The Family

A favourite of King James VI and I, Patrick accompanied the king to England when he ascended the English…

A favourite of King James VI and I, Patrick accompanied the king to England when he ascended the English throne in 1603. Patrick was created 1^st Earl of Kinghorne by King James VI in 1606.

Patrick, 3^rd Earl of Kinghorne obtained a new royal charter from King Charles II in 1677 by which…

Patrick, 3^rd Earl of Kinghorne obtained a new royal charter from King Charles II in 1677 by which the earldom was extended in Scotland to ‘Strathmore and Kinghorne’.  The 3^rd Earl undertook extensive renovations at Glamis Castle between 1670 and 1689. His Book of Record, written between 1684 and 1689 includes daily entries on estate affairs and building works, interspersed with personal recollections from his past.

Lady Helen was the wife of Patrick, the 3^rd Earl and daughter of the 1^st Earl of…

Lady Helen was the wife of Patrick, the 3^rd Earl and daughter of the 1^st Earl of Middleton. A talented needleworker, she designed and worked on wall hangings in King Malcolm’s Hall, which took 14 years to complete.

A loyal Jacobite, John 5^th Earl raised and trained a battalion in Glamis and the surrounding…

A loyal Jacobite, John 5^th Earl raised and trained a battalion in Glamis and the surrounding district called the Strathmore Regiment. He was killed at the Battle of Sherriffmuir on 12^th November 1715, aged just 25. He was succeeded by his younger brother, Charles.

John was the eldest son of Thomas, the 8^th Earl and the nephew of the 5^th,…

John was the eldest son of Thomas, the 8^th Earl and the nephew of the 5^th, 6^th and 7^th Earls. He married Mary Eleanor Bowes, a wealthy heiress, in 1767 and they had five children. A stipulation of her marriage contract was that her future husband(s) should take the name of Bowes. The Earl complied, but the ‘Lyon’ surname reappeared when his youngest son, Thomas succeeded as 11^th Earl, firstly as Lyon-Bowes, gradually evolving into ‘Bowes Lyon’. He suffered from ill health and died at sea on his way to Portugal in 1776.

Mary Eleanor, a poet, botanist and wealthy heiress, was the wife of the 9^th Earl. When he died in…

Mary Eleanor, a poet, botanist and wealthy heiress, was the wife of the 9^th Earl. When he died in 1776, Mary Eleanor became the focus of fortune hunters, the most devious of whom was her second husband, Andrew Robinson Stoney, who duped her into marriage in 1777 and subjected her to years of domestic abuse. She was granted a divorce in the ecclesiastical courts in 1786 and became the first divorced woman in Britain to have her properties restored to her after a landmark Chancery decision. Mary Eleanor is buried in Poets Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Born in 1868, Lady Mildred Marion Bowes Lyon was the eighth of eleven children of the 13^th Earl and…

Born in 1868, Lady Mildred Marion Bowes Lyon was the eighth of eleven children of the 13^th Earl and Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne. She married an American from Philadelphia called Augustus Jessup at Glamis Castle in 1890. A talented pianist, Lady Mildred performed concerts with her musically gifted family, including her sister Maud, who was an accomplished violinist. Encouraged by her pianist mother Frances Dora and Augustus, who had a music salon built for her at their family home at Lenzburg Castle in Switzerland, Mildred composed her opera, Ethelinda. The opera was performed in front of HRH Princess Beatrice in April 1894 and was highly praised. Lady Mildred is believed to have been the first British woman on record to compose a successful opera that was performed in public.

As well as music being celebrated, sport was central to the 13^th Earl of Strathmore’s family and…

As well as music being celebrated, sport was central to the 13^th Earl of Strathmore’s family and way of life. Lord Strathmore encouraged all his sons to play cricket as they grew up and the castle team regularly played against local teams. Tennis was played from childhood and the 13^th Earl’s son, Patrick Bowes Lyon, went on to become Scottish tennis champion in 1885, 1886 and 1888, and Wimbledon doubles champion alongside Herbert Wilberforce in 1887.

Brother of the 12^th Earl and son of the 11^th Earl, Claude married Frances Dora Smith and…

Brother of the 12^th Earl and son of the 11^th Earl, Claude married Frances Dora Smith and they celebrated their golden wedding in 1903. He had eleven children and twenty-seven grandchildren. He was responsible for several castle additions and renovations, including the re-modelling of the Dining Room in the mid-19^th century and the re-opening of the Chapel in 1866. He died in 1904.

The 14^th Earl married Nina Cecelia Cavendish Bentinck. They were the parents of Queen Elizabeth The…

The 14^th Earl married Nina Cecelia Cavendish Bentinck. They were the parents of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and grandparents of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. They attended their daughter’s coronation in 1937 and the following year Countess Nina Cecelia passed away. The 14^th Earl, who was granted U.K. peerage which allowed him to sit in the House of Lords, died in 1944.

Fergus inherited the title in 1972 following the death of his cousin, Timothy, 16^th Earl. The…

Fergus inherited the title in 1972 following the death of his cousin, Timothy, 16^th Earl. The 17^th Earl and Countess began work to improve the visitors’ entrance and restaurant to adapt to the growing numbers of visitors. They transformed the medieval castle into a family home and undertook extensive renovations to the private side of the castle between 1972 and 1975.

Educated at Eton and the University of Aberdeen, Michael Bowes Lyon served as a Captain in the Scots Guards…

Educated at Eton and the University of Aberdeen, Michael Bowes Lyon served as a Captain in the Scots Guards before becoming the 18^th Earl in 1987 and taking his seat in the House of Lords where he joined the Whips Office. As Deputy Chief Whip he was also Captain of the Yeoman of the Guard. He made many improvements to the Estate including the restoration of the Pinetum and Walled Garden. He was for a number of years President of the Boys Brigade.