James Douglas, 3rd Marquess of Queensberry
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James Douglas, 3rd Marquess of Queensberry (November 2, 1697 – February 17, 1715), known until 1711 as James Douglas, Earl of Drumlanrig was an insane British nobleman, eldest son to survive infancy (the second son) of James Douglas, 2nd Duke of Queensberry.
Described as an "imbecile", and violently insane, he was kept under lock and key from childhood at Queensberry House in Edinburgh, now part of the Scottish Parliament complex. When the Act of Union was signed in 1707, the disruption from either the festivities or the riots resulted in his escape. Drumlanrig, then around ten years old, slaughtered a young scullion in the Holyrood kitchen, roasted him on a spit, and began to eat him before he was discovered and apprehended.[1] He was afterwards known as 'The Cannibalistic Idiot', and the oven he used can still be seen in the Parliament's Allowances Office.
A novodamus (i.e., de novo damus, "we grant anew"; a charter containing a clause by which a feudal superior re-bestows a former grant under a new set of conditions) had been made out for his father's dukedom in 1706, to remove James Douglas from the succession, but he did inherit his father's subsidiary titles in 1711. He died in 1715 and was buried on February 17, 1715 in Calverley churchyard.[2] His brother Charles Douglas, 3rd Duke of Queensberry succeeded him.
[edit] References
- ^ James Douglas (Earl of Drumlanrig). The Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved on 2006-09-13.
- ^ Calverley Burials. GENUKI. Retrieved on 2006-09-13.
| Peerage of Scotland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by James Douglas |
Marquess of Queensberry 1711 – 1715 |
Succeeded by Charles Douglas |
