he concept of the Burgess oath belongs
to feudal times and is mentioned in The
Laws of the Four Burghs, traditionally
ascribed to King David I. An Aberdeen text
written on the original flyleaf of the
Council’s Register for 1585-1589 may well
be the original medieval oath, and reads I Salbe Leill and Trew to the King of Scotland his
airis and successouris to the burgh and fredome of
abirdene
Nevir Skayth other Manis proffeit for fee
I sall obey to the officiaris of this burgt to quhat
estgait that ever I cum
I sall voit, cheis nominat nor elect na persone nor
persones to be provest nor baillie of this burgt bot
burgessis merchandis traffiquaris, and actual
indwellaris of the samyn
I shall giff leill and trew counsale and the best
quhen I am requyrit
I sall conceile the counsale of this burgt warne
thaime of thair skaythe and lat it at my power
I sall governe na unfre manis gudis under colour of
my ainin
I sall scat, lott wache walk and ward with the
inhabitants therof
Na lordship to seikit in contrar the liberte of this
burgt
Swa help me god be my awin hand and all that god
maid.
Translation
I will be true and faithful to the King of Scotland,
his heirs and successors, and to the burgh and
liberty of Aberdeen
(I will) never injure another man’s well being for
profit
I will obey the office bearers of this burgh
whatever position I reach
I will not choose, nominate, vote for nor elect, any
individual or individuals to be provost or baillie of
this burgh except burgesses (who are) merchant
traders and actual residents of the same burgh
I will give true and honest advice to the best of my
ability when needed
I will keep secret the deliberations of this burgh
(I will) forewarn them (sc. the burgesses in council)
of harm and prevent it if I can
I will manage under pretence of ownership the
goods of no one (who is) not a burgess
I will pay my due share of taxation and undertake
watch, patrol and guard duties in turn with the
inhabitants of the burgh
(I will) seek no patronage to the injury of the
freedom of this burgh
So help me God - by my own hand and by all
God’s creation
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This page: Castlegate with Tolbooth and Mercat Cross
Opposite: Medieval Oath with Translation
Cover:
William the Lion Charter 1201
Dean and Assessors with the pre 1824 City Weights and Measures
Standing: Alex Cocker, Dorothy Cryle, Joan Catto, James Barrack
Seated: Colin Crosby, Dean of Guild Bill McKimmie, Senior Assessor Fred Dalgarno
berdeen can look back on a long and
interesting history, especially from
1124 when, as a growing centre of
trade and commerce, it became a Royal
burgh and therefore won special distinction
with other principal burghs in Scotland.
Much of that history stems from the
actions of its early Burgesses, those
responsible citizens who, appointed as
freemen, were charged with guarding the
burgh’s laws and customs as well as the
burgh itself. Their loyalty to King and
community brought its own rewards by
way of trading privileges as well as the
general esteem in which they were held.
The intention of this booklet is to
present a simple account of the role
played by Burgesses down through the
years, a role that helped lead the burgh
to a more organised and, later,
democratic system of local government
whereby in time a broad band of citizens
could claim the right to vote or, indeed,
to stand for the local Council.
Under a charter granted by King
Alexander II, who reigned from 1214 to
1249, merchant Burgesses were given
the sole right to form a Guild, and this
body exercised considerable power in
the composition of the local Council.
That Guild, now no longer confined to
merchant members, remained an integral
part of the Council for than 700 years
and played a considerable role in the
growth and development of Aberdeen,
but the role of Burgesses of Guild today
is very different from that of their
predecessors.
While it is essential we retain and
nurture the traditions of the organisation,
I feel that the time has come for that
new role to be more clearly defined so
that the huge wealth of talent and
experience in our ranks can be put to
better use in this modern era.
It takes only a brief glance at the long
list of names, professions and businesses
and therefore interests, experience and
expertise within the present membership
of our Guildry to see the potential in
such a body acting as ambassadors,
collectively and individually, in taking
every opportunity to further the
promotion of the City of Aberdeen.
Bill McKimmie, Dean of Guild
April 2002
Detail from Plan of Aberdeen 1661
ecognition of Burgesses as citizens
willing to accept public
responsibilities goes back a long
way. This is exemplified in the earliest
Royal charters granting them exclusive
privileges, in return, of course, for
their support, especially in financial
terms.
It was necessary, therefore, that
Burgesses possessed the means, as well
as the willingness, to meet these
responsibilities and be capable of
guarding not only local laws and
customs but also the burgh itself.
By definition, Burgesses were burgh
citizens, involved in many aspects of
business and trade, but not every
inhabitant became a Burgess. Employees
were excluded, as were women, even
those who ran their own businesses.
Fishermen, clergy and lawyers similarly
found no place in the ranks of the
medieval Burgesses, all of whom had to
pay a fine, an entry fee, to the Town
Council which went towards the
Common Good.
A new Burgess took the oath to respect
and further the economic interests of the
burgh, to pay the King’s taxes and to
defend the burgh against its enemies ­
the medieval formula of liability to pay
Scot and lot, watch and ward. Each new
Burgess had to present a weapon to the
burgh’s armoury and, as a mark of
acceptance in the community, had to pay
for a feast for the Provost and
Councillors.
So, it is easily seen how it was that only
certain citizens were regarded as eligible
to be admitted as Burgesses.
We do not know who were the first
Burgesses in Aberdeen nor do we have a
firm foundation date for the burgh, but
there are several pointers.
The earliest document in Aberdeen city
archives, a charter of King William the
Lion from c.1180, claimed that the
privileges of those burghs north of the
Mounth - a recognised track crossing the
hills and leading to south markets - were
established by his grandfather, King
David, who died in 1153.
King David had fought several
campaigns against old established Celtic
leaders to extend his Royal authority
throughout Scotland and one of his acts
was to confer on Aberdeen the status of
a Royal burgh which was also a means
of ensuring more taxes being raised
for his coffers. It also allowed him, in
turn, to confer trading privileges on
those who offered their loyalty.
The attraction of living and working in a
Royal burgh for anyone with drive and
initiative in the 12th Century is simple to
understand. Craftsmen and traders were
free men in relation to everyone except
their lord, the King. They could call
upon the support of Royal officials to
protect them from any oppression by
lesser lords, and they could be tried only
in the King’s court. The downside, of
course, was the arbitrary nature of Royal
taxation.
The organisation of a burgh in those
days was quite simple. An area within
recognisable boundaries was designated
as the burgh, within which a code of
laws geared to the needs of
manufacturers and traders, as well as to
the maintenance of public order, had
authority.
Within the burgh, a market place was
designated, streets laid out and building
stances created on regular lines along
and between streets. In Aberdeen, the
Castlegate contained the largest market
square in medieval Scotland. Weekly
markets and annual fairs were
established and alongside them a burgh
court for the speedy resolution of
disputes between buyers and sellers.
While the fairs attracted sellers and
buyers from a wide area, the weekly
market existed primarily for the benefit
of Burgesses. All goods had to be
displayed for sale in open market on
fixed days and at fixed hours so that
everyone had an equal chance to buy.
Prices, too, were regulated, whether of
household consumables or of raw
materials for industry. Breaking the code
resulted in a fine.
Those from outside the burgh who
brought goods to the market or who
bought from it had to pay market tolls.
These tolls and fines all went to swell
the Royal coffers, as did the customs on
goods imported and exported through
the harbour. The King expected
townsfolk to act as unpaid collectors and
as baillies to run the burgh and add to
his income.
A number of charters given by
succeeding Kings show how Aberdeen
Burgesses benefited from their patronage
by the granting of trading privileges and
exemption from tolls and customs, not
only in the burgh but throughout
Scotland.
Another privilege granted by King
William gave Burgesses freedom to act
as a corporate body with powers to make
its own rules of local government, a
precursor to the establishment of a Town
Council.
A later charter given by William’s son,
King Alexander II, dated only Alyth 27
February, conferred on Aberdeen rights
and privileges similar to those
previously granted by William the Lion
to Perth. These included control of
wholesale trade in wool and skins
throughout the Sheriffdom of Aberdeen
and a grant to my Burgesses of
Aberdeen, except waulkers and weavers,
that they have their merchant guild.
Thus, the Guild was established in
emulation of the King’s burgh of Perth
and of every other burgh with
pretensions to overseas trade in cloth.
The surprising thing is that this is the
last mention of the merchant guild of
Aberdeen - records of burgh
administration beginning in the 14th
Century refer simply to the Guild or
Guildry of Aberdeen.
While craftsmen, even as Burgesses,
were restricted to dealing in goods of
their own manufacture within Scotland,
they could import raw materials from
abroad for their own use.
Merchant Burgesses, on the other hand,
could buy goods from many sources
through the network of local markets,
selling them at home and overseas and
importing manufactured goods and
agricultural produce. This kind of trade,
not based on manufacturing input, was
the jealously guarded prerogative of the
Guild brethren who paid significantly
higher entry fees to the Town Council.
Craftsmen could join the Guild only
after forswearing the practice of their
craft and by making up the entry fee to
the higher rate.
In the early 15th Century when regular
records began, every Burgess paid a
basic fee, in real terms probably £100,
but Guild members had to pay a further
sum greatly in excess of that. Sons and
sons-in-law of Burgesses paid at the
lower end of the scale, but newcomers to
the burgh had to pay handsomely for the
privileges they sought.
Economic pressures were partly
responsible for the deterioration in
relationships between the crafts and the
Guild in the later Middle Ages. Robert
the Bruce encouraged the development
of his burghs to generate wealth and to
hasten the economic recovery of
Scotland in the aftermath of the first War
of Independence.
In 1357 the need to pay the English for a
King’s ransom and to conclude the
second War of Independence seriously
inhibited economic development of the
kingdom.
To raise this ransom, £20 million at
today’s prices, foreign trade needed to be
encouraged by all possible means, and
the merchants were favoured as a class
over their competitors - foreign
merchants and native craftsmen.
A general charter of privilege to the
Burgesses of all Scottish burghs, issued
in 1364, effectively reinforced
Aberdeen’s control of exports from
Aberdeenshire and, by restricting
commerce to the merchant class,
undercut the position of craftsmen
Burgesses.
Thus when the pages of the Aberdeen
Council Register first opened to view in
1398, the merchants and Guild brethren
were well on their way to dominating
Monumet to commemorate the Battle of Harlaw
the burgh. But soon after came the Battle
of Harlaw, one which gave all of
Aberdeen’s Burgesses a walk-on part in
the pageant of Scottish literature and
history, for it was as a united body that
they joined the force raised from the
burgh by Provost Davidson to face the
Lord of the Isles and his invading
Highland army at that historic encounter
near Inverurie.
As the years of the Middle Ages
unrolled so Aberdeen’s Burgesses
continued to enjoy their trading
privileges. As in other large Scottish
burghs, so in Aberdeen no one could
trade in goods not of his own
manufacture unless he was a Burgess of
Guild. Trade Burgesses, however, could
manufacture and sell their products, but
little more.
As each new Burgess, of Guild or Trade,
was admitted to the privileges of his
order he had to pay to the Town Council
a sum called his composition.
These were then allocated by the Town
Council to various accounts kept in their
books. To our modern eyes they bear
unusually colourful titles such as
Casualties, Arms’ Money, Guild Wine,
Guild Box and Additional Fund to Guild
Box.
Arms’ Money replaced the weapon in the
hand of the entrant Burgess, Guild Wine
was in place of the payment for the
medieval feast, and the Guild Box was
set up in 1600 to collect small payments
for the relief of poverty among Guild
brethren. The box was banded with irne
havend four lockis and four keyis held
by the Dean of Guild, the City Treasurer
and two merchants.
Income and expenditure fluctuated over
the years, but in 1710 the Dean of Guild
was in a position to invest £19,000 Scots
from the Guild Wine Fund in a half
share in the first half of the Lands of
Skene, out of which the Lands of Cairnie
remain, held today for the Guildry
charitable funds, the Bridgeworks
Account and the Common Good.
The Burgess oath underwent several
modifications. One clause belatedly
inserted by the Town Council in 1678
sought to impose a severe restriction on
non-Protestants. Such was the outcry
against it that an order was obtained
from the Privy Council in Whitehall in
1714 to rescind it.
In 1819 the Convention of Royal Burghs
voted to abolish the oath, replacing it
with an undertaking by Burgesses to
discharge every civil incumbent duty by
law, the wording which remains on the
Burgess ticket to this day.
Burgess Oath before 1714
Although it was agreed that the
Guildry’s charitable funds be
administered by the Town Council solely
for the benefit of impoverished Guild
brethren, their widows, orphans and
unmarried daughters, control of these
funds has lain with successive local
authorities.
On a number of occasions in the mid­
19th Century members of the Guildry
found their claim to ownership of
Guildry funds angrily rebuffed by the
Town Council, all of whose members
were, of course, members of the Guild.
Possession being said to be nine-tenths
of the law, and the Guildry being an
unincorporated body, the Council were
able to persuade the Court of Session of
their rights to the funds labelled as
Guildry funds.
There had been earlier conflicts between
Guild and Council. In 1782 and again in
1817 Burgesses were involved in local
agitation for political change, but it was
only after the reform of Parliament in
1832 that the Royal Burghs Reform Act
of 1833 began the slow democratisation
of local government.
Aberdeen, still within its ancient
boundaries, was made up of three wards
and councillors were elected by the
votes of all qualified electors within
each ward, men who were owners or
tenants of property with an annual rental
of at least £10.
This was, of course, a long way short of
the democratic process we have come to
know, especially when we bear in mind
that until 1871 votes were not secret but
recorded by the Town Clerk’s staff in
voting registers still preserved in city
archives.
With introduction of the Police Act of
1871 the role of Burgesses was changed
completely. No longer could they be
looked upon as guardians of the burgh,
and with removal of trading privileges
their position no longer held the
relevance of earlier days.
Their numbers then also went into
decline and, with a considerable
reduction in the role of their Dean,
interest in the Burgess movement
flagged over the years, so much so that
extinction looked possible.
Membership of the Guildry has varied
widely over the years. As the privileges
and rights of Burgesses declined, and
with less need for their presence to
safeguard laws and customs of the
burgh, their numbers decreased.
At the start of the 19th Century, when
Aberdeen had a population of about
40,000, there were about 1,000
Burgesses. In 1817, there were 820. By
1867 the number was down to 337 and a
century later the number was much the
same, dropping to 300 in 1981 - and still
all men. But all that was soon to change,
just as the city had changed with the
discovery of oil under the North Sea.
s the city’s population swelled to more
than 200,000 so, too, did membership
of the Guildry, reaching about 850
in the year 2000. But it was in 1983 that,
by a major change in the rules of
admission, women were admitted as full
Burgesses and, at an historic Town
Council meeting on November 28 of that
year, seven women received their
certificates of admission.
Subsequently, one went on to be elected
a member of the team of six Assessors
who support the Dean of Guild in
running all areas of the organisation.
Membership was not the only area that
was regarded as in need of change. In
1981, the then Dean of Guild raised his
concern that Guildry funds were not
being used to the benefit of the
community. Informal talks were held
with the Town Clerk on ways in which
funds, surplus after paying all annuities,
might be used, but it was felt that
nothing could be done.
F
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Left to right:
Mrs Lilian Stephen
Mrs Freda Mutch
Diane Morgan
Mrs Dorothy Grassie
Mrs Anne G Cocker
Miss Marjorie Bosomworth
Mrs Elizabeth Blacklaw
Some nine years later, following
agreement among all Burgesses and with
the Council, a petition was submitted to
the Court of Session in Edinburgh to
allow a variation in the use of surplus
funds. After much legal argument, and
the proviso that the payment of annuities
remained as the first obligation, this
petition was finally granted in 1996.
Under it, the Guild won the right to give
financial support to selected citizens in
educational or vocational training or
otherwise to further proposed careers.
Subsequently came introduction of the
Guildry Award Scheme.
Guidelines for the award state that
support will be considered to assist
persons born or habitually resident in
the City of Aberdeen and intending to
pursue careers that, if pursued, would
qualify them for admission as Burgesses
of Guild of Aberdeen, to pursue education
or vocational training courses or other­
wise to further their proposed careers.
he first such award was made in
2001 to Mrs Pauline Gerrard,
enabling her to attend a course of
neuro-developmental delay studies.
These involved training in techniques
designed to help young children
overcome learning and behavioural
difficulties, techniques which Mrs
Gerrard hoped to introduce for the
benefit of children in the Aberdeen area.
Another significant change in Guild
activities in keeping with modern times
saw the introduction of a series of social
events, with visits to places of interest in
the area, a special evening to support the
city’s annual International Youth
Festival, a film show that captured some
local historic occasions, and
opportunities afterwards for Burgesses
with their guests to make new friends
and renew acquaintances.
One event that helped to highlight
Millennium Year for the Guild and to
strengthen a historic connection was a
visit to Trinity Hall, home of the Seven
Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen whose
members also share an important place
in the annals of the city.
For the Burgesses of Guild themselves,
the second Tuesday of May each year
holds special significance. That is the
traditional date set for their Annual
General Meeting, with an equally
traditional start time - 12 noon.
Presentation of First Guildry Award
Left to right: Bill McKimmie, Dean of Guild, Councillor
David E. Clyne, Master of Mortifications, Pauline Gerrard,
Alan T. Towns, Assistant to the Chief Executive, Aberdeen
City Council, Bill Wyllie, Dean of Guild 1981 to 1998.
Royal authority for the formation of an
Aberdeen Guild of Burgesses did more
than that - it also hastened a serious
split within the ranks of the Burgesses
themselves.
When King Alexander II decreed that
this new Guild be formed, he laid it
down that it be open only to those
Burgesses who were merchants. Others,
the manufactures, traders and craftsmen
- waulkers and weavers in the King’s
words - were to be excluded.
And so arose a serious conflict between
merchant and trade Burgesses that was
to continue for centuries not only in
Aberdeen but throughout Scottish burghs.
Following their exclusion from the new
Guild, the Aberdeen traders turned more
towards their own trade associations, the
Weavers, the Hammermen, Wrights and
Coopers, Bakers and the like. Later, in
the 16th Century they decided to join
forces in a corporate body, the
Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen, to help
protect their position, their rights and
privileges and to promote their standing
within the burgh.
This also led to the setting up of their
own hospital and meeting rooms under a
group of corporate officials, the principal
being the Deacon Convener who
presided over his court of craft deacons.
And so began a separate chapter of
Aberdeen’s history.
These Burgesses, who became known as
Burgesses of Trade, remained on the
burgh’s Burgess list with all attendant
responsibilities but without a number of
privileges accorded the merchant
members. At one time they were also
refused entry into the new Guild unless
prepared to renounce their own craft.
This kind of exclusion strengthened the
power base of Guild members whose
influence upon the composition and
conduct of the Town Council was
considerable and even led to further
reductions in trading privileges granted
to the traders.
Despite these difficulties between Guild
and Trade Burgesses, obligations and
duties remained the same for all
regarding the need for personal
residence within the burgh, Scot and lot,
watch and ward, and the provision of
weapons for local defence.
The oath taken by both categories also
remained largely the same and this unity
was exemplified by the willingness of all
Burgesses to join the force raised in
1411 by Provost Robert Davidson to
help halt the southwards advance of
Donald Ross, Lord of the Isles, as his
Highland attackers advanced on Aberdeen.
Confrontation between the armies came
at Harlaw, near Inverurie, where the
Highland invaders were beaten, but only
after considerable loss of life on both
sides, one such casualty being Provost
Davidson who was seen as something of
a hero and was buried in the burgh’s St
Nicholas kirkyard.
St Nicholas Church oak steeple burned down in 1874.
In 1364 a general charter granting new
privileges throughout Scotland had the
effect of reinforcing Aberdeen’s control
of exports from Aberdeenshire and in
restricting involvement in such
commerce to the merchants.
The Trade Burgesses were dealt a further
blow in 1469 with the introduction of a
new Act described as the most damning
Act of the Scottish Parliament which
made burgh councils self-electing,
effectively denying the Trade Burgesses
any worthwhile say in local affairs.
This conflict between Burgesses was not
confined to Aberdeen. A joint appeal
from trade members in Edinburgh, Perth,
Dundee and Aberdeen obtained from
King James VI in 1581 a new charter
confirming old privileges and an
extension of their trading rights.
However, Aberdeen magistrates and
council extorted promises from
prominent traders not to exercise these
privileges, and, in turn, the traders then
refused to proceed with their part in the
election of council office-bearers until
their rights were restored.
In 1587, with both sides possibly tiring
of reprisals, their differences went to
arbitration and a decree was issued
regulating the dealings of the Town
Council with the traders.
Besides defining the respective liberties
of trading for both sides, the decree - the
Common Indenture - also fixed entry
charges for new Burgesses. But the
agreement did not produce the expected
harmony and differences mounted to the
point where, in 1592, an open-air
meeting at Greyfriars became a violent
confrontation at which blood was spilt.
This had the effect, however, of bringing
both sides to their senses and a few days
later, at a more solemn meeting at
Woolmanhill, the parties were
reconciled.
Gradually, over the years, as the practice
of granting rights and privileges to
Burgesses lessened considerably, so too
did division between Burgesses of Guild
and of Trade. A new equality began to
emerge, first from decisions by the
Convention of Royal Burghs and later
by the Reform Act of 1833 which also
put council elections on a new footing.
Now, with those years of division left far
behind, Guild and Trade are united once
again as Burgesses supporting the
wellbeing of the City of Aberdeen.
Early 19th Century advert to sell goods in Aberdeen
Petition from Town’s tradesmen to the Dean of
Guild to stop sale
The Dean in full regalia
maintains a ceremonial
tradition
The title Dean of Guild, denoting the
senior official representing the Guild, or
Guildry of Burgesses, came into being
only in 1427, centuries after Burgesses
had been instituted as a collective group
charged with upholding the laws and
customs of the burgh.
In the earlier days Burgesses were
headed by the burgh Alderman, whose
position was later that of Provost, and it
was he who took charge of the Guild
when it came into being about 1222.
From 1427 until 1833 the Dean’s
position was that of an official of the
Town Council and he was appointed as
such but, with the introduction in
Scottish burghs of the Reform Act in
1833, Deans of Guild were made
constituent members of their Town
Councils, appointed by their Guilds and
not by electoral vote.
In the early days the Dean would have
been very much the town’s man,
enforcing burgh regulations relating to
trade and responsible for the upkeep of
council property. His name, it was
claimed, became a terror to evil-doers.
If any attempt was made to encroach on
the liberties of the burgh, the Dean
would have been instructed to put a stop
to the proceedings.
Towards the end of the 16th Century,
some Norwegian ships arrived at
Newburgh, a few miles north of
Aberdeen, and began to unload. But
Newburgh was not a free port as far as
foreign trade was concerned and was
under Aberdeen jurisdiction. The act of
unloading at the little port at the mouth
of the Ythan was, therefore, an
infringement of Aberdeen’s rights, so the
Dean of the day was dispatched with an
armed officer and men to arrest the
ships and take their sails from the
masts.
Part of the Dean’s duties also included
supervision of the loading of ships
bound for foreign ports to ensure that
their bills of lading were in order. It was
law then that a ship without a proper bill
of lading was a pirate and could be
attacked without redress.
In 1597, the Dean was required to
supervise the burning of a number of
witches as well as the execution of four
pirates. In the same year he had to
oversee the rebuilding of part of the
Town House and was paid a special
allowance for carrying out these tasks.
Above all, it was the duty of the Dean to
carry out the instructions of the
magistrates and Council.
It was about this time that the Dean of
Guild was empowered by statute to
exercise the authority of a judge in
disputes between merchants and also
between merchants and mariners. With
the assistance of his Assessors,
appointed by a Town Council somewhat
jealous of this extension to the Dean’s
power and authority, he could decide in
such cases in a summary manner.
However, he never possessed the power
of judging any case with regard to
property within the burgh, and there was
never a Dean of Guild Court, as
commonly understood in Scotland, in
Aberdeen.
The charter granted by Charles I to the
burgh in 1638 specifically mentioned the
responsibility of the Dean of Guild for
maintaining the standard weights and
measures - a service absolutely vital to
the population. An inspector of weights
and measures, a paid officer of the Town
Council, was appointed for this task in
the 19th Century.
The Dean’s duties down the years were
indeed varied. In 1774, for example, he
was responsible for estimating the cost
of keeping the streets in repair and
lighting, together with the cost of
supplying water to the burgh - and all at
an assessment of one shilling in the
pound of house rents.
Dean of Guild Accounts for burning witches 1597
The Royal Burghs Reform Act of 1833
brought a number of changes involving
the Dean. Under it he was elected by his
Burgesses of Guild as the nineteenth
member of the Town Council to sit as
their representative. Over the next
century several Deans of Guild went on
to serve as Provost, demonstrating that
the Dean’s position remained a
significant one in local politics.
Other outcomes of the 1833 Act were
less helpful to the Guildry. No longer
could the Dean call upon the resources
of manpower and finance which had
been his as an office-bearer of the
Council.
While the Act did not change the
relationship between Guildry
membership and the exercise of trading
privileges, the spirit of the age was
effectively undermining a situation
where, throughout Scotland, small
groups of individuals could claim to
control the wholesale and retail trade of
their locality.
The monopoly on trade had been
eroding since the late 18th Century and
in 1846, on the recommendation of the
Dean of Guild, the Guildry offered no
opposition to the proposal to abolish the
right of exclusive trading by the
Guildries of Scottish burghs. At a stroke
of a pen, the original rationale of the
Guildry as a trading monopoly was
swept away. It was truly time to find a
new role.
However, the Dean’s right to vote on
some Council matters remained until
1965. Ten years later the statutory link
between Guildry and Town Council was
finally abolished, and Aberdeen is
probably unique among Scottish Town
Councils in retaining an informal link
between local government and the two
bodies of Burgesses.
With change in the air it was also felt
that the time had come to end the need
to have the Dean of Guild elected
annually, and in 1994 the Dean was
elected to serve for a four-year term,
with the option of a further four
years.
It was also felt that the six Assessors
should also be elected for a four-year
term and, as a result of the 1995 ballot,
the Guildry had its first woman
Assessor, Marjorie Bosomworth.
Although the Dean no longer exercises
the role he once held, he still plays a part
in the city’s pageantry, representing the
Guild in full regalia at ceremonial
occasions, such as the Remembrance
Sunday parade at the War Memorial and
the Kirkin of the Council, and
maintaining a primary role in the
ceremony of admission of new
Burgesses at the beginning of a full
Council meeting.
With establishment in 1989 of the Court
of Deans of Guild of Scotland, the Dean
now has the additional responsibility of
representing the Aberdeen Guildry on
that body.
The Court, through regular half-yearly
meetings, was set up to maintain for
posterity the place of Guildry
Incorporations and to promote the
standing of those which may not be as
well recognised as others such as that of
Aberdeen.
The Court of Deans of Guild of Scotland Millennium
Dinner in Aberdeen with Lord Provost Margaret E. Smith
he highest honour that the City of
Aberdeen can bestow is by granting
Freedom of the City to an
individual or to an organisation, as
happened when the local Regiment, the
Gordon Highlanders, and the city’s
adopted warship, HMS Scylla, were
deemed to merit such an honour.
In recent decades those so admitted have
included Sir Winston Churchill, Queen
Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Mikhail
Gorbachev, former President of Russia,
and Sir Alex Ferguson, football manager,
whose association with Aberdeen
Football Club has passed into local
legend.
To some general confusion, however,
each was admitted not as a Freeman of
Aberdeen but as a Free Burgess and
Guild Brother (or sister). Although
Freedom ceremonies are civic affairs
and the decision to admit a Free Burgess
is taken by the Town Council, the
honour thus conveyed takes its origin
from the power and prestige of the
medieval Guildry.
In the time when overseas trading in
simple and basic commodities was a
driving force in Scotland’s quest for
economic prosperity, admission without
payment to the ranks of the Guildry was
a privilege that few could dream of.
From being a mark of gratitude to those
who had served the burgh faithfully in
some particular project or capacity, free
admission to the ranks of Guild
Burgesses rapidly became one of esteem
and a means by which the Town Council
strove to win friends and to exercise
influence.
The first recorded admission as an
Honorary Burgess is that of Robert de
Erskyne, Earl of Mar, whose entry in the
Council Register of 28 December 1439
reads that he is not bound to Scot and
lot, watch and ward, responsibilities
customarily laid upon Burgesses. In
1451, Andrew Fowler was admitted as a
Free Burgess in return for repairing the
bell of St Nicholas Church. He,
however, was expected to take
responsibility for Scot and lot, watch
and ward.
Over time, the convention developed
that honourands - those who, in a
translation of the ornate Latin of the
Register, were admitted in token of the
most devoted love and affection and of
the most distinguished respect - did not
take the Burgess oath.
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother admires the Freedom
Casket presented by Lord Provost Stephen.
Sir Alex Ferguson and Winston Churchill follow the tradition of wearing their Burgess
Tickets on their hats.
A second and much larger category
admitted by the favour and good will of
the Council by the 18th Century
extended through the social scale, from
junior officers in marching regiments to
minor peers of the Realm. These did
take the Burgess oath on admission and
technically were entitled to trading
privileges and obliged to discharge the
civic responsibilities of the Guildry.
Trouble arose when stranger merchants,
admitted by courtesy, claimed freedom
from harbour tolls as Burgesses but
somehow forgot about the other side of
the coin - willingness to be taxed with
the burgh and to stand to its defence in
time of need.
Originally, all admissions of Burgesses
were recorded in the Council Register,
generally collected together on a single
page just before the record of the
Michaelmas Head Court which marked
the beginning of the Council year.
From 1632 admissions were recorded as
they occurred during the year in the
pages of a separate register. The records
of entry fees, conditions imposed on
entrants and the names of their
cautioners, or proposers, can be read
down through the centuries.
In 1783 a separate register was opened
for honorary and gratis Burgesses and in
1796, when the existing Burgess register
was completed, new separate registers
were begun for Guild and Trade
Burgesses. English replaced Latin as the
language of registration for all except
Free Burgesses in 1777.
The last Burgesses admitted gratis by the
favour of the Council were a group of
naval officers visiting Aberdeen in 1817,
and in 1891 Andrew Carnegie, the
famous benefactor, was the first Free
Burgess to have his admission recorded
in English.
The old register was kept in use until
1995 but 200-year-old paper is not good
to write on and the new City Council
commissioned a new Freedom Register
which was inaugurated for Sir Alex
Ferguson’s Freedom ceremony in April
1999.
