Author: Buchanan, Robert
Biography:
BUCHANAN, Robert (1786-1873: ODNB)
A cadet of the clan Buchanan, he was born at Trean, Callander, Perthshire, on 16 Feb. 1786 and baptised on 19 Feb. His parents were John Buchanan, a farmer, and his wife Mary McNee. He attended Glasgow University, earning his MA in 1808. Buchanan was licensed to preach in the Church of Scotland in 1812 and presented to the parish of Peebles. In 1824 he was appointed assistant to George Jardine in the chair of logic at Glasgow University. He replaced Jardine as professor of logic in 1827, serving until 1864. The 1851 Census shows him living in College buildings on the Glasgow High Street with two servants. He retired to Ardfillayne, Dunoon, in 1864 and in 1869 the university awarded him an honorary LLD. He died unmarried at Ardfillayne on 2 Mar. 1873 and was buried in the Dunoon cemetery. He left an estate of over £15,000, with £10,000 for establishing the Glasgow Buchanan bursaries. The attribution to him of Highland Tales and Songs is from the Bodley library catalogue; although the book is listed elsewhere without an author’s name, the attribution is convincing. Buchanan’s other publications date from later in his life and include Wallace, a Tragedy (1856), Canute's Birthday in Ireland: A Drama (1868), and Tragic Dramas from Scottish History (1868). He also published The Vow in Glentreuil, a Legend of the Bruce, and Other Poems in 1861; the preface states that the poems "were composed at scattered intervals, more especially during the earlier portion of the author's life." (ODNB 8 May 2019; ancestry.co.uk 24 July 2025) SR