Series 1. Scottish papers

Much of the material prior to 1700 in this series relates to the Mure family of Rowallan, particularly Sir William Mure (1594-1657). There are a few 1625 letters of John Spottiswoode, Archbishop of St. Andrews.

Hugh Campbell, 3rd Earl of Loudoun, correspondence and documents pertain primarily to British and Scottish politics, particularly in Ayrshire, including requests for patronage. There are also military records documenting aspects of the 1715 Jacobite uprising and post-rebellion appeals to assist prisoners. Though Campbell was involved in the 1707 Acts of Union negotiations, there is little material related to them.

Frequent Hugh Campbell correspondents include George Dalrymple, Baron Dalrymple of Dalmahoy; Robert Campbell; Sir James Campbell; Charles Cathcart, 8th Baron Cathcart; James Erskine, Lord Grange; Sir David Dalrymple; John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair; Sir Hew Dalrymple; John Adam; Colin Lindsay, 3rd Earl of Balcarres; and Campbell's sister, Margaret Campbell Lindsay. There are a number of letters from his wife, Margaret Dalrymple Campbell, written to him while he was in London; as well as several from his son, John Campbell.

The bulk of John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun, correspondence and documents dates from the 1740s, with much of it relating to Campbell's involvement in the suppression and aftermath of the Jacobite rebellion led by Charles Edward Stuart from 1745 to 1747. Material includes company rolls and officer lists; recruitments and appointments; orders; returns and records pertaining to ordnance, stores and supplies, clothing, meals, and horses; records of shipments and payments; intelligence reports; and several medical-related lists. Items primarily document the 64th Highlanders (commonly referred to as the Earl of Loudoun's Highland Regiment in the documents) and some independent companies.

Frequent correspondents from this time period include Duncan Forbes; Normand MacLeod; John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair; Ludovick Grant; Alexander Brodie; James Ogilvy; and Sir John Cope. There are several letters from Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat, from 1745, as well as material relating to the 1747 treason case against him for his support of the Jacobite uprising.

Also present are two tartan swatches (enclosures in LO 12589 and LO 12594) from approximately 1746 and 1747.

This series contains a small amount of John Campbell military material not related to the Jacobite uprising of 1745. Few items relate to his participation in the campaign in Flanders during War of Austrian Succession in 1743, though Campbell's appointment as aide-de-camp to King George II is present. Activities in Portugal in 1762 during the Seven Years' War are better documented, including correspondence with Portugal's Secretary of State Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo and other military documents. In addition, there are records pertaining to the Foot Guards, especially the 3rd Regiment of Foot, mostly from the 1740s and later in the 1770s; and to the 30th Regiment of Foot, primarily in the 1750s.

General topics of John Campbell's correspondence include the politics of Great Britain, Scotland, and Ayrshire, and requests and petitions for patronage and assistance. Particular items of interest are several letters from James Boswell to Campbell in the 1770s and a 1766 letter from Josiah Wedgwood regarding a shipment of creamware. There are a few items pertaining to Campbell's role as governor of Edinburgh Castle, including a 1781 memorial from Allan Ramsay regarding a boundary dispute.

The Scottish papers contain material documenting the lives of upper-class women in 18th Great Britain including numerous letters and household accounts of Margaret Dalrymple Campbell, Countess of Loudoun; and letters from Margaret Campbell Lindsay, 3rd Countess of Balcarres; Elizabath Dundas Dalrymple, Countess of Stair; Eliza Barbour; and others.

Many items in this series document the Campbell family's Ayrshire estates at Loudoun and Sorn castles. Sorn Castle items include annual accounts of work, 1741 to 1772 (LO 9935-9943); a 1742 workbook (LO 9934); a detailed inventory from 1761 (LO 9944); and household accounts and receipts kept by Margaret Dalrymple Campbell, who lived there from 1727 to 1777. John Campbell's correspondence from the 1750s to 1782 includes information about the horticultural work at Loudoun Castle; letters from estate factors Robert Campbell, James Arnot, and George Douglass throughout the series detail various aspects of estate management.

See also: Thomas I. Rae, "The Loudoun Scottish Papers in the Huntington Library," The Scottish Historical Review, Vol. XLIX, 2: No. 148, Oct. 1970.