View source for William Kerr, 1st Earl of Lothian

{{Short description|Scottish nobleman (1605–1675)}}
{{more citations needed|date=August 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}
[[File:"Lothian and Linlitquo" (22072634909).jpg|thumb|Old map of Lothian and Linlithgow, with the arms of William Kerr, 1st Earl of Lothian]]
'''William Kerr''', first Earl of Lothian of a new creation (1605–1675) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] nobleman.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-15468;jsessionid=82AA72FAE1598540AA41D12E7A770A42|title= William Kerr, third earl of Lothian}}</ref>
== Career ==
Kerr signed the [[Covenanter|national covenant]] in 1638 and marched with the Scots into England in 1640, being present when the English were routed at the [[Battle of Newburn]]. Afterwards, he became Governor of [[Newcastle upon Tyne|Newcastle]].<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Lothian, Earls and Marquesses of|volume=17|page=18}}</ref> He was appointed one of the four [[Treasurer of Scotland|commissioners of the treasury]] in 1642, was [[lieutenant-general]] of the [[Irish Confederate Wars|Scots Army in Ireland]], and was appointed [[privy councillor]] in the same year.
He entered [[Parliament of Scotland|Parliament]] in 1644 and joined [[Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll|Lord Argyll]] in an expedition against [[James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose|Lord Montrose]] during the [[Scotland in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms|Wars of the Three Kingdoms]] in 1644. He was one of the commissioners sent to treat with the king at [[Holmby House]] in 1647.
He was appointed [[Secretary of State, Scotland|secretary of state]] in 1649 and was one of the commissioners sent by the Scottish Parliament to protest against proceeding to extremes against the king, visiting [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] in exile at [[Breda]].<ref name="EB1911"/> He was a general of the Scottish forces in 1650. In 1662 he refused to take the [[Abjuration|abjuration oath]].
== Personal life ==
The eldest son of [[Robert Kerr, 1st Earl of Ancram|Sir Robert Kerr]], later 1st [[Earl of Ancram]], he was born within St James's Palace in [[London]] and was educated at [[University of Cambridge|Cambridge University]] and at [[Paris]]. He accompanied [[George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham]] to the [[Île de Ré|Isle of Rhé]] in 1627 and served in the expedition against [[Spain]] in 1631.
He married [[Anne Kerr, Countess of Lothian]] in 1630 and was created '''Lord Kerr of Newbattle''' and '''Earl of Lothian''' in his own right in 1631.<ref>David Laing, ''Correspondence of Sir Robert Kerr, first Earl of Ancram'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1875), pp. xlviii, li.</ref> Children of William Kerr, 1st Earl of Lothian and Lady Anne Kerr:
* Lady Mary Kerr (died Mar 1708)
* Lady Margaret Kerr
* Lady Anne Kerr (26 November 1631{{snd}}30 August 1658)
* Lady Elizabeth Kerr (born 6 September 1633), who married Sir Francis Scott of Thirlestane, and was mother of [[Sir William Scott of Thirlestane]].<ref>{{cite DNB|wstitle=Kerr, William (1605?-1675)|volume=31}}</ref><ref>{{cite DNB|wstitle=Scott, William (1674?-1725)|volume=51}}</ref>
* [[Robert Kerr, 1st Marquess of Lothian]] (8 March 1636{{snd}}15 February 1703)
* Sir William Kerr (born 22 December 1638)
* Charles Kerr (born 17 July 1642)
* Lady Vere Kerr (24 April 1649{{snd}}17 April 1674)
* Lady Henrietta Kerr (2 February 1653{{snd}}30 June 1741)
== References ==
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{{s-ttl|title=[[Marquess of Lothian|Earl of Lothian]]|years=1631–1675}}
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[[Category:1600s births]]
[[Category:1675 deaths]]
[[Category:Nobility from the Scottish Borders]]
[[Category:Scottish politicians]]
[[Category:Earls of Lothian]]
[[Category:Clan Kerr|William]]
[[Category:Members of the Privy Council of Scotland]]
[[Category:17th-century Scottish people]]
[[Category:Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1639–1641]]
[[Category:Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1648–1651]]
[[Category:Peers of Scotland created by Charles I]]
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