James Hamilton, 7th Earl of Abercorn FRS PC (22 March 1686 – 11 January 1744) was a Scottish and Irish nobleman, the son of James Hamilton, 6th Earl of Abercorn

James Hamilton, 6th Earl of Abercorn

James Hamilton, 6th Earl of Abercorn, PC was a Scottish and Irish nobleman, the son of Colonel James Hamilton and Elizabeth Colepeper....

 and Elizabeth Reading. He was styled Lord Paisley from 1701 until his accession in 1734.

Offspring

In April 1711, he married Anne Plumer (1690–1776), by whom he had seven children:

• James Hamilton, 8th Earl of Abercorn
  James Hamilton, 8th Earl of Abercorn
  James Hamilton, 8th Earl of Abercorn PC , was a Scottish and Irish nobleman, the eldest son of James Hamilton, 7th Earl of Abercorn and Anne Plumer. He was styled Lord Paisley from 1734 until his accession in 1744...
  
   (1712–1789)
• Captain Hon. John Hamilton (c. 1714–1755)
• Hon. William Hamilton, died young
• Reverend Hon. George Hamilton (11 August 1718 – 26 November 1787), Canon of Windsor, married Elizabeth Onslow (d. 1800) and had issue
• Hon. Plumer Hamilton, died young
• Hon. William Hamilton (18 February 1721 – 1744)
• Lady Anne Hamilton (12 June 1715 – 14 December 1792), married on 16 August 1746 Sir Henry Mackworth, 6th Baronet

Scientist

A scientist, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society on 10 November 1715, and published Calculations and Tables on the Attractive Power of Lodestones, a book on magnetism, in 1729.

Privy Councils

He was sworn a Privy Counsellor

Privy Council of the United Kingdom

Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...

 in Great Britain on 20 July 1738 and a Privy Counsellor

Privy Council of Ireland

The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...

 in Ireland on 26 September 1739. On 17 October of that same year, George II

George II of Great Britain

George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...

 issued a royal charter

Royal Charter

A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...

 to the nation's first orphanage

Orphanage

An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...

 for abandoned children

Child abandonment

Child abandonment is the practice of relinquishing interests and claims over one's offspring with the intent of never again resuming or reasserting them. Causes include many social and cultural factors as well as mental illness. An abandoned child is called a foundling .-Causes:Poverty is often a...

, the Foundling Hospital

Foundling Hospital

The Foundling Hospital in London, England was founded in 1741 by the philanthropic sea captain Thomas Coram. It was a children's home established for the "education and maintenance of exposed and deserted young children." The word "hospital" was used in a more general sense than it is today, simply...

, of which Hamilton was a founding Governor.