Alexander Livingston, 2nd Earl of Linlithgow


Alexander Livingston, 2nd Earl of Linlithgow PC was a Scottish nobleman.

Early life

He was the eldest surviving son of Alexander Livingstone, 1st Earl of Linlithgow and Lady Helen Hay. Among his siblings was James Livingston, 1st Earl of Callendar; Anne Livingston, who married to Alexander Montgomerie, 6th Earl of Eglinton; and Margaret Livingston, who married John Fleming, 2nd Earl of Wigtown.
His paternal grandparents were William Livingstone, 6th Lord Livingston and Agnes Fleming. Among his extended family were Alexander Elphinstone, 4th Lord Elphinstone, the Treasurer of Scotland and Lewis Bellenden and Patrick Stewart, 2nd Earl of Orkney. His mother was the eldest daughter of Andrew Hay, 8th Earl of Erroll and, his first wife, Lady Jean Hay.

Career

From 1609/10, he served as an Extraordinary Lord of Session. Upon his father's death on 24 December 1621 at Callendar House, he became the 2nd Earl of Linlithgow, and was hereditary Constable of Linlithgow Palace in 1627.
He became a Privy Councillor in 1623/4 and in 1627 during the minority of the James Stewart, 4th Duke of Lennox, he served as Lord High Admiral of Scotland. In 1631, he was commissioner for the plantations in Nova Scotia and Lieutenant and Commissioner in the County of Stirling in 1640.
In 1628 he was granted a patent for making gunpowder by the Privy Council of Scotland.

Personal life

On 4 May 1611, he was married to Lady Elizabeth Gordon, second daughter of George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly and Lady Henrietta Stuart. Together, they were the parents of:
After the death of Elizabeth Gordon, his first wife, in childbirth in July 1616, he remarried to Lady Mary Douglas on 17 October 1620. Lady Mary was the second daughter of William Douglas, 10th Earl of Angus and Hon. Elizabeth Oliphant. Together, they were the parents of:
Linlithgow died between 11 June and 20 December 1648, and was succeeded in his titles by his eldest son.