Archibald Kennedy, 1st Marquess of Ailsa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
February 1770
The Marquess of Ailsa | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Lord Ailsa, by William Owen, 1816 | |
| Scottish representative peer | |
| In office 1796–1806 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Archibald Kennedy February 1770 |
| Died | 8 September 1846 (aged 76) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6, including Archibald, Margaret, John |
| Parent(s) | Archibald Kennedy, 11th Earl of Cassilis Anne Watts |
Archibald Kennedy, 1st Marquess of Ailsa, KT, FRS (February 1770 – 8 September 1846), styled Lord Kennedy between 1792–4 and known as the Earl of Cassillis between 1794 and 1831, was a Scottish peer.
Kennedy was the eldest son of Archibald Kennedy, 11th Earl of Cassillis, a Scottish peer who lived in the English Colony of New York, and, his second wife, Anne Watts. Among his siblings were the Hon. John Kennedy (who married Charlotte Gill), Hon. Robert Kennedy (who married Jane Macomb, a daughter of merchant Alexander Macomb) and Lady Anne Kennedy (who married William Henry Digby). Before his parents' marriage, his father was married to, and widowed from, Katherine Schuyler (a daughter of Peter Schuyler and granddaughter of Arent Schuyler). Katherine was an only child, so she inherited all of her father's estate upon his death in 1762 and Kennedy inherited the entire estate after her death in 1765.[1]
His paternal grandparents were Archibald Kennedy (a direct descendant of the second son of the 3rd Earl of Cassilis) and Maria (née Walter) Kennedy. His maternal grandparents were John Watts and Ann (née DeLancey) Watts (a granddaughter of Stephen Delancey). His uncle was U.S. Representative John Watts, who had served as the Speaker of the New York State Assembly.[1]
He became known by the courtesy title Lord Kennedy when his father succeeded to the earldom of Cassillis in 1792.
Career
Kennedy succeeded to the earldom on the death of his father 30 December 1794. He sat in the House of Lords as a Scottish representative peer between 1796 and 1806. In the latter year, he was created Baron Ailsa, of Ailsa in the County of Ayr, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, which entitled him to an automatic seat in the House of Lords. He was admitted a Fellow of the Royal Society on 18 February 1819.[2] In 1831 he was created Marquess of Ailsa, of the Isle of Ailsa in the County of Ayr. He voted for the Reform Bill in 1832. In 1820, King George IV made Archibald a knight of the Order of the Thistle. This was an achievement that Sir Archibald had coveted for some time.[3]
He had a taste for gambling. He owned racehorses and raced many that won cups in 1801 and 1802. He owned Clementina, Scaramouche, Pegasus, Chancellor, and Trimmer. He and 13 others established the Ayr Gold Cup held annually with only Scottish-trained horses that raced over a two-mile (3.2-kilometre) run.[4]
