Hail to the Chief of Clan Scott

[JonathanB]

The kilt relevance of the following question about Scottish history is that I’ve just ordered a kilt in Scott tartan. And a lovely tartan it looks too.

As well as the attractiveness of the tartan, I’ve become interested in Clan Scot, partly through having read a lot of Sir Walter Scott recently, including his first success, the poem The Lay of the Last Minstrel which tells of the feud between the Scotts and a neighbouring family.

Looking up the list of clan chiefs in the invaluable Whittaker’s Almanack, I see the head of Clan Scott is his Grace, the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensbury. But at the head of the page it states “Under decision (Campbell-Gray 1950) that a bearer of a “double or tripled barrelled” surname cannot be held chief of a part of such...”

His Grace’s surname is Montague Douglas Scott. Looks triple barrelled to me

So what’s he doing being a clan chief with a triple barrelled surname?

[cessna152towser]

His Grace Walter Francis John Montagu Douglas Scott, 9th Duke of Buccleuch and 11th Duke of Queensberry was recognised as Chief of Clan Scott in 1975 after dropping the hyphens in the surname Montagu-Douglas-Scott (see Lyon Register, volume 60, folios 7 & 8.)
On his death in 2007 he was succeeeded by his son Richard Walter John Montagu Douglas Scott.

[McClef]

There is a Clan Douglas to which the actual heir is the Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 16th Duke of Hamilton who is Chief of Clan Hamilton and is not allowed to be the actual Douglas Chief since the Lord Lyon King of Arms requires him to assume the single name Douglas. I assume that if he were to do so then his Chieftainship of Clan Hamilton would be then affected.

[freddie]

There is a Clan Douglas to which the actual heir is the Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 16th Duke of Hamilton who is Chief of Clan Hamilton and is not allowed to be the actual Douglas Chief since the Lord Lyon King of Arms requires him to assume the single name Douglas. I assume that if he were to do so then his Chieftainship of Clan Hamilton would be then affected.

I thought the Earl of Home, presently David Douglas-Home, had precedence over the Douglas-Hamilton line, as Elisabeth Countess of Home was the elder sister at the time of the death of the last Lord Douglas (her Father). Her younger sister married into the Hamilton family.

[TheOfficialBren]

Scott Weathered Green is one of the most gorgeous tartans ever created in my opinion. It's fabulous in every way.
:-D
Love all the Scott tartans.

[McClef]

I thought the Earl of Home, presently David Douglas-Home, had precedence over the Douglas-Hamilton line, as Elisabeth Countess of Home was the elder sister at the time of the death of the last Lord Douglas (her Father). Her younger sister married into the Hamilton family.

The father of David Douglas-Home was Alec Douglas-Home and his mother was Elizabeth Arlington, daughter of the Master of Eton College, who not a Douglas at all, and descended from the Spencer family. Alec Douglas-Home disclaimed his peerage in order to become Prime Minster and took a life peerage on his retirement which cannot be inherited. However, David was able to inherit his father's disclaimed peerage upon his death. He is the Clan Chief of Clan Home not Douglas. Even if one could establish precedence (my previous remarks were based upon the precedence of the Douglas-Hamiltons having been established by the Lord Lyon) the same reason given by the Lord Lyon would still hold true, ie a single name.

Elizabeth Arlington's sisters were Lavinia who married Sir Roger Mynors, academic and classical scholar, and Joan who married Rev. John Wilkes, Master in College and later House Master at Eton, Warden of Radley College and later vicar of Marlow. So neither marred into the Hamilton family.

While is was a student at St Andrews I had the honour of meeting both the then Sir Alec Douglas-Home and his wife then then Lady Douglas-Home.

[freddie]

The father of David Douglas-Home was Alec Douglas-Home and his mother was Elizabeth Arlington, daughter of the Master of Eton College, who not a Douglas at all, and descended from the Spencer family. Alec Douglas-Home disclaimed his peerage in order to become Prime Minster and took a life peerage on his retirement which cannot be inherited. However, David was able to inherit his father's disclaimed peerage upon his death. He is the Clan Chief of Clan Home not Douglas. Even if one could establish precedence (my previous remarks were based upon the precedence of the Douglas-Hamiltons having been established by the Lord Lyon) the same reason given by the Lord Lyon would still hold true, ie a single name.

Elizabeth Arlington's sisters were Lavinia who married Sir Roger Mynors, academic and classical scholar, and Joan who married Rev. John Wilkes, Master in College and later House Master at Eton, Warden of Radley College and later vicar of Marlow. So neither marred into the Hamilton family.

While is was a student at St Andrews I had the honour of meeting both the then Sir Alec Douglas-Home and his wife then then Lady Douglas-Home.

The Elisabeth (Elizabeth?) Countess of Home I refer to lived in the 1850's and her Father, the last Lord Douglas, died in 1856, (I think). I'll need to dust off my old clan history books and check it all out again.

[EagleJCS]

Which Scott tartan did you choose Jonathan: Red (seen in my avatar), Green or Hunting (brown)?

Alex has it mostly right. Based on what I've read in the Clan Scott newsletter, the 9th Duke chose to revert to the Scott surname instead of the three-part unhyphenated surname that had been passed down from the early 1800's. The family name was originally Scott, then when some Montagu lands passed into the family through marriage it became the unhyphenated Montagu Scott, then in the same generation with some Douglas lands (and the Duke of Queensberry title, which was separated from the Marquessate), the Douglas name was added, again unhyphenated. According to what I've read, this was to honor those prominent families and perpetuate the name and association with those properties.

Anyhow, the family has continued with the 9th Duke's decision and have used Scott as the family surname exclusively. (I don't know for certain, but I think the current Duke's children may still retain the M D S name on their official paperwork - birth certificates, passports, etc.)

[McClef]

Interestingly I am struggling to find references to the hyphenated name Montagu-Douglas-Scott on the net.

Even references to the late Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, the Queen's Aunt, (from this very family and who holds the record for the longest lived British Royal) are not hyphenated.

[JonathanB]

I notice the lack of hyphens. I thought that may be the explanation.

Incidentally, haven't the Scott and Buccleuch titles passed through the female line, Ann(e?) Scott being the sole heiress and being married off to James, son of Charles II and Lucy Walters, who adopted the name of James Scott?

Whittakers has a list of family names of peers with the relevant title, and the Duke appears under M for MDS, not S.