Scottish philosopher and historian, the greatest British empiricist. He argued against the existence of innate ideas and in favour of studying the natural world as the main avenue to truth, be it scientific, moral or aesthetic. The Hume family estate and garden, which belonged to his brother, was at Ninewells in Berwickshire. The house has been demolished, and a new one built, but it is a very fine estate which can be seen from a scramble along the River Whitadder. Empiricist philosophy came to have a profound influence on the art of garden design.
