Historical and genealogical memoirs of the House of Hamilton

294
HISTORICAL AND GENEALOGICAL MEMOIRS
earl of second son the ensuing: year, 1608. Bv
HADDINGTON. _ O J ' J
= his wife, Elizabeth, daughter of James
Heriot of Trabrown, he had issue :
1. Sir Thomas, his successor.
2. Sir Andrew, of Redhouse ; for
whom, vide Art. Redhouse.
3. Sir John Hamilton, of Magdalens
in co. Linlithgow, who was appointed
an Ordinary Lord of Session, 27th July
1 622, and the same year Lord Register
of Scotland. He died at Holyroodhouse,
2d November 1630, aud was buried in
the Abbey church there. He had no
male issue, only one daughter ; and
Magdalens was sold to the Dundas
family.
4. Patrick Hamilton of Little Pres-
toun ; for whom, vide Art. Fala.
5. Alexander Hamilton, General of
the Artillery, who had a high command
in the troops sent to the assistance of
the King of Sweden, under the first
Duke of Hamilton, in 1631. He died
in 1649. He left two children, a boy
and a girl : the boy died in 1 655, and
the girl was surreptitiously married in
Edinburgh, by Sir James Murray, to
his son James, a few days after her
brother's death.
1. Christian, married, in 1592, to
Alexander Hamilton of Innerwick.
2. Margaret, married to William
Kircaldy of Grange, from whom she
had a charter of half the lands of Tyrie,
26th June 1601.
Sir Thomas Hamilton married, 2d,
Elizabeth Murray, by whom it does not
appear he had any issue.
w»od, i. 678. iv. Sir Thomas Hamilton, the
eldest son, born in 1563, studied the
law in France ; was admitted advocate
in 1587, and soon distinguished himself
at the bar by talents and learning. He
was appointed, in 1592, a Lord of Ses-
sion, by the title of Lord Drumcairn ;
and, in 1595, Lord Advocate. He had
charters of the kirk-lands of Dalmeny
and Humbie in Linlithgowshire ; of the
lands of West Binny and the ecclesi-
astical lands of Easter Binny, of the
barony of Monkland in 1602, and of the
dominical lands of Drumcorse in co.
Linlithgow, 22d June 1607. He was
received Lord Register in 1612, and the
same year succeeded Sir Alexander Hay
as Secretary of State. He was raised
to the dignity of the peerage, by the title
of Lord Binning and Byres, 1613 ; was
appointed Lord President of the Court
of Session, 1616; and was created Earl
of Melrose, by patent, dated at New-
market, 20th March 1613, to him and
his heirs-male bearing the name and
arms of Hamilton. After the death of
Sir John Ramsay, Viscount of Had-
dington, the Earl of Melrose, judging
it more honourable to take his title from
a county than from an abbey, obtained
a patent, dated at Bagshot, 27th August
1627, suppressing the title of Melrose,
and creating him Earl of Haddington,
to him and his heirs-male, with the
former precedency.
His Lordship continued Secretary of
State and President of the Court of
Session till 15th February 1626, when
he was constituted Keeper of the Privy
Seal, and he died on the 29th May 1637,
in the 74th year of his age.