He wishes the estate to pass from 'generation to generation' in a male entail. The will also reveals James Boswell's notions of a 'feudal society'. It is also the earliest example of prose written in Scots. The most famous of these is the 'Auchinleck Chronicle' written by a monk of Paisley Abbey in circa 1460 which contains contemporaneous information about the reign of James II, such as the murder of his political opponent, William, eighth earl of Douglas and a description of how his reign ended prematurely due to his passion for artillery. James Boswell died on in London and was buried in the family vault at Auchinleck Churchyard on 8 June 1795. The will makes reference to his father's 'curious collection' of classical texts and manuscripts. National Records of Scotland, CC9/7/77 pp 194-208 National Records of Scotland, CH2/854/1/13
Marriage entry for James Boswell in Stewarton Parish Church kirk session records (19 KB jpeg) The entry in the Old Parish Register for Stewarton (National Records of Scotland, OPR 616/5) and the Stewarton kirk session record give his surname as Boazwell. James Boswell married Peggie Montgomerie on 26 November 1769. National Records of Scotland, OPR 685-1/22, page 167 The entry in the Old Parish Register (OPR) for Edinburgh gives the names of three witnesses to the baptism which took place the same day.īaptism entry for James Boswell in the OPR for Edinburgh (64 KB jpeg)
James Boswell was born in the morning of 18 October 1740, the son of Alexander Boswell younger of Auchinleck and Euphame Erskine. Thomas, first laird of Auchinleck, had been gifted the castle and barony in 1504 by James IV and he claimed descent from a cousin of Lord Darnley (second husband of Mary Queen of Scots and father of James VI and I) on his mother's side. James Boswell was proud of his social rank and his ancestors. The honest, frank and sometimes shocking insights into his personal, professional and social life provide an almost tangible description of his time. It was only in the latter part of the twentieth century with the recovery of his private papers and publication of his London journal of 1762-1763 that his qualities as a diarist came to light.
James Boswell, ninth laird of Auchinleck, is best remembered for his biography 'The Life of Samuel Johnson' published in 1791. Lawyer, diarist and biographer of Samuel Johnson
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