Author: Drummond, William
Biography:
DRUMMOND, William (1769-1828: ancestry.co.uk)
Classical scholar, diplomat. He was the eldest son of John Drummond of Logiealmond, Perthshire, and Lady Katherine (Murray) Drummond. He was baptised on 26 Sept. 1769 and succeeded his father as laird in 1776. Educated briefly at St Andrews, he matriculated at Christ Church, Oxford, on 24 Jan. 1788. He married Harriet Anne Boone (she inherited a large fortune from her father) on 12 Dec. 1794 at her home in Berkeley Square. and became MP from 1795. However, his real interest was in diplomacy, and he served abroad in Denmark, Sicily, Naples, and Constantinople before being recalled in 1808. Thereafter he devoted himself to scholarship on ancient history and philosophy, and to his writing. Drummond was created a Knight of the Crescent in 1803, and he was a member of the Royal Society in both London and Edinburgh. He attracted controversy and some ridicule for his eccentric religious speculations. He spent his last years abroad and died at Rome on 29 Mar. 1827. (ODNB 25 Oct 2018; ancestry.co.uk 25 Oct 2018, 7 Aug. 2025; historyofparliamentonline 7 Aug. 2025; Alumni Oxonienses) SR
Other Names:
- the Right Honorable Sir W. Drummond