He was born on 27 August 1719 the fourth son of
Hew Dalrymple, Lord Drummore. His paternal grandfather was
Hew Dalrymple, Lord North Berwick. His maternal grandfather was
Robert Hamilton, Lord Presmennan of
East Lothian. His siblings included General
Robert Horn Dalrymple. He passed the Scottish Bar as an advocate in 1743. In 1746 he became
Procurator to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. In 1748 he became
Sheriff of Aberdeen. In 1777 he succeeded
James Ferguson, Lord Pitfour as
Senator of the College of Justice. In Edinburgh he lived in
former Lord Advocate's house at the foot of the aptly named Advocates Close, off the
Royal Mile, opposite
St Giles Cathedral. He moved from Advocates Close to the briefly fashionable properties on the Buccleuch Street (just south of
George Square just after it was built, around 1782, and died there in 1784. ==Freemasonry==