James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Abercorn

James Edward Hamilton, 4th Duke of Abercorn (29 February 1904 – 4 June 1979) styled Viscount Strabane until 1913 and Marquess of Hamilton between 1913 and 1953, was a British peer.[1] He was the son of James Hamilton, 3rd Duke of Abercorn, and Lady Rosalind Cecilia Caroline Bingham. He inherited his father's peerages on 12 September 1953.

His Grace The Duke of Abercorn
Lord Lieutenant of Tyrone
In office 1951–1979
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Preceded by	James Ponsonby Galbraith
Succeeded by	John Hamilton-Stubber
Member of the Senate of Northern Ireland
In office 22 March 1949 – 8 May 1962
Personal details
Born	James Edward Hamilton, Viscount Strabane 29 February 1904
Died	4 June 1979 (aged 75)
Political party	Unionist
Spouse(s)	Lady Kathleen Crichton ​ ​ (m. 1928)​
Children	3, including James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn
Parents	James Hamilton, 3rd Duke of Abercorn Lady Rosalind Bingham

Career

The then-Lord Hamilton attended Eton. He was commissioned into the Grenadier Guards, where he rose to the rank of captain. In 1946, he was elected to the County Council of County Tyrone, served as High Sheriff of Tyrone, and then served in the Senate of Northern Ireland. He became Lord Lieutenant of County Tyrone on his father's death, a position he held for the remainder of his life. He was appointed honorary colonel of the 5th Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers (a Territorial Army unit), and died at age 75.

Family

In 1928 he married Lady Kathleen Crichton (1905–1990), a daughter of Henry Crichton, Viscount Crichton (1872–1914, son of the 4th and father of the 5th Earl of Erne) and Lady Mary Cavendish Grosvenor (1883–1959, daughter of the 1st Duke of Westminster).

They had two sons and a daughter:

• Lady Moyra Kathleen Hamilton (1930–2020), who married Cmdr. Peter Colin Drummond Campbell in 1966. He was Equerry to HM The Queen between 1957 and 1960, and a naval commander who went on to be Deputy Director of the Anti-Submarine School. They have two sons and live in Northern Ireland.[2] Lady Moyra was one of Queen Elizabeth II's Maids of Honour at the 1953 Coronation.[2] She went on to serve as a lady-in-waiting to Princess Alexandra from 1954 to 1964, and to the Queen from 1964 to 1966, then as an extra lady-in-waiting until 1969. She was made a CVO in 1963.[2]
• James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn (b. 1934)
• Lord Claud Anthony Hamilton (b. 1939), who was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of County Fermanagh in 1978; he was High Sheriff of Fermanagh in 1990 and was made a Justice of the Peace for the county in 1991. In 1982 he married Catherine Janet Faulkner (niece of Lord Faulkner of Downpatrick). They have a son and a daughter:[2]
  • Anna Kathleen Hamilton (b. 1983)
  • Alexander James Hamilton (b. 1987)

See also

• List of Northern Ireland Members of the House of Lords

References

1. Cokayne, George Edward (2000) [1982]. Gibbs, Vicary; Doubleday, H. A.; White, Geoffrey; Warrand, Duncan; de Walden, Lord Howard (eds.). The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant. I. Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing. p. 10. ISBN 0904387828. OCLC 60066829.
2. Montague-Smith, Patrick W., ed. (2008). "Abercorn, Duke of (Hamilton) sat as Marquess of Abercorn (GB 1790) (Duke I 1868, Bt I 1660)". Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage 2008. London, UK: Debrett's Peerage Limited.

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Duke of Abercorn
• Portraits of James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Abercorn at the National Portrait Gallery, London