Online Encyclopedia

Search over 40,000 articles from the original, classic Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition.

LEVEN, ALEXANDER LESLIE, 1ST EARL OF ...

Online Encyclopedia
Originally appearing in Volume V16, Page 507 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
» Make a correction to this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Spread the word: del.icio.us del.icio.us it!

See also:

LEVEN, See also:ALEXANDER See also:LESLIE, 1ST See also:EARL OF (c. 1580-1661) , Scottish See also:general, was the son of See also:George Leslie, See also:captain of See also:Blair-in-See also:Athol, and a member of the See also:family of Leslie of Balquhain. Af ter a scanty See also:education he sought his See also:fortune abroad, and became a soldier, first under See also:Sir See also:Horace See also:Vere in the See also:Low Countries, and afterwards (16o5) under See also:Charles IX. and Gustavus See also:Adolphus of See also:Sweden, in whose. service he remained for many years and fought in many See also:campaigns with See also:honour. In 1626 Leslie had risen by merit to the See also:rank of See also:lieutenant-general, and had been knighted by Gustavus. In 1628 he distinguished himself by his constancy and See also:energy in the See also:defence of See also:Stralsund against See also:Wallenstein, and in 163o seized the See also:island of See also:Rugen in the name of the See also:king of Sweden. In the same See also:year he returned to See also:Scotland to assist in recruiting and organizing the See also:corps of Scottish See also:volunteers which See also:James, 3rd See also:marquis of See also:Hamilton, brought over to Gustavus in 1631. Leslie received a severe See also:wound in the following See also:winter, but was able nevertheless to be See also:present at Gustavus's last See also:battle at See also:Lutzen. Like many others of the soldiers of fortune who served under Gustavus, Leslie cherished his old See also:commander's memory to the See also:day of his See also:death, and he kept with particular care a See also:jewel and See also:miniature presented to him by the king. He continued as a general officer in the See also:Swedish See also:army for some years, was promoted in 1636 to the rank of See also:field See also:marshal, and continued in the field until 1638, when events recalled him to his own See also:country. He had married See also:long before this—in 1637 his eldest son was made a See also:colonel in the Swedish army—and he had managed to keep in See also:touch with Scottish affairs. As the foremost Scottish soldier of his day he was naturally nominated to command the Scottish army in the impending See also:war with See also:England, a See also:post which, resigning his Swedish command, he accepted with a glad See also:heart, for he was an ardent Covenanter and had caused "a See also:great number of our commanders in See also:Germany subscryve our See also:covenant" (See also:Baillie's Letters). On leaving Sweden he brought back his arrears of pay in the See also:form of See also:cannon and muskets for his new army.

For some months he busied himself with the organization and training of the new levies, and with inducing Scottish See also:

officers abroad to do their See also:duty to their country by returning to See also:lead them. Diminutive in See also:size and somewhat deformed in See also:person as he was, his reputation and his shrewdness and See also:simple tact, combined with the respect for his See also:office of See also:lord general that he enforced on all ranks, brought even the unruly nobles to subordination. He had by now amassed a considerable fortune and was able to live in a manner befitting a commanderin-See also:chief, even when in the field. One of his first exploits was to take the See also:castle of See also:Edinburgh by surprise, without the loss of a See also:man. He commanded the Scottish army at Dunse See also:Law in May of that year, and in 164o he invaded England, and defeated the king's troops at See also:Newburn on the See also:Tyne, which gave him See also:possession of See also:Newcastle and of the open country as far as the See also:Tees. At the treaty with the king at See also:Ripon, Leslie was one of the commissioners of the Scottish See also:parliament, and when Charles visited Edinburgh Leslie entertained him magnificently and accompanied him when he drove through the streets. His affirmations of See also:loyalty to the See also:crown, which later events caused to be remembered against him, were sincere enough, but the complicated politics of the See also:time made it difficult for Leslie, the lord general of the Scottish army, to maintain a perfectly consistent attitude. However, his See also:influence was exercised chiefly to put an end to, even to hush up, the troubles, and he is found, now giving a private warning to plotters against the king to enable them to See also:escape, now guarding the Scottish parliament against a royalist coup d'etat, and now securing for an old comrade of the See also:German See also:wars, See also:Patrick See also:Ruthven, Lord See also:Ettrick, See also:indemnity for having held Edinburgh Castle for the king against the parliament. Charles created him, by patent dated Holyrood, See also:October 11, 1641, earl of Leven and Lord Balgonie, and made him captain of Edinburgh Castle and a privy councillor. The parliament recognized his services by a See also:grant, and, on his resigning the lord generalship, appointed him commander of the permanent forces. A little later, Leven, who was a member of the See also:committee of the estates which exercised executive See also:powers during the See also:recess of parliament, used his great influence in support of a proposal to raise a Scottish army to help the elector See also:palatine in Germany, but the See also:Ulster massacres gave this force, when raised, a fresh direction and Leven himself accompanied it to See also:Ireland as lord general. He did not remain there long, for the Great See also:Rebellion (q.v.) had begun in England, and negotiations were opened between the See also:English and the Scottish parliaments for mutual armed assistance.

