Edinburghshire (Parliament of Scotland constituency)

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Before the Acts of Union 1707, the barons of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh (also called "Edinburgh principal" to distinguish it from "Edinburgh within the constabulary of Haddington", and now known as Midlothian ) elected commissioners to represent them in the Parliament of Scotland and in the Convention of the Estates. The number of commissioners was increased from two to four in 1690.

Acts of Union 1707 Acts of Parliament creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain

The Acts of Union were two Acts of Parliament: the Union with Scotland Act 1706 passed by the Parliament of England, and the Union with England Act passed in 1707 by the Parliament of Scotland. They put into effect the terms of the Treaty of Union that had been agreed on 22 July 1706, following negotiation between commissioners representing the parliaments of the two countries. By the two Acts, the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland—which at the time were separate states with separate legislatures, but with the same monarch—were, in the words of the Treaty, "United into One Kingdom by the Name of Great Britain".

A sheriffdom is a judicial district in Scotland, led by a sheriff principal. Since 1 January 1975, there have been six sheriffdoms. Each sheriffdom is divided into a series of sheriff court districts, and each sheriff court is presided over by a resident or floating sheriff. Sheriffs principal and resident or floating sheriffs are all members of the judiciary of Scotland.

Midlothian Council area of Scotland

Midlothian is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, East Lothian and the Scottish Borders.

Contents

After the Union, Edinburghshire returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of Great Britain and later to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.

House of Commons of Great Britain historic British lower house of Parliament

The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of the Parliament of Scotland, as one of the most significant changes brought about by the Union of the kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain.

House of Commons of the United Kingdom Lower house in the Parliament of the United Kingdom

The House of Commons, officially the Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled, is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster. Owing to shortage of space, its office accommodation extends into Portcullis House.

List of shire commissioners

Parliament or ConventionCommissioners
Parliament
12–13 October 1612 [2] 		Sir James Foulis of Colinton [1] Sir James Dundas of Arniston [3]
Convention
7 March 1617 [4] 		Sir George Ramsay of Dalhousie [5] James Richardson of Smeton [6]
Parliament
27 May–28 June 1617 [7]
Convention
25–26 January 1621 [8] 		none
Parliament
1 June–4 August 1621 [8] 		Sir Alexander Lauder of Haltoun [9] David Crichton of Lugton [9] [10]
Convention
27 October–2 November 1625 [11] 		Sir George Forrester of Corstorphine [12] Sir James Dundas of Arniston [3]
Parliament
15 September 1628 – 28 June 1633 [13] 		Patrick Hamilton of Little Preston [14]
Convention
28 July–7 August 1630 [15] 		Sir James Makgill of Cranstoun Riddell [16] James Richardson of Smeton [6]
Parliament
15 May 1639 – 17 November 1641 [17] 		Sir David Crichton of Lugton [10] Sir John Wauchope of Niddrie [18]
Convention
22 June 1643 – 3 June 1644 [19] 		Sir Archibald Johnston of Warriston [20] George Winram of Liberton [21]
Sir Patrick Hamilton of Preston (from 10 April 1644) [14] Sir John Wauchope of Niddrie (from 10 April 1644) [18]
Parliament
4 June 1644 – 27 March 1647 [22] 		Sir Archibald Johnston of Warriston [20] Sir Patrick Hamilton of Preston [14]
George Winram of Liberton (from 7 January 1645) [21]
Sir James Foulis of Colinton (from 26 November 1645) [1]
Parliament
2 March 1648 – 6 June 1651 [23] 		Sir James Foulis of Colinton [1] [24] Sir James Dundas of Arniston [24] [25]
Sir Archibald Johnston of Warriston (from 4 January 1649) [20] [26] George Winram of Liberton (from 4 January 1649) [21] [26]
Sir John Wauchope of Niddrie [18]
Sir James Foulis of Colinton (from 1651) [1] Sir John Wauchope of Niddrie [18] Sir William Scott of Clerkington (from 1651) [27]
During the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, the sheriffdom of Midlothian was represented by one Member of Parliament in the Protectorate Parliament at Westminster.
Parliament
3 September 1654 – 22 January 1655		 George Smith [28]
Parliament
17 September 1656 – 4 February 1658		 Samuel Desborough [29]
Parliament
27 January–22 April 1659
After the Restoration, the Parliament of Scotland was again summoned to meet in Edinburgh.
Parliament
1 January 1661 – 9 October 1663 [30] 		Sir James Foulis of Colinton [1] Sir John Gilmour of Craigmillar [31]
Convention
2–4 August 1665 [32] 		Sir John Gilmour of Craigmillar [31] Sir James Foulis of Colinton [1]
Convention
9–23 January 1667 [33]
Parliament
19 October 1669 – 3 March 1674 [34] 		Charles Maitland of Haltoun [35]
New commission 16 January 1672, to replace Gilmour (deceased) and Maitland (appointed Treasurer-Depute) [34]
Sir James Foulis of Colinton [1] Sir John Nicolson of that Ilk [36]
Convention
26 June–11 July 1678 [37] 		Richard Maitland of Gogar [38] [39]
Parliament
28 July 1681 – 1 March 1682 [40] 		Sir John Couper of Gogar [41]
Parliament
23 April 1685 – 15 June 1686 [42] 		Sir James Foulis of Redford, later of Colinton [1] Sir John Maitland of Ravelrig [43]
Convention
14 March–24 May 1689 [44]
Parliament
5 June 1689 – 30 June 1702 [45]
By Act of Parliament 14 June 1690, the shire of Edinburgh was allocated two additional Commissioners. [45]
Sir James Foulis of Colinton (seat declared vacant 25 April 1693) [1] Sir John Maitland of Ravelrig, later (1693) Lauder of Haltoun (succeeded as Earl of Lauderdale in 1695) [43] Sir Alexander Gilmour of Craigmillar [31] Sir John Clerk of Pennycuik [46]
Robert Craig of Riccarton [47]
Archibald Primrose of Dalmeny (created Viscount of Rosebery in 1700) [48]
Robert Dundas of Arniston [25]
Parliament
12 November 1702 – 25 March 1707 [49] 		Robert Dundas of Arniston [25] Sir James Primrose of Carrington (created Viscount of Primrose in 1703) [50] Sir Robert Dickson of Inveresk [51] George Lockhart of Carnwath [52]
Sir James Foulis of Colinton [1]

