Rev. Dr. David Welsh

David WELSH was born near Moffat around 11 December 1793.  He was the son of David and Margaret WELSH.  He dedicated himself to his Lord early in life and in 1816 he was licensed by the Presbytery of Lochmaben.  He was ordained in 1821 and was then appointed as the minister of the Crossmichael Parish in Kirkcudbright.  In 1822, Reverend David Welsh became a member of the Phrenological Society.  (He withdrew from that Society about 1832.)  In 1827, he was appointed minister of the St. David's Church in Glasgow.  In 1828, Rev. David WELSH was secretary of the Glasgow Infant School Society.  He earned his Doctorate in Divinity at the University of Glasgow in 1831 and was appointed as a Professor of Divinity and Ecclesiastical History at the University of Edinburgh in November of 1831.

The above and right engraving of the Rev. Dr. David Welsh appears in a book of his sermons which was published in 1846.  The engraver was Robert Charles Bell who composed it from a portrait by W. Bonnar, RSA.  It appears here with special permission of the Jordanhill Library, University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.

Rev. David WELSH was married to Mary HAMILTON in Glasgow on 01 June 1830.  Mary was the daughter of John HAMILTON, of Northpark.  Mary died at 2 Gloucester St., Edinburgh on 17 July 1873.

Children of Rev. Dr. David WELSH and Mary HAMILTON:

i.  David James WELSH, who was born about 1832.  David attended the Edinburgh Academy from 1842 to 1848.  He was a Major General in the Royal Artillery and served in the Indian Mutiny campaign of 1857-1858.  David James WELSH died in 1890.

ii.  John Hamilton WELSH, who was born about 1833.  John attended the Edinburgh Academy from 1843 to 1849.  John was a merchant in Liverpool and died in London on 22 November 1867.

iii.  Helen WELSH, who was living in London in 1874.

iv.  Margaret Mary WELSH, who was also living in London in 1874.

The Disruption

As young David WELSH attended school in the village of Moffat and polished his d evotion to God and the Church of Scotland, it was inconceivable that he would someday lead a movement against the Established Church of Scotland.  Indeed, he was to become known as one of the Disruption Fathers.

While David WELSH was compiling his impressive resume in Kirkcudbright, Glasgow, and Edinburgh, a storm was brewing in the Presbytery.  There was an uncomfortable tone in conversations and communications between parish ministers in the early 19th Century.  The government at Westminster had been making repeated intrusions into decisions that had traditionally been local parish decisions.  In the 1830's Westminster even insisted on having the final say as to who parishioners had to accept as their minister.

Repeated grievances of ministers were turned aside by courts who continually sided with the government.  Such was the atmosphere when our Professor David WELSH, D.D. was elected Moderator of the Assembly of Ministers in 1842.  The air was indeed charged when the Assembly was called to Edinburgh in May of 1843.  Rumors spread throughout Edinburgh and crowds were gathering near St. Andrew's Church on George Street, where the Assembly was to meet.

On the morning of the 18th of May, the traditional service was held in the High Kirk and the sermon was delivered by our Dr. WELSH.  As the group was making it's way to the St. Andrew's Church for the Assembly, there was no obvious signal of controversy.  However, the hall fell unusually quite when Dr. Welsh rose to address the Assembly.

After a brief blessing, Dr. WELSH declared that the Assembly could not proceed.  He then read the Church's Protest, declaring the reasons why the Church would no longer submit to the infringement of it's traditional jurisdictions by the government and it's courts.  After reading the Protest, he laid the document on the table and left the building leading a large number of ministers to Tanfield Hall where Dr. WELSH chaired the First General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland.

David Octavius Hill's painting entitled The First General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland; signing the Act of Separation and Deed of Demission - 18th May 1843 can be seen by clicking here.

The strain of the day's events can clearly been seen in the faces of the Disruption Fathers in the famous Hill and Adamson salt print entitled the Free Church Committee which can be seen by clicking here.  Professor David WELSH, D.D. is identified as being third from the left.

Perhaps a better indicator of the stress involved in leading the succession is the fact that Professor David WELSH, D.D., died on 24th April 1845, at age 52.