Knowledge Base Wiki

The Peerage of Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Moraireachd na h-Alba; Scots: Peerage o Scotland) is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Union, the Kingdom of Scots and the Kingdom of England were combined under the name of Great Britain, and a new Peerage of Great Britain was introduced in which subsequent titles were created.

Scottish Peers were entitled to sit in the ancient Parliament of Scotland. After the Union, the Peers of the old Parliament of Scotland elected 16 Scottish representative peers to sit in the House of Lords at Westminster. The Peerage Act 1963 granted all Scottish Peers the right to sit in the House of Lords, but this automatic right was revoked, as for all hereditary peerages (except those of the incumbent Earl Marshal and Lord Great Chamberlain), when the House of Lords Act 1999 received the Royal Assent.

Unlike most peerages, many Scottish titles have been granted with remainder to pass via female offspring (thus an Italian family has succeeded to and presently holds the earldom of Newburgh^[1]), and in the case of daughters only, these titles devolve to the eldest daughter rather than falling into abeyance (as is the case with ancient English baronies by writ of summons). Unlike other British peerage titles, Scots law permits peerages to be inherited by or through a person who was not legitimate at birth, but was subsequently legitimised by their parents marrying later.^[2]^[3]

The ranks of the Scottish Peerage are, in ascending order: Lord of Parliament, Viscount, Earl, Marquess and Duke. Scottish Viscounts differ from those of the other Peerages (of England, Great Britain, Ireland and the United Kingdom) by using the style of in their title, as in Viscount of Oxfuird. Though this is the theoretical form, most Viscounts drop the "of". The Viscount of Arbuthnott and to a lesser extent the Viscount of Oxfuird still use "of".

Scottish Barons rank below Lords of Parliament, and although considered noble, their titles are incorporeal hereditaments. At one time barons did sit in parliament. However, they are considered minor nobles and not peers because their titles can be bought and sold.

In the following table of the Peerage of Scotland as it currently stands, each peer's highest ranking title in the other peerages (if any) are also listed. Those peers who are known by a higher title in one of the other peerages are listed in italics.

Extant dukedoms

Subsidiary title.
Secondary dukedom in the Peerage of Scotland.

Title	Creation	Other Dukedom or higher titles	Title used in the House of Lords prior to the Peerage Act 1963	Monarch
The Duke of Rothesay	1398	Since 1603, usually Prince of Wales as the heir to the throne Duke of Cornwall in the Peerage of England.		King Robert III
The Duke of Hamilton	12 September 1643		Duke of Brandon	King Charles I
The Duke of Buccleuch	20 April 1663		Earl of Doncaster	King Charles II
The Duke of Lennox	9 September 1675	Duke of Richmond in the Peerage of England.
The Duke of Queensberry	3 February 1684	Duke of Buccleuch in the Peerage of Scotland.
The Duke of Argyll	23 June 1701		Duke of Argyll	King William III and II
			Baron Sundridge
			Baron Hamilton of Hameldon
The Duke of Atholl	30 January 1703			Queen Anne
The Duke of Montrose	24 April 1707		Earl Graham
The Duke of Roxburghe	25 April 1707		Earl Innes

Extant marquessates

Title	Creation	Title used in the House of Lords prior to the Peerage Act 1963	Monarch
The Marquess of Huntly	17 April 1599	Baron Meldrum	King James VI and I
The Marquess of Queensberry	11 February 1682		King Charles II
The Marquess of Tweeddale	17 December 1694	Baron Tweeddale	King William III and II
The Marquess of Lothian	23 June 1701	Baron Ker of Kersehugh	King William III and II

Extant earldoms

Secondary earldom in the Peerage of Scotland.

