Page:The Complete Peerage Ed 1 Vol 1.djvu/28

6 ABEKCORN. Major-General of the Royal Archers, the Queen's Body Guard of Scotland ; Lord Lieo- Hamilton [S.] (a. of the 10th Puke) having »i. a cousin of Napoleon III, renewed his claim. His rank and that of his wife was in 1S55 settled in tin- French Court as befog nest to that of the Imperial family. Nothing, however, was said of the title of Due de Chatelleranlt till (shortly after his death in July, ISO!!) the following paragraph relating to his s.. the 12th Duke, appeared on 25 Aug. 1851, in the " Bulletin des Lois," fi:-, that the " Due d'Eamiltoa a etc maintenu et continue, ]>ar decret dn 20 Aviil lh04, dans lo title hereditaire de Due it Chulclherault, cree par le Hoi de France, Henri If, en 15-iS, en favour de Jacques Hamilton, Comte d 'Arran." Such "cou- firmatiou," however, appear! only to apply to a creation of 20 April 1864, for with respect to the creation of 1548/0, the opinion of Mr. V. B. D. Turnbull, in his " Factum touching the restitution of the Duchy of Chatelheraidt " [8vo. Edinburgh, 18431, is doubtless correct. Bit, " that his Grace of Hamilton being neither heir male nor heir female [h. of line.] has as much right to it as he has to the throne of China." The decree of the Emperor was to far favorable to the Aljercorn line (the heirs male) in that it acknowledged the creation of a hereditary French Dukedom which his predecessors had ignored ; and, this being acknowledged, it would appear to follow that its descent would be (as set out in the decree of Louis XIV.) to the heir male of the body of the grantee. Inasmuch, however, as the decree assigned the said title to the Duke of Hamilton [S.], the Marque.-s of Abereorn appealed against it in 1864-5. The " Conseil d'Ktat an Contentieux," however, decided against him, and found him "liable in expenses, which decision was "approved of" 11 Aug. 1866 by the Emperor. It is stated (see "The Time.-." 22 Sept. 1S66) that the appeal was not "rejected by the 'Conseil' on a question of right, but solely on the incompetence of the [said] 1 Conseil ' to reconsider or reverse the decree of the Emperor, who, in 1864, re-crcatcd that title in favour of his relative, without any consideration being given to the claims of the Marquis of Abercorn to the original title." See a very able article on "The Dukedom of Chutelherault," by Mr. 11. K. Stodart, Lyon Clerk Depute, in "Her. and Gen.," vol. iv, pp. 97-107, and vol. v., p. 92, bum which most of the above remarks are taken ; see also " Kequeste et Pieces pour Milord Comte d'Aran, touchau! Ia restitution de Duchc de C'hastellerault et ties autre* ehatet comprises dans le don fait par le Roy Henry II. &c," 1685, 4to., pp. 26 ; also see ™ Memoire Justilieatif de droit qui appartient a M. Le Due d' Hamilton de porter le title de Due de Chatellerault," Pans, 8vo., pp. G4, where the argument of ° A. Teulet, Archivists aux Archives de d'Empire," against the right of the h. of line in 179!), but in fa vour of tilt right of such h. in 16V2 (which two points are necessary for his case) is somewhat amusing ; se > also (a much more able work) " Consultation pour James Hamilton. Marquis d" Aber- corn, &c, contre le Due d' Hamilton," Paris, privately printed, 1S6-5, Svo., pp. ."5, signed " E. Reverchon, Avocat a la Cour Impcriale, 4c." Tabular Pedigree of the Earls of Abercom [S.] showing their descent from (and, since 1651, their representation, in the male line, of ) the Earls of Arran [S ]. To the first [Hamilton] E.utr, op Arhan [s.] and the heirs malt of his body, the Roman numerals I to XV are successively prefixed. The descent of the Earl of Derby, the heir of line, and the descent of the Duke of Hamilton [S.] (who is neither h.mate, nor h. of line) from the said Earls of Arran is also shewn. Thomas Bovd. st'ilnl Mastery Mary, 1st da. of James ll,=pjame8 Hamilton, er. Lord of Boyd, cr. Earl of Arrau I King of Scotland, d. H8S? | Hamilton [3.1 1445, d 1479. [S.] 1467 ; d. about 1472. ( , ' •]/ I. James, Lord Hamilton [S.] b. 1475 ? imic extinct, cr. Earl of Arran [S.] 1503, d. 1529 ! . -JT II. James, Earl of Arran, Regent of Scotland, who, in 1648,9, was er. Due. de Chatkllehaui.t in France ; d. 1575. , I III. James, Earl of Arran, John Hamilton Br. Marquess Claud Hamilton, cr. Lord insane, d. s.p. 1609. of Hamilton [S.] 1 599, d. 1604. of Paisley [3.J 1587, d. 1621. T T A 8