A bailie or baillie is a civic officer in the

local government of Scotland Local government in Scotland comprises thirty-two local authorities, commonly referred to as councils. Each council provides public services, including education, social care, waste management, libraries and planning. Councils receive the major ...

. The position arose in the burghs, where bailies formerly held a post similar to that of an

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members t ...

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...

(see bailiff). Baillies appointed the high constables in Edinburgh,

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

and

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

. Modern bailies exist in Scottish local councils, with the position being a courtesy title and appointees often requested to provide support to the lord provost or provost - the ceremonial and civic head of the council - in their various engagements.

History

The name derives from

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intellig ...

and used to be synonymous with provost, with several officials holding this role often at the appointment of the Church. The

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. J ...

of a bailie is called a ''bailiary'' (alt. ''bailiery''). The office of bailie was abolished in law in Scotland in 1975, and today the position of bailie is a courtesy title.

Use

Aberdeen City Council gd, Comhairle Cathair Obar Dheathain , native_name_lang = , other_name = , image_skyline = Town House, Municipal Offices and Court Houses in Aberdeen.jpg , image_caption ...

- appoints five bailies. *

Dundee City Council Dundee City Council is the local government authority for the City of Dundee. It was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994. History Dundee City became a single-tier council in 1996, under the Local Government e ...

- appoints five bailies. The position was reintroduced in 2003. *

Edinburgh City Council The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the city of Edinburgh, capital of Scotland. With a population of in mid-2019, it is the second most populous local authority area in Scotland. In its current form, the counci ...

- appoints six bailies. The position was reintroduced in the 2000s following the title falling into disuse after the 1975 reform of local government. * Glasgow City Council - appoints eighteen bailies. *

Perth and Kinross Council Perth and Kinross Council ( gd, Comhairle Pheairt is Cheann Rois) is the local government council for the Perth and Kinross council area of Scotland. It employs around 6,000 people. The council was created in 1996, under the '' Local Governme ...

- appoints five bailies. *

Stirling Council Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, ...

- appoints four bailies *

West Dunbartonshire Council West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

- revived the title in 2017 to appoint to veteran councillor Denis Agnew.

Notable Scottish bailies

As a title

Alasdair MacMhaighstir Alasdair Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair (c. 1698–1770), legal name Alexander MacDonald, or, in Gaelic Alasdair MacDhòmhnaill, was a Scottish war poet, satirist, lexicographer, political writer and memoirist. The poet's Gaelic name means "Alasdair, so ...

, Bailie of Canna *

Mary Barbour Mary Barbour ( Rough; 20 February 1875 – 2 April 1958) was a Scottish political activist, local councillor, bailie and magistrate. Barbour was closely associated with the Red Clydeside movement in the early 20th century and especially for h ...

Glasgow Corporation The politics of Glasgow, Scotland's largest city by population, are expressed in the deliberations and decisions of Glasgow City Council, in elections to the council, the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament. Local government As one o ...

's first woman Baillie (1924-1927) * Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan, Bailie of

Inverie Inverie (; ) is the main village on the Knoydart peninsula in the Scottish Highlands. It is located on the north side of Loch Nevis and, although on the mainland of Britain, the network of single-track roads surrounding the village is not conne ...

Knoydart Knoydart (Scottish Gaelic: ''Cnòideart'') is a peninsula in Lochaber, Highland, on the west coast of Scotland. Knoydart is sandwiched between Lochs Nevis and Hourn — often translated as "Loch Heaven" (from the Gaelic ''Loch Néimh'') an ...

*Dr

George Coull Dr George Coull FRSE (1862? – 10 January 1934) was a Scottish pharmaceutical chemist. He served as Managing Director of Raimes Clark & Co, parent company to Scotland's largest independent chemist, Lindsay & Gilmour. Life He was born in Edin ...

FRSE, Bailie of

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

Sir John Lauder, 1st Baronet Sir John Lauder, 1st Baronet, of Newington and Fountainhall (1595 – 2 April 1692) was a notable Scottish baillie and Treasurer of the City of Edinburgh, who was raised to a Nova Scotia baronetcy in 1688. Antecedents Lauder was born at Melvi ...

, Bailie of

Sir James Steel Sir James Steel, 1st Baronet (1830–1904) was a Scottish builder and businessman who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1900 to 1903. He was the largest building firm in Edinburgh in his day. His rise to fame and fortune is described ...

, 1st Baronet (1829–1904), Bailie of

from 1888-1900 *Thomas Watt, Bailie to the Baron of Cartsburn, grandfather of James Watt *Bailie William Landale, winner of the silver cup at the first open championship held at St Andrews Old Course in 1754, see Timeline of golf history (1353-1850) * "Baillie Vass" - the '' Aberdeen Evening Express'' accidentally used a picture of

Sir Alec Douglas-Home Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel (; 2 July 1903 – 9 October 1995), styled as Lord Dunglass between 1918 and 1951 and being The 14th Earl of Home from 1951 till 1963, was a British Conservative politician who se ...

over a caption referring to a baillie called Vass. '' Private Eye'' then affected to believe that Home was an imposter.

As a surname

Alexander Baillie Alexander Baillie (born 6 January 1956) is an English cellist, recognised internationally as one of the finest of his generation. He is currently professor of cello at the Bremen Hochschule and previously taught at Birmingham Conservatoire, as ...

- internationally recognised cellist, born 1956. * Chris Baillie - Scottish hurdler *

Chris Baillie (politician) Christopher John Baillie (born ) is a New Zealand politician who became a Member of Parliament for New Zealand at the 2020 general election, as a representative of the ACT New Zealand party. Early life and career In a speech to Parliament, Ba ...

- New Zealand politician * David Baillie - Writer, born in West Lothian, known for comicbook work such as 2000 AD and Red Thorn. *

Jackie Baillie Jacqueline Marie Baillie (' Barnes; born 15 January 1964) is a Scottish politician who has served as Deputy Leader of the Scottish Labour Party since 2020. She has been Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Dumbarton constituency sinc ...

- Member of the Scottish Parliament for

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

. * Jim Baillie - Scottish footballer *

Thomas Baillie Thomas Baillie may refer to: *Thomas Baillie (British Army officer) (1796–1863), lieutenant in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and New Brunswick politician *Thomas Baillie (cricketer) (1868–1934), South African cricketer *Thomas Baillie (Royal Navy o ...

- Royal Navy officer known for a celebrated libel case. * William Baillie - Irish print maker. *James Bailie - American real estate developer of Scottish descent.

Outside of government

Scottish barons often appointed a Bailie as their judicial officer.

References

{{reflist Scottish titles Political office-holders in Scotland Local government in Scotland