Archibald Douglas, 8th Marquess of Queensberry explained

Honorific-Prefix:The Most Honourable
The Marquess of Queensberry
Honorific-Suffix:PC
Order1:Comptroller of the Household
Term Start1:4 January 1853
Term End1:25 July 1856
Monarch1:Queen Victoria
Primeminister1:The Earl of Aberdeen
The Viscount Palmerston
Predecessor1:The Hon George Weld-Forester
Successor1:Viscount Castlerosse
Birth Date:18 April 1818
Nationality:British
Party:Conservative
Parents:John Douglas, 7th Marquess of Queensberry
Sarah Douglas

Archibald William Douglas, 8th Marquess of Queensberry PC (18 April 1818 – 6 August 1858), styled Viscount Drumlanrig between 1837 and 1856, was a British Conservative Party politician. He notably served as Comptroller of the Household between 1853 and 1856.

Background

Douglas was the son of John Douglas, 7th Marquess of Queensberry, by Sarah Douglas, daughter of Major James Sholto Douglas. He became known by the courtesy title Viscount Drumlanrig when his father succeeded to the marquessate of Queensberry in 1837.[1]

Cricket

He played first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1841.[2]

Political career

Lord Drumlanrig was returned to parliament for Dumfriesshire in 1847. In early 1853 he was sworn of the Privy Council and appointed Comptroller of the Household under Lord Aberdeen, a post he held until 1856, during the last year under the premiership of Lord Palmerston. In 1856 he also succeeded his father in the marquessate. However, as this was a Scottish peerage, it did not entitle him to a seat in the House of Lords. He stood down from the House of Commons in early 1857. Apart from his political career he was also Lord-Lieutenant of Dumfriesshire from 1850 to 1858.

Family

Lord Queensberry married Caroline Margaret Clayton (1821–1904), daughter of General Sir William Clayton, 5th Baronet, at Gretna Green, Scotland, in 1840.[1] They had six children:

Death

Lord Queensberry died while hunting in August 1858 aged forty, officially from the explosion of his gun.[1] However, the event was widely believed to be a suicide.[4] [5] The Marchioness of Queensberry died in February 1904.[1] He is buried in the family burial ground at Gooley Hill, near Kinmount House.

Notes and References

  1. http://thepeerage.com/p2031.htm#i20305 thepeerage.com Archibald William Douglas, 8th Marquess of Queensberry
  2. Web site: subscription . Player profile: Archibald William Douglas. CricketArchive. 26 August 2011.
  3. Web site: Lady James Douglas. Horse Racing History. 19 November 2012. 20 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160320203140/http://www.horseracinghistory.co.uk/hrho/action/viewDocument?id=974. dead.
  4. Linda Stratmann, The Marquess of Queensberry: Wilde's Nemesis, Yale University Press 2013
  5. Neil McKenna, The Secret Life of Oscar Wilde, Random House 2011