Earls of Hopetoun
(1703)
1st Earl of Hopetoun, Charles Hope, b.1681, a.1703, d.1742
The surname of Hope derives from the French “des h’oublons”, oublon
being French for hop. The family history has John de Hope, a Frenchman who
married a Scottish woman, accompanying Princess Magdalene to Scotland when she
married King James V, and settling in Edinburgh. However there were people with
that surname in Edinburgh long before this time. An Edward Hope was a leading
figure during the Reformation and was a Commissioner for Edinburgh to the
General Assembly in 1560. He may or may not have been the father of Henry Hope,
who was definitely the father of Sir Thomas Hope, who became Lord Advocate and
was created 1st Baronet Hope of Craighall in the Baronetage of Nova
Scotia. Thomas’ younger brother, Sir James Hope of Hopetoun (b.1614, d.1661)
married Anna Foulis, daughter of Robert Foulis of Leadhills, whose estates he
inherited. He developed the mines at Leadhills and was made Governor of the
Mint in 1641, a Lord of Session in 1649 and a member of the Committee of
Estates in 1650. His son John Hope (b.1650, d.1682) obtained the barony of
Abercorn that provided with it the hereditary position of Sheriff of
Linlithlow. He also obtained the barony of Niddry and based himself at the
castle there. He married Lady Margaret Hamilton (b.?, d.1711), daughter of John
Hamilton, 4th Earl of Haddington and
their son Charles Hope was raised to the peerage as 1st Earl of
Hopetoun, 1st Viscount Aithrie and 1st Lord Hope. He
served as Lord-Lieutenant of Linlithgowshire (the old name for West Lothian)
from 1715 until his death and as a Representative Peer from 1722 to 1742. He
was Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in
1723 and Lord of Police from 1734 to 1742, and he was a Governor of the Bank of
Scotland from 1740. He was made a Knight of the Thistle in 1738. Hopetoun House
near Edinburgh was constructed during his lifetime, although it was originally
commissioned by his mother, with original design by architect William Bruce
followed by major alterations started in 1721 overseen by William Adam, and after
his death by his sons, and not completed until 1767.
2nd Earl of Hopetoun, John Hope, b.1704,
a.1742, d.1781
Son of the 1st Earl and Lady Henrietta Johnstone (b.1682,
d.1750), daughter of Sir William Johnstone, 1st Marquess of Annandale. He was Lord of Police from 1744 to 1760 and
Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in
1754. He was appointed as Curator Bonis, that is a trustee, for the estates of his
wife’s nephew (and his mother’s grandson), George Johnstone, 3rd
Marquess of Annandale.
3rd Earl of Hopetoun, James Hope-Johnstone,
b.1741, a.1781, d.1817
Son of the 2nd Earl and his first wife Anne Ogilvy (b.?,
d.1759), daughter of James Ogilvy, 2nd Earl of Seafield.
He took over from his father as trustee of the estates of Annandale and changed
his name. After the death of the 3rd Marquess (and 4th
Earl) of Annandale, from whom he obtained extensive estates, he claimed that
man’s earldom, but made no progress before his death, and it was not until 1985
that he was counted de jure as 5th Earl of Annandale and Hartfell.
He was a Representative Peer from 1784 to 1790 and from 1794 to 1796, and held
the office of Hereditary Steward of Annandale and Hereditary Keeper of
Lochmaben Castle (obtained via his Johnstone grandmother). He was also
Lord-Lieutenant of Linlithgowshire from 1794 to 1816, raising a local Yeomanry
force and Volunteer Regiment from that county, having already raised a
temporary regiment of Hopetoun Fencibles in 1793 in response to the outbreak of
war with France. In 1809 he was created 1st Baron Hopetoun in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom. As he had five daughters, the Hopetoun earldom
transferred to his younger half-brother, but the Annandale estates and any
claim to the Annandale title passed to his daughter Anne Hope-Johnstone
(b.1768, d.1818). She was eventually to be considered as 6th
Countess of Annandale, but not during her lifetime.
4th Earl of Hopetoun, John Hope, b.1765,
a.1817, d.1823
Son of the 2nd Earl and his second wife Jane Oliphant (b.?,
d.1767), daughter of Robert Oliphant of Rossie. He joined the army at the age
of 15 and served in the 10th Light Dragoons, reaching the rank of
Lieutenant-Colonel of the 25th Foot Regiment in 1783. In 1794 he
transferred to the West Indies with rank of Brigadier-General and stayed there
for three years before returning to Europe where he served in Holland against
the French. In 1801 he was sent to Egypt to negotiate the surrender of the
French garrisons. He reached the rank of Major-General in 1802 and
Lieutenant-General in 1808, commanding a division in the Peninsular Wars. He
led the British left at the Battle of Corunna and took over when Sir John Moore
was killed. When he returned to Britain he was invested as a Knight of the
Bath. He was then given command of the reserve forces during the Walcheren
Campaign before being appointed Commander-in-Chief of Ireland and an Irish
Privy Counsellor in 1812. From 1790 to 1800 he served as an MP for
Linlithgowshire, and in 1809 he was created 1st Baron Niddry in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom, which allowed him to sit in the House of Lords
as of right. He welcomed King George IV to Hopetoun House in 1822 during the
first state visit of the reigning monarch for 170 years and was made
Captain-General of the Royal Company of Archers. He was also Lord Lieutenant of
Linlithgowshire from 1816 until his death.
