Lords in the Baronage of Scotland

A Lord in the Baronage of Scotland is an ancient title of nobility, held in baroneum, which Latin term means that its holder, who is a lord, is also always a baron. The holder may or may not be a Lord of Regality, which meant that the holder was appointed by the Crown and had the power of "pit and gallows", meaning the power to authorise the death sentence.

A Scottish Baron is below a Lord of Parliament (the Scottish equivalent of an English baron) which is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, while a Lord in the Baronage of Scotland is a noble dignity of higher degree than Baron, but below an Earl in the Baronage of Scotland, which is a baron of still higher degree than a lordship.^[2] In the baronage there is only a small number of lordships compared to baronies, whilst earldoms are very rare.^[3]

While barons originally sat in parliament (along with the lords and higher nobility who made up the Peerage), all of the peerage, originally, was within the feudal system. Later, some of what used to be feudal lordships came to be known as peerages (such as that of The Right Honourable The Lord Forrester) while others were disponed, inherited by greater peers, or otherwise disqualified from the modern-day peerage. The feudal rights were gradually emasculated and, with the demise of the Scottish parliament in 1707, the right of barons to sit in parliament ceased altogether, unless, that is, a baron was also a peer (peerage rights are dealt with elsewhere).

The rights of the baronage were all but abolished by Act of Parliament in 1747, following the Jacobite rising. Baronage titles no longer provide any political power as such, although the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 has preserved the noble titles themselves, and the quality, precedence and heraldic rights pertaining.

Only about 400 baronies are identified as existing in 1405.^[4] Burke's Landed Gentry for Scotland lists only about 130. Few are lordships.

Lords of regality, barons, lords and earls in the Baronage of Scotland are not to be confused with lairds or a manorial lordship.

Usage

The holder of the title Lord in the Baronage of Scotland, in similar fashion to the holder of a barony (e.g., "Lochaber"), has the title added to his existing name (e.g., "John Smith, Lord of Lochaber") or territorial designation added to his surname if they own the caput ("John Smith of Lochaber, Lord of Lochaber").^[5]^[6]^[7]

Lords are addressed as "Lord of Lochaber" or informally "Lord Lochaber" (noting that medieval feudal lords of higher dignity than baron were referred to informally without the of) or "His Lordship" or "My Lord" or interchangeably as "Baron of Lochaber" or just "Baron" or more intimately just "Lochaber".

A female title holder or wife is "Lady Lochaber" or "My Lady" or "Baroness", but the husband of a Lady, who holds a lordship in her own right, is just plain "Mr Surname".

The heir normally follows lordships in Scotland "Master of Lochaber" or barons in Scotland "Younger of Lochaber" for a son, for a daughter "Mistress of Lochaber" or '"Maid of Lochaber'".

It can be a tradition of the family or a personal style of the holder for Lordships to be styled Lord or Baron interchangeably, both uses are correct and will not cause offence, in some cases female holders have been referred to in official documents as "Baroness of Lochaber" as a preference while male predecessors (and successors) were Lord.

Sometimes in the most formal of occasions (for example an envelope) the prefix honorific style The Much Hon. (The Much Honoured) is put before the name, this prefix honorific is used to distinguish Scottish Barons from honorifics attaching to peers.

E.g. The Much Hon. The Lord of Lochaber / Much Hon. Lord of Lochaber / Much Hon. John Smith, Lord of Lochaber / Much Hon. John, Lord of Lochaber

Forms of address for Lords

Written: The Much Hon Lord of Lochaber or The Lord of Lochaber
Salutation: Dear Lord Lochaber, or Dear My Lord,
In a speech: My Lord Lochaber or My Lords, Ladies and Gentleman
In conversation: Lord Lochaber or My Lord or Your Lordship
Third person: His Lordship
For females replace Lord for Lady

Order of precedence

Wallace states that in regards to Baronial titles:

"Lordships, Earldoms, Marquessates and Dukedoms differ only in name from Baronies" but continues "one whose property was erected into a Lordship ranked before a simple Baron" and "A person to whom an Earldom belonged, would be superior to a person who had no more than a lordship ... One, whose lands were incorporated into a Marquessate, was superior to both ... A man, who owned a fief elevated into a Dukedom, was exhaulted above all three."^[8]

The inference in terms of superiority from greater to lesser is thus: Duke, Marquess, Earl, Lord, Baron. (Note however that Lord Stair states that Lordships or Earldoms are "but more noble titles of a Barony".^[2])

List of Lordships in the Baronage of Scotland

Below is an incomplete list of Lordships created in the baronage, you can help by suggesting edits on the Talk page with evidence links.

