Keith Stewart

The Hon. Keith Stewart of Glasserton (1739 – 3 March 1795) was a Scottish Admiral and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1762 and from 1768 to 1784.

Vice Admiral The Honourable Keith Stewart KCB
Member of Parliament for Wigtownshire
In office 1768–1784
Preceded by	James Murray
Succeeded by	Andrew McDouall
Member of Parliament for Wigtown Burghs
In office 1762–1762
Preceded by	Hon. Archibald Montgomerie
Succeeded by	John Hamilton
Personal details
Born	Keith Stewart 1739
Died	3 March 1795 (aged 55–56)
Spouse(s)	Georgina Isabella d'Aguilar ​ ​ (m. after 1782)​
Relations	John Stewart of Nateby Hall (grandson)
Children	James Alexander Stewart Leveson Douglas Stewart
Parents	Alexander Stewart, 6th Earl of Galloway
Military service
Branch/service	Royal Navy
Rank	Vice Admiral
Battles/wars	Battle of Dogger Bank

Early life

Stewart was the second surviving son of Alexander Stewart, 6th Earl of Galloway and, his second wife, Lady Catherine Cochrane (the youngest daughter of John Cochrane, 4th Earl of Dundonald).[1] Among his siblings were John Stewart, 7th Earl of Galloway,[2] Hon. George Stewart (a Lieutenant who died at Fort Ticonderoga during the French and Indian War),[3] Lady Catherine Stewart (wife of their cousin James Murray of Broughton),[1] Lady Susanna Stewart (wife of Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford),[4] Lady Margaret Stewart (wife of Charles Gordon, 4th Earl of Aboyne),[5] Lady Harriet Stewart (wife of Archibald Hamilton, 9th Duke of Hamilton),[6] and Lady Charlotte Stewart (wife of John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore).[7]

Career

Stewart joined the Royal Navy in about 1753. He attained the rank of Captain in 1762, the promotion being one of the terms of his surrendering his seat in Parliament. He commanded HMS Berwick in 1777. He served under Admiral Keppel in the action off Ushant on 27 July 1778.[8]

In June 1781, Stewart was given a North Sea command with the rank of Commodore. He served under Vice Admiral Hyde Parker in the Battle of Dogger Bank in August 1778. In September 1778, he was given command of the squadron blockading Dutch ports. Although he resigned this appointment after a ship escaped, Stewart was a highly regarded Naval officer and his career continued. He served under Admiral Richard Howe in his expedition to Gibraltar.

Stewart became a Rear Admiral in 1790,[9] and Vice Admiral in 1794.[10][11] He was awarded the Order of the Bath.[12]

Political career

He represented Wigtown Burghs for a short time in 1762, between winning a by-election on 19 February 1762 and resigning before a new MP was elected on 15 April 1762. He was MP for Wigtownshire from 1768 to 1784.[13]

Personal life

On 13 May 1782, Stewart was married to Georgina Isabella d'Aguilar, daughter of Ephraim Lópes Pereira d'Aguilar, 2nd Baron d'Aguilar.[14] Together, they were the parents of:

• James Alexander Stewart-Mackenzie (1784–1843), who married Mary Elizabeth Frederica Mackenzie in 1817. She was former wife of Vice Admiral Sir Samuel Hood and daughter of Francis Mackenzie, 1st Baron Seaforth. After their marriage, he assumed the additional surname of Mackenzie. Mary's younger sister, Helen Anne Mackenzie, was the wife of Joshua Henry Mackenzie, Lord Mackenzie.[15][16]
• Leveson Douglas Stewart (1786–1819), a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy who married Elizabeth Dalrymple-Hay, daughter of Sir John Dalrymple-Hay, 1st Baronet and Susan Hay (daughter of Sir Thomas Hay of Park, 3rd Baronet), in 1808. They were the parents of several children, including John Stewart of Nateby Hall.[17]

Stewart died on 3 March 1795.[1] Following Stewart's death, his widow married secondly, in 1797, to Lt.-Colonel Richard Fitzgerald, who was killed in action at the Battle of Waterloo.[18]

References

1. "Galloway, Earl of (S, 1623)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
2. Marshall, John (1823). Royal Naval Biography : or Memoirs of the services of all the flag-officers, superannuated rear-admirals, retired-captains, post-captains and commanders, whose names appeared on the Admiralty list of sea officers at the commencement of the year 1760, or who have since been promoted; illustrated by a series of historical and explanatory notes. With copious addenda. Vol. I, Part II. London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green. pp. 444–446.
3. Wilkes, John (1811). Encyclopaedia Londinensis. p. 610.
4. "Stafford, Marquess of (GB, 1786)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
5. "Aboyne, Earl of (S, 1660)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
6. "Hamilton, Duke of (S, 1643)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
7. "Dunmore, Earl of (S, 1686)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
8. McCulloch, Stuart (2017). A Scion of Heroes. Troubador Publishing Ltd. p. 65. ISBN 978-1-78462-793-5.
9. "No. 13241". The London Gazette. 2 October 1790. p. 599.
10. "The Hon. Keith Stewart (1739-1795)". threedecks.org. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
11. The Scots Magazine. Sands, Brymer, Murray and Cochran. 1795. p. 412.
12. Admiralty, Great Britain (1870). The Navy List. John Murray. p. 326.
13. History of Parliament: House of Commons 1754-1790, by Sir Lewis Namier and James Brooke (Sidgwick & Jackson 1964)
14. "Baron d'Aguilar, Portuguese Baron of the Holy Roman Empire". www.twickenham-museum.org.uk. Twickenham Museum. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
15. Cumming, Constance Frederica Gordon (1904). Memories. Blackwood. p. 28.
16. The Scots Magazine. Sands, Brymer, Murray and Cochran. 1821. p. 189.
17. The Scots Magazine and Edinburgh Literary Miscellany. Archibald Constable & Company. 1808. p. 877.
18. Booth (bookseller.), John (1817). The Battle of Waterloo: Also of Ligny, and Quatre Bras, Containing the Series of Accounts Published by Authority, British and Foreign, with Circumstantial Details Relative to the Battles, from a Variety of Original and Authentic Sources, with Connected Official and Private Documents, Forming an Historical Record by Those who Had the Honour to Share in the Operations of the Campaign of the Netherlands, 1815. J. Booth. p. 306.

External links

• Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages
• Stewart family tree
• Portrait