Sources

Joseph Foster was an English genealogist whose transcriptions of records held by the Inns of Court and the University of Oxford are still important historical resources.

The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707 is an online publication of the Scottish Parliament and the University of St Andrews arising from a project to create a comprehensive online database of the proceedings of the Parliament of Scotland from 1235 to the Act of Union. The website was launched in 2008.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Foster, p. 143.
  2. ↑ Return of Members of Parliament, p. 549.
  3. 1 2 Foster, p. 112.
  4. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 550.
  5. ↑ Foster, p. 292.
  6. 1 2 Foster, p. 295.
  7. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 551.
  8. 1 2 Return of MPs, p. 553.
  9. 1 2 RPS, 1621/6/7. Accessed 8 September 2014.
  10. 1 2 Foster, p. 82.
  11. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 554.
  12. ↑ Foster, p. 141.
  13. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 555.
  14. 1 2 3 Foster, p. 172.
  15. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 557.
  16. ↑ Foster, p. 226.
  17. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 558.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Foster, p. 352.
  19. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 562.
  20. 1 2 3 Foster, p. 196.
  21. 1 2 3 Foster, p. 359.
  22. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 564.
  23. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 570.
  24. 1 2 RPS, 1648/3/2. Accessed 7 September 2014.
  25. 1 2 3 Foster, p. 113.
  26. 1 2 RPS, 1649/1/12. Accessed 7 September 2014.
  27. ↑ Foster, p. 308.
  28. ↑ Foster, p. 318.
  29. ↑ Foster, p. 96.
  30. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 574.
  31. 1 2 3 Foster, p. 148.
  32. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 575.
  33. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 577.
  34. 1 2 Return of MPs, p. 579.
  35. ↑ Foster, p. 238.
  36. ↑ Foster, p. 274.
  37. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 582.
  38. ↑ RPS, 1678/6/3. Accessed 8 September 2014.
  39. ↑ Foster, p. 240.
  40. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 584.
  41. ↑ Foster, p. 79.
  42. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 586.
  43. 1 2 Foster, pp. 209 and 239.
  44. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 589.
  45. 1 2 Return of MPs, p. 591.
  46. ↑ Foster, p. 70.
  47. ↑ Foster, p. 80.
  48. ↑ Foster, p. 286.
  49. ↑ Return of MPs, p. 599.
  50. ↑ Foster, p. 287.
  51. ↑ Foster, p. 97.
  52. ↑ Foster, p. 217.

See also


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