Sir James Skene, Lord Curriehill (1578–1633) was a 17th-century Scottish judge and

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice in Scotland 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 ...

Life

He was the son of Sir John Skene of Curriehill and Helen Somerville of

Cambusnethan Cambusnethan is a historic parish in North Lanarkshire in Scotland. The largest settlement in the parish is Wishaw, and Cambusnethan now appears on maps as a village almost contiguous with Wishaw. The village is approximately long, straddling ...

. He was born at Curriehill Castle, near

Currie Currie is a village and suburb on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated south west of the city centre. Formerly within the County of Midlothian, it now falls within the jurisdiction of the City of Edinburgh Council. It is situated be ...

south of

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. He trained as a lawyer in

. In June 1612 he was elected a

and took the title previously used by his father Lord Curriehill. In February 1628, he purchased a baronetcy in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

. He was later promoted to President of the College of Justice.

Death

He died on 20 October 1633 at his house near the Grammar School in Edinburgh, close to the

Flodden Wall There have been several town walls around Edinburgh, Scotland, since the 12th century. Some form of wall probably existed from the foundation of the royal burgh in around 1125, though the first building is recorded in the mid-15th century, whe ...

. He was buried on 25 October in the floor of

Greyfriars Kirk Greyfriars Kirk () is a parish church of the Church of Scotland, located in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is surrounded by Greyfriars Kirkyard. Greyfriars traces its origin to the south-west parish of Edinburgh, f ...

. His gravestone was rediscovered in the 19th century and moved to the outside where it now lies on the outer north wall of

Greyfriars Kirkyard Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 1 ...

Family

He was married to two separate persons each named Janet Johnston (possibly cousins of each other). One of these Janets appears to be the sister of James' legal coilleague,

Archibald Johnston, Lord Warriston Archibald Johnston, Lord Wariston (1611 – 1663) was a Scottish judge and statesman. He assisted Alexander Henderson in writing the Scottish National Covenant in 1638, and was appointed Procurator of the Kirk in the same year. He was said ...

. After his death Janet married George Winram, Lord Liberton. He was father to John Skene, Lord Curriehill II who sold Curriehill Castle to a cousin, Samuel Johnston, in 1656.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skene, James 1578 births 1633 deaths People from Midlothian Senators of the College of Justice Baronets in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia