Hugh Binning (1627–1653) was a Scottish philosopher and theologian. He was born in Scotland during the reign of Charles I and was ordained in the (Presbyterian) Church of Scotland. A supporter of the Scottish Reformation, he refused to follow the episcopal church of the king of England, and preached as a Covenanter. He died in 1653, during the time of Oliver Cromwell and the Commonwealth of England.
Binning was born in Straiton, South Ayrshire. He studied Philosophy at the University of Glasgow at the age of 13 and became a professor there at the age of 18. He was ordained as a minister at the age of 22 and was summoned to debate in front of Cromwell in 1651.
He died of consumption and was buried in Govan.
His sermons were published after his death.
Personal life
Hugh Binning was the son of John Binning of Dalvennan, Straiton, South Ayrshire. and Margaret M'Kell. Margaret was the daughter of Matthew McKell,Binning, Hugh; Kindle Locations 20469-20474 "Matthew M’Kell, was a minister in the parish of Bothwell, near Glasgow. "After having been, on different occasions brought before the Privy council, and imprisoned, he was, on the 8th of January, 1674, upon his refusing to engage not to preach, ordered to confine himself to the parish of Carluke, and security was required from him that he would appear before the Council at their summons ... He died at Edinburgh, in March 1681". (Works of Hugh Binning: Kindle Locations 20469-20474) who was a minister in the parish of Bothwell, Scotland, and sister of Hugh M'Kell, a minister in Edinburgh.Binning, Hugh; Kindle Locations 20476-20478Some authors suggest that Matthew M'Kell was either the grandfather or uncle to Hugh M'Kail (sometimes Hugh M'Kell), which would make Hugh M'Kail a brother-in-law to Hugh Binning. The spelling of names was not as precise in those days, e.g. when describing Hugh Binning in the same document, there are variations of the spelling of the Binning name. Hugh M’Kell was arrested for being concerned in the insurrection at Pentland Rising. Hugh M'Keil was imprisoned and tortured (his foot was mangled to the point of compound fractures using the boot). In the end, M'Kell was executed in Edinburgh on 22 December 1666 because he would not sign the Test Act - because his preaching would not conform to the Anglican tradition. "The address of young M’Kail on the scaffold concluded with these sublime expressions - "“Farewell, father and mother, friends and relations. Farewell the world, and all delights. Farewell meat and drink. Farewell sun, moon and stars. Welcome God and Father! Welcome sweet Lord Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant! Welcome blessed Spirit of grace, and God of all consolation! Welcome glory! Welcome eternal life! Welcome death!" We are told by Kirkton that “when Mr. M’Kail died, there was such a lamentation as was never known in Scotland before, not one dry cheek upon all the street or in all the numberless windows in the market place". It was discovered afterwards, that Alexander Burnet, then the archbishop of Glasgow, had in his possession at the time, a letter from the king, forbidding any more blood to be shed. But to the disgrace of his sacred profession, and of his feelings as a man, "Burnet let the execution go on, before he produced his letter, pretending there was no council day between". (Binning, Hugh (24 March 2011) The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning (Kindle Locations 20474-20487)) Binning was born on his father's estate in Dalvennan. The family owned other lands in the parishes of Straiton and Colmonell as well as Maybole in Carrick.
A precocious child, Binning was admitted to the study of philosophy at the University of Glasgow at age thirteen. Binning has been described as "an extraordinary instance of precocious learning and genius."
In 1645, James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair, who was Hugh's master (primary professor) in the study of philosophy, announced he was retiring from the University of Glasgow. Dalrymple was afterward President of the Court of Session, and Viscount Stair. After a national search for a replacement on the faculty, three men were selected to compete for the position. Binning was one of those selected, but was at a disadvantage because of his extreme youth and because he was not of noble birth. However, he had strong support from the existing faculty, who suggested that the candidates speak extemporaneously on any topic of the candidate's choice. After hearing Hugh speak, the other candidates withdrew, making Hugh a regent and professor of philosophy, while he was still 18 years old.Scottish Worthies p 203
On 7 February 1648, (at the age of 21) Hugh was appointed an Advocate before the Court of Sessions (an attorney). In the same year, he married Barbara Simpson (sometimes called Mary), daughter of James Simpson a minister in Ireland. Their son, John, was born in 1650.
Binning became a minister on 25 October 1649. As minister of Govan, he was the successor of William Wilkie. His ordination took place on 8 January 1649, when Mr David Dickson, one of the theological professors at the College of Glasgow, and author of Therapeutica Sacra, presided. He was ordained in January, at the age of 22, holding his regency until 14 May that year. At that time Govan was a separate town rather than part of Glasgow.
Binning died around September 1653 and was buried in the churchyard of Govan, where Patrick Gillespie, then principal of the University of Glasgow, ordered a monument inscribed in Latin, roughly translated:Binning, Hugh (24 March 2011). The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning (Kindle Locations 990-992). Kindle Edition.