Leven accepted the command of the new forces raised for the invasion of England, and was in consequence freely accused of having broken his See also:

personal See also:oath to Charles, but he could hardly have acted otherwise than he did, and at that time, and so far as the Scots were concerned, to the end of the struggle, the parliaments were in arms, professedly and to some extent actually, to See also:rescue his See also:majesty from the influence of evil counsellors. The military operations preceding See also:Marston See also:Moor are described under GREAT REBELLION, and the battle itself under its own heading. Leven's great reputation, See also:wisdom and tact made him an ideal commander for the allied army formed by the junction of Leven's, See also:Fairfax's and See also:Manchester's in See also:Yorkshire. After the battle the allied forces separated, Leven bringing the See also:siege of Newcastle to an end by storming it. In 1645 the Scots were less successful, though their operations ranged from See also:Westmorland to See also:Hereford, and Leven himself had many administrative and See also:political difficulties to contend with. These difficulties became more pronounced when in 1646 Charles took See also:refuge with the Scottish army. The king remained with Leven until he was handed over to the English parliament in 1647, and Leven constantly urged him to take the covenant and to make See also:peace. Presbyterians and See also:Independents had now parted, and with no more concession than the See also:guarantee of the covenant the Scottish and English Presbyterians were ready to See also:lay down their arms, or to turn them against the " sectaries." Leven was now old and infirm, and though retained as nominal commander-inchief saw no further active service. He acted with See also:Argyll and the " godly " party in the discussions preceding the second invasion of England, and remained at his post as long as possible in the See also:hope of preventing the Scots becoming merely a royalist See also:instrument for the See also:conquest of the English Independents. But he was induced iu the end to resign, though he was appointedlord general of all new forces that might be raised for the defence of Scotland. The occasion soon came, for See also:Cromwell annihilated the Scottish invaders at See also:Preston and See also:Uttoxeter, and thereupon Argyll assumed political and Leven military See also:control at Edinburgh. But he was now over seventy years of See also:age, and willingly resigned the effective command to his subordinate See also:David Leslie (see See also:NEWARK, LORD), in whom he had entire confidence.

After the See also:

execution of Charles I. the war See also:broke out afresh, and this time the " godly " party acted with the royalists. In the new war, and in the disastrous See also:campaign of See also:Dunbar, Leven took but a nominal See also:part, though attempts were afterwards made to hold him responsible. But once more the parliament refused to accept his resignation. Leven at last See also:fell into the hands of a party of English dragoons in See also:August 1651, and with some others was sent to See also:London. He remained incarcerated in the See also:Tower for some time, till released on finding securities for 2o,000, upon which he retired to his See also:residence in See also:Northumberland. While on a visit to London he was again arrested, for a technical See also:breach of his engagement, but by the intercession of the See also:queen of Sweden he obtained his See also:liberty. He was freed from his engagements in 1654, and retired to his seat at Balgonie in Fifeshire, where he died at an advanced age in 1661. He acquired considerable landed See also:property, particularly Inchmartin in the Carse of See also:Gowrie, which he called Inchleslie. See LEVEN AND See also:MELVILLE, EARLS OF, below.

End of Article: LEVEN, ALEXANDER LESLIE, 1ST EARL OF (c. 1580-1661)

Additional information and Comments

There are no comments yet for this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Please link directly to this article:
Highlight the code below, right click, and select "copy." Then paste it into your website, email, or other HTML.
Site content, images, and layout Copyright © 2006 - Net Industries, worldwide.
Do not copy, download, transfer, or otherwise replicate the site content in whole or in part.

Links to articles and home page are always encouraged.

[back]
LEVEN AND MELVILLE, EARLS OF 		[next]
LEVEN, LOCH

Site © 2006 - Net Industries