Note that for Lords in the Baronage of Scotland a baron is a lord and a lord is a baron and can be used interchangeable or as per the preference of the holder. While a Scots baron - that is not a lord - is only ever called baron.

Titles in italics are subsidiary baronial titles held by the same lord. Titles linked and with The before the name is the holder's primary title.

Title	C.	Infeft	Incumbent	Known As	Heir / Notes
The Lord of Abernethy	12c	2017	Mahfouz bin Mahfouz, Lord of Abernethy	Lord Abernethy
The Lord of Annandale	1124	Annexed to Crown in c1536
The Lord of Arbroath	17c	1994	Alan Bartlett, Lord of Arboath	Lord Arboath
The Lord of Ardrossan	1315	2008	Marko Dobroschelski, Lord of Ardossan	Lord Ardossan
Lord of Argyll	12c	2001	Torquhil Campbell, 13th Duke of Argyll	Duke	Archibald Campbell, Marquess of Lorne
Lord of Lorne	14c	2001	Torquhil Campbell, 13th Duke of Argyll	Duke	Archibald Campbell, Marquess of Lorne
Lord of Badenoch	1258	1987	Granville Gordon, 13th Marquess of Huntly	Lord Huntly	Alastair Gordon, Earl of Aboyne
The Lord of Balvaird	1673	2018	Brady Brim-DeForest, Baron of Balvaird	Baron	Huxley Brim-DeForest, Younger of Balvaird
Lord of Bothwell	12c	2023	Sir William Gallagher, Lord of Bothwell and Kildrummie KNZM MBE	Sir William	Ian Gallagher, Master of Bothwell
Lord of Kildrummie	12c	2023		Sir William	Chris Gallagher, Master of Kildrummie
Lord of Braemar	17c	2004	John Sullivan, Earl of Breadalbane, Lord of Braemar	John Sullivan of Braemar	Paul Sullivan, Master of Breamar
The Earl of Breadalbane	17c	2004	John Sullivan, Earl of Breadalbane, Lord of Braemar	John Sullivan of Braemar	Paul Sullivan, Master of Breamar
The Lord of Cockburn	14c	2008	Herr Olivier Fuchs, Baron of Cockburn, Hallrule, Over Liberton, and Buncle and Preston	Baron
Lord of Buncle and Preston	14c	2009
Baron of Liberton		2009
Baron of Hallrule
The Lord of Coldingham	16c	2010	Dr Peter Leando, Lord of Coldingham	Lord Coldingham
The Lord of Cowal		2018	James Devlin, Lord of Cowal, Baron of Over Cowal	Lord Cowal
Baron of Over Cowal		2024	James Devlin, Lord of Cowal, Baron of Over Cowal	Lord Cowal
Lord of Cumbernauld	1314	2004	Dr Roland Zettel, Earl of Wigtoun, Lord of Cumbernauld [1]	Lord Wigtoun
The Earl of Wigtoun	1606	2004	Dr Roland Zettel, Earl of Wigtoun, Lord of Cumbernauld [1]	Lord Wigtoun
Lord of Douglas	1445	2010	Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 16th Duke of Hamilton, 13th Duke of Brandon	Duke	Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, Marquess of Douglas and Clydesdale
The Lord of Forbes	1445	2013	Malcom, 23rd Lord Forbes	Lord Forbes	Geordie Forbes, Master of Forbes
Lord of Galloway	1034	Annexed to Crown in c1235
The Lord of the Garioch		2001	George Menking, Lord of Garioch	Lord Garioch	recognised by Lord Lyon as a Lord of Regality with historic power over life and death
The Lord of Garlies	1263		Timothy Busch Reisinger, Lord of Garlies, Baron of Buchan Forest, Blaurbuis, Coreswall and Glencammon	Lord Garlies	father is Baron of Inneryne
Baron of Buchan Forest
Baron of Blairbuis
Baron of Corsewall
Baron of Glencammon
The Lord of Fulwood	1314	2002	Camilo Agasim-Pereira, Baron of Fulwood and Dirleton	Baron	Elio Samuel, Younger of Fulwood
Baron of Dirleton	1220	2002	Camilo Agasim-Pereira, Baron of Fulwood and Dirleton	Baron	Yaalit Maria, Maid of Dirleton
The Lord of Hailes	1451	2008	Samuel Malin, Lord of Hailes	Sam Malin	wife is Lady Hailes
The Lord of Halydean	1128	2006	Taylor Moffitt, 15th Lord of Halydean	Lord Halydean	Ewan Moffitt, Master of Halydean
Lord of the Isles	875	2022	HRH The Prince William, Duke of Rothesay	Prince William	HRH Prince George of Wales
The Lord of Kilmarnock	1316	2018	John Werschler, Lord of Kilmarnock	Lord Kilmarnock
Lord of Leslie	16c	2004	Sir Philip Ondaatje, Earl of Rothes, Lord of Leslie, Sheriff of Fife OC CBE FRSL	Sir Philip
The Earl of Rothes	1458
Sheriff of Fife
Lord of Liddesdale	1124	Annexed to Crown in c1540
The Lord of Pittenweem	15c	2015	Claes Zangenberg, 18th Lord of Pittenweem	Lord Pittenweem
The Lord of Slains	1452	2015	Paul Bell, Lord of Slains	Lord Slains