Family Binning was married to Barbara Simpson (sometimes called Mary), daughter of James Simpson a minister in Ireland. Their son, John, was born in 1650.
After his death, his widow married James Gordon, an Anglican priest at Cumber in Ireland. Together they had a daughter, Jean who married Daniel MacKenzie, who was on the winning side of the Battle of Bothwell Bridge serving as an ensign under Lieutenant-Colonel William Ramsay (who became the third Earl of Dalhousie), in the Earl of Mar's Regiment of Foot.
Binning's son, John Binning, married Hanna Keir, who was born in Ireland. The Binnings were Covenanters, a resistance movement that objected to the return of Charles II (who was received into the Catholic Church on his deathbed). They were on the losing side in the 1679 Battle of Bothwell Bridge. Most of the rebels who were not executed were exiled to the Americas; about 30 Covenanters were exiled to the Carolinas on the Carolina Merchant in 1684. After the battle, John and Hanna were separated.
In the aftermath of the battle at Bothwell Bridge, Barbara Gordon tried to reclaim the family estate at Dalvennan by saying that John and his wife owed his stepfather a considerable some of money. The legal action was successful and Dalvennan became the possession of John's half-sister Jean Gordon, and her husband Daniel MacKenzie. In addition, Jean came into possession of Hanna Keir's property in Ireland.
By 1683, Jean was widowed. John Binning was branded a traitor, was sentenced to death and forfeited his property to the Crown. John's wife (Hanna Keir) was branded as a traitor and forfeited her property in Ireland. In 1685, Jean "donated" the Binning family's home at Dalvennan and other properties, along with the Keir properties, to Roderick MacKenzie, who was a Scottish advocate of James II (James VII of Scotland), and the baillie of Carrick. According to an act of the Scottish Parliament, Roderick MacKenzie was also very effective in "suppressing the rebellious, fanatical party in the western and other shires of this realm, and putting the laws to vigorous execution against them".
Since Bothwell Bridge, Hanna had been hiding from the authorities. In 1685, Hanna was in Edinburgh where she was found during a sweep for subversives and imprisoned in the Tolbooth of Edinburgh, a combination city hall and prison. Those arrested with Hanna were exiled to North America, however, she developed dysentery and remained behind. By 1687, near death, Hanna petitioned the Privy Council of Scotland for her release; she was exiled to her family in Ireland, where she died around 1692.
In 1690, the Scottish Parliament rescinded John's fines and forfeiture, but he was unable to recover his family's estates, the courts suggesting that he had relinquished his claim to Dalvennan in exchange for forgiveness of debt, rather than forfeiture.
There is little documentation about John after his wife's death. John received a small income from royalties on his father's works after parliament extended copyrights on Binning's writings to him. However, the income was not significant and John made several petitions to the Scottish parliament for money, the last occurring in 1717. It is thought that he died in Somerset county, in southwestern England.
Impact of the Commonwealth Hugh Binning was born two years after Charles I became monarch of England, Ireland, and Scotland. At the time, each was an independent country sharing the same monarch. The Acts of Union 1707 integrated Scotland and England to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Acts of Union 1800 integrated Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
The period was dominated by both political and religious strife between the three independent countries. Religious disputes centered on questions such as whether religion was to be dictated by the monarch or was to be the choice of the people, and whether individuals had a direct relationship with God or needed to use an intermediary. Civil disputes centered on debates about the extent of the King's power (a question of the Divine right of kings), and specifically whether the King had the right to raise taxes and armed forces without the consent of the governed. These wars ultimately changed the relationship between king and subjects.
In 1638, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland voted to remove bishops and the Book of Common Prayer that had been introduced by Charles I to impose the Anglican model on the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Public riots followed, culminating in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, an interrelated series of conflicts that took place in the three countries. The first conflict, which was also the first of the Bishops' Wars, took place in 1639 and was a single border skirmish between England and Scotland, also known as the war the armys did not wanted to fight.
To maintain his English power base, Charles I made secret alliances with Catholic Ireland and Presbyterian Scotland to invade Anglican England, promising that each country could establish their own separate state religion. Once these secret entreaties became known to the English Long Parliament, the Congregationalist faction (of which Oliver Cromwell was a primary spokesman) took matters into its own hands and Parliament established an army separate from the King. Charles I was executed in January 1649, which led to the rule of Cromwell and the establishment of the Commonwealth. The conflicts concluded with The English Restoration of the monarchy and the return of Charles II in 1660.
The Act of Classes was passed by the Parliament of Scotland on 23 January 1649; the act banned Royalists (people supporting the monarchy) from holding political or military office. In exile, Charles II signed the Treaty of Breda (1650) with the Scottish Parliament; among other things, the treaty established Presbyterianism as the national religion. Charles was crowned King of Scots at Scone in January 1651. By September 1651, Scotland was annexed by England, its legislative institutions abolished, Presbyterianism dis-established, and Charles was forced into exile in France.