Sir John Dalrymple, 4th Baronet facts for kids

Sir John Dalrymple of Cousland, 4th Baronet (1726–1810) was a clever Scottish lawyer, judge, and writer. He was also interested in chemistry! He is best known for his book, Memoirs of Great Britain and Ireland. This book shared important secrets about British history.

John Dalrymple was part of the Scottish Enlightenment, a time when many new ideas in science and thinking were discussed in Scotland. He was friends with famous thinkers like David Hume and Adam Smith.

A Life of Learning and Law

Sir John Dalrymple was born in 1726. His father was Sir William Dalrymple. John went to two famous universities: Edinburgh and Cambridge. After his studies, he became a lawyer in 1748.

He worked for the government, first helping with taxes. Later, he became a Baron of the Exchequer, which was a type of judge, from 1776 to 1807.

In 1779, Sir John inherited a large estate called Oxenfoord. He started designing the gardens there. He even wrote a book about garden design in 1774, which became quite popular.

In 1783, Sir John helped start the Royal Society of Edinburgh. This was a group for important scientists and thinkers in Scotland. He lived in Edinburgh until he passed away on February 26, 1810.

His Family

In 1760, Sir John Dalrymple married his cousin, Elizabeth Hamilton MacGill. She inherited a property called Oxenfoord Castle. They had 13 children together, but only five of them lived longer than their father.

Discovering History in His Memoirs

Sir John Dalrymple's most famous work was his Memoirs of Great Britain and Ireland. He started publishing it in 1771. This book was special because he found many secret historical documents.

A famous historian named David Hume asked Dalrymple to look through old French government papers. There, Dalrymple found proof of the Secret Treaty of Dover. This was a secret agreement where King Charles II of England agreed to become Catholic.

Dalrymple also found important papers at Kensington Palace in England. These papers included the original Invitation to William. This was a letter from seven important British leaders asking William of Orange to come to England. Dalrymple was very excited by these discoveries.

However, when he looked at more French papers, he found something surprising. He discovered that two famous British politicians, Algernon Sidney and William Russell, Lord Russell, had secretly taken money from the French King Louis XIV. This was a big deal because these men were seen as heroes who fought for freedom.

When Dalrymple published this, many people were shocked. Some, like the writer Samuel Johnson, felt it showed that these heroes were not as perfect as people thought. Others, like David Hume, thought the discoveries were interesting but not completely new.

Historians today agree that Dalrymple's work was very important. He found and shared many key documents that helped people understand history better.

Other Books He Wrote

Besides his famous memoirs, Sir John Dalrymple wrote other books:

• Essay Towards a General History of Feudal Property in Great Britain (1757)
• Consideration Upon the Policy of Entails in Great Britain (1764)