Marquis of Queensbury
X:1 T:Marquis of Queensberry, The M:C L:1/8 R:Reel B: Joseph Lowe - Lowe's Collection of Reels, Strathspeys and Jigs, B:book 4 (1844–1845, p. 18) Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:C g|ec c/c/c ~c2 ec|fedc Bagf|ec c/c/c ~c2 ac|BGAB c2c:| |:F|(EF)GF EcGc|(Bc)dB (cg)eg|aAag fedc|BGAB c2 c:|]
MARQUIS OF QUEENSBURY. Scottish, Reel. C Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AAB (Athole): AABB (Cranford/Holland, Lowe): AABB' (Kerr). Given the melody's first appearance in musician and dancing master Joseph Lowe's (1797–1866) Collection (1844–45), it is likely that the tune refers to Archibald William Douglas (1818–1858), 7th Marquis of Queensbury, educated at Eton, who was a cornet in the 2nd Life Guards, then MP for Dumfries-shire. He died while rabbit hunting when his gun exploded (although some say he was a suicide). The next Marquis of Queensbury, John Sholto Douglas (1844–1900), endorsed a codification of boxing rules in 1867 for both amateur and professional matches. "The Marquis of Queensbury" has been a popular tune among Cape Breton fiddlers.
