Naval commander. The third son of George Hay, 7th Marquess of Tweeddale, Hay joined the navy in 1804, the year both his father and mother died while detained in France by Napoleon. He served in the Mediterranean and the West Indies, rising to the rank of Commander by 1814 and Captain by 1818. In 1846 he served briefly as the Superintendent of the Woolwich dockyard, then successively as Commissioner of the Admiralty (1846-5) and Commodore Superintendent of the Plymouth Dockyard (1850-51). He was promoted to Rear-Admiral shortly before his death.
He served as Member of Parliament for Haddington (1826-30) and for Windsor (England, 1847-50).
