Plaque to Simon Preston of Craigmillar, Edinburgh City Chambers

Simon Preston of Craigmillar (c. 1510 – c. 1570) was

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

during the years 1565 to 1569 and was a member of the

Privy Council of Scotland The Privy Council of Scotland ( — 1 May 1708) was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of m ...

during the reign of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

Political career

Simon Preston was involved in the rebuilding of Holyrood Palace in September 1554 for Mary of Guise, Regent of Scotland. He supplied lead for the roof. The palace had been damaged by an English army in 1544. Tantallon Castle came into the hands of Mary of Guise in February 1557. The

Earl of Cassillis Marquess of Ailsa, of the Isle of Ailsa in the County of Ayr, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 10 September 1831 for Archibald Kennedy, 12th Earl of Cassilis. The title Earl of Cassilis (pronounced "Cassels") ...

appointed Preston as the castle's keeper. In January 1561 Queen Mary sent Simon Preston to Scotland as her envoy. He and his three colleagues were instructed to announce the death of her husband Francis II of France, and her decision to return to Scotland. They came first to Preston's own Craigmillar Castle, and met

William Maitland of Lethington William Maitland of Lethington (15259 June 1573) was a Scottish politician and reformer, and the eldest son of poet Richard Maitland. Life He was educated at the University of St Andrews. William was the renowned "Secretary Lethington" to ...

. The English diplomat in Edinburgh Thomas Randolph was not very pleased with this news (which did not suit his view of England's foreign policy), but wrote that Preston was the best of the "packe" of four in which "the moste hope is of Cragmellour." Mary made Preston captain of

Dunbar Castle Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near the English-Scotti ...

, and in August 1565, at the time of the rebellion called the

Chaseabout Raid The Chaseabout Raid was a rebellion by James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, against his half sister, Mary, Queen of Scots, on 26 August 1565, over her marriage to Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. The rebels also claimed to be acting over other causes ...

, she made him her preferred candidate for the Provost of Edinburgh, to replace Archibald Douglas of Kilspindie, (namesake son of '' Greysteil''). Preston was understood to be a Catholic. On 6 October 1566 the Privy Council made Preston collector-general of a tax of £12,000 Scots to be raised to entertain the ambassadors at the baptism of Prince James. Preston's loyalty to Mary wavered before her final battle in Scotland at

Langside Langside is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated south of the River Clyde, and lies east of Shawlands, south of Queens Park, west of Cathcart and north of Newlands. The district is residential and primarily middle-class, ...

, and on 8 May 1568 he signed a bond with

William Kirkcaldy of Grange Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange (c. 1520 –3 August 1573) was a Scottish politician and soldier who fought for the Scottish Reformation but ended his career holding Edinburgh castle on behalf of Mary, Queen of Scots and was hanged at the co ...

to defend James VI of Scotland and

Regent Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. A supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for hi ...

against her.

Houses

Preston had two properties in Edinburgh: one in the city; one in the country, as was the norm of the day. His country residence was Craigmillar Castle, where the garden pond shaped as his initial "P" can still be seen. His city residence (demolished to build South Bridge) was known as the Black Turnpike, and stood on the corner of Hunter Square near the Tron Kirk. Mary Queen of Scots lodged here during her final days in Scotland.

Family

He married Elizabeth Menteith, and secondly

Janet Beaton Janet Beaton, Lady of Branxholme and Buccleugh (1519–1569) was an aristocratic Scottish woman and a mistress of James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell. She had a total of five husbands. One of her nieces was Mary Beaton, one of the four ladies-in-wait ...

. Elizabeth's son David Preston was Simon's heir. In September 1553,

Regent Arran A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...

gave Preston a ring at the christening of one his children, bought from Alexander Gilbert, an Edinburgh goldsmith.James Balfour Paul, ''Accounts of the Treasurer'', vol. 10 (Edinburgh, 1913), p. 205.

References

Politicians from Edinburgh Scottish diplomats 16th-century Scottish people 1510s births 1570s deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain Privy Council of Mary, Queen of Scots People of the Scottish Marian Civil War Lord Provosts of Edinburgh {{Scotland-politician-stub