James Francis Harry St Clair-Erskine, 5th Earl of Rosslyn (16 March 1869 – 10 August 1939), styled Lord Loughborough until 1890, was a Scottish soldier, author and aristocrat. Early life Lord Rosslyn was the eldest son of Robert St Clair-Erskine, 4th Earl of Rosslyn and the former Blanche Adeliza (née FitzRoy) Maynard (the widow of Col. the Hon. Charles Henry Maynard, eldest son and heir apparent of Henry Maynard, 3rd Viscount Maynard). His mother was described as "one of the last survivors of the great Victorian hostesses" and personally knew many of the most famous people of the Victorian era, including Benjamin Disraeli and William Gladstone. His siblings were Lady Millicent St Clair-Erskine (wife of 4th Duke of Sutherland), Hon. Alexander St Clair-Erskine (who married an American), Lady Sybil St Clair-Erskine (wife of Anthony Fane, 13th Earl of Westmorland), and Lady Angela St Clair-Erskine (wife of Lt.-Col. James Stewart Forbes). From his mother's first marriage, he had two elder half-sisters, including Daisy (later Countess of Warwick from her marriage to Francis Greville, 5th Earl of Warwick), who inherited the Maynard estates, including Easton Lodge. His paternal grandparents were James St Clair-Erskine, 3rd Earl of Rosslyn, and Frances (née Wemyss), Countess of Rosslyn. Through his mother, he was a direct descendant of Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton. Career From 1886 to 1890, he served as Lieutenant in the 3rd Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment and in 1890, he was Second Lieutenant with the Royal Horse Guards. Lord Rosslyn succeeded his father in the earldom on 6 September 1890, inheriting the family seat, Rosslyn Castle in Midlothian, Scotland and Rosslyn Chapel, collieries at Dysart, a luxury steam yacht, and assets of £50,000. His mother, the dowager Countess of Rosslyn, survived his father by over 40 years before her death at Regent's Park, London, in December 1933. From 1890 to 1897, he was Captain of the Fifeshire Light Horse Volunteers, serving with Alexander Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry during the Second Boer War where he was taken prisoner twice, which he wrote about in his book Twice Captured. After his bankruptcy, he resigned his commission in the Fife. Lord Rosslyn was war correspondent for the Daily Mail in 1900. In 1904, he was Secretary to the Secretary of State for Scotland and from 1915 to 1917, he was Major in the King's Royal Rifle Corps. Gambling problem Lord Rosslyn was a notorious gambler, betting £15,000 on