Son of John Hope (1704-1781), 2nd Earl of Hopetoun, and Anne Ogilvy (d. 1759). A younger brother of Charles Hope. Married (1766) to Elizabeth Carnegie (1750-1793), dau of the 6th Earl of Northesk. They had five daughters, but no sons, wherefore his titles were inherited by his half-brother, John Hope, upon his death.
He joined the Guards (3rd Regiment of Foot-guards) in 1758 and participated in the famous Battle of Minden during the Seven Years War. He left the army in 1764 and travelled for a while with his older brother, Charles, whose health was declining. Charles died just two years later in June 1766. In 1781 he succeeded to the title of Earl of Hopetoun, in 1784 he was elected a Representative Peer of Scotland, and in 1809 he was created Baron Hopetoun. He even served as Lord-Lieutenant of Linlithgowshire for some time. In 1792 he had inherited the large estates of his grand-uncle George Johnstone, 3rd Marquis of Annandale, although he did not assume Johnstone's titles. He did, however, change his name to Hope-Johnstone to reflect his inheritance.1
- 1Sources include the Dictionary of National Biography, entry James Hope.
Boswell met James Hope at the Court of Brunswick on June 27, 1764.