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A Short Background: Robert Burns
Familiarly known as Rabbie Burns, Robert Burns was known to be a well-known Scottish poet and lyricist who lived from 25th January 1759 to 21st July 1796. He is revered all over the world and is considered Scotland’s national poet.
Although a large portion of his poetry is in a “Light Scots dialect” of English that is understandable to a readership outside of Scotland, he is the most well-known of the poets who have composed a lot in the Scots language. Nevertheless, he also wrote in normal English, and his political and social commentary is frequently at its most direct in these publications.
He is considered to be the forerunner of the Romantic Movement, and after his passing, the founders of liberalism and socialism both cited him as an inspiration. His influence on Scottish writing has long been significant during the 19th and 20th centuries, which is a celebration of his life and work that practically amounted to a national charismatic cult.
Robert Burns was a descendant of the Kincardineshire Burness Family, who was a tenant farmer. Robert was born in Ayrshire in 1759 after his father William relocated there in 1750. Before using the spelling Burns, a popular name in Ayrshire, in March 1786, Robert signed his name Robert Burness.
The origin of these surnames “Burn”, “Burns”, “Burnes”, and “Burness” are from the term burn, which is a shortened form of the word for a little stream, and they all have ancestors that lived nearby burns. There are numerous unrelated families named Burns due to a large number of Burns in England and Scotland.
The Burns Family: Robert Burns and his Children
Robert Burns had twelve children with four different women including nine with his wife Jean Armor.
The first seven children of Robert Burns were illegitimate encompassing the first four he had with Jean Armor before they decided to marry in 1788.
But under Scottish law, they were identified as legitimate following their parents’ marriage. The six children of Jean passed away when they were young, and William Nicol Burns never had any offspring.
All of Jean Armor’s and Robert Burns’s living descendants are descended from either their granddaughter Anne Elizabeth Burns, who was Robert Burns’s illegitimate daughter, or their grand-daughter Sarah Elizabeth Maitland Tombs Burns (1821-1909), who was their fourth son James Glencairn Burns (1794-1865).
The following are the descendants of Robert Burns:
Elizabeth Burns
Elizabeth Bond was born in Tarbolton, Scotland on May 22, 1785. She was the offspring of Elizabeth Paton and Robert Burns. She underwent baptism in Tarbolton on May 24, 1785. She married John Bishop who was the son of Thomas Bishop and Jane Weir in Scotland on January 11, 1807. In Scotland’s Whitbum, she passed away at the age of 31 on January 8, 1817.
Ann Elizabeth Burns
In Clerkenwell, Middlesex, England, on December 9, 1818, Ann Elizabeth Burns was born. Elizabeth Burns was the daughter of Ann Burns and Robert Burns. She also underwent baptism at St. James in Clerkenwell, Middlesex England.
She married George Humphreys who was the son of William George Pyrke and Ann Goffe in Holborn St. Andrew, Middlesex, England. She passed away on March 29th, 1889 at the age of 70, in St. Pancras Middlesex, England, at Wicklow Street.
Margaret Jane Burns
On September 11, 1871, Margaret Jane Burns was born at 14 Loreburn Street in Dumfries. She was the only child of Jane Palmer and Robert Burns. She passed away on April 8, 1872, in Dumfries, Scotland.
Maxwell Burns
Maxwell Burns was born in Dumfries at Bank Street, Scotland. Maxwell was the son of Jean Armor and Robert Burns. He passed away at the age of two on April 25, 1799, in Scotland.
Jessie Burns
Jessie Burns was born in England at Bails Pond, Middlesex. She was the child of Emma Bland and Robert Burns. She was baptized at St. Mary in Islington, Middlesex, England. She passed away at the age of 20 on August 19, 1847, in Scotland.
Francis W. Burns
On August 18, 1789, Francis Wallace Burns was born in Scotland, Dunscore. He was the son of Robert Burns and Jean Armor. He passed away at the age of 13 on July 9, 1803, in Scotland.
Jean Burns
On September 3, 1786, in Ayrshire Scotland Jean Burns was born. She was the offspring of Jean Armor and Robert Burns. In Mauchline, Ayrshire, Scotland on September 5, 1786, she underwent baptism. She passed away when she was an year old.
William N. Burns
In Ellisland, Dumfriesshire, Scotland on April 9, 1791, William Nicol Burns was born. He was the son of Robert Burns and Jean Armor. On September 8, 1824, in Bangalore, India, he married Catherine Adelaide Crone, a descendant of Richard Crone. He passed away at the age of 8 on February 21, 1872, in England at Berkeley Street.
Elizabeth R Burns
On November 21, 1792, in Bank Street Dumfries Scotland, Elizabeth Riddell Burns was born. She was the child of Robert Burns and Jean Armor. She passed away at the age of 2 in Mauchline, Scotland.
James G Burns
On August 12, 1794, James Glencairn Burns was born in the city of Dumfriesshire, Scotland. He was the child of Jean Armor and Robert Burns. On August 13, 1794, he was baptized. On April 28, 1818, at Meerut, Bengal, India, he married Sarah Robinson, the daughter of James Robinson and Arabella Walker.
On June 21, 1828, in Nasirabad, Bengal, India, he married Mary Beckett who was a child of Mary Ostlife and William Beckett. He passed away on November 18, 1865, at the age of 71, in Cheltenham, England at 4, Berkeley Street.
Jean Isabella Burns
On January 13, 1819, Jean Isabella Burns was born in Neemuch, India. She was the daughter of Sarah Robinson and James Glencairn Burn. At the age of 4, she passed away at sea on June 5, 1823.
Robert Shaw Burns
In May 1820, Robert Shaw Burns was born in Neemuch India. He was the child of Sarah Robinson and James Glencairn Burns. He passed away at age 1 on December 11th, 1821 in Neemuch, India.
Sarah Elizabeth Maitland Tombs Burns
Elizabeth Sarah Maitland Tombs Burns was born in Neemuch, India, on November 2, 1821. She was the daughter of James Glencairn Burns and Sarah Robinson. On July 24, 1847, in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, she married Berkeley Westropp. At the age of 87, she passed away in England on July 12, 1909.
Maxwell Burns
Maxwell Burns was born in Scotland and he was the son of Jean Armor and Robert Burns. He passed away at the age of 2 on April 25, in Dumfries, Scotland.
Elizabeth Burns
On March 31, 1791, in Leith, Midlothian, Scotland, Elizabeth Burns was born. She was the child of Ann Park and Robert Burns. On June 4, 1808, in Dumfries, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, she married John Thomson and Agnes Adam. She passed away on June 13, 1873, at the age of 82, at Crossmyloof, Cathcart, Scotland.
Annie Burns
On September 21, 1830, Annie Burns was born in Aligarh, India. Annie Burns was the daughter of Mary Beckett and James Glencairn Burns. At the age of 94, she passed away on May 10, 1925, at 7 Pittville Lawn in Cheltenham, England.
FAQs
How many illegitimate children did Burns have?
Robert Burns passed at the age of 37. He fathered twelve children by four different mothers, several of which were born illegitimately.
How many children did Jean Armor have with Robert Burns?
Only three of Jean Burns’ eight children reached adulthood, one was fostered by a mistress. She was exceptional at quoting verses and had an excellent recall. Burns acknowledged that he benefited from her opinion while reading nearly all of his work.
Is Tommy Hilfiger related to Robert Burns?
Tommy Hilfiger is the great-grandnephew of Robert Burns.
What nationality is the surname Burns?
Although it could also have Jewish or English roots, the surname Burns is typically associated with Scotland or Ireland. Burnhouse, a residence beside a burn or stream, is the source of the Scottish surname. Robert Burns, our nation’s poet is largely responsible for their fame.