Robert Ferguson 225957 159875911 2007-09-23T21:05:49Z RJFJR 141808 split intro, reword intro, remove clenaup tag: looks OK IMHO :''For other uses, see [[Bob Ferguson]]''   '''Robert Ferguson''' (c. [[1637]] - [[1714]]), [[Scotland|Scottish]] conspirator and pamphleteer, called "the Plotter" was a religious minister, Scottish conspirator and political writer. He was a son of William Ferguson (d. 1699) of Badifurrow, [[Aberdeenshire (traditional)|Aberdeenshire]], [[Scotland]] and after receiving a good education, probably at the [[University of Aberdeen]], became a [[Presbyterian]] (Church of Scotland) minister. According to Bishop [[Gilbert Burnet|Burnet]] he was cast out by the Presbyterians, but whether this be so or not, he soon made his way to [[England]] and became [[vicar]] of [[Godmersham]], [[Kent]], from which living he was expelled by the [[Act of Uniformity 1662]]. Some years later, having gained a reputation as a theological controversialist and become a person of importance among the [[nonconformism|Nonconformists]], he attracted the notice of the [[Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury]] and the party which favoured the exclusion of the [[James II of England|Duke of York]] from the throne, and he began to write political pamphlets just at the time when the feeling against the [[Roman Catholics]] was at its height. In [[1680]] he wrote "A Letter to a Person of Honour concerning the 'Black Box,'" in which he supported the claim of the [[James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth|Duke of Monmouth]] to the crown against that of the Duke of York. Returning to the subject after [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] had solemnly denied the existence of a marriage between himself and [[Lucy Walter|Lucy Waters]]. He took an active part in the controversy over the [[Exclusion Bill]], and claimed to be the author of the whole of the pamphlet "No Protestant Plot" (1681), parts of which are usually ascribed to Shaftesbury. Ferguson was deeply implicated in the [[Rye House Plot]], although he asserted that he had frustrated both this and a subsequent attempt to assassinate the king, and he fled to the [[Netherlands]] with Shaftesbury in [[1682]], returning to England early in [[1683]]. For his share in another plot against Charles II he was declared an [[outlaw]], after which he entered into communication with [[Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll]], Monmouth and other malcontents. Ferguson then took a leading part in organizing the [[Monmouth Rebellion|rising of 1685]]. Having overcome Monmouth's reluctance to take part in this movement, he accompanied the duke to the west of England and drew up the manifesto against James II, escaping to the Netherlands after the [[Battle of Sedgemoor]]. He landed in England with [[William III of Orange]] in [[1688]], and aided William's cause with his pen, but William and his advisers did not regard him as a person of importance, although his services were rewarded with a sinecure appointment in the [[Her Majesty's Customs and Excise|Excise]]. Chagrined at this treatment, Ferguson was soon in correspondence with the exiled [[Jacobitism|Jacobites]]. He shared in all the plots against the life of William, and after his removal from the Excise in [[1692]] wrote violent pamphlets against the government. Although he was several times arrested on suspicion, he was never brought to trial. He died in great poverty, leaving behind him a great and deserved reputation for treachery. It has been thought by [[Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron Macaulay|Macaulay]] and others that Ferguson led the [[Kingdom of England|English government]] to believe that he was a [[spy]] in their interests, and that his frequent escapes from justice were due to official connivance. In a proclamation issued for his arrest in[[1683]] he is described as "a tall lean man, dark brown hair, a great Roman nose, thin-jawed, heat in his face, speaks in the [[Scottish English|Scottish accent]], a sharp piercing eye, stoops a little in the shoulders." Besides numerous pamphlets Ferguson wrote: ''History of the Revolution'' (1706); ''Qualifications requisite in a Minister of State'' (1710); and part of the ''History of all the Mobs, Tumults and Insurrections in Great Britain'' (London, 1715). ==References== *{{1911|article=Robert Ferguson|url=http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Robert_Ferguson}} ==Further reading== *James Ferguson: ''Robert Ferguson, the Plotter''. Edinburgh, 1887 (which gives a favourable account of Ferguson). {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Robert}} [[Category:1630s births]] [[Category:1714 deaths]] [[Category:Ministers of the Church of Scotland]] [[Category:People from Aberdeenshire]] [[Category:Scottish clergy]] [[Category:Scottish writers]] [[Category:Scottish theologians]] [[Category:Scottish historians]] [[Category:Scottish spies]] [[Category:Scottish politicians]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of Aberdeen]]