James Duff, 5th Earl Fife

James Duff, 5th Earl Fife, was born on 6 July 1814. He was a Scottish nobleman and politician, the son of Sir Alexander Duff and Anne Stein. His father, Sir Alexander Duff, was the younger brother of James Duff, 4th Earl Fife. Anne Stein was the daughter of James Stein of Kilbagie and Kennetpans House.

Duff served as a Member of Parliament for Banffshire from 1837 to 1857. His brother, George Skene Duff, served as Member of Parliament for Elgin Burghs during the same period. Upon the death of his uncle, James Duff, 4th Earl Fife, on 9 March 1857, James Duff succeeded as the 5th Earl Fife, as well as the 5th Baron Braco of Kilbryde and the 5th Viscount MacDuff. The barony of MacDuff was named after James Duff, 2nd Earl Fife.

In addition to hereditary titles, he was created Baron Skene, of Skene, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom on 26 September 1857. This peerage granted him the right to sit and vote in the House of Lords. In 1860, he was appointed a Knight of the Order of the Thistle (K.T.). Duff also held the position of Lord Lieutenant of Banff and Moray counties.

In his personal life, James Duff resided at 30 Pall Mall, London, and at Delgatie Castle in Scotland. On 16 March 1846, he married Lady Agnes Georgiana Elizabeth Hay, the daughter of William Hay, 18th Earl of Erroll, and Lady Elizabeth FitzClarence, an illegitimate daughter of King William IV. Together, they had five children:

1. Lady Anne Elizabeth Clementine Duff (16 August 1847 – 31 December 1925), who married John Townshend, 5th Marquess Townshend, and had two children.

2. Lady Ida Louisa Alice Duff (10 December 1848 – 29 May 1918), who was first married to Adrian Elias Hope, with whom she had one daughter; after their divorce, she married William Wilson, a London stockbroker, with no issue from this marriage.

3. Alexander William George Duff (10 November 1849 – 29 January 1912), who was created Duke of Fife in 1889. He married Princess Louise, eldest daughter of King Edward VII, and they had three children.

4. Lady Alexina Duff (20 March 1851 – 30 April 1882), who married Henry Coventry, third son of Hon. Henry Amilius Coventry; she died without issue.

5. Lady Agnes Cecil Emmeline Duff (18 May 1852 – 11 January 1925), who was married three times. Her first marriage was to George Hay-Drummond, with whom she had one daughter. Her second marriage was to Herbert Flower; they had no children. Her third marriage was to Alfred Cooper, with whom she had four children, including Duff Cooper, 1st Viscount Norwich. David Cameron, former British Prime Minister, is a descendant of her third marriage.

James Duff, 5th Earl Fife, died on 7 August 1879.