Lord Chancellor of Scotland

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The Lord Chancellor of Scotland, formally titled Lord High Chancellor, was an Officer of State in the Kingdom of Scotland. The Lord Chancellor was the principal Great Officer of State, the presiding officer of the Parliament of Scotland, the Keeper of the Great Seal, the presiding officer of the Privy Council (until 1626), and a judge of the College of Justice.

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Holders of the office are known from 1123 onwards, but its duties were occasionally performed by an official of lower status with the title of Keeper of the Great Seal. From the 15th century, the Chancellor was normally a bishop or a peer.

Following the Union, the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England became the first Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, but the Earl of Seafield continued as Lord Chancellor of Scotland until 1708. He was re-appointed in 1713 and sat as an Extraordinary Lord of Session in that capacity until his death in 1730.

List of Lords Chancellors of Scotland

David I

Malcolm IV

William I

Alexander II

Alexander III

English Appointees during the Interregnum

Robert I

David II

Robert II

Robert III

James I

James II

James III

James IV

James V

Mary I

James VI

Charles I

Charles II

James VII

William II and Mary II

Anne

See also

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References

Notes

  1. Cowan, p. 70
  2. Cowan, p. 159

Sources