Succeeded by | Sir Archibald Tod |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1608 |
| Died | 31 March 1681 |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Spouses | Anne Hope
(m. 1630; died 1646)Marion McCulloch Elliott
(m. 1648) |
| Children | Sir James Steuart Sir Robert Steuart, Bt. |
| Parent(s) | James Steuart Marion Carmichael |
| Occupation | Merchant, banker, landowner, politician |
Sir James Steuart of Coltness (1608 – 31 March 1681) was a Scottish merchant, banker, landowner, politician and Covenanter.[1]
Early life[edit]
Steuart was the second son of Marion Carmichael and James Steuart (1575–1607), of Allanton, Lanarkshire, and was born posthumously.[2][3] Marion was sister of Sir James Carmichael, Justice General of Scotland.[4]
Career[edit]
He was a merchant and banker in Edinburgh, acquired a large fortune, then acquired the estates of Kirkfield (from Sir John Somerville of Cambusnethan) and Coldness (from Sir John Hamilton of Edston), both in Lanarkshire, in 1653.[2]
He became a burgess of Edinburgh and guild member in 1631, apparently through his marriage to Thomas Hope's niece.[4]
Public office[edit]
Steuart served as Provost of Edinburgh from 1648 to 1652, Commissioner for Edinburgh to the Parliament of Scotland from 1649 to 1650, and Lord Provost again in 1659. For a period of time, he was the Collector of Excise and Accountant-General for the Scottish Army.[5]
His period of office as Provost included the decision to fortify the harbour of Leith and to create a new road between Edinburgh and Leith (later called Leith Walk.[4]
Scottish Restoration[edit]
At the Restoration (1660) he was dismissed from public roles due to his being a Covenanter. After confinement in Edinburgh Castle, Steuart was sent to Dundee as a prisoner. He was granted a pardon in 1670.[6]
Personal life[edit]
In 1630, he married Anne Hope (d. 1646), daughter of Henry Hope and niece of Sir Thomas Hope of Craighall.[7] Together, they had:[8]
- Sir Thomas Steuart, 1st Baronet of Coltness (1631–1698)[9][10]
- Sir James Steuart of Goodtrees (1635–1713)[10]
- William Steuart (1640–1700)[3]
- Sir Robert Steuart, 1st Baronet of Allanbank (1643–1707)
- Marion Steuart (1645–1706), who married John Maxwell (1648–1732)[3]
In 1648, two years after Anne's death, Steuart married Marion McCulloch Elliott (d. 1690), widow of Sir John Elliott, and only daughter and heiress of David McCulloch, of Goodtrees.[10]
Sir James Steuart died on 31 March 1681.[10]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- Notes
- ^ "Sir James Steuart of Coltness (1608–1681), Lord Provost of Edinburgh (1648–1650 & 1658–1660) | Art UK | Discover Artworks Sir James Steuart of Coltness (1608–1681), Lord Provost of Edinburgh (1648–1650 & 1658–1660)". artuk.org. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ a b "Sir James Steuart of Coltness". collections.ed.ac.uk. University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ a b c "James Steuart [Stewart] b. 1608 d. 1681: MacFarlane Clan & Families Genealogy". clanmacfarlanegenealogy.info. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ a b c "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 March 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Taylor, W. L. (December 1957). "A Short Life of Sir James Steuart: Political Economist". The South African Journal of Economics. 25 (4): 290–302. doi:10.1111/j.1813-6982.1957.tb02850.x.
- ^ Anderson, William (1863). The Scottish Nation: Or The Surnames, Families, Literature, Honours, and Biographical History of the People of Scotland, Volume 3. p. 509.
- ^ Matthew H.C.G., editor, Dictionary of National Biography on CD-ROM (Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, 1995). Hereinafter cited as Dictionary of National Biography.
- ^ "Person Page - Sir James Steuart of Coltness". thepeerage.com. The Peerage. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ "University of Edinburgh Archive and Manuscript Collections | Special Collections | Coltness Papers". archives.collections.ed.ac.uk. University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ^ a b c d Calderwood, Margaret Steuart (1884). Letters and Journals of Mrs. Calderwood of Polton: From England, Holland and the Low Countries in 1756. D. Douglas. p. 379. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
James Steuart of Coltness (1608–1681).
- Sources
- Joseph Foster, Members of Parliament, Scotland (London and Aylesbury, 1882), p. 326
- 1608 births
- 1681 deaths
- Covenanters
- Lord Provosts of Edinburgh
- Burgh Commissioners to the Parliament of Scotland
- Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1648–1651
- Scottish bankers
- Scottish merchants
- 17th-century Scottish people
- 17th-century Scottish politicians
- Politicians from Edinburgh
- Scottish knights
- Scottish prisoners and detainees
- 17th-century Scottish businesspeople