Earl of Carnwath facts for kids

Dalzell House, a historic home in North Lanarkshire, was once the main home of the Earls of Carnwath.

The title Earl of Carnwath is a special noble rank in Scotland. It was created on April 21, 1639, for Robert Dalzell, 2nd Lord Dalzell. Along with it, he also received the title of Lord Dalzell and Liberton.

Robert's father, Sir Robert Dalzell, was made a noble himself earlier. He became Lord Dalzell on September 18, 1628. Both these titles are part of the Peerage of Scotland, which is a system of noble ranks in Scotland. The titles are named after places: Carnwath in Lanarkshire and Liberton in Edinburgh. The family name Dalzell is pronounced ⁱ/diːˈɛl/ (dee-EL).

Understanding the Carnwath Earldom

The titles of Earl of Carnwath have a special rule for who can inherit them. This rule is called a "remainder to heirs male whatsoever." It means the title can pass to any male relative who has the Dalzell name and family crest. This is different from most titles, which usually only pass to direct descendants (children, grandchildren).

This special rule became important in 1702. When the fourth Earl passed away, he had no direct male heirs. Because of this rule, the Earldom could pass to Sir Robert Dalzell, 3rd Baronet. He was a distant cousin, being the great-grandson of the first Lord Dalzell's brother. If not for this special rule, the Earldom would have ended, and he would have only inherited the Lordship title.

Dalzell Family History

The original home of the Earls of Carnwath was Dalzell House in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. This house was part of a larger area called the Carnwath Estate. The Dalzell family had owned this land since the 1300s. However, the third and fourth Earls had to sell the estate. They needed money to pay fines for their father and grandfather. These fines were given because they supported the King during the English Civil War. Sir George Lockhart and the Hamilton family later bought the estate.

Challenges During the Civil War

In 1643, the first Earl was accused of helping King Charles I during the Civil War. The Scottish Parliament fined him £10,000 and took away his titles. They also sentenced him to death on February 25, 1645. However, the King's supporters did not agree with this decision. The Act of Parliament also stated that his son, Gavin, Lord Dalzell, would inherit his father's lands and titles as if his father had already passed away.

The first Earl's death sentence was never carried out. He even fought alongside King Charles I at the battle of Naseby on June 14, 1645. Some people blamed the Earl for the loss of this battle. As the King tried to encourage his soldiers, the Earl grabbed the King's horse bridle. He did this to protect the King, but the soldiers misunderstood his action. They thought it was a signal to retreat, which caused their position to collapse. This event helped Parliament win the battle.

Baronetcy and Merging Titles

The first Earl's nephew, Robert Dalzell, became a baronet on April 11, 1666. This title, "Baronet, of Glenae," was part of the Baronetage of Nova Scotia. A baronet is a noble rank below a baron but above a knight. This Robert Dalzell was the son of Sir John Dalzell, who was the younger son of the first Lord Dalzell.

The baronetcy passed from father to son. Then, the third Baronet became the fifth Earl of Carnwath in 1702. This happened because of the special inheritance rule for the Earldom. From then on, the baronetcy and the Earldom titles were held by the same person.

Rebellion and Restoration

The fifth Earl supported Jacobitism, a movement that wanted to bring back the Stuart royal family. He joined the Earl of Mar in a rebellion in 1715, trying to put James Stuart (also known as the Old Pretender) on the throne. This rebellion was not successful.

Because of his role in the rebellion, the government passed a "Writ of Attainder for treason" against Lord Carnwath in 1716. This meant he was sentenced to death, and his titles and remaining lands were taken away. However, his death sentence was later cancelled in 1717.

More than a century later, on May 26, 1826, the attainder was reversed by an Act of Parliament. This meant the titles were given back to his grandson, Robert Alexander Dalzell.

Notable Earls

Several Earls of Carnwath were important in their own right. The eighth Earl was known for being the youngest Earl in Britain in 1873, at just fourteen years old. Both the eleventh and thirteenth Earls served as Representative Peers in the House of Lords. This meant they were chosen to represent Scottish nobles in the British Parliament.

