Douglas Stuart, 20th Earl of Moray

{{Short description|British peer (1928–2011)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}

{{infobox person

| honorific prefix = The Right Honourable

| name = The Earl of Moray

| honorific suffix =

| image =

| caption =

| birth_name = Douglas John Moray Stuart

| birth_date = {{birth date|1928|02|13|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Johannesburg, South Africa

| death_date = {{death date and age|2011|09|23|1928|02|13|df=yes}}

| death_place =

| residence =

| nationality =

| locality =

| education = Hilton College

| alma_mater = Trinity College, Cambridge

| parents = Archibald Stuart, 19th Earl of Moray
Mabel Helen Maud Wilson

| spouse = {{marriage|Lady Malvina Dorothea Murray
|27 January 1964|2011|reason=died}}

| children = John Douglas Stuart, 21st Earl of Moray
Lady Louisa Helena Stuart

| relations = Morton Stuart, 17th Earl of Moray (grandfather)

}}

Douglas John Moray Stuart, 20th Earl of Moray (13 February 1928 – 23 September 2011), styled Lord Doune from 1943 to 1974, was a Scottish peer.

Early life

Stuart was born on 13 February 1928 in Johannesburg, South Africa. He was the eldest son of Archibald Stuart, 19th Earl of Moray (1894–1974) and Mabel Helen Maud "May" Wilson (d. 1968). Among his siblings were Lady Hermione Mary Morton Stuart (who married Rear Admiral John Oliver Roberts, and, after their divorce, Prince Friedrich Karl Viktor Stefan Christian of Prussia), Hon. Charles Rodney Stanford Stuart (who married Sasha Ann Lewis, and, after their divorce, Frauke Stender), and Hon. James Wallace Wilson Stuart (who married Jane Scott Richards).Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003, volume 2, page 2770.

His paternal grandparents were Morton Stuart, 17th Earl of Moray and Edith Douglas Palmer (a daughter of Rear-Admiral George Palmer).C. Arnold McNaughton, The Book of Kings: A Royal Genealogy, in 3 volumes (London: Garnstone Press, 1973), volume 1, page 68. His maternal grandfather was Benjamin Wilson of Battlefields, Zimbabwe (who went by the nick-name of Matabele).

His father had purchased a remote cattle ranch, Saas Poste, to the east of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, then Bechuanaland Protectorate, in 1922. He was educated at Hilton College, located near the town of Hilton in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, South Africa. In 1947, he matriculated at Trinity College, Cambridge.

Career

File:Scotland-2016-Aerial-Doune Castle (and Castle keeper's cottage).jpg, August 2016]]

He was appointed Fellow, Land Agents' Society in 1948 and then a Fellow, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. In 1984, the Moray placed Doune Castle, which had been held by the family since 1570, into the care of the nation. It is now looked after by Historic Scotland.undiscovered Scotland

On his father's death in 1974, he succeeded to the earldom of Moray, among others in the Peerage of Scotland and the 12th Baron Stuart of Castle Stuart in the Peerage of Great Britain. He lost his seat in the House of Lords after the reforms of the House of Lords Act 1999.

=Car collection=

File:Rolls Royce 15hp.jpg (1905) the only remaining example in the world]]

Lord Doune's car collection began in 1953 and by 1970 it was decided to open the collection to the public as the Doune Motor Museum. This linked in turn to one of the world's steepest races: The Doune Hill Climb, a timed event. Before the museum closed on 30 November 1998,{{Cite web|url=https://www.secretscotland.org.uk/index.php/Secrets/DouneMotorMuseum|title=Secret Scotland – Doune Motor Museum}} his collection included:The Doune Collection 1978

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Personal life

On 27 January 1964, he married Lady Malvina Dorothea Murray (b. 1936), daughter of Mungo Murray, 7th Earl of Mansfield and Mansfield, and Dorothea Carnegie (a daughter of diplomat Sir Lancelot Carnegie). Together, they were the parents of two children:

Lord Moray died on 23 September 2011 and was succeeded in his titles by his only son, John.{{cite news |title=Obituary: Douglas John Moray Stuart, 20th Earl of Moray |url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/obituary-douglas-john-moray-stuart-20th-earl-of-moray-1658896 |access-date=29 January 2025 |work=The Scotsman |date=7 October 2011 |language=en}} The Dowager Countess and her daughter Lady Louisa Howitt (née Stuart) are Patronesses of the Royal Caledonian Ball.{{cite web|title=Patronesses|url=http://www.royalcaledonianball.com/ball_details/patronesses|publisher=Royal Caledonian Ball|access-date=11 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131014035226/http://www.royalcaledonianball.com/ball_details/patronesses|archive-date=14 October 2013|url-status=dead}}

References

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