Born in Hamilton Place, Piccadilly, London, he was the eldest son of the 2nd Duke of Abercorn and godson of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales.

[1] In early 1901, he accompanied his father on a special diplomatic mission to announce the accession of King Edward to the governments of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, Russia, Germany, and Saxony.

[2] In the 1900 general election, Lord Hamilton stood successfully as Unionist candidate for Londonderry City, and three years later he became Treasurer of the Household, a post he held until the fall of Balfour's Conservative administration in 1905.

[4] Abercorn was a popular Royal representative amongst the Unionist population in Northern Ireland, and was reappointed to the post in 1928 after completing his first term of office.

[3] They had three daughters and two sons: Abercorn died at his London home in 1953,[5] and was buried at Baronscourt in County Tyrone.