Sir Humphrey Colquhoun, 5th Baronet Colquhoun (1649-1718), represented Dunbartonshire in the last Scottish Parliament in 1703, and strongly opposed the Treaty of Union.

On 30 March 1704, having no male heir, he resigned his baronetcy to the Crown and obtained a new patent, allowing the title to pass on his death to the male issue of his daughter’s husband, James Grant of Pluscardine.

When Pluscardine’s elder brother died, Pluscardine succeeded to the substantial estates of his father and once more assumed the name of Grant. He was ancestor of the Earls of Seafield and the Barons Strathspey, on whom the baronetcy devolved.

Sir James Grant – later Colquhoun – the fourth son of James Grant and Ann Colquhoun, succeeded to the Colquhoun estates, and built the grand mansion of Rossdhu which was until recently the seat of the chiefs. 

We had become familiar with the story that Alexander McAusland was the last Baron McAusland and that some time between 1694 and 1718, his daughter Janet had sold their lands to the above Sir Humphrey Colquhoun.

So, we were surprised when, looking through the land tax information from the parish of Luss for 1782 to find a Baron McAuslan with land valued at £80.

Proprietor and land	Valuation
Luss & Arrochar Parishes
Baron McAuslan	£80.0.0
Luss lands in Luss	£1200.0.0
Camstroddan	£108.0.0
Coliceppan	£260.0.0
Auchintullich	£36.0.0
Tullich-in-Taul	£50.0.0
Laird of MacFarlane’s lands including Gartartan	£734.14.2

There was no name, just the title.  Did this refer to the ancestral lands of the McAusland Barons? Was the Barony the Barony of McAusland, in which case the current Colquhoun of Luss would presumably be the new Baron McAusland? Or were there Baron McAuslands after the supposed “last” of the line?

Names of Proprietors	Names of Lands	Valuation
Arrochar and Luss Parishes		Scots
Sir James Colquhoun Bart [Baronet]	Baron MacAuslane’s lands, Luss’s Lands in Luss, and Auchintullich, now denominated the Lands and Barony of Luss.	£1316.0.0
Colquhoun Esq.	Camstroddan	£108.0.0
Colquhoun Esq.	Colichippan	£26.0.0
William Fergusson of Raith	Tullichintoul	£50.0.0
William Fergusson of Raith	Laird of Macffarlane’s Lands including Gortartan	£681.9.2
Mr. MacMurrich	Stuckgown Stuckavullich and Stuckadow	£53.5.0
	Total Valuation of this parish	£2234.14.2

The land tax information from the parish of Luss for 1802 was much more informative revealing that Baron MacAuslane’s lands were owned by Sir James Colquhoun, Baronet and along with his other lands, they were now designated as the Lands and Barony of Luss.