Scottish Parliament (pre-1707)

Scottish Parliament (pre-1707)
Name	Parliament of the Kingdom of Scotland (pre-1707)
Legislature	Parliament
Foundation	Middle Ages
Disbanded	1707
Preceded by	Estates of the Realm
Succeeded by	Parliament of Great Britain
Meeting place	Edinburgh

Scottish Parliament (pre-1707) The Parliament of the Kingdom of Scotland was the unicameral legislature that met intermittently from the medieval period until the union with England in 1707. It evolved from the royal council and feudal assemblies associated with kings such as Malcolm III of Scotland and David I of Scotland into a distinct institution shaped by magnates like Robert the Bruce, ecclesiastical leaders including Stirling bishops, and urban representatives from burghs such as Edinburgh and St Andrews. The pre-1707 parliament played a central role in legislation, taxation, and succession crises that involved figures like James IV of Scotland, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Charles II of England.

Origins and Early Development

The origins lie in assemblies known as the Witan-like royal council and the feudal parleys presided over by kings such as Alexander III of Scotland. Early gatherings of magnates and clergy were influenced by continental institutions like the Magna Carta-era reforms in England and canonical law from the Fourth Lateran Council. During the reign of Robert II of Scotland and the Wars of Independence led by Robert the Bruce, the need for consensual taxation and military levies gave formal shape to the Estates. By the 14th and 15th centuries, parliaments met at locations including Scone Palace and Stirling Castle, incorporating sheriffs and royal burgh commissioners from places like Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Perth.

Composition and Representation

Membership combined three Estates: the clergy represented by bishops from sees such as Glasgow Cathedral and Aberdeen Cathedral; the nobility including earls and lords such as Earl of Mar and Lord of the Isles; and the burgh commissioners from royal burghs like Dundee and Roxburgh. Prominent magnates—Earl of Argyll, Earl of Huntly, Duke of Albany—contested influence with royal officers from Edinburgh Castle and legal professionals influenced by the College of Justice. From the 16th century, shire commissioners representing counties like Lanarkshire and Midlothian increased the landed gentry’s voice, producing interplays with figures connected to the Court of Session and familial networks such as the Douglas family and the Stewart dynasty.

Powers and Legislative Procedure

Parliament exercised taxation, lawmaking, and consent to royal succession, often framing statutes that intersected with existing customary law enforced by sheriffs and barons. Royal summons by monarchs—James V of Scotland, James VI and I—convened the Estates to approve subsidies for campaigns such as those against England or in continental ventures tied to alliances like the Auld Alliance with France. Procedure included royal opening speeches, committee work by commissioners, and enactment of Acts of the Estates that affected trade in ports like Leith and regulation of guilds such as the Incorporation of Goldsmiths of the City of Edinburgh. Parliamentary records, preserved in the Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, show frequent sessions on taxation, legal reform, and treaties like the Treaty of Edinburgh.

Relationship with the Monarchy and Nobility

The balance between crown authority and aristocratic power was a persistent theme. Monarchs from David II of Scotland to Charles II of England sought revenue and military support, while magnates including the Hamilton family and Hume family leveraged parliaments to defend feudal privileges. Regency periods—after battles like Flodden—saw intensified noble influence as figures such as Regent Albany and Regent Morton managed royal minorities. Conflicts over royal prerogative produced episodes of confrontation, including the forced abdication of James VII of Scotland and the intervention of parliamentary coalitions allied with Presbyterian leaders like Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll.

Role in Religion and the Reformation

Religion and parliamentary authority were tightly entwined during the Scottish Reformation. The influence of bishops from sees like St Andrews and Dunkeld declined as reformers such as John Knox and patrons including George Wishart shaped legislation abolishing papal jurisdiction and reforming ecclesiastical property. The 1560 Parliament, influenced by nobles like James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray and urban commissioners from Leith and Dundee, repudiated the Mass and adopted Protestant doctrines, formalized in acts that reconfigured the role of institutions such as the Church of Scotland and the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. Subsequent parliaments grappled with episcopacy under Charles I of England and the Covenanter movement tied to the National Covenant and battles like Dunbar (1650).

Decline, Acts of Union 1707 and Legacy

By the late 17th century, economic crises involving events such as the failure of the Company of Scotland and the Darien scheme, along with dynastic shifts following the Glorious Revolution and the succession of Queen Anne, heightened debates about union. Political factions—royalist, Jacobite supporters of James Francis Edward Stuart, and Whig proponents including the Duke of Argyll—contested Scotland’s future. The Acts of Union 1707, negotiated with counterparts in England and sealed under commissioners including John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair and An Act of Union framers, dissolved the separate Estates and transferred representation to the Parliament of Great Britain. The pre-1707 Parliament’s statutes, procedures, and conflicts left institutional legacies visible in the later legal distinctiveness of Scots law, the persistence of burgh institutions like Haddington and Inverness, and the cultural memory evoked by figures such as William Douglas, 1st Duke of Queensberry and Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun.

Category:History of Scotland