The Name Bruce in the Dictionary of National Biography
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Broxholme Bruce BROXHOLME, NOEL, M.D. (1689?- melancholy objects. I remember him with 1748), physician, was, according to Dr. as much wit as ever I knew.' In 1754 there ' Stukeley, a native of Stamford, Lincolnshire, appeared A Collection of Receipts in Physic, of humble origin. Born in or about 1689, being the Practice of the late eminent Dr. the foundation at : he was admitted on West- Bloxam [sic] containing a Complete Body of minster in 1700, and in 1704 was elected to Prescriptions answering to every Disease, Trinity College, Cambridge. He proceeded, with some in Surgery. The Second Edition.' however, to Christ Church, Oxford, where he 8vo, London. was nominated student 23 1705, and July [Family Memoirs of Rev. W. Stukeley (Surtees B.A. 20 M.A. 18 graduated May 1709, April Society, Ixxiii.), i. 46, 81, 96; Munk's Roll of 1711. In the former 1709, he had com- of 2nd ii. year, College Physicians, edition, 89-90 ; menced his medical studies, under Dr. Mead, Welch's Alumni Westmonasterienses, new edi- at St. Thomas's and in 1715 was 245 Lord Hospital, tion, pp. 237, 244, n, 260, 537 ; Hervey's first ii. 493 Letters of Horace elected to one of the of the Radcliffe Memoirs, ; Walpole, ed. ii. 120 Gent. iv. travelling fellowships. Upon his return he Cunningham, 20, ; Mag. 628, vii. ix. xviii. Oratio Harveiana removed to University College, as a member 699, 328, 333; anno MDCCLV. auct. R. 31-3 of which he took his degrees in physic by habita, Taylor, pp. ; Wills in C. P. C. 205 Strahan, 188 Pinfold ; accumulation, proceeding M.D. 8 July 1723. reg. Collectanea et Hampton Register ; Topographica Broxholme then began practice in London, iv. 163 Notes and Istser. was admitted a candidate of the of Genealogica, ; Queries, College xii. 303, 353, 390, 2nd ser. ii. 249-50 ; Nichols's 23 Dec. a fellow 22 March Physicians 1723, i. 484 Life of Literary Anecdotes, ; Bp. Newton was censor in and delivered 1724-5, 1726, to his i. Letters prefixed works, 27 ; and Works the Harveian oration in 1731. which This, of Lady M. W. Montagu, ed. Wharncliffe and is was the same in re- ii. 159-60 Lists of Coll. of printed year quarto, Thomas, ; Koyal Phy- its unaffected markable for elegant yet La- sicians in Brit. Mus.] Or. Or. tinity. He was one of the six physicians appointed to St. George's Hospital at the BRUCE, ALEXANDER, second EAKL OF first general board held 19 Oct. 1733, and KINCARDINE (d. 1681), was the second son of in the following year was made first physician Sir George Bruce of Culross, and succeeded ' to the Prince of Wales, with salary an- his brother Edward in the earldom in 1663. nexed,' an office which he resigned in 1739. His grandfather, Sir George Bruce, settled at At Lord Hervey's suggestion he was the first Culross early in the century, and there esta- physician summoned to assist Dr. Tessier in blished extensive salt and coal works, the Queen Caroline's last illness. Broxholme latter partly under sea, which became the had married 7 May 1730, at Knightsbridge sources of great wealth to the family (DoF- Chapel, Amy, widow of William Dowdes- GLAS, Scottish Peerage). What part he took well of Pull Court, Worcestershire, and in the transactions of the years preceding d'aughter of Anthony Hammond, F.R.S., the 1657 is uncertain, but his attachment to wit and poet. He died at his country resi- presbyterianism is well known (though in * dence, Hampton, Middlesex, by his own hand, 1665 he thinks a well ordered episcopacy the 13th at of and his 8 July 1748, and was buried on the best governments '), political Hampton. By his will he bequeathed the principles at that time may be in part gathered sum of 500/. for the benefit of the king's from a sentence in one of Robert Moray's scholars at Westminster ' in such manner as letters to him: 'By monarchy you under- the two upper masters of the said school stand tyranny, but I royal government.' He like to leave shall think fit,' and a sum to Christ was obliged before 1057 Scotland, ' inn at Church to be applied towards finishing the and he settled at the White Swan corre- library.' Mrs. Broxholme survived her hus- Bremen in that year. A remarkable was band six years, dying in 1754. Revert- spondence, extant in manuscript, which ing to our former authority, Dr. Stukeley, begun in that year between him and Moray, his countryman and fellow-student at St. who, under similar circumstances, had settled on until Thomas's Hospital, we learn that Broxholme at Maestricht, and which was carried ' left in the was a man of wit and gayety, lov'd poetry, the death of Moray in 1672, was of in was a good classic, . got much money in hands of Mr. David Douglas Edinburgh and in 1879 the Misisipi project in France. At length he 1864 by Professor Cosmo Innes, the Earl