nor in Normandy called
Gordon, possessed by a family of that name. The territory of Gordon in
Berwickshire was, according to another account, conferred by David the
First upon an Anglo-Norman settler, who assumed from it the name of
Gordon."

William Gordon, sixth Earl of Kenmure, was descended from a younger son
of the ducal house of Gordon; in 1633 Sir John Gordon of Lochinvar was
created Viscount Kenmure and Lord of Lochinvar; and the estates
continued in an unbroken line until they descended to William, the sixth
Viscount, who was the only Scottish peer in 1715 who suffered capital
punishment.

This unfortunate nobleman succeeded his father in 1698; and possessed,
up to the period of his taking the command of the army in the south, the
estates belonging to his family in the Stuartry of Kirkcudbright.
Kenmure Castle, still happily enjoyed by the family of Gordon, stands
upon an eminence overlooking the meadows, at that point where the river
Ken expands into a lake. The Castle was originally a single tower, to
which various additions have been made according to the taste of
different owners. The Castle Keep is now ruinous and unroofed, but the
body of the house is in good repair. A fine prospect over the scenery of
the Glenhens is commanded by the eminence on which the castle stands. An
ancient avenue of lime-trees constitutes the approach to the fortress
from the road.

In this abode dwelt the Viscount Kenmure until the summons of Lord Mar
called him from the serene tenour of a course honoured by others, and
peaceful from the tranquillity of the unhappy nobleman's own
disposition; for his was not the restless ambition of Mar, nor the blind
devotion of the Duke of Perth; nor the passion for fame and ascendancy
which stimulated Lord George Murray in his exertions. Lord Kenmure was,
it is true, well acquainted with public business, and an adept in the
affairs of the political world, in which he had obtained that insight
which long experience gives. His acquaintance with books and men was
said to be considerable; he is allowed, even by one who had deserted the
party which Lord Kenmure espoused, to be of a "very extraordinary
knowledge."[37] But his calm, reflective mind, his experience, his
resources of learning, rather indisposed than inclined this nobleman
from rising when called upon to lend his aid to the perilous enterprise
of James Stuart. Beloved in private life, of a singularly good temper,
calm, mild, of sim