George Melville, 1st Earl of Melville (1636 – 20 May 1707) was a Scottish peer and politician who was active during the reign of William III and Mary II. In 1643, he succeeded his father as Lord Melville.
The turning point in his career came in 1683 when Melville and his son David Leslie-Melville, the Earl of Leven, were accused of complicity in the Rye House Plot. a Whig conspiracy to assassinate King Charles II and his brother the Duke of York (the future James VII).[1] To escape arrest Melville, together with his son, fled to the Netherlands where they joined the band of British Protestant exiles at the court of Prince William of Orange. Here Melville became one of the chief Scots supporters of William of Orange.
It is possible that details of Melville and his son's lives were used by Sir Walter Scott in this novel Old Mortality to lend authentic sounding biographical detail to the hero Henry Morton.
In the novel Morton – like Melville a moderate Whig who desires peace and religious tolerance whilst supporting the Stuart monarchy – is reluctantly involved in the Covenanter uprising of 1689 (albeit on the Rebel side) and attempts to negotiate a peaceful end to the conflict between his brother Calvinists and the AnglicanRoyalists.
Later Morton is forced to flee to the Netherlands where (living under his mother's name of Melville) he becomes one of William of Orange's supporters, before returning to Britain in the wake of the Glorious Revolution.
george, melville, earl, melville, 1636, 1707, scottish, peer, politician, active, during, reign, william, mary, 1643, succeeded, father, lord, melville, right, honourablethe, earl, melvillelord, high, commissionerin, office, 1690, 1690monarchswilliam, mary, ii. George Melville 1st Earl of Melville 1636 20 May 1707 was a Scottish peer and politician who was active during the reign of William III and Mary II In 1643 he succeeded his father as Lord Melville The Right HonourableThe Earl of MelvilleLord High CommissionerIn office 1690 1690MonarchsWilliam II and Mary IIPreceded byThe Duke of HamiltonSucceeded byThe Duke of HamiltonKeeper of the Privy Seal of ScotlandIn office 1693 1695MonarchsWilliam II and Mary IIPreceded byThe Lord CarmichaelSucceeded byThe Duke of QueensberryPersonal detailsBorn1636Died20 May 1707 1707 05 20 aged 71 SpouseCatherine Leslie MelvilleChildrenAnne Melville Alexander Melville Lord Raith Lady Margaret Melville David Leslie 3rd Earl of Leven James MelvilleParentsJohn Melville 3rd Lord Melville Anne Erskine Contents 1 Career 2 Exile 3 Return 4 In fiction 5 ReferencesCareer editAfter the Stuart Restoration Melville was a moderate Whig and Presbyterian who whilst serving under the Duke of Monmouth in his suppression of the Covenanters in 1679 had tried to persuade the insurgents Whig extremists to lay down their arms peacefully Exile editThe turning point in his career came in 1683 when Melville and his son David Leslie Melville the Earl of Leven were accused of complicity in the Rye House Plot a Whig conspiracy to assassinate King Charles II and his brother the Duke of York the future James VII 1 To escape arrest Melville together with his son fled to the Netherlands where they joined the band of British Protestant exiles at the court of Prince William of Orange Here Melville became one of the chief Scots supporters of William of Orange Return edit nbsp Broadside announcing appointment of George Melville 1st Earl of Melville as commissioner to Parliament of Scotland 1690After the Glorious Revolution of 1688 Melville played a prominent part in Scots and English politics most notably in the Convention Parliament which offered the crown of Scotland to William of Orange and his wife Mary daughter of the deposed James VII In 1689 William made him sole Secretary of State for Scotland and in 1690 he was created Earl of Melville Viscount Kirkaldie and Lord Raith Monymaill and Balwearie all in the Peerage of Scotland Although Melville s appointment as Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland in 1693 was a political demotion he enjoyed substantial emoluments the more so after 1696 when he became President of the Privy Council of Scotland at an annual salary of 1 000 sterling He was however deprived of his offices when Anne became queen in 1702 1 In fiction editIt is possible that details of Melville and his son s lives were used by Sir Walter Scott in this novel Old Mortality to lend authentic sounding biographical detail to the hero Henry Morton In the novel Morton like Melville a moderate Whig who desires peace and religious tolerance whilst supporting the Stuart monarchy is reluctantly involved in the Covenanter uprising of 1689 albeit on the Rebel side and attempts to negotiate a peaceful end to the conflict between his brother Calvinists and the Anglican Royalists Later Morton is forced to flee to the Netherlands where living under his mother s name of Melville he becomes one of William of Orange s supporters before returning to Britain in the wake of the Glorious Revolution References editThis article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources George Melville 1st Earl of Melville news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2019 Learn how and when to remove this template message a b Chisholm Hugh ed 1911 Leven and Melville Earls of Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 16 11th ed Cambridge University Press p 508 An Historical Account of Melville House John GiffordParliament of ScotlandPreceded byThe Duke of Hamilton Lord High Commissioner1690 Succeeded byThe Duke of HamiltonPolitical officesPreceded byThe Lord Carmichael Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland1693 1695 Succeeded byThe Duke of QueensberryPeerage of ScotlandNew creation Earl of Melville1690 1707 Succeeded byDavid MelvillePreceded byJohn Melville Lord Melville1643 1707 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title George Melville 1st Earl of Melville amp oldid 1191421805, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
