Andrew Stuart (MP)

Andrew Stuart (died 1801) was a Scottish lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1801.

Stuart was the second son of Archibald Stuart of Torrance in Lanarkshire (died 1767), seventh son and heir of Alexander Stuart of Torrance. His mother, Elizabeth, was daughter of Sir Andrew Myreton of Gogar, bart. He studied law at Edinburgh, and became a member of the Scottish bar. He was employed by James Hamilton, 6th Duke of Hamilton, as tutor to his children, and through his influence was in 1770 appointed Keeper of the Signet of Scotland.

Stuart was involved in the Douglas Cause in which the Duke of Hamilton disputed the identity of Archibald James Edward Douglas, first baron Douglas, and endeavoured to hinder his succession to the family estates. Stuart was engaged to conduct the case against the claimant. In the course of the suit, which was finally decided in the House of Lords in February 1769 in favour of Douglas, he distinguished himself highly, but so much feeling arose between him and Edward Thurlow (afterwards Lord Thurlow), the opposing counsel, that a duel took place. After the decision of the case Stuart in 1773 published a series of Letters to Lord Mansfield (London, 4to), who had been a judge in the case, and who had very strongly supported the claims of Douglas. In these epistles he assailed Mansfield for his want of impartiality with a force and eloquence that caused him at the time to be regarded as a worthy rival to Junius.

From 1777 to 1781 he was occupied with the affairs of his younger brother, Colonel James Stuart (died 1793), who had been suspended from his position by the East India Company for the arrest of Lord Pigot, the governor of the Madras presidency. He published several letters to the directors of the East India Company and to the secretary at war, in which his brother's case was set forth with great clearness and vigour. These letters called forth a reply from Alexander Dalrymple.

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