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Douglas, Margaret

-1775

Margaret Douglas was the eldest daughter of James Douglas of Mains in Dumbartonshire. She outlived her husband Archibald, Duke of Douglas but when the couple failed to produce an heir the scene was set for the great cause celebre of the later eighteenth century. The 'Douglas Cause' saw various claimants to the titles and estates of the late Duke. Peggy was adamant that her nephew would inherit but the Court of Session ruled in favour of the Duke of Hamilton. When the case was taken to the House of Lords in 1769 the decision was overturned much to the delight of the populous of Edinburgh who vented their anger on the houses of the judges who had ruled in favour of Hamilton. A great supporter of Douglas was James Boswell. When he was arranging a visit to the rather chilly Bothwell castle he asked for a warm room. The Duchess replied that the warmest bed was hers and that he was welcome to it! The Scots Peerage informs us that she was 'quite a character' and that 'she was the last of the nobility to be attended by halberdiers when going about the country. When she visited, she left her dress behind as a present' (Scots Peerage, Vol. IX, p.13). In her will she reveals the importance of carrying on the traditions of her family instructing her successors to be 'carrying always the Surname of Douglas and Arms of Douglas with the addition of a woman trampling a snake under her feet and supporting a child in her arms'. She also demonstrated her religious conviction insisting that her nieces are 'educated in the principles of the reformed protestant Religion as established by Law in Great Britain' and threatening to debar them if they were to embrace Catholicism.
Further reading:Milne, Hugh M., Boswells Edinburgh Journals 1767-1786, (Edinburgh, 2003) Paul, James Balfour, Sir, The Scots peerage, (Edinburgh, 1904-14)

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