Richard Lawson of High Riggs, (c. 1450–1507) was a Scottish landlord, diplomat and lawyer who was made

Lord Provost of Edinburgh The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Edinburgh is elected by and is the convener of the City of Edinburgh Council and serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city, ex officio the Lord-Lieutenant of ...

in 1492 and Justice-Clerk-General to the King in 1504. He was the father of James Lawson, an MP of the Scottish Parliament, and the grandfather of James Lawson, Lord Lawson, who was made Lord Provost of Edinburgh in 1532.

Career

Lawson was trained as a lawyer and largely served the country in the role of ambassador in treaties with England and as King's Council. He served as Town Clerk in Edinburgh in 1482. He was Justice-Clerk from 1489 and was still in post described as Justice-Clerk-General to the King in January 1504/5. Lawson joined with Edinburgh merchants in lending money to

James III of Scotland James III (10 July 1451/May 1452 – 11 June 1488) was King of Scots from 1460 until his death at the Battle of Sauchieburn in 1488. He inherited the throne as a child following the death of his father, King James II, at the siege of Roxburg ...

in 1482 and 1488, two crisis years of his reign. He was one of the counsellors appointed for managing the affairs of

James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauch ...

. Along with Alexander Home of that Ilk,

Chamberlain of Scotland Holders of the office of Lord Chamberlain of Scotland are known from about 1124. It was ranked by King Malcolm as the third great Officer of State, called ''Camerarius Domini Regis'', and had a salary of £200 per annum allotted to him. He ancien ...

, and others, he was one of the Commissioners appointed to ratify the treaty concluded at

Coldstream Coldstream () is a town and civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. A former burgh, Coldstream was where the Coldstream Guards, a regiment in the British Army, originated. Description Coldstream li ...

on 5 October 1488 for a three years' truce with England. On 30 May 1490 he was one of the Commissioners of the King who, with 300 horsemen, had a Safe-Conduct for two months to enter England, remain and return. On the 25th June 1492 he was one of the King's Commissioners who concluded a new 7 year treaty with England, and on 28 July the next year was again a Commissioner in a party of ambassadors to England for 6 months; and yet again on 22 May 1495 he was one of the Ambassadors, with 100 horsemen, who had a safe conduct to England for 6 months. He was one of the ambassadors of Scotland, who concluded a new 7 year treaty with England, at Ayton, Berwickshire, on 30 September 1497, ratified by King James on 10 February 1497/8 in the presence of

Pedro de Ayala Don Pedro de Ayala also Pedro López Ayala (died 31 January 1513) was a 16th-century Spanish diplomat employed by Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile at the courts of James IV of Scotland and Henry VII of England. His mission to S ...

, Prothonotary of the King & Queen of Spain and their ambassador to Scotland. In May 1505, Lawson was acting as Provost of Edinburgh and with the burgh council accepted a receipt from Julian Laci, the factor of the Italiam merchant Jerome Frescobaldi, which declared that the former Provost,

Alexander Lauder of Blyth Sir Alexander Lauder of Blyth, Knt. (died 9 September 1513) was Provost of Edinburgh almost continually from 1500 to 1513. He was Commissioner to the Scottish Parliament, 1504–06, and an Auditor of the Exchequer in Scotland. He appears to have be ...

had returned all the goods belonging to Frescobaldi which had been in his custody.

Family

He owned a country estate known as Cairnmuir House in the

Pentland Hills The Pentland Hills are a range of hills southwest of Edinburgh, Scotland. The range is around in length, and runs southwest from Edinburgh towards Biggar and the upper Clydesdale. Etymology The hills take their name from the hamlet of Pe ...

which he gave to his eldest son, Richard Jr, in October 1504. Another son, Robert Lawson, was killed in action at the

Battle of Flodden The Battle of Flodden, Flodden Field, or occasionally Branxton or Brainston Moor was fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland and resulted in an English victory ...

in 1513. Another son, James Lawson, was elected as an MP of the Scottish Parliament in 1528 and again in 1532. His grandson James Lawson, Lord Lawson, became both a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice in Scotland are judges of the College of Justice, a set of legal institutions involved in the administration of justice in Scotland. There are three types of senator: Lords of Session (judges of the Court ...

and Provost of Edinburgh in 1532.Notes from the Old Edinburgh Club: vol 18

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawson, Richard, of High Riggs 1450s births 1507 deaths Diplomats for Scotland Lawyers from Edinburgh Lord provosts of Edinburgh