James Drummond, 4th Earl of Perth

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James Drummond, 4th Earl of Perth, KT, PC (1648 - 1716) was a Scottish nobleman.

Perth was educated at the University of St Andrews. He was appointed a member of the Scottish Privy Council in 1678 and supporrted Lauderdale's policy of giving up the disaffected western shires of Scotland to highland raids, before joining Hamilton's faction.

He was a partner with William Penn in the settlement of East New Jersey in 1681. As one of 24 proprietors of a large parcel of property that took up much of what is now the State of New Jersey, Perth sponsored an expedition in 1684 to establish a settlement there. The City of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, which sits on the waterfront facing Staten Island, New York, and which was once a port city in its own right, is named in his honor — a statue of Lord Perth stands in front of City Hall (the "Amboy" comes from an Algonquian word meaning "valley").

He was appointed Lord Justice General in 1682 and an Extraordinary Lord of Session in the same year. He was appointed Lord Chancellor of Scotland in 1684. He introduced the use of the thumbscrew in Scotland. He converted to Roman Catholicism in 1685, along with his brother, the 1st Earl of Melfort. In 1686, Perth and his brother opened a Catholic chapel in Edinburgh, and their public attendance there resulted in a riot. That same year, after Queensberry's fall from grace, Perth was appointed First Lord of the Treasury for Scotland. Perth and his brother suggested to James that the Scottish Parliament would approve a repeal of the Test Act and penal laws against Catholics and Protestant dissenters, but they were later proved to have been mistaken. Perth was created a Knight of the Thistle in 1687.

Perth was imprisoned in Stirling Castle in 1689, being released in 1693 on a bond to leave the kingdom. He was created a Knight of the Garter by the exiled James II and created Duke of Perth, Marquess of Drummond, and Earl of Stobhall by James II's will, titles recognised only by Jacobites. During James's exile, Perth acted as the king's ambassador to Rome, and after his death, Perth erected a monument to him in Paris. He died at St Germain.

Peerage of Scotland
Preceded by James Drummond	Earl of Perth 1675–1716	Succeeded by Forfeit (restored in 1853 for George Drummond)