Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 25.djvu/261

H Edinburgh; Art Property in possession of Royal Scottish Academy, 1883 (privately printed); Cat. of Advocates' Library, Edinburgh; Ballantine's Life of David Roberts, R.A., 1866; information from family and pupils.] 

HAY, EDMUND (d. 1591), Scottish jesuit, of the family of the Earl of Errol, studied theology at Rome, and took the degree of bachelor in that faculty. He volunteered to accompany to Scotland Nicholas de Gouda, who was engaged as nuncio from Pius IV in a secret embassy to Mary Queen of Scots in 1562. On his return to Rome he joined the Society of Jesus, and at the close of his noviceship was appointed rector of Clermont College in Paris. While holding that office he was ordered by Pope Pius V in 1566 or 1567 to go to Scotland with the nuncio on another special mission to the Queen of Scots. The nuncio proceeded no further than Paris, where, at Mary's urgent request, he remained till the times should become more tranquil; but Hay penetrated into Scotland, and during his brief stay there reconciled several persons, including Francis Hay, earl of Errol, to the catholic church. Subsequently he was appointed the first rector of the academy at Pont-à-Mousson in Lorraine. He was chosen by the French province of the Society of Jesus to attend the first meeting of delegates held at Rome in 1568. Afterwards he governed that province. Finally he was nominated assistant for both Germany and France to Claudius Aquaviva, the general of the jesuits, and he held that post till his death at Rome on 4 Nov. 1591. He is said to have left a work entitled ‘Contrarietates Calvini.’ 

HAY, EDWARD (1761?–1826), historiographer, member of a respectable catholic family of Wexford, was born at Ballinkeele in that county about 1761. He studied in France and Germany, and returning to Ireland took part in the public movements for effecting a relaxation of the penal laws against catholics. In 1791 he was appointed by the Wexford catholics to act as a member of the committee whose exertions led to the Catholic Relief Bill. Hay endeavoured at this period to suppress the disturbances in Wexford and to restore peace in the county, and was one of the delegates who, on behalf of the Irish catholics, presented an address to Lord Fitzwilliam, and laid a petition before George III at London in 1795. Edmund Burke in a letter in that year referred to him as a ‘zealous, spirited, and active young man.’ Hay also devised a project for obtaining a statistical enumeration of the population of Ireland. His plan received the commendation of Lord Fitzwilliam and Burke, as well as of Bishop Milner, but was not carried out. During the commotions in Wexford in 1798 Hay exerted himself in the cause of humanity. He was, however, arraigned on a charge of treason, and, although acquitted, suffered protracted imprisonment till he obtained his liberation through the interference of Lord Cornwallis. In 1803 he published at Dublin ‘History of the Insurrection of the County of Wexford, A.D. 1798, including an Account of Transactions preceding that event, with an Appendix,’ 8vo; reprinted at Dublin in 1842. To it he appended statements in contravention of allegations made against him by Sir Richard Musgrave in his book on Ireland. Hay subsequently acted as secretary to various associations for the emancipation of the Irish catholics. He was somewhat unjustly superseded as secretary to the catholic board in 1819, nominally for having without authority opened communication with a cabinet minister. In his latter years he was reduced to penury, suffered imprisonment for debt, and died in very necessitous circumstances at Dublin in 1826. An engraved portrait of Hay was twice published at Dublin. 

HAY, FRANCIS, ninth (d. 1631), was second son of Andrew, eighth earl, by his wife Lady Jean Hay, only surviving child of William, sixth earl. He was thus, after the death of his brother, the nearest heir, both in the male and female line. He succeeded to the earldom in 1585. Having been converted to catholicism by Father Edmund Hay [q. v.], he became the chief associate of Huntly [see, 1562–1636] in his endeavours to re-establish the old religion. After the defeat of the Spanish Armada he seconded Huntly in his attempts to induce the Spanish king to undertake a second expedition. A letter from Errol to the Duke of Parma asserting his loyalty to the Spanish king was inter-