John Ker, 1st Duke of Roxburghe

John Ker, 1st Duke of Roxburghe, KG, PC, FRS (30 April 1680 – 27 February 1741) was a British politician.

Early life Ker was born on 30 April 1680. He was the second son of Robert Ker, 3rd Earl of Roxburghe, and Margaret Hay, daughter of John Hay, 1st Marquess of Tweeddale. His older brother was Robert Ker, 4th Earl of Roxburghe, and his younger brother was The Hon. William Ker, who fought on the Continent under the Duke of Marlborough and was present at the Battle of Sheriffmuir. He served as Groom of the Bedchamber to the Prince of Wales in 1714, and was a Member of Parliament for Berwick and Dysart Burghs.

John became 5th Earl of Roxburghe on the death of his elder brother Robert in 1696.

Career In 1704, he was made a Secretary of State of Scotland, and he helped to bring about the union with England, being created Duke of Roxburghe in 1707 for his services in this connection. This was the last creation in the Scottish peerage. On 28 May 1707, he was admitted a FRS.

The duke was a Scottish representative peer in four parliaments. George I made him a privy councillor and Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland, and he was loyal to the king during the Jacobite rising in 1715. He served as Secretary of State for Scotland in the British Parliament from 1716 to 1725, but he opposed the malt tax, and in 1725 Sir Robert Walpole procured his dismissal from office. He was one of the original governors of the Foundling Hospital, a charity created by royal charter on 17 October 1739. Lady Mary enjoyed some influence. She was able to get her friend Mary Bellenden a position as a maid of honour to Caroline, princess of Wales in 1715.

Together, John and Mary were the parents of: He was buried first in his family vault beneath Bowden Kirk. Later his remains were relocated to the Roxburghe Aisle attached to Kelso Abbey. Upon his death, his only son, who had been created Earl Ker of Wakefield in 1722, became 2nd duke.

Ancestry