Richard Maitland

Politician

1496 – 1586

22

Who was Richard Maitland?

Sir Richard Maitland of Lethington and Thirlstane was a Senator of the College of Justice, an Ordinary Lord of Session from 1561 until 1584, and notable Scottish poet. He was served heir to his father, Sir William Maitland of Lethington, East Lothian, and Thirlestane, Berwickshire, on 15 October 1515. He held the political office of Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland and was also the Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland, from 1563 to 1567, and was succeeded in this post by his son Sir John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane.

In his later years he was blind, and occupied himself by writing a history of The House and Surname of Seaton, and by writing poems, e.g., On the New Year, On the Queene's Maryage, etc. He held various offices, chiefly legal, but appears to have kept as far as possible out of the fierce political struggles of his time, and to have been a genially satirical humorist.

He married Mariotta, daughter of Sir Thomas Cranstoun of Corsbie, in Berwickshire. They had three sons and four daughters, including

William Maitland of Lethington, Secretary of State to Mary, Queen of Scots, and

We need you!

Help us build the largest biographies collection on the web!

Born
1496
Children
Nationality
  • Scotland
Profession
Education
  • University of St Andrews
Died
Aug 1, 1586

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

Citation

Use the citation below to add to a bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"Richard Maitland." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 31 Oct. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/richard_maitland>.

Discuss this Richard Maitland biography with the community:

0 Comments