Hamilton was the third son of Sir George Hamilton. He served as governor of Limerick (1685) and privy councillor (1686). His Epistle to the Comte de Grammont (his brother-in-law), announcing his intending of writing his memoirs, was approved by Boileau in 1705. The Memoires appeared anonymously in 1713. It was enthusiastically received, and went through dozens of editions, both in French and in English. Voltaire said of it: "de tous les livres celui o le fonds le plus mince est par du style le plus gai, le plus vif et le plus original" ["of all books, the one whose substance is thinnest is redeemed by a style that is the most cheerful, lively, and original."] (Oeuvres, 1785, xx, 101, as quoted in DNB).