Sir John Baird of Newbyth (by East Linton), Lord Newbyth (1620–1698), was a Scottish advocate, judge, politician and diplomat. He served as Commissioner for

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

in the

Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council o ...

. Baird was the son of James Baird of

Byth B'wana Beast Baby-Doll Bad Samaritan The Bad Samaritan (alias Zviad Baazovi) is a supervillain, and enemy of the Outsiders who first appeared in ''The Outsiders'' #3 (January 1986). He is a former Soviet spymaster who became a neutral party ...

in the same county, advocate, and for some time commissary of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, and Bathia, daughter of Sir John Dempster of Pitliver, was admitted advocate on 3 June 1647. It must have been about the same year that he married Margaret, daughter of Sir William Hay of Linplum, by whom he had four children, three sons and one daughter, viz. John, born on 4 Oct 1648; Margaret, born on 23 Dec 1649; John, born on 23 Sep 1652; and William, born on 12 Nov 1654. Baird appears to have been knighted by Charles II on his accession to the

throne of Scotland The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have grown ...

in 1651, In the correspondence of the Earls of Ancram and

Lothian Lothian (; sco, Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n; gd, Lodainn ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Sco ...

(1616–67) we find him referred to as Sir John, under date 1653. Thenceforward his name occurs with some frequency in that correspondence, and usually in such a connection as to suggest that he was regarded as a person of some weight and sagacity. Like his father he belonged to the covenanting party, and was considered of sufficient consequence to be excluded from the operation of the

Act of Indemnity In legal terms, an Act of Indemnity is a statute passed to protect people who have committed some illegal act which would otherwise cause them to be subjected to legal penalties. International treaties may contain articles that bind states to abide ...

passed by the parliament of Scotland in 1662, being then mulcted in the sum of 2,400l. His eminence at the bar, however, could not be ignored, and in 1664 he was created an

ordinary lord of session A Lord Ordinary is any judge in the Outer House of the Scottish Court of Session The Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland and constitutes part of the College of Justice; the supreme criminal court of Scotland is the H ...

, assuming the title of Lord Newbyth. In the Scottish parliaments of 1665 and 1667 he represented

, and sat on the committee of taxation in the former, and on that of supply in the latter, parliament. He was not returned to the parliament of 1669. In that year a grant of the barony of Gilmertoun within the

sheriffdom 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 ...

of Edinburgh, made in his favour by the crown in 1667, was ratified by the parliament. In 1670 he was nominated one of the commissioners to negotiate the then projected treaty of union between Scotland and England. In 1680 his youngest and only surviving son, William, was created

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

. By reason of his opposition to the arbitrary measures of the government he was superseded in the office of lord of session in 1681, Sir Patrick Ogilvie of Boyne being appointed in his place. He acted as commissioner of the

cess Cess is a tax that is generally levied for promoting services like health and education. Governments often charge cess for the purpose of development in social sectors. The word is a shortened form of "assess". The spelling is due to a mistaken ...

for the shire of Edinburgh in 1685, and also as commissioner of supply for the same county. On the accession of the

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands. The title ...

he was re-appointed ordinary lord of session (1689), and retained his seat upon the bench until his death in 1698. In the Advocates' Library at Edinburgh are preserved certain papers in the handwriting of Lord Newbyth, being a collection of decisions ranging from 1664 to 1667, and a collection of practiques belonging to the period between 1664 and 1681.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baird, John 1620 births 1698 deaths 17th-century Scottish people John Newbyth People from Aberdeenshire Members of the Faculty of Advocates Scottish knights Covenanters Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1665 Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1667 Politics of Aberdeenshire Scottish diplomats Scottish civil servants People associated with Edinburgh 17th-century Scottish politicians Scottish legal writers 17th-century Scottish lawyers 17th-century Scottish writers