Biography

Henry Home. (1696-1782) (aka. Lord Kames)

Son of George Home of Kames. Married to Agatha Drummond. Father of George Home and Jean Home.

Henry Home was tutored at home until his 16th year, first by clergyman John Wingate and later by a Mr. Anderson who taught him Greek, Latin, mathematics, and physics.¹ He was apprenticed to a Writer to the Signet (a high-ranking solicitor) in 1712, and in 1723 became an advocate, despite not having received any formal education in law. He rose to became a lawyer, philosopher and sociologist (if that term could even be said to apply in the 18th century) of much fame in his own time.

Appointed judge in the Scottish Court of Sessions, as Lord Kames, in 1752, and Lord of Justiciary (judge in the criminal court) in 1763. He helped establish the Royal Society of Scotland, but didn't live to see it being officially formed.

In his final years "[h]e continued to enjoy those small and select evening parties which usually met at his house, during the winter and summer sessions, without invitation; [...] At these meetings, it was the envied privilege of a few of his younger friends, to find a place; and the graver conversation of a Smith, a Blair, and a Fergusson, was agreeably tempered and enlivened by the native wit, the splendid abilities, and the engaging manners of a [Robert] Cullen; or the sprightly fancy, and whimsical eccentricity of a Boswell." ²

Lord Kames was the author of numerous works, including the legal writings Remarkable Decisions of the Court of Session (1728), Dictionary of the Decisions of the Court of Session (1741) and Principles of Equity (1760), as well as the philosophical works Essays on the Principles of Morality and Natural Religion (1751), An Introduction to the Art of Thinking (1761), Elements of Criticism (1762) and Sketches of the History of Man (1774)

Life with James Boswell:

Boswell probably knew Lord Kames through his father, Alexander Boswell, who was Lord Kames' colleague in the Court of Sessions. Shortly before he departed for London in 1762, Boswell travelled with Lord and Lady Kames through the southern counties of Scotland, and also stayed for a while at Kames.

In his journal entry for September 27, 1764, then visiting the Court of Dessau south of Berlin, Boswell quotes parts of a long letter which he had written to Kames, apparently for the first time since he departed London in August, 1763. The letter centers around Boswell's own personal development since leaving Scotland in 1762, and is an important look into his perception of himself at the time.

It is generally agreed, that Lord Kames is the "man of the first distinction in Scotland" who "had heaped kindness on me" referred to in Boswell's sketch to Rosseau in December 1764.

Lord Kames understood James much better than his father and was held in high regard by him. They stayed friends until Lord Kames' death on December 27, 1782.

External links:

• HENRY HOME, LORD KAMES - at LoveToKnow
• Home family tree - from Stirnet
• Significant Scots: Henry Home - from Electric Scotland - long bio - recommended

Literature:

From Amazon.co.uk

• Elements of Criticism
• Henry Home, Lord Kames and the Scottish Enlightenment: A Study in National Character and in the History of Ideas

If you find nothing of interest on Amazon, you might try the Abebooks used books search engine. Alexander Fraser Tytler's early 19th century Memoirs of the Life and Writings of the Honourable Henry Home of Kames is available in various editions, as is Home's Elements of Criticism.

The complete works of Lord Kames were reprinted in 1993 in a 13 volume edition published by Routledge, with new introductions by John Valdimir Price.

As of September, 2005, the entire work is available for downloading online, free of charge, at LibertyFund (Link)

This article was last updated at March 12 2008 11:56:17 CET

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