Randolph Stewart, 13th Earl of Galloway
Randolph Keith Reginald Stewart, Earl of Galloway, Lord of Garlies, Baronet of Corsewell and Burray (born 14 October 1928) is a Scottish nobleman.
Randolph was born in 1928, the only son of the 12th Earl of Galloway and his American wife Philipa Wendell. He was diagnosed as schizophrenic at a young age, and subjected to insulin coma therapy. It is possible that had he been born today his behaviour would have been recognised as autistic. He was educated at Belhaven Hill School in Dunbar, and at Harrow School in London. In 1952, at the age of twenty-three, his parents had him lobotomised in an attempt to control his behaviour. The lobotomy changed him forever; "I was never the same again" he told an interviewer.[1] After this surgery, he spent the next 15 years in the mental wing of the Crichton Royal Infirmary, in Dumfries. In 1970 his parents placed him in the Monastery of the Transfiguration, in Roslin, Midlothian.[1]
On October 17, 1975 he married Lily May Budge, a working class woman from Duns, Berwickshire. Budge had been married twice before, and already had four children, one of them adopted. His parents strongly disapproved of the marriage, and his father the 12th Earl went so far as to attempt to buy Budge out of the marriage. He died in 1978, leaving Randolph the title and little else, having written him out of his will.
With his wife's support, the couple moved to London and Randolph claimed his seat in the House of Lords. However, Lord Galloway proved to be an inept politician, and the couple soon moved back to Edinburgh, where the Earl's mental state continued to deteriorate. At this point he started to become violent, twice attacking members of the public and once his wife the Countess. Looking back on these acts he described them as “A disgraceful, disgusting, dishonourable and downgrading performance on my part.”
Countess Lily died in 1999 with the marriage childless. As such, upon Lord Galloway's death, the Earldom and its associated Lordships and Baronetcies will pass to Andrew Clyde Stewart, who is the great great grandson of the 9th Earl and thus Randolph's second cousin once removed.[2][3] The Earl currently lives in sheltered housing in Borgue in Galloway, where he is described as eccentric but benevolent.
References
- 1 2 Jackie McGlone: Outrageous fortune. The Scotsman, 18 July 2004.
- ↑ Carpenter, Louise (2004). An unlikely countess: Lily Budge and the 13th Earl of Galloway. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-00-710880-0.
- ↑ "Galloway, Earl of (S, 1623)". Cracroft's Peerage. Retrieved May 2015. Check date values in:
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External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Galloway
| Peerage of Scotland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Randolph Stewart |
Earl of Galloway 1978–present |
Incumbent heir presumptive: Andrew Clyde Stewart |