Alexander Gerard

Alexander Gerard FRSE (22 February 1728 – 22 February 1795) was a Scottish minister, academic and philosophical writer. In 1764 he was the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

Biography

He was born on 22 February 1728, the son of Gilbert Gerard (died 1738), at the manse in Garioch in Aberdeenshire. He attended Foveran Parish School then Aberdeen Grammar School.

He went to the University of Aberdeen, graduating with an MA in 1744. He then went to the University of Edinburgh to study divinity. He was licensed to preach in 1748.

In 1750 he returned to the University of Aberdeen to lecture in moral philosophy, becoming a professor in 1752, based at Marischal College.

From 1760 to 1769 he was minister of Greyfriars Church in Aberdeen and in 1769 was elected Professor of Divinity at Marischal College, moving in 1771 to King's College. As a professor he introduced various reforms. During this time he was also one of the ministers of the city, serving at Greyfriars Church. He was a member of the Aberdeen Philosophical Society, founded by John Gregory and including members such as Prof Thomas Gordon.

He died on 22 February 1795. He is buried in the churchyard of St Machar's Cathedral in Old Aberdeen. The grave lies near the south east corner of the eastern cathedral enclosure.

Personal life

In June 1757 he married Jane Wight, daughter of Dr John Wight of Colnae. They had several children, including:

Gilbert Gerard, born 1760.

Publications

In 1756 he gained the prize for an Essay on Taste which, together with an Essay on Genius, he subsequently published. These treatises, though now superseded, gained for him considerable reputation. A Plan of Education in Marischal College.