John Hamilton, Lord Magdalens (1561–1632) was a 16th/17th century Scottish judge and

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice 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 of Session); ...

Life

He was the son of

Thomas Hamilton, Lord Priestfield Thomas Hamilton, Lord Priestfield (c.1535–1611) was a 16th/17th century Scottish judge and Senator of the College of Justice. Life He was born at Priestfield House south of Edinburgh, the eldest son of Thomas Hamilton, 2nd Laird of Priestfie ...

, 3rd Laird of Priestfield, and his second wife, Elizabeth Murray, daughter of Sir Andrew Murray of Black Barony. His elder brothers included Thomas Hamilton, 1st Earl of Haddington and Andrew Hamilton, Lord Redhouse. He owned the Magdalens estate, east of Linlithgow. He later also had a house near Prestonpans. In July 1622 he was created a

: an Ordinary Lord of Session. He was also

Lord Clerk Register The office of Lord Clerk Register is the oldest surviving Great Officer of State in Scotland, with origins in the 13th century. It historically had important functions in relation to the maintenance and care of the public records of Scotland. Tod ...

of Scotland. In 1626 he built Preston House in Preston village in

East Lothian East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In 1975, the histo ...

, south of Prestonpans, sometimes then called "Lord Magdalens House". The house is now called the "Hamilton House". He died at Holyrood House (prior to it becoming a royal palace) on 28 November 1632 and is buried in

Holyrood Abbey Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by David I of Scotland. During the 15th century, the abbey guesthouse was developed into a royal residence, and after the Scottish Ref ...

. His position as

was filled by John Hay, Lord Barra.

Trivia

Dying with no sons the Magdalens estate was sold to the Dundas family. The estate is now home to the St Magdalene distillery. His house in East Lothian was taken over by the National Trust for Scotland in 1937.Buildings of Scotland: Lothian by Colin McWilliam

Family

In 1602 he married his cousin, Agnes Hamilton. They had two daughters: Anna and Elizabeth.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, John 1561 births 1632 deaths Lawyers from Edinburgh Senators of the College of Justice Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1630