User:Juleskoundes/Scottish Barony Register
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The Scottish Barony Register is a non-statutory private register established in 2004 to record ownership of Scottish feudal barony titles after they could no longer be registered in the public land registers following the abolition of feudal land tenure in Scotland.
Background[edit]
From around 1150 until 2004, Scottish land law was based on feudal principles stemming from Norman feudal law. Under this system, the Crown theoretically held ultimate ownership over all land, while Barons and others held estates subordinate to the Crown in exchange for services like military support. Barons could grant portions of their estates to others, creating a hierarchy of feudal landholdings. Only the Crown could grant the official title and dignity of a Baron.
The right to call oneself "Baron of X" and associated baronial rights like holding courts and markets were attached to the barony estate rather than being personal titles. Barony titles had to be confirmed by the Crown when inherited. Eventually most baronial jurisdictional rights lapsed, but the heritable titles continued being bought and sold until 2004.
Creation[edit]
When the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 ended the feudal system of land tenure in Scotland, there was no provision for continuing public registration of barony titles unconnected to feudal superiorities over land. To fill this gap, the Scottish Barony Register was established as a private company to scrutinize claims and record ownership of barony titles.
Operations[edit]
The Register is administered by a Custodian, who is a retired solicitor experienced in feudal property law. The current Custodian is Alastair Kennedy Shepherd, appointed in 2020.
Registration in the private Scottish Barony Register is voluntary but allows for verification of a barony title's valid transfer and ownership history since 2004. Solicitors can request a letter of comfort confirming a barony's registration.
Registering a barony allows the owner to petition Lord Lyon King of Arms for a grant of hereditary arms, though the barony title itself is not mentioned in the letters patent.
The Register is not publicly accessible, though its operations aim to meet the high standards of the former public land registers of Scotland in authenticating barony titles.