- Patrick Scougal
infobox bishopbiog
name = Patrick Scougal
religion=Church of Scotland
See =Diocese of Aberdeen
Title =Bishop of Aberdeen
Period = 1664–1682
Consecration =11 April 1664 ,St Andrews
Predecessor =Alexander Burnet
Successor = George Haliburton
post = | ordination =
bishops =
date of birth = 1607
place of birth =Haddingtonshire
date of death = death date|1682|2|16|df=y
place of death =Aberdeen Patrick Scougal (1607–1682) was a 17th century Scottish churchman. A native of
Haddingtonshire , and cousin of the painterJohn Scougal [ Brydall, Robert, "Art in Scotland", Edinburgh & London, 1889: 92] , in 1624 he graduated from theUniversity of Edinburgh as Master of Arts. In 1636, he became a minister ofDairsie parish,Fife , moving on toLeuchars in 1645 and then to Saltoun, nearEdinburgh , in 1659. He refused an offer to becomeProfessor ofDivinity at Edinburgh University in 1662.In this period, Scougal showed himself to be an extremely religious ideologue, preaching against papists and playing a leading role in the national
witchhunt of the 1660s. However, his views onepiscopacy became clear when in early 1664 he was offered and accepted the post ofBishop of Aberdeen . Perhaps because of his known and well-established religious fervour, hostility to Scougal's newly shown pro-episcopacy sentiments was comparatively muted. In the same year, Scougal becameChancellor ofKing's College, Aberdeen .Scougal took an active role in the suppression of
Quakerism and was part of a prosecution of James Gordon, theparson ofBanchory-Devenick , who had written the Catholic-leaning theological tract called "The Reformed Bishop" (1679). Scougal was also charitable, and undertook many charitable deeds, including raising money for two Polish Protestant students. When he died (aged seventy-three) ofasthma on16 February 1682 , he left much of his wealth to thehospital ofOld Aberdeen ,King's College Library andAberdeen Cathedral .Scougal married Margaret Wemyss, and by her had five children, including the famous minister
Henry Scougal . He was buried in Aberdeen Cathedral.References
*Keith, Robert, "An Historical Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops: Down to the Year 1688", (London, 1924)
*Mullan, David George, "Scougal , Patrick (1607–1682)", in the "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography", Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/24943, accessed 23 Feb 2007]
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