Major James Albert Edward Hamilton, 3rd Duke of Abercorn KG KP PC was know between 1885 and 1913 as the Marquess of Hamilton. He became the first Governor of Northern Ireland and is the great great grandfather of the Their Royal Highnesses the Dukes of Cambridge and Sussex.
He went to Harrow and joined the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, before transferring to the 1st Life Guards in 1892. He would later transfer to the Northern Irish Horse and be promoted Major.
He won the 1900 General Election as the Unionist candidate for Londonderry City, and became Treasurer of the Household.
He succeeded his father in 1913, becoming the 3rd Duke of Abercorn. His father and grandfather had both served as Grand Masters of the Grand Lodge of Ireland. Unsurprisingly Hamilton was initiated in Ireland.
Hamilton was made the last non-royal Knight of the Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick in 1922 and was made a Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter in 1928. He received an honorary degree from the Queen’s University of Belfast, and received the Royal Victorian Chain in 1945, the same year he was sworn of the Privy Council.