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| William Maxwell, 5th Earl of Nithsdale | |
|---|---|
| Name | William Maxwell, 5th Earl of Nithsdale |
| Birth date | c. 1676 |
| Death date | 9 March 1744 |
| Death place | Rome, Papal States |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Other names | Lord Herries (courtesy title) |
| Known for | Jacobite officer, escape from the Tower of London |
| Spouse | Lady Winifred Herbert |
| Parents | Robert Maxwell, 4th Earl of Nithsdale; Jean Douglas |
William Maxwell, 5th Earl of Nithsdale was a Scottish nobleman and Jacobite peer known for his participation in the 1715 Rising, his conviction for treason, and a celebrated escape from the Tower of London in 1716. A member of the Maxwell family of Nithsdale, he became notable in the contexts of the Jacobite rising of 1715, House of Stuart restoration efforts, and the wider history of early 18th-century British politics. His flight to the Continent (Europe) and death in Rome placed him among prominent Jacobite exiles of the period.
Born circa 1676 into the Scottish aristocratic dynasty of the Maxwell family of Nithsdale, he was the son of Robert Maxwell, 4th Earl of Nithsdale and Jean Douglas (daughter of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas). As heir he took the courtesy title Lord Herries and was connected by blood and marriage to leading families including the Douglases, Stewarts, and Hepburns. He married Lady Winifred Herbert, daughter of William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis, linking him to the Herbert family and the Catholic peerage associated with the Stuart court. His familial network included ties to Catholic aristocrats such as James Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Derwentwater and to Highland magnates like the Stewart of Appin and MacDonald chiefs who played roles in Jacobite politics.
Nithsdale was an early and active supporter of the House of Stuart claim following the accession of the House of Hanover with George I. He aligned with leading Jacobite figures including John Erskine, Earl of Mar and coordinated with peers such as William Maxwell, 5th Earl of Nithsdale (name forbidden by instruction), James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde, and continental sympathizers like the exiled James Francis Edward Stuart. His military and political engagement placed him among commanders who mobilised in Scotland and the northern counties during the Jacobite rising of 1715, attempting to secure strategic points and to persuade clans led by figures such as the Cameron and Fraser chiefs to join the insurrection. The rising culminated in engagements and maneuvers that involved other notable actions such as the Battle of Sheriffmuir and political contests at the Parliament of Great Britain.
Following the collapse of coordinated Jacobite operations, he was apprehended by government forces loyal to George I and held for treason. His trial took place under laws enacted by the Parliament of Great Britain and was presided over by officials drawn from institutions such as the Court of King's Bench and attended by figures from the Lord High Steward's circle. Prosecutors invoked statutes from the reign of earlier monarchs and relied on testimony comparable to that used against contemporaries like James Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Derwentwater and William Gordon, 6th Viscount of Kenmure. Convicted of high treason, he was sentenced to the standard capital penalties then applied to noble traitors, with execution scheduled at Tyburn and detention in the Tower of London pending sentence.
While imprisoned in the Tower of London, Nithsdale executed a daring escape in 1716 with the active assistance of his wife, Lady Winifred Herbert, and allies linked to Jacobite circles including emissaries associated with James Francis Edward Stuart and sympathizers among Catholic courtiers. Disguised and aided by conspirators who exploited access through servants and officials connected to the Tower, he evaded guards and passed through gates controlled by authorities such as the Constable of the Tower and officers of the Yeoman Warders. The escape has been recounted alongside other notable 18th-century jailbreaks and drew comment in contemporary publications and letters exchanged with figures like John Gay and diplomats in Paris and Rome. After fleeing London, he crossed to the Low Countries and travelled via ports used by Jacobite exiles, pursued by notices from the Secretary of State and agents such as the Hanoverian ministry's emissaries.
In exile he joined the community of Jacobite émigrés resident in cities such as Paris, Brussels, and eventually Rome, where the exiled James Francis Edward Stuart maintained a court. Nithsdale associated with leading émigré figures including Lord Bolingbroke sympathisers, clerics of the Catholic Church who ministered to Jacobite refugees, and foreign patrons in the Papal States. Financially supported through family networks and pensions administered by intermediaries tied to the Stuart court in exile, he lived under the continuing shadow of attainder and participated in correspondence with peers such as Henry St. John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke and continental allies. He died in Rome on 9 March 1744, having never regained his titles under the British Crown and leaving descendants who remained involved in Jacobite and Scottish Catholic circles.
Historians evaluate Nithsdale’s career in relation to broader debates about the viability of the Jacobite cause, the role of Scottish Catholic aristocracy, and the culture of exile exemplified by communities in Paris and Rome. His escape from the Tower of London figures prominently in popular histories alongside cases such as James Radclyffe and in biographical studies comparing noble responses to the 1715 Rising and the later Jacobite rising of 1745. Scholarly treatments situate him within works addressing the Union of 1707, the politics of the early Hanoverian succession, and the transnational networks connecting British exiles with continental courts and the Papacy. Monographs and articles on the period frequently cite his marriage into the Herbert family and his links to the Marquess of Powis as illustrative of the interpenetration of kinship, religion, and high politics in the age of Jacobitism.
Category:Scottish Jacobites Category:18th-century Scottish people