Out of exile into Parliament

The first-ever Dundonian to be elected into the House of Commons in 1832 was a poser in the weekend quiz and the colourful story of George Kinloch merits more details, writes Fraser Elder.

His term of office at Westminster was to last less than a year due to his premature death but it’s fair to say the 57-year-old had already lived a full life. As a teenager he had vigorously campaigned for parliamentary reform and after being outlawed by the authorities he fled to France during the height of the French Revolution in 1793.

On his return to Dundee he reaped the benefits of his family’s wealth accrued through property deals to become the founder in the redevelopment of the village of Carnoustie in 1808 with a purchase investment of £11,000.

Six years later he was a prime mover in the further development of the harbour area in Dundee. His political beliefs then bore fruit with the implementation of the Parliamentary Reform Act in 1882 which gave the City of Dundee full representation at Westminster and he made history by taking his seat in London representing the Radical Party.

The politician died the following year aged 58 and was laid to rest in the Perthshire village of Meigle. His meteoric rise was acknowledged in 1872 with the Dundee man’s statue – sculpted by the renowned Sir John Steell – being unveiled in Albert Square, and eight years later Steell’s Robert Burns bronze tribute was to become another landmark in the area.

Kinloch’s impact was further underlined by his home city’s fathers who moved to name a street in the Hilltown after him.