Kin, Clients, Friends, and Allies: the Social Networks of Archibald Campbell, fifth earl of Argyll

The proposed PhD project will examine the friendships, alliances, bonds and kinship ties of Archibald Campbell, fifth earl of Argyll to study how different dyads governed his personal and political decision-making. Argyll, a Lowland magnate and Highland chief, operated successfully in a wider British context rather than confining himself to English, Irish or Scottish affairs only but has been neglected by historians on grounds of his powerbase being located in the peripheries. The key to the earl's success was in an extensive network of alliances and friendships which crossed cultural and national frontiers alike.

Research questions
(1) Who were the people Argyll entrusted with the administration of his estates and the management of his affairs at court? Were there cultural differences between who was recruited to look after clan lands in the Highlands or estates in the Lowlands?
(2) How did Argyll's wider friendship network shape his confessional and political allegiances? Did it bolster or undermine his standing at court and as clan chief respectively?
(3) To what extent did Argyll maintain friendships with both the Irish chiefs and their opponents in the struggle for control of Ireland, the English representatives in Dublin? How did English officials such as William Cecil view his involvement in the north of Ireland?