Title	Creation	Other Earldom or higher titles	Title used in the House of Lords prior to the Peerage Act 1963	Monarch
The Earl of Sutherland	1230			King Alexander II
The Earl of Crawford	21 April 1398		Baron Wigan	King Robert II
The Earl of Mar	1404			King Robert III
The Earl of Erroll	12 June 1452			King James II
The Earl of Caithness	28 August 1455
The Earl of Rothes	20 March 1457
The Earl of Morton	14 Mar 1458
The Earl of Buchan	1469		Baron Erskine	King James III
The Earl of Eglinton	3 January 1507		Earl of Winton	King James III
The Earl of Eglinton	3 January 1507		Baron Ardrossan	King James IV
The Earl of Moray	30 January 1562		Baron Stuart	Queen Mary I
The Earl of Mar	22 July 1565			Queen Mary I
The Earl of Home	4 March 1605		Baron Douglas	King James VI and I
The Earl of Perth	4 March 1605
The Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne	10 July 1606		Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
The Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne	10 July 1606		Baron Bowes
The Earl of Haddington	20 March 1619
The Earl of Kellie	12 March 1619	Earl of Mar (1565) in the Peerage of Scotland.
The Earl of Galloway	19 September 1623		Baron Stewart of Garlies
The Earl of Lauderdale	14 March 1624
The Earl of Lindsay	8 May 1633			King Charles I
The Earl of Loudoun	12 May 1633
The Earl of Kinnoull	25 May 1633		Baron Hay of Pedwardine
The Earl of Elgin	21 June 1633		Baron Elgin
The Earl of Wemyss	25 June 1633		Baron Wemyss
The Earl of Dalhousie	29 June 1633		Baron Ramsay
The Earl of Airlie	2 April 1639
The Earl of Leven	11 October 1641
The Earl of Dysart	3 August 1643
The Earl of Selkirk	4 August 1646
The Earl of Northesk	1 November 1647
The Earl of Kincardine	26 December 1647	Earl of Elgin in the Peerage of Scotland.
The Earl of Balcarres	9 January 1651	Earl of Crawford in the Peerage of Scotland.		King Charles II
The Earl of Dundee	8 September 1660		Baron Glassary
The Earl of Newburgh	31 December 1660
The Earl of Annandale and Hartfell	23 April 1662
The Earl of Dundonald	12 May 1669
The Earl of Kintore	20 June 1677		Viscount Stonehaven
The Earl of Kintore	20 June 1677		Baron Stonehaven
The Earl of Dunmore	16 August 1686			King James VII and II
The Earl of Melville	8 April 1690	Earl of Leven in the Peerage of Scotland.		King William II and III
The Earl of Orkney	3 January 1696
The Earl of March	20 April 1697	Earl of Wemyss in the Peerage of Scotland.
The Earl of Seafield	24 June 1701
The Earl of Stair	8 April 1703		Baron Oxenfoord	Queen Anne
The Earl of Rosebery	10 April 1703		Earl of Midlothian
The Earl of Rosebery	10 April 1703		Baron Rosebery
The Earl of Glasgow	12 April 1703		Baron Fairlie

Extant viscountcies

Title	Creation	Monarch
The Viscount Falkland	10 November 1620	King James VI and I
The Viscount of Arbuthnott	16 November 1641	King Charles I
The Viscount of Oxfuird	19 April 1651	King Charles II

Extant Lords of Parliament

Subsidiary title.

Title	Creation	Other Lordship or higher titles	Monarch
The Lord Forbes	1442		King James III
The Lord Gray	1445
The Lord Saltoun	1445
The Lord Sinclair	1449
The Lord Borthwick	1452
The Lord Lovat	1464	Baron Lovat	King James III
The Lord Sempill	1488		King James IV
The Lord Herries	1490
The Lord Elphinstone	14 January 1510	Baron Elphinstone
The Lord Torphichen	24 January 1564		Queen Mary I
The Lord Kinloss	2 February 1602		King James VI and I
The Lord Balfour of Burleigh	16 July 1607
The Lord Dingwall	8 June 1609	Baron Lucas in the Peerage of England.
The Lord Napier	4 May 1627	Baron Ettrick	King Charles I
The Lord Fairfax of Cameron	18 October 1627
The Lord Reay	20 June 1628
The Lord Elibank	18 March 1643
The Lord Belhaven and Stenton	15 December 1647
The Lord Rollo	10 January 1651	Baron Dunning	King Charles II
The Lord Polwarth	26 December 1690		King William II and III