Viscounts Arbuthnott (1641)

1^st Viscount Arbuthnott, Robert Arbuthnott, b.?, a.1641, d.1655

The son of Sir Robert Arbuthnott of that Ilk (b.?, d.1633) and Margaret Fraser, daughter of Simon Fraser, 6^th Lord Lovat, was a leading member of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, but with sufficient royalist leanings that he was created 1^st Viscount of Arbuthnott and 1^st Lord Inverbervie by Charles I in an attempt to persuade him to the royalist cause. He was made a Privy Counsellor in 1649.

2^nd Viscount Arbuthnott, Robert Arbuthnott, b.?, a.1655, d.1682

Son of the 1^st Viscount and Lady Marjorie Carnegie (b.?, d.1651), daughter of David Carnegie, 1^st Earl of Southesk.

3^rd Viscount Arbuthnott, Robert Arbuthnott, b.1663, a.1682, d.1694

Son of the 2^nd Viscount and Lady Elizabeth Keith (b.?, d.1664), daughter of William Keith, 6^th Earl Marischal.

4^th Viscount Arbuthnott, Robert Arbuthnott, b.1686, a.1694, d.1710

Son of the 3^rd Viscount and Ann Gordon (b.1663, d.1695), daughter of George Gordon, 15^th Earl of Sutherland.

5^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Arbuthnott, b.c.1692, a.1710, d.1756

Younger brother of the 4^th Viscount.

6^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Arbuthnott, b.1703, a.1756, d.1791

Grandson of the 2^nd Viscount and his second wife Catherine Gordon (b.?, d.1692), and son of John Arbuthnott (b.?, d.c.1737) and Margaret Falconer (b.?, d.1760).

7^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Arbuthnott, b.1754, a.1791, d.1800

Son of the 6^th Viscount and Jean Arbuthnott (b.?, d.1786).

8^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Arbuthnott, b.1778, a.1800, d.1860

Son of the 7^th Viscount and Isabella Graham (b.?, d.1818). He reached the rank of Captain in the 52^nd Foot Regiment, having previously served with the 7^th Dragoon Guards. He was Lord-Lieutenant of Kincardineshire from 1805 to 1847 and a Representative Peer from 1818 to 1820 and from 1821 to 1847. He suffered a head injury after falling from a horse in 1829, which led to erratic behaviour that culminated in being prosecuted for fraud in 1848, after which he left Scotland, handing over his estates to his heir.

9^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Arbuthnott, b.1806, a.1860, d.1891

Son of the 8^th Viscount and Margaret Ogilvy (b.?, d.1870), sister of David Ogilvy, 4^th Earl of Airlie. Educated at Corpus Christi College Oxford, he served with the 6^th Dragoons, reaching the rank of Captain in 1830.

10^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Arbuthnott, b.1843, a.1891, d.1895

Son of the 9^th Viscount and Lady Jean Graham Drummond Ogilvy (b.1818, d.1902), daughter of David Ogilvy, 4^th Earl of Airlie. He had no children.

11^th Viscount Arbuthnott, David Arbuthnott, b.1845, a.1895, d.1914

Younger brother of the 10^th Viscount. He was insane from an early age.

12^th Viscount Arbuthnott, William Arbuthnott, b.1849, a.1914, d.1917

Younger brother of the 10^th and 11^th Viscounts. He never married.

13^th Viscount Arbuthnott, Walter Charles Warner Arbuthnott, b.1847, a.1917, d.1920

Grandson of the 8^th Viscount and son of Walter Arbuthnott (b.1808, d.1891) and Anna Maria Ottley (b.?, d.1891). He reached the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the Royal Artillery.

14^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Ogilvy Arbuthnott, b.1882, a.1920, d.1960

Son of the 13^th Viscount and Emma Marion Hall Parlby (b.?, d.1930). He served in the Calgary Light Horse of the Canadian Army before reaching the rank of Lieutenant with the Welsh Guards. He was Lord-Lieutenant of Kincardineshire from 1926 to 1960 and a Representative Peer from 1944 to 1955.

15^th Viscount Arbuthnott, Robert Keith Arbuthnott, b.1897, a.1960, d.1966

Great-grandson of the 8^th Viscount, grandson of Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh Arbuthnott (b.1812, d.1866) and Susannah Morrison Campbell (b.?, d.1920) and son of John Campbell Arbuthnott (b.1858, d.1923) and Jeannie Sinclair Hamilton (b.?, d.1947). Educated at Fettes College and the Royal Naval College, he served in the Black Watch during the First World War. He rose through the ranks between the wars and commanded the 11^th Infantry Brigade from 1942 to 1944 and then of the 78^th Infantry Division. He was invested as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1944 and as a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1945, also receiving the US Legion of Merit and the Military Cross. In 1945 he reached the rank of Major-General and was Chief of Staff of the Scottish Command from 1948 to 1949. From 1960 to 1964 he was Colonel of the Black Watch and was Lord-Lieutenant of Kincardineshire from 1960 to 1966.

16^th Viscount Arbuthnott, John Campbell Arbuthnott, b.1924, a.1966

Son of the 15^th Viscount and Ursula Collingwood (b.?, d.1989). He was educated at Fettes College and fought in the Second World War, receiving the Distinguished Service Cross in 1945. He finished his education at Gonville & Caius College Cambridge before joining the Ministry of Agriculture in 1949. Very active in this field, he was Senior Land Agent for the Nature Conservancy in Scotland from 1955 to 1967 and a member of the Countryside Commission from 1968 to 1971. As well as these pursuits he also served in the boards of several large companies and was Chairman of Scottish Widows from 1984 to 1987. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of the Chartered Land Agents Society. He was invested as an Officer of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem in 1972, as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1986 and as a Knight of the Order of the Thistle in 1996. He was also Lord-Lieutenant of Kincardineshire from 1977 to 1999 and was Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1986 to 1987. He is 16^th Lord Inverbervie and Chief of Clan Arbuthnott.

The courtesy title for the heir is Master of Arbuthnott.

(Last updated: 28/12/2009)