5th Earl of Hopetoun, John Hope, b.1803,
a.1823, d.1843
Son of the 4th Earl and his second wife Louisa Dorothea
Wedderburn (b.?, d.1836), daughter of Sir John Wedderburn, 1st
Baronet Wedderburn of Balindean, county of Perth. He was Lord Lieutenant of
Linlithgowshire from 1825 to 1843.
6th Earl of Hopetoun, John Alexander Hope,
b.1831, a.1843, d.1873
Son of the 5th Earl and Louisa Bosville Macdonald (b.1802,
d.1854), daughter of Lieutenant-General Sir Godrey Bosville Macdonald, 3rd
Baron Macdonald of Slate. He was Lord Lieutenant of Linlithgowshire from 1863
to 1873.
7th Earl of Hopetoun, John Adrian Louis
Hope, b.1860, a.1873, d.1908
Son of the 6th Earl and Ethelred Ann Reynardson (b.?,
d.1884). Educated at Eton and Sandhurst, he sat in the House of Lords as a Lord
in Waiting, and in 1889 was appointed Governor of Victoria. When he returned to
Britain in 1895 he was made a Privy Counsellor and was Paymaster General in the
Salisbury Government, before becoming Lord Chamberlain in 1900. In 1901 he
became first Governor-General of Australia. However, he aroused the antagonism
of the Australian political class by a series of errors in judgement, and
resigned in 1902. As compensation, he was created 1st Marquess of
Linlithgow in 1905.
Marquesses of Linlithgow (1905)
1st Marquess of Linlithgow, John Adrian
Louis Hope, b.1860, a.1905, d.1908
Later that year he became Secretary-of-State for Scotland under Prime
Minister Arthur Balfour, but his poor health prevented any further advancements
in his political career, and he died of pernicious anaemia while staying in
Pau, in France.
2nd Marquess of Linlithgow, Victor
Alexander John Hope, b.1887, a.1908, d.1952
Son of the 1st Marquess and Hersey Alice Eveleigh-de Moleyns
(b.1867, d.1937), daughter of Sir Dayrolles Blakeney Eveleigh-de Moleyns, 4th
Baron Ventry of Ventry. Born at Hopetoun House, he was educated at Eton, then
joined the army, serving in the First World War. He reached the rank of
Colonel, and commanded a battalion of the Royal Scots. He was mentioned in
dispatches and awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE). He served in
Conservative governments, chairing various scientific organisations, before
becoming Viceroy of India in 1936. While in this position he had to deal with
the Indian government led by the Congress Party, and he had to control the
civil disobedience and disturbances started by the Congress Party leaders after
the start of the Second World War. After retiring in 1943, he served as Lord
High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1944 and
1945. He amassed numerous honours, including Knight of the Thistle in 1928,
Knight Grand Commander of the Indian Empire in 1929, Knight Grand Commander of
the Star of India in 1936 and Knight of the Garter in 1943. He was made a Privy Counsellor in 1935 and was also Lord Lieutenant of
Linlithgowshire from 1929 to 1952 and Chancellor of the University of Edinburgh
from 1946 to his death.
3rd Marquess of Linlithgow, Charles William
Frederick Hope, b.1912, a.1952, 1987
Son of the 2nd Marquess and Doreen Maud Milner (b.?, d.1965),
daughter of Sir Frederick George Milner, 7th Baronet Milner. He
fought in the Second World War and received the Military Cross. While serving
in the 51st (Highland) Division in 1940 he was taken prisoner and
held at Colditz Castle. After the war he went into Finance and was a director
of Eagle Star Insurance. He was Lord Lieutenant of Linlithgowshire from 1964 to
1985.
4th Marquess of Linlithgow, Adrian John
Charles Hope, b.1946, a.1987
Son of the 3rd Marquess and Vivien Kenyon-Slaney (b.1918,
d.1964). As well as being 4th Marquess, he is 10th Earl
of Hopetoun, 10th Lord Hope, 10th Viscount Aithrie and 7th
Baron Niddry.
The courtesy title for the heir is Earl of Hopetoun.
(Last updated: 19/01/2011)