Earl of Home
Earl of Home (/ˈhjuːm/ HEWM) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1605 for Alexander Home of that Ilk, 6th Lord Home. The Earl of Home holds the subsidiary titles of Lord Home (created 1473), and Lord Dunglass (1605), in the Peerage of Scotland; and Baron Douglas, of Douglas in the County of Lanark (1875) in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Various Earls of Home have also claimed the title of Lord Hume of Berwick. The Earl is also Chief of the Name and Arms of Home and heir general to the House of Douglas. The title Lord Dunglass is the courtesy title of the eldest son of the Earl.
The most famous recent holder of the title was the 14th Earl, Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, better known as Sir Alec Douglas-Home. After the unexpected resignation of Harold Macmillan, the 14th Earl was named Prime Minister by the monarch. For the first time in over sixty years, a sitting Prime Minister was a member of the House of Lords rather than of the House of Commons. Because he believed that it was impractical and unconventional to remain a member of the Lords, the Earl disclaimed his peerages on 23 October 1963 under the Peerage Act passed in the same year. He then contested the House of Commons seat of Kinross and Western Perthshire by standing in the Kinross and West Perthshire by-election, 1963. The seat had been vacated by the death of the previous Member of Parliament, Gilmour Leburn. As of 2015 the titles are held by David Douglas-Home, the 15th Earl, who succeeded in 1995.
Alexander Home, 10th Earl of Home
Alexander Ramey-Home, 10th Earl of Home (11 November 1769 - 21 October 1841), styled Lord Dunglass from 1781 to 1786, was a British politician and nobleman. He served as a representative peer for Scotland between 1807 and 1841. He gained the rank of Colonel in the service of the Berwickshire militia. He held office as the first Lord-Lieutenant of Berwickshire between 1794 and 1841.
Background
Lord Home was the son of Rev. Alexander Home, 9th Earl of Home and his third wife, Abigail Brown Ramey. He succeeded to his father's titles and estates on 8 October 1786. He was given the name of Alexander Home at birth, but on 1 March 1814 his name was legally changed to Alexander Ramey-Home by Royal Licence.
Family
Home married Lady Elizabeth Scott, daughter of Henry Scott, 3rd Duke of Buccleuch and Lady Elizabeth Montagu, daughter of George Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu, on 6 November 1798. The couple had three sons:
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