Sir Hew marks 60 years with his Lady

One of the Lothians’ most well-known couples have toasted 60 years of married life together.
Sir Hew and Lady Anne-Louise. Picture: compSir Hew and Lady Anne-Louise. Picture: comp
Sir Hew and Lady Anne-Louise. Picture: comp

Sir Hew and Lady Anne-Louise Hamilton-Dalrymple celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary last week with a small party composed of friends and family at Leuchie House in North Berwick.

Sir Hew Hamilton-Dalrymple was born in 1926 and educated at Ampleforth College – a prestigious day and boarding school in North Yorkshire – before joining the Grenadier Guards in 1944 at the age of 18.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He retired from the army in 1962 with the rank of Major, before serving as Capitan-General of the Royal Company of Archers – the Queen’s ceremonial bodyguard for Scotland.

He also held the position of Gold Stick for Scotland from 1996 to 2004, a ceremonial bodyguard position in the Royal Household that dates from Tudor times, when they were trusted with the safety of the monarch.

He has since acted as Lord Lieutenant of East Lothian from 1987 to 2001, and was previously vice-chairman of Scottish and Newcastle Breweries and chairman of Scottish American Investment Company.

Sir Hew holds the tenth Baronetage of Nova Scotia – a hereditary honour created by the British Crown in the 17th century.

Lady Anne-Louise was born in 1932 and is a patroness of the Royal Caledonian Ball.

She is the only daughter from the marriage of Walter Egerton George Lucian Keppel, the ninth Earl of Albemarle, and Diana Keppel.

Sir Hew and Lady Anne-Louise married on September 25, 1954 – with the wedding reported at the time in what was then The Haddingtonshire Courier.

They are well known in North Berwick for their support for local charities and community events, and are long-time supporters of the Royal National Lifeboat Association.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The have also played a pivotal role in the North Berwick Lifeboat Fete over the years – the largest fundraiser organised by the lifeboat crew.

A spokesman for the RNLI said: “They have been hugely supportive and always encourage the community to get behind us and our cause.”

One of the couple’s sons, William Dalrymple, is a historian and broadcaster best known for fronting several documentary series for the BBC and Channel 4 – including Stones of the Raj and the three-part BBC series Indian Journeys.

The family has been the landowner of the world-famous Bass Rock off the North Berwick coast, the largest single island gannet colony in the world, for more than 300 years.

They acquired the island, which features in Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel Catriona, in 1706 from the Lauder family – who had previously had it in their possession for almost six centuries.

Related topics: