Barony of Roslin

Baron of Roslin or Rosslyn was a Scottish feudal barony held by the St Clair or Sinclair family.

In return for his efforts, the king supposedly granted Sinclair the barony of Roslin "in free heritage".

[2] However, according to late 19th century historian Roland Saint-Clair, it is not known if the people who held the estate of Roslin before William St. Clair (died 1297), who is by tradition the 6th Baron, were actually of the same surname, and that he arrived in Scotland from Normandy in the 13th century.

[2] According to the website sinclairgenealogy.info, the fact that the first proven Baron of Roslin, William St. Clair (died 1297) was made sheriff of Haddington in East Lothian where Herdmanston also is, suggests that he was appointed there to cover his own home area, and given that the name William appears frequently in the St Clair of Herdmanston family suggests that he may have been part of their extended family.

[12] According to Archibald Allan writing in 1900, Henry St Clair of Herdmanston appears to have been a son of the first William de St Clair of Roslin of the 11th century,[13] but this William's existence cannot be proved by contemporary evidence and according to Roland Saint-Clair, William St. Clair who died in 1297 was the first proven Baron of Roslin.