[5] Fury at this led many Tories to seek support from the exiled Stuarts; Douglas was related by marriage or blood to a number of those involved in the 1745 Rising, including James Maxwell of Kirkconnell, Lord Elcho and the 5th Earl of Traquair (1699-1764).

Despite their failure to join the invasion of England, he brought messages of support from the English Jacobite leaders Lord Barrymore and Sir Watkin Williams Wynn, and assurances £10,000 was in London 'awaiting (his) use.

'[8] Based on Murray's testimony, Douglas was arrested on 14 August and committed to the Tower of London; when questioned, he refused to answer on the grounds that 'being no lawyer, he doth not think fit to give any.

'[10] This appears in Tales of a Grandfather, a history of Scotland written for his grandson by novelist Sir Walter Scott; while the timeline of events is broadly accurate, many of its anecdotes are not and there is no independent source for this.

[15] His time in prison gained him considerable sympathy; Queensberry allowed him to live at Drumlanrig and reached a deal with his creditors by putting a trustee in charge of his estates.

William was also a favourite of Queensberry, who left him £16,000 when he died in October 1778; his son's prospects allowed John to borrow large sums of money but he was imprisoned for debt in January 1778.