James Ogilvy, 7th Earl of Findlater and 4th Earl of Seafield was a Scottish peer and an accomplished amateur landscape architect and philanthropist. He promoted the British landscape garden in mainland Europe, where he spent lavishly on public works and "improvements of the scenery."
Findlater is often listed amongst those who left Scotland as a result of their homosexual orientation. However, it is not clear as to whether this "exile" was real or self-imposed. In 1791 he apparently made a joke at the expense of Jane, Duchess of Gordon, wife of Alexander Gordon. A ship called the Duchess of Gordon had been recently built with copper sheathing on the hull to deter rot. The Earl of Findlater was overheard to remark “I aye kent the Duchess had a brass neck and a brazen face, but I niver kent she had a copper arse.” The Duchess of Gordon was not amused, pursuing the matter in the courts. Findlater fled, never returning to Scotland.
Cullen
Despite his travels, Findlater remained involved in his estates and employed the leading architects. For example, he commissioned Robert Adam to develop plans for a new house at Cullen and James Playfair to redesign the existing house and the adjoining kitchen garden. In 1773, James Boswell and Dr. Samuel Johnson viewed the estate on their journey to the Hebrides and noted that it was "admirably laid out.". Whilst Adam's designs for a new site for the House were not taken up, the suggestion of resiting Cullen from around the church to its present position around the harbour was acted on, although not until some years later. From 1791, John Ross, a retired professor of Aberdeen University administered his estates at Cullen. Findlater's estates in Scotland amounted to about £40,000 per annum (about £4.6 million in 2009 prices.
From about 1794, Lord Findlater visited Bohemian Carlsbad, to benefit from drinking the spa waters. He became a significant patron of the city and gave large sums of money to local charities and for laying out and improving the environs of the town including paths. Findlaterova stezka continues to be a well used trail. Within the trails is Findlater's Temple, a classical semi-circular building surrounded by a cupola, erected by Lord Findlater, in gratitude for the benefits be received from the Carlsbad waters. Also nearby is Findlater's Obelisk made of granite, twenty-eight feet in height, erected in 1804 in honour of Lord Findlater, " the friend and beautifier of nature, as a token of the gratitude of the citizens of Carlsbad." The obelisk commands a fine view of the valley below.
In 1802, Lord Findlater was commissioned by Countess Henriette of Schall-Riaucour to create a landscape garden in the English style around Gaussig House near Bautzen. In 1803, Findlater's private secretary, Johann Georg Fischer, purchased Helfenberg Manor located in the Dresden Elbe Valley, on behalf of his benefactor. The land included five vineyards including "Findlaters Vineyard" and "Findlaters Sheer Vineyard" near Loschwitz with panoramic views over the riverElbe. The manor had a small park, which was landscaped by Findlater with precious shrubs and trees. On Bredemannschen mountain, where today Schloss Albrechtsberg rises to the sky, Findlater had the master builder Johann August Giesel build him a Neoclassical palace. This building soon gained for itself the title of "The most beautiful family palace in Dresden". The associated Elbe terraces were cultivated with pergolas, ponds and vines.
Death
Findlater died in 1811 and he bequeathed the Dresden property to Fischer who lived at Helfenberg Manor until his own death in 1860. The Scottish heirs protested in court on the ground that the bequests to Fischer had been made for an immoral consideration. Also upon his death, the earldom of Findlater became dormant. The title of Earl of Seafield passed to his cousin Sir Lewis Alexander Grant who also took the surname Ogilvy. Findlater is buried at the Loschwitz parish church. The gravestone includes both Findlater and his partner Johann Georg Christian Fischer.
