Background
George Mackenzie was the eldest son of Sir John Mackenzie, Bart. , of Tarbat, and belonged to the same family as the earls of Seaforth.
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George Mackenzie Cromarty
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In 1654 he joined the rising in Scotland on behalf of Charles II and after an exile of six years he returned to his own country and took some part in public affairs after the Restoration.
In 1661 he became a lord of session as Lord Tarbat, but having been concerned in a vain attempt to overthrow Charles II.
's secretary, the earl of Lauderdale, he was dismissed from office in 1664.
In 1688, however, he deserted James and soon afterwards made his peace with William III, his experience being very serviceable to the new government in settling the affairs of Scotland.
He was again lord justice general from 1704 to 1710.
Cromarty was a man of much learning, and among his numerous writings may be mentioned his Account of the conspiracies by the earls of Gowry and R. Logan (Edinburgh, 1713).
The earl's grandson George, 3rd earl of Cromarty (c. 1703- 1766), succeeded his father John, the 2nd earl, in February 1731.
In 1745 he joined Charles Edward, the young pretender, and he served with the Jacobites until April 1746 when he was taken prisoner in Sutherlandshire.
He was tried and sentenced to death, but he obtained a conditional pardon although his peerage was forfeited.
He died on the 28th of September 1766.
This earl's eldest son was John Mackenzie, Lord Macleod (1727 - 1789), who shared his father's fortunes in 1745 and his fate in 1746.
Having pleaded guilty at his trial Macleod was pardoned on condition that he gave up all his rights in the estates of the earldom, and he left England and entered the Swedish army.
In 1784 he regained the family estates and he died on the 2nd of April 1789.
Macleod wrote an account of the Jacobite rising of 1745, and also one of a campaign in Bohemia in which he took part in 1757; both are printed in Sir W. Fraser's Earls of Cromartie (Edinburgh, 1876).
Macleod left no children, and his heir was his cousin, Kenneth Mackenzie (d. 1796), a grandson of the 2nd earl, who also died childless.
Connections
By his first wife, Anna, daughter of Sir James Sinclair of Mey, baronet, he had four sons : Roderick, who died young ; John, who succeeded his father; Kenneth, and James. By his second wife, Margaret, countess of Wemyss, he had no issue.
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Born
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Died
August 17, 1714 (aged 84) -
Nationality
Scottish -
Ethnicity