Donald Cameron of Lochiel (1835–1905)

Donald Cameron of Lochiel, JP, DL, FRGS (5 April 1835 – 30 November 1905) was a Scottish landowner, Conservative Member of Parliament and diplomat. He was the 24th Chief of Clan Cameron.

The Much Honoured Donald Cameron of Lochiel JP DL FRGS
With Viscountess Hawarden, 1861
Lord Lieutenant of Inverness
In office 1887–1905
Preceded by	The Lord Lovat
Succeeded by	Alfred Mackintosh
Member of Parliament for Inverness-shire
In office 1868–1885
Preceded by	Henry Baillie
Succeeded by	Charles Fraser-Mackintosh
Personal details
Born	Donald Cameron (1835-04-05)5 April 1835
Died	30 November 1905(1905-11-30) (aged 70) Achnacarry, Inverness-shire, Scotland
Spouse	Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott ​ ​ (m. 1875)​
Children	4, including Donald Walter
Parent(s)	Donald Cameron of Lochiel Lady Vere Hobart
Residence	Achnacarry Castle

"South Hants". Caricature of Lord Montagu published in Vanity Fair in 1881

Early life

Lochiel was the eldest son of Donald Cameron of Lochiel and Lady Vere Catherine Louisa Hobart (1803–1888), of Hampden House, Buckinghamshire.^[1] His mother, a sister of the 5th Earl of Buckinghamshire, was daughter of The Hon. George Vere Hobart by his second wife Janet Maclean – a scion of the Camerons of Glendessary.^[2] Lochaber joyously celebrated the birth of Lochiel's heir during the spring of 1835, with commemorative dinners held by Camerons and the lighting of bonfires on Ben Nevis.^[3]

He was educated at Harrow, and shortly thereafter entered into the Diplomatic service.^[3]

Career

Diplomacy

Entering the Foreign Office in 1852, Cameron was appointed a secretary of the British Embassy at Berne, Switzerland. He was then a paid attaché at Copenhagen, Berlin and Stockholm.^[4] In 1857, he was appointed First Attaché of the Earl of Elgin's special embassy to China during the Second Opium War.^[3] During his time in the Far East he also went to Japan. He retired from the diplomatic service in 1859.^[4]

Public life

At the 1868 general election Cameron was elected Member of Parliament for Inverness-shire and took his seat in the House of Commons, which he held until 1885.^[5] He was a Justice of the peace and Deputy lieutenant for Inverness-shire and Buckinghamshire, respectively.^[6] From 1887, he held the office of Lord Lieutenant of Inverness-shire.^[7] From 1874 to 1880, Lochiel served as groom-in-waiting to Queen Victoria,^[6] whom he had hosted during a Royal visit to Achnacarry in 1873.^[3]

Active in sheep farming, Lochiel had to take on the stakes of most of the sheep farms on his estate during the acute depression in the industry. As such, he had an intimate knowledge of the shepherds plight, and that of the related business of deer stalking. He was appointed in 1883 to the Napier Association to enquire into the grievances of the crofters, and was later named to the Deer Forest Commission in 1894.^[3] In 1886, his nephew the Earl of Dalkeith was accidentally killed while stalking near Achnacarry.^[8][9]

Lochiel owned 125,000 acres, with 110,000 in Inverness-shire, 16,000 in Argyll and 400 in Buckinghamshire.^[10]

Marriage and children

In 1875, Lochiel married Lady Margaret Elizabeth Montagu Douglas Scott (1846–1918), the second daughter of Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch and sister of the 1st Baron Montagu of Beaulieu.^[7][11] They had four sons:

• Col. Sir Donald Walter Cameron, 25th Lochiel, KT (1876–1951), commanding officer of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders who succeeded as Chief; married Lady Hermione Graham, daughter of the 5th Duke of Montrose.^[11]
• Maj. Ewen Charles Cameron (1878–1958), officer of the Lovat Scouts.^[11]
• Capt. Allan George Cameron (1880–1914), killed near Aisne during World War I.^[11]
• Archibald Cameron (1886–1917), killed at the Battle of Arras during World War I.^[11]

Commemoration

Statue in Fort William

Lochiel is commemorated with a statue in Fort William on the Parade, erected circa 1905. He is depicted in full Highland regalia with an inscription in Scottish Gaelic which reads: Dòmhnall Camshron mac Dhòmhnaill Dubh. The statue serves as tribute to a Highland gentleman who faithfully served both Lochaber and his clan during his lifetime.^[3]