a: The creation date is the earliest known date for the Lordship and subject to revision

List of Baronies in the Baronage of Scotland

The first degree of baronage nobility.

Click here for a list of Baronies in the Baronage of Scotland

List of Earldoms in the Baronage of Scotland

Earl is the third degree of baronage nobility, nobler than Baron (first) and Lord (second).

Click here for a list of Earldoms in the Baronage of Scotland

List of Marquisates and Dukedoms in the Baronage of Scotland

Fourth and fifth degrees of baronage nobility, the noblest forms in the hierarchy.

Click here for a list of Marquisates and Dukedoms in the Baronage of Scotland

List of Lordships of Regality

Higher dignities compared to baronage titles, erected in liberam regalitatem.

Click here for a list of Lordships of Regality

References

^ Ruling of the Court of the Lord Lyon (26 February 1943, Vol. IV, page 26): "With regard to the words 'untitled nobility' employed in certain recent birthbrieves in relation to the (Minor) Baronage of Scotland, Finds and Declares that the (Minor) Barons of Scotland are, and have been both in this nobiliary Court and in the Court of Session recognised as a 'titled nobility' and that the estait of the Baronage (i.e. Barones Minores) are of the ancient Feudal Nobility of Scotland".
^ ^a ^b Institutes, II.3.45
^ "Feudal baronies and manorial lordships" (PDF). baronage.co.uk. 2002. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
^ Atlas of Scottish History to 1707, Univ. of Edinburgh, 1996
^ "Usages". Archived from the original on 13 August 2002.
^ "Scottish Feudal Baronies". Archived from the original on 25 July 2013.
^ "Scottish feudal baronies (feudal barons, feudal baron) including the oath of a knight". 26 July 2020. Archived from the original on 26 July 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
^ Ancient Peerages, 2nd Edition, Edinburgh, 1785, pp 127-130

External links

[1] Ruling of the Court of the Lord Lyon (26 February 1943, Vol. IV, page 26): "With regard to the words 'untitled nobility' employed in certain recent birthbrieves in relation to the (Minor) Baronage of Scotland, Finds and Declares that the (Minor) Barons of Scotland are, and have been both in this nobiliary Court and in the Court of Session recognised as a 'titled nobility' and that the estait of the Baronage (i.e. Barones Minores) are of the ancient Feudal Nobility of Scotland".

[II.3.45-2] Institutes, II.3.45

[3] "Feudal baronies and manorial lordships" (PDF). baronage.co.uk. 2002. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2022.

[4] Atlas of Scottish History to 1707, Univ. of Edinburgh, 1996

[5] "Usages". Archived from the original on 13 August 2002.

[6] "Scottish Feudal Baronies". Archived from the original on 25 July 2013.

[7] "Scottish feudal baronies (feudal barons, feudal baron) including the oath of a knight". 26 July 2020. Archived from the original on 26 July 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2024.

[8] Ancient Peerages, 2nd Edition, Edinburgh, 1785, pp 127-130

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