James Hay, 15th Earl of Erroll (20 April 1726 – 3 July 1778) styled Lord Boyd from 1728 to 1746, was a Scottish nobleman and the son of William Boyd, 4th Earl of Kilmarnock.[i]
After his father was attainted in 1746, he became Mr James Boyd, but in 1758 he inherited the Earldom of Erroll from a great-aunt.
During the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion his father sided with the Young Pretender, despite both of his sons, James and William Boyd, then holding commissions under King George II; James Boyd in the British army, his brother in the Royal Navy. Remaining loyal to the Hanoverians, James Boyd fought at the Battle of Culloden on the opposite side to his father.[3] During the rout following the Jacobite defeat, the Earl of Kilmarnock was captured and taken prisoner, dishevelled and bareheaded, and was reportedly recognised by his son James, who placed his own hat on his father's head.[4] This was the last time they were to meet, as Kilmarnock was then transported to London, tried for treason, and executed four months later; forfeiting all his lands and titles, which deprived his son of his inheritance.[1]
In 1751, however, although the Earldom remained forfeit, James Boyd was allowed to inherit the Kilmarnock estates. These included Dean Castle, the former family seat which had been gutted by a fire in 1735. Trying to cover some of his father's debts, which he had also inherited, James Boyd sold the ruined castle to the 13th Earl of Glencairn. From 1751 to 1752, he served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Scotland.[2]
On 19 August 1758, James Boyd succeeded his maternal great-aunt, Mary Hay, 14th Countess of Erroll, as Earl of Erroll,[i] simultaneously changing his surname from Boyd to Hay, as he and his descendants were henceforth to be known. Along with the title Earl of Erroll, he also held the ceremonial hereditary office of Lord High Constable of Scotland.[5]
On 15 September 1749, he married Rebecca Lockhart, the daughter of Alexander Lockhart, Lord Covington. Before her death in 1761, they were the parents of one daughter:[2]
Lady Mary Hay (b. 1754), who married Gen. John Scott of Balcomie in 1770, divorced in 1771.[2]
In 1762, he married Isabella Carr (1747–1808), daughter of Sir William Carr of Etal, Northumberland. Together, they were the parents of twelve children, including:[2]
Lady Charlotte Hay (1763–1800), who married Rev. William Holwell, Vicar of Menheniot, in 1797.[2]
Lady Maria Elizabeth Hay (1771–1804), who married Rev. George Moore, Rector of Wrotham, eldest son of Most. Rev. John Moore, Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1795.[2]
^ abThere is some confusion among the sources on the counting of the Earls. Some sources appear to conflate the William Hay who died in 1522 with his son, William Hay, who was born in 1521. Also, some sources do not include Countess Mary Hay in the count of Earls. This leaves some sources reporting James Hay as the 13th Earl, a difference in the count which is then passed down to his successors.[1]
