Annotation:Mr. Oswald of Auchincruive

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 MR. OSWALD OF AUCHINCRUIVE. Scottish, Strathspey. G Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AAB. Composed by Robert 'Red Rob' Mackintosh. During the 18th century the Ayrshire estate of Auchincruive was held by Richard Oswald, a London merchant and negotiator with the Americans at the close of the War for Independence. His trading empire included a majority interest in a slaving factory on Bance Island in the mouth of the River Sierra Leone. Upon his death in 1784 the estate passed to his son, Richard Alexander Oswald (1771-1822), who had been a government contractor during the same conflict. His wife, Lucy (Louisa) Oswald, whom he married in 1793, was a celebrated beauty. They had a son and daughter. Tragically, she died of tuberculosis in 1797 in Portugal. He later remarried, with no issue from the second union. See also note for “Miss Johnston of Hilton’s Fancy” for more.  Source for notated version: Douglas Lawrence (Scotland) [Hunter].  Printed sources: Hunter (Fiddle Music of Scotland), 1988; No. 83.  Recorded sources: Inver225, Pete Clark – “Macintosh at Murthly.”

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