James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Abercorn
James Hamilton Abercorn , 1st Earl of Abercorn (c.
1575-
1618), was the eldest son of Claud Hamilton, Lord Paisley (4th son of James, 2nd earl of Arran, and duke of Chatelherault), and of Margaret, daughter of George, 6th Lord Seton. He was made
sheriff of Linlithgow in
1600, received large grants of lands in
Scotland and
Ireland, was created in
1603 baron of Abercorn, and on the 10th of
July 1606 was rewarded for his services in the matter of the union by being made earl of Abercorn, and Baron Hamilton, Mount Castle and Kilpatrick. He married Marion, daughter of Thomas, 5th Lord Boyd, and left five sons, of whom the eldest, baron of Strabane, succeeded him as 2nd earl of Abercorn. He died on the 23rd of
March 1618. The title of Abercorn, held by the head of the Hamilton family, became a marquessate in
1790, and a dukedom in
1868, the 2nd duke of Abercorn (b.
1838) being a prominent Unionist politician and chairman of the
British South Africa Company.
Original text from From 1911 Encyclopaedia Britanica