Earls of Wemyss and March
| Earl of Wemyss and March | |
|---|---|
 
Quarterly: 1st & 4th argent, a fess, azure, within a double tressure, flory and counterflory, gules, for Charteris, 2nd and 3rd, Or, a lion rampant, gules, armed and langued azure, for Wemyss
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| Creation date | 1633 (Earl of Wemyss) 1697 (Earl of March) |
| Monarch | Charles I and William III |
| Peerage | Peerage of Scotland |
| First holder |
John Wemyss, 1st Earl of Wemyss William Douglas, 1st Earl of March |
| Present holder | James Charteris, 13th Earl of Wemyss, 9th Earl of March |
| Heir apparent | Richard Charteris, Lord Elcho |
| Remainder to | The 1st Earl's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten |
| Subsidiary titles | Lord Elcho Lord Neidpath Viscount Peebles |
| Seat(s) | Gosford House |
| Former seat(s) | Amisfield House Neidpath Castle Elcho Castle |
| Armorial motto | Je Pense ("I think") |
Earl of Wemyss (/ˈwiːmz/ WEEMZ) and Earl of March are two titles in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1633 and 1697 respectively, that have been held by a joint holder since 1826. The Scottish Wemyss family had possessed the lands of Wemyss in Fife since the 12th century.
In 1625 John Wemyss was created a Baronet, of Wemyss in the County of Fife, in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia. In 1628 he was raised to the Peerage of Scotland as Lord Wemyss of Elcho, and in 1633 he was further honoured when he was made Lord Elcho and Methel and Earl of Wemyss, also in the Peerage of Scotland. He later supported the Scottish parliament against Charles I, and died in 1649. He was succeeded by his son, the second Earl. In 1672 he resigned his peerages to the Crown in return for a new patent with original precedency and extending the limitation to his daughters. Lord Wemyss had no male issue and on his death in 1679 the baronetcy became extinct. He was succeeded in the peerages according to the new patent by his daughter Margaret, the third Countess of Wemyss. She married as her first husband her third cousin twice removed Sir James Wemyss, Lord Burntisland. He was the son of General Sir James Wemyss of Caskieberry, grandson of James Wemyss, younger brother of Sir John Wemyss, great-grandfather of the first Earl of Wemyss. She was succeeded by her son from her first marriage, David, the fourth Earl. He served as Lord High Admiral of Scotland and sat in the House of Lords as a Scottish Representative Peer from 1707 to 1710. Lord Wemyss married Lady Anne Douglas, daughter of William Douglas, 1st Duke of Queensberry and sister of William Douglas, 1st Earl of March (see below).
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