STEWART, Edward (1808-1875).

Stewart’s father, a younger son of the 7th earl of Galloway, had a brief military career and sat for Wigtown Burghs on the family interest from 1806 until January 1809, when he was made a commissioner of the navy victualling board by the Portland ministry. He was subsequently, under the auspices of the Liverpool administration, paymaster of marines (1812-13), and a commissioner of the navy board (1813-19), of customs (1819-21) and of audit (1821-7). His marriage in 1805 connected him to the Charteris family, claimants to the attainted earldom of Wemyss. His brother-in-law Francis Charteris was created Baron Wemyss in 1821 and on the reversal of the attainder in 1826 became 6th earl of Wemyss. HP Commons, 1790-1820, v. 271. Edward, the eldest of Stewart’s three sons, was conventionally educated in England. He entered Lincoln’s Inn in March 1830 and in December was made private secretary to his father’s Whig nephew, Sir James Graham*, first lord of the admiralty in the new Grey administration. At the general election of 1831 his cousin Lord Garlies*, eldest son of the 8th earl of Galloway, returned him for Wigtown Burghs as a supporter of the ministerial reform scheme. He resigned his place at the admiralty and duly voted for the second reading of the reintroduced English reform bill, 6 July, and against the adjournment, 12 July 1831. He gave fairly steady support to its details, pairing on at least two occasions (5, 9 Aug.), but he was absent from the division on its passage, 21 Sept., and was given three weeks’ leave on account of ill health two days later. He attended to vote for the motion of confidence in the ministry, 10 Oct. It was probably not he who divided for the Irish union of parishes bill, 19 Aug. He was in the government majorities on the Dublin election controversy, 23 Aug. He presented Lowland farmers’ petitions against the use of molasses in brewing and distilling, 9 Aug. He voted for the second reading of the revised English reform bill, 17 Dec. 1831, steadily for its details and for the third reading, 22 Mar. 1832. He was in the ministerial majorities on the Russian-Dutch loan, 26 Jan., and relations with Portugal, 9 Feb., but he divided in the minorities of 41 against the malt drawback bill, 2 Apr., and of 26 for inquiry into the glove trade, 3 Apr. He was added to the select committee on the East India Company, 23 Feb., and named to that on the silk trade, 5 Mar. On 8 May he presented a petition in favour of the Edinburgh and Glasgow railway bill. He voted for the address calling on the king to appoint only ministers who would carry reform unimpaired, 10 May, and the second reading of the Irish reform bill, 25 May, after presenting petitions for supplies to be withheld until reform was secured. He was given a fortnight’s leave on account of ill health, 9 July 1832.

Stewart was returned for Wigtown Burghs as a Liberal after a contest at the general election of 1832 and retired from Parliament at the dissolution in 1834. He was called to the bar that year but never practised, and made a change of direction by entering the church. He was ordained deacon in 1841, became vicar of Sparsholt, Hampshire in 1842 and in 1850 obtained the living of Lainton. On the death of his father in 1851 he received a legacy of £2,000 and a quarter share in residue of personal estate calculated for duty at £27,989. PROB 11/2140/755; IR26/1915/666. He died in his sister Jane’s house at 14 New Steine, Brighton, 21 Mar. 1875. The Times, 27 Mar. 1875. His elder son Herbert Stewart, aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria, had a distinguished military career, which was terminated by death from wounds sustained in Egypt in 1885.