Author: Ogilvie, John
Biography:
by
Ragaz, Sharon (SR)
OGILVIE, John (1732-1813: ODNB)
He was born at Aberdeen to a minister, James Ogilvie, and his wife, Elizabeth Strachan. Although his exact date of birth is uncertain he was baptised at St. Nicholas, Aberdeen, on 7 Dec. 1732. Ogilvie was educated at Marischal College. He graduated in 1750 and, after some further study (possibly in Edinburgh), was licensed as a minister in the Church of Scotland in 1755 and ordained in 1759 at Lumphanan, Aberdeenshire. He was there just a year before moving to Midmar, Aberdeenshire, where he remained. On 20 Jan. 1771 (ODNB has 22 Jan.) he married Margaret (Peggy) Reid, daughter of a minister at Clatt, Aberdeenshire; they had eleven children. One son was James Ogilvie (q.v.). He was friends with James Beattie (q.v.); David Dalrymple, Lord Hailes; and he met Samuel Johnson on a visit to London. Ogilvie began writing and publishing verse at an early age and many of his books were issued before 1770; these include The Day of Judgment (1753) and Providence (1764). He also published prose, including collections of sermons, books on aesthetic theory, and An Inquiry into the Causes of the Infidelity and Scepticism of the Times (1783). His Britannia, A National Epic Poem (1801) is lengthy in itself and made longer still by the introductory dissertation on epic machinery. He was awarded a DD by Marischal College in 1766 and was a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He died at Aberdeen on 17 Nov. 1813. (ODNB 15 May 2020; ancestry.co.uk 3 Sept. 2025) SR
Other Names:
- J. Ogilvie