Sir William Stirling-Maxwell | |
|---|---|
 Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, c. 1870, photograph byThomas Annan | |
| Member of Parliament forPerthshire | |
| In office 12 February 1874 – 15 January 1878 | |
| Preceded by | Charles Stuart Parker |
| Succeeded by | Henry Home-Drummond-Moray |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Stirling (1818-03-08)8 March 1818 Kenmure,East Dunbartonshire, Scotland |
| Died | 15 January 1878(1878-01-15) (aged 59) Venice, Italy |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Archibald Stirling Elizabeth Maxwell |
| Relatives | Edward Stirling (half-brother) |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Cambridge |
| Occupation | Historic writer, art historian, politician |
Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, 9th Baronet,KT,FRSE (8 March 1818 – 15 January 1878) was aScottish historical writer,art historian andpolitician.
Until 1865 he was known asWilliam Stirling, and several of his books were published under that name. He wasChancellor of the University of Glasgow from 1875 until his death and was also aKnight of the Thistle, considered the highest honour that can be conferred by the Crown on a Scotsman.
Stirling was born atKenmure, the son of Archibald Stirling,Esq., ofKeir andCawder, and Elizabeth Maxwell, sister ofSir John Maxwell, 8th Baronet, and Harriet Maxwell (died 1812) and daughter ofSir John Maxwell, 7th Baronet and Hannah or Anne Gardiner, daughter of Richard Gardiner, ofAldborough,Suffolk. Stirling's father owned a number of slave plantations inJamaica and fathered at least six illegitimate children with women of colour, includingEdward Stirling who became one of the first settlers in South Australia.[1]
He was privately educated atOlney inBuckinghamshire[2] then studied atTrinity College, Cambridge, graduating with aBA degree in 1839 and proceeding toMA in 1843.[3] He travelled inSpain and theLevant and contributed toFraser's Magazine and theExaminer. In 1848 he published his pioneeringAnnals of the Artists of Spain. He succeeded to theKeirestates in 1847.
In 1849 he was elected a Fellow of theRoyal Society of Edinburgh his proposer being John Russell. He served as the Society's vice president from 1871 to 1875.[4]
He served asMember of Parliament forPerthshire from 1852 to 1868 and again from 1874 to 1878. He was appointed a Member of the Universities Commission in 1859 and of theHistorical Manuscripts Commission from 1872 to 1878, as well as of the Scottish Education Board (a forerunner to theScottish Office). He was electedRector of theUniversity of St Andrews in 1862 and of theUniversity of Edinburgh in 1871.
He succeeded to the Maxwell Baronetcy (in theBaronetage of Nova Scotia) in 1865, assuming the additional name of Maxwell.
He was electedChancellor of theUniversity of Glasgow in 1875, the first to have been elected by members of the General Council (previous Chancellors having been elected by members of the Senate),[5] and was awarded an HonoraryDCL from theUniversity of Oxford in the following year. He was a member of theUniversity of London Senate and atrustee of theBritish Museum and theNational Gallery.
He lived at Keir House nearDunblane.[6] He was abreeder ofshorthorns andClydesdale horses, an ardentbibliographer andcollector ofworks of art.
He died on holiday inVenice on 15 January 1878 but his body was returned to Britain and he is buried in theLecropt Churchyard nearStirling.[7]
He married firstly Lady Anna Maria Leslie-Melville (died 8 December 1874), daughter ofDavid Leslie-Melville, 8th Earl of Leven and Elizabeth Anne Campbell, and had, at least:
In March 1877, Stirling Maxwell married secondly noted author and society figureCaroline Norton, a granddaughter of the famous Irish playwrightRichard Brinsley Sheridan. She died three months later.
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, 9th Baronet" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(February 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Scottish Parliament | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Perthshire 1852–1868 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Perthshire 1874–1878 | Succeeded by |
| Academic offices | ||
| Preceded by | Rector of the University of Edinburgh 1871–1874 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Rector of the University of St Andrews 1862–1865 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chancellor of the University of Glasgow 1875–1878 | Succeeded by |
| Baronetage of Nova Scotia | ||
| Preceded by | Baronet (of Pollok) 1865–1878 | Succeeded by |
