John Middleton, 1st Earl of Middleton

The Earl of Middleton
John Middleton, 1st Earl of Middleton
Governor of Tangier
In office
1670 to 1672 – 1672 to 1674
Governor of Rochester Castle
In office
1663–1668
Lord High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland
In office
1661–1662
Commander in chief Scotland
In office
1646 to 1647 – 1660 to 1663
Personal details
Born1608
Caldhame, Kincardineshire
Died3 July 1674(1674-07-03) (aged 66)
Tangier, Morocco
NationalityScottish
Spouses
Grizel Durham
(m. 1639⁠–⁠1666)
Martha Carey
(m. 1667)
Children
RelativesJohn Middleton (great-nephew)
OccupationSoldier
Military service
Battles/warsThirty Years War
Wars of the Three Kingdoms
Philiphaugh; Preston; Worcester
Glencairn's rising
Battle of Dalnaspidal

John Middleton, 1st Earl of Middleton (c. 1608 – 3 July 1674) was a professional soldier and mercenary from Kincardineshire in Scotland.[1] Beginning his career in the Thirty Years War, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms he fought for the Covenanters and Parliamentarians until 1648, when he switched sides to the Royalists.

One of his colleagues in the 1639 to 1640 Bishops' Wars was Montrose, who later became a Royalist. Despite their similar backgrounds and views, Middleton pursued him with considerable vigour, reportedly because his father died when Montrose's men set fire to his house.[2]

Middleton supported the Royalists in the Second and Third English Civil Wars and took part in the unsuccessful 1654 Glencairn's rising. Rewarded by being appointed Lord High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland after the 1660 Stuart Restoration, he fell out with his political colleagues and was removed from office in 1663.

However, viewed by Charles II as a capable and reliable soldier, he was compensated with two key strategic commands, first Rochester Castle, then English Tangier where he died in July 1674.

  1. ^ One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Middleton, Earls of". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 18 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 414–415.
  2. ^ Furgol 2004.

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