The traditional account of the origins of the Dumfries family are that they descended from a noble
Hungarian that came to Scotland with
Queen Margaret, in the during the reign of
Malcolm III of Scotland. The family origins are in
Crichton, Midlothian. Thurstanus de Crichton was present at the charter of
Holyrood Abbey alongside
King David I in 1128. for
William Crichton, 1st Earl of Dumfries seventh Lord Crichton of Sanquhar, he was invested the viscount of Ayr, Feb 2 1622, the earl of Dumfries, and Lord Crichton of Sanquhar and Cumnock, June 12, 1633. William was made the Earl of Menteith, December 20 that year too. The Castle was sold Crichtons during the mid-1600s to the
Duke of Queensberry. The castle a ruin, was bought in 1895 by
John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, by a descendant of the Lord Crichton.
William, was the fifth earl of Dumfries, in 1721 he was commissioned in his uncle's 'Earl of Stair's regiment', and the
6th dragoons, he would continue to fight in the army until 1747. In 1742 he became the Earl following his
Mother the Countess' death. During his military career he fought at the
Battle of Dettingen as aide-de-camp to the
Earl of Stair. Afterwards in 1744 he was appointed captain-lieutenant in the third regiment of
footguards, during this period he was
Sheriff of Clackmannan for the year 1742–47. In 1752 he was invested with the
Order of the Thistle, and in 1760 he succeeded his brother
James, as fourth earl of Stair, and was thenceforward styled earl of Dumfries and Stair. The Earl left a legacy in commissioning the Adams brothers,
Robert,
John and
James, to design a new house to be called Leifnorris House. It was later that the name was to be changed to Dumfries House in line with his title. The house was completed on time and on budget in 1759. On July 27, 1768, he died at
Dumfries House without an heir, his widow left to move to
Edinburgh. He was succeeded in the title Earl of Dumfries by his nephew,
Patrick Macdowall of Freugh; and the
Earl of Stair went to his cousin,
John Dalrymple. The eleventh Earl of Dumfries became a scholar being having graduated from
Trinity College, Cambridge, also becoming a fellow at the
University of Edinburgh. A patron of the arts he held successive positions for decades, such as trustees and chairman on councils and boards in the United kingdom. He sold family's properties in Edinburgh and Cardiff to pay his father's death tax. The earl also took traditional roles as the
Lord Lieutenant of Bute and of Argyll. The Earl's business had employed the most people on the Isle of Bute, a designer fabrics and contemporary furniture company. One of the most important transitions fell to the 12th Earl. He was known as 'Johnny Dumfries' a
Formula 1 race car driver featuring in the season. Dumfries House had been a family home from 1760 to 1993, when the last full-time occupant
Lady Eileen, Dowager Marchioness of Bute, passed away. The house remained in the hands of the 7th Marquess of Bute who ensured that it was maintained, although not used as a primary residence, ==Lords Crichton of Sanquhar (1488)==