Sir Robert Glasgow

Sir Robert Glasgow of Montgreenan (1747–1827) was a Scottish landowner, West Indies merchant, and plantation owner. He was involved in the transatlantic slave economy and commissioned the Georgian mansion at Montgreenan in Ayrshire.

Early life and family background

Robert Glasgow was born in 1747 in Kilbirnie, Ayrshire, the son of Dr. Robert Glasgow, a surgeon based in Kilbirnie and chamberlain to the Viscount of Garnock. His family resided at Puddockholm, a marshy estate along the River Garnock.

His grandfather, Rev. John Glasgow, M.A., served as Minister of Kilbirnie from 1688 until his death in 1721 and held the position of Provost of Irvine. He earned a Master of Arts degree from the University of Glasgow.

By the early 19th century, he had purchased the lands of Fergushill in Ayrshire and inherited the Sans Souci and Montgreenan plantations in Saint Vincent. These estates were worked by enslaved labourers.

A trust deed dated 1803 bequeathed legacies to several children of African descent: To my reputed natural mulatto son John... £200 To my reputed natural daughter Emilia... £500 To Robert and James, reputed natural sons of my late brother James... £100 and £50, respectively His widow, Rachel, was an artist and writer who died on 19 July 1828 in Pau, France. She produced a sketch of Coila, the muse of Robert Burns, prompting Burns to write from Mossgiel Farm on 7 May 1788:

I may say to the fair painter who does me so much honour, as Dr Beattie says to Ross, the poet of his muse Scota, from which, by the by, I took the idea of Coila...

Rachel also supported charitable causes in Kilwinning and contributed funds to assist the local poor, leading to a commemorative well in her honor.

He bequeathed the Montgreenan and Sans Souci estates to his daughter Anne and her husband Robert Robertson of Gunsgreen House, Eyemouth. In accordance with the terms of Glasgow's will, Robertson adopted the surname Robertson-Glasgow. Their son, Robert Robertson-Glasgow (1811–1860), became Sheriff-Substitute of Renfrewshire.

Succession

The estate passed successively to: Robert Robertson-Glasgow (1811–1860), Sheriff-Substitute of Renfrewshire Robert Bruce Robertson-Glasgow (died 1896), Lieutenant-Colonel, Royal Scots Fusiliers