In the footsteps of Lady Anne Barnard

Most South Africans have heard vaguely about Lady Anne Barnard. But who she really was, and how she came to be at the Cape is a mystery to many. Lady Anne was born in Scotland on 8 December 1750, the eldest child of James Lindsay, fifth Earl of Balcarres. Had she been a man she would have been the sixth Earl of Balcarres; instead she was Lady Anne Lindsay, a Ladyship in her own right. Her grandfather, the fourth Earl of Balcarres, had made a wrong decision (one which he shared with a good many Scots) for he backed the Old Pretender in 1715, and his son James stoutly supported him. They were both fortunate that the decision did not cost them their lives, for the Balcarres were pardoned; but it did ruin them financially, and the fifth Earl spent most of his life repaying the family debts.