The Dalzell Family Crest

The Earl's coat of arms is very unique. It shows a "man's body proper" against a black background. "Proper" means the figure is shown in its natural colors, so it looks like a flesh-colored outline of a man.

The story behind this unusual crest was written by Sir Robert Douglas, 6th Baronet, in 1764:

The story of their origin, told by Mr. Nisbet and other historians, is that during the time of King Kenneth II, a relative and favorite of the king was captured by the Picts. They killed him and hung his body on a gallows in sight of the Scottish army. King Kenneth was very angry and offered a large reward to anyone who would take down and carry away the body. For a while, no one dared to try this dangerous task. Finally, a brave gentleman said "dal zell", which in the old Scottish language means 'I dare'. He successfully completed the task, and the king rewarded him greatly. His family then took the name DALZELL and used the image of a man hanging on a gallows for their crest, with 'I dare' as their motto. Today, they only show a naked man in their crest.

Lords Dalzell (1628)

• Robert Dalzell, 1st Lord Dalzell (died 1635 or 1636)
• Robert Dalzell, 2nd Lord Dalzell (1611−1654) (became Earl of Carnwath and Lord Dalzell and Liberton in 1639)

Earls of Carnwath (1639)

The heir apparent (the person next in line to inherit) to the Earldom uses the courtesy title of Lord Dalzell or Lord Liberton, or Master of Carnwath.

• Robert Dalzell, 1st Earl of Carnwath (1611−1654), eldest son of the first Lord
• Gavin Dalzell, 2nd Earl of Carnwath (1627−1674), eldest son of the first Earl
• James Dalzell, 3rd Earl of Carnwath (1648−1683), eldest son of the second Earl
• John Dalzell, 4th Earl of Carnwath (1649−1702), youngest son of the second Earl
• Robert Dalzell, 5th Earl of Carnwath (1687–1737), a distant cousin who became the third Baronet in 1689. His titles were taken away in 1716.
• If the titles had not been taken away, the following three people would have held them:
  • Alexander Dalzell (1721–1787), eldest son of the fifth Earl
  • Robert Dalzell (1755–1808), eldest son of Alexander Dalzell
  • John Dalzell (1795–1814), eldest son of Robert Dalzell
• The titles were restored by Parliament on May 26, 1826.
• Robert Alexander Dalzell, 6th Earl of Carnwath (1768–1839), grandson of the fifth Earl
• Thomas Henry Dalzell, 7th Earl of Carnwath (1797–1867), eldest son of the sixth Earl
• Henry Arthur Hew Dalzell, 8th Earl of Carnwath (1858–1873), eldest son of the seventh Earl
• Arthur Alexander Dalzell, 9th Earl of Carnwath (1799–1875), younger son of the sixth Earl
• Harry Burrard Dalzell, 10th Earl of Carnwath (1804–1887), younger son of the sixth Earl
• Robert Harris Carnwath Dalzell, 11th Earl of Carnwath (1847–1910), grandson of the sixth Earl
• Ronald Arthur Dalzell, 12th Earl of Carnwath (1883–1931), eldest son of the eleventh Earl
• Arthur Edward Dalzell, 13th Earl of Carnwath (1851–1941), grandson of the sixth Earl

Dalzell Baronets, of Glenae (1666)

• Sir Robert Dalzell, 1st Baronet (1639−1686), grandson of the first Lord Dalzell
• Sir John Dalzell, 2nd Baronet (died 1689), eldest son of the first Baronet
• Sir Robert Dalzell, 3rd Baronet (1687–1737), eldest son of the second Baronet. He became the fifth Earl of Carnwath in 1702.
• The later holders of the baronetcy are listed above under the Earls of Carnwath.

Important Note on Numbering

Sometimes, you might see different numbers for the Earls of Carnwath in older books. This is because some lists include the three people who would have held the title if it hadn't been taken away. Also, some older books incorrectly call the first Lord Dalzell the first Earl. The numbering used here matches the modern official records.

See also

• Dalziel
• Dalyell baronets