of came over and practised, but never had a handed by Mr. Douglas to Elgin. to have been a man of great liking to it, tho' he had good en- It proves Bruce deep 1 ' of refined and couragem .' He was always nervous and personal religion, highly tastes, ' : chemis- vapoured,' writes Horace Walpole, and so of very wide attainments medicine, mechanical good-natured that he left off his practice try, classics, mathematics, appli- to from not being able to bear seeing so many ances of every kind, especially as adapted Bruce 88 Bruce his mining enterprises, divinity, heraldry, hor- letters of remonstrance and Sharp's evasive ticulture, forestry, pisciculture, mining, and replies are contained in the Lauderdale MSS. the management of estates these and other The report at first appears to have lost Kin- subjects of acquired knowledge are discussed cardine favour at court, but so strongly did with evident knowledge. He was engaged Lauderdale and Moray bestir themselves in in the Greenland whale fishery, and he pos- his interest, that Sharp himself gained great sessed quarries of superior stone and of marble, disadvantage from the attempt, and in July part of which was used at Greenwich, and part 1666, by way of making peace, begged the in the rebuilding of St. Paul's. After the king to grant Kincardine a large share of the Restoration he became, upon the introduction fines (Correspondence with Moray). During of Moray, its first president, one of the lead- the Pentland rebellion, November 1666, he ing members of the Royal Society. During had command of a troop of horse. In 1667, 1657 and 1658 Bruce was extremely ill with when the treasurership was taken from Rothes ague. In the latter year he left Bremen for and put in commission, Kincardine was one Hamburg, where he stayed at the house of of the commissioners, and was also appointed his countryman, William Grison. At this extraordinary lord of session. His business time, and for some years afterwards, he was knowledge and acquaintance with home and engaged, in conjunction with the Dutch ma- foreign trade were of great advantage to his thematician, Hugens de Zulichem, in per- colleagues. Always anxious for good go- fecting and in pushing a new invention for vernment, he actively assisted in the con- making pendulum clocks more serviceable at ciliatory measures upon which Lauderdale sea (Correspondence with Moray] . A little was at that time engaged with regard to later he took up his residence at the Hague, the covenanters, though he often strongly * where on 16 June 1659 he married the daugh- urged that toleration should be given, not ' ter of M. Somerdyck, who brought him a taken (Lauderdale MSS.} In 1672, when large fortune (ibid, and DOUGLAS, Scottish Lauderdale began his career of persecution, Peerage}. In January 1660 he was in Lon- Kincardine was almost the only one of his don, 'at the stone-cutter's house next to former adherents who stayed by him, relying Wallingford House, Charing Cross,' but im- upon his engagement to return to milder mediately returned to the Hague, where he measures. One of the chief grievances brought remained with his father-in-law until the against Lauderdale was that the right of Restoration. In June he was again in London pre-emption of various articles had been be- at Devonshire House (Correspondence with stowed upon his friends to the public loss, Moray). All being now safe in Scotland he and Kincardine helped his cause by aban- returned to Culross, and busied himself with doning that of salt, which he had held for his coal, salt, stone, and marble works. At a considerable time (Lauderdale MSS.} In the same time Burnet's statement that he January 1674 he was for a short while Lau- neglected his private affairs for public work derdale's deputy at Whitehall, during the seems to be borne out by one of Robert absence of Lord Halton. During this year, Moray's letters, dated 22 Aug. 1668. Ac- however, he found it impossible to continue to Bruce had been of to the duke his last letter to him cording Burnet, great support ; service to Charles while abroad by advancing is dated 4 July. In compliance with Lau- money. It was only natural, therefore, that derdale's urgent request, Charles now ordered he should profit by the Restoration. He was Kincardine to retire to Scotland. In 1675, at once admitted to the privy council, where according to Mackenzie, who, however, is the he appears to have stood alone in his oppo- only evidence for this, he was expected to sition to Glencairn and the dominant faction succeed Lauderdale as secretary, and came when in 1661 the to London but the of by urging delay, king up ; through intrigues sent a letter to the Scotch privy council the duchess, who induced Lauderdale to be- intimating his intention of reintroducing lieve that he was coming only to support episcopacy (DOUGLAS, Peerage).