Margaret Hamilton

Margaret Hamilton, Lady Belhaven and Stenton (bef. 1625 – c. 1695) was a Scottish noblewoman known for her part in faking her husband's death and her knowledge of herbal remedies and medical practice.

Family Margaret was born before 1625 and was the illegitimate daughter of James Hamilton, 2nd Marquess of Hamilton. It has been suggested that her mother was Anne Stewart, the widowed daughter of Walter Stewart, 1st Lord Blantyre.

She married her distant relative John Hamilton, who was created 1st Lord Belhaven and Stenton by Charles I of England in 1647. They had three daughters – Anne, Margaret, and Elizabeth – and a son, who died in childhood in 1661.

Medical practitioner Lady Margaret's correspondence demonstrates that she was a sought-after nurse and practitioner of herbal remedies. She collected recipes and made up her own plasters, and advised her great-niece, Margaret Hamilton, Countess of Panmure, in maintaining a healthy pregnancy.

Death and legacy Lady Margaret died in or after 1694, predeceased by two of her children. Their daughter Margaret married Sir Samuel Baillie.