He was the son of Richard Dickson Skrine of Warleigh Manor, Bathford, Somerset, and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of John Tryon of Collyweston, Northamptonshire.
He entered Christ Church, Oxford, on 24 January 1774, and graduated B.C.L.
[1][2][3] Skrine spent much of his time travelling through Great Britain, and recording his experiences.
With his first wife, Marianne, eldest daughter of John Chalié of Wimbledon, Surrey, he had one son, Henry.
His second wife was Letitia Harcourt of Dany-Park, near Crickhowell in Brecon.