1834
1836
1837
1839
1840
1841
1844
1848
1849
1851
1853
1854
1858
1859
1862
1866
1871
1876
1878
1881
1883
1884
1888
1890
1892
1901
1902
1913
1918
Henry Brougham, Lord Brougham
and Vaux
Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Duke
of Buccleuch and Queensberry
George Hay, Marquess of Tweeddale
William Hay, Earl of Erroll
Charles Gordon Lennox, Duke of
Richmond and Lennox
George Watt of Aberdeen
George Granville Leveson-Gower,
Duke of Sutherland
Robert Wallace of Kelly MP
Major George Thomas of Fairley
Samuel McKnight of South Carolina
Rowland Hill
HRH Albert, Prince Consort
Sir Robert Peel, Bt MP
Sir James Graham of Netherby, Bt MP
George Howard, Earl of Carlisle
Joseph Hume MP
Philip Stanhope, Earl Stanhope
David Ogilvy, Earl of Airlie
Lord John Russell MP
Edward Ellice MP
HRH Albert Edward, Prince of Wales
William Ewart Gladstone MP
William Edward Forster MP
Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon
Sir John Anderson
John Gordon, Earl of Aberdeen
Sir Richard Assheton Cross MP
Archibald Primrose, Earl of Rosebery
John Campbell, Marquis of Lorne
William Hunter MP
Henry Morton Stanley
Andrew Carnegie
Charles William Mitchell of Jesmond
Towers
George Stephen, Lord Mount Stephen
Donald Alexander Smith, Lord
Strathcona and Mount Royal
Field Marshal Frederick Roberts, Earl
Roberts of Kandahar, VC
William Morris Hughes PC
1919
1927
1927
1928
1931
1935
1937
1941
1942
1943
1946
1949
1956
1959
1966
1981
1984
1992
1993
1995
1999
Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig
Annie Pearson, Viscountess Cowdray
of Cowdray (Weetman Pearson,
Viscount Cowdray of Cowdray, died 1
May 1927)
Robert Williams of Park
Admiral of the Fleet John Jellicoe,
Earl Jellicoe of Scapa
Sir Thomas Jaffray of Edgehill
Reverend Robert Laws of
Livingstonia
Sir James Murray
Very Reverend Principal Sir George
Adam Smith
James Meston, Lord Meston of Agra
and Dunnottar
Field Marshal George Milne, Lord
Milne of Salonika and Rubislaw
William Lyon Mackenzie King PC
Joseph Aloysius Lyons PC
Peter Fraser PC
Field Marshal Jan Christiaan Smuts PC
John Gilbert Winant
Vi-Kyuin Wellington Koo
Winston Spencer Churchill MP
Thomas Johnston PC
John Boyd-Orr, Lord Boyd-Orr of
Brechin
The Gordon Highlanders
Alexander Bilsland, Lord Bilsland
Clement Attlee, Earl Attlee
HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen
Mother
Thomas Galbraith, Lord Strathclyde
Sir Dugald Baird
Lady (May) Baird
Mary Esslemont
Nelson Mandela
Winifred Mandela
HMS Scylla
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev
The University of Aberdeen
Alexander C Collie
Alexander Chapman Ferguson
The Dean of Guild and
City Archivist, Judith Cripps
examine early volume of the
Records of the Guild stored
in the Charter Room of the
Town House
1833-1834
1834-1835
1835-1837
1837-1838
1838-1839
1839-1840
1840-1842
1842-1843
1843-1845
1845-1847
1847-1849
1849-1851
1851-1853
1853-1855
1855-1857
1857-1860
1860-1863
1863-1866
1866-1869
1869-1871
1871-1873
1873-1880
1880-1885
1885-1889
1889-1895
Thomas Bannerman, merchant
Alexander Forbes, merchant
Neil Smith Jnr, merchant
Peter Williamson, druggist
Leslie Clark, merchant
Peter Williamson
George Thomson Jnr,
shipowner1
James B McCombie, advocate
Alexander Milne, merchant
James Hadden, manufacturer
Alexander Gordon, advocate
George B Bothwell, candle
manufacturer
George Inglis, merchant
Alexander Nicol, shipowner2
William Rose, merchant
George Thomson, merchant
George Jamieson, merchant3
George B Bothwell
George Jamieson
Hugh Ross
Lewis Smith, bookseller
Alexander Walker, merchant
John Sangster, druggist
David Stewart, manufacturer4
David Macdonald
1895-1902
1902-1905
1905-1911
1911-1919
1919-1925
1925-1927
1927-1935
1935-1942
1942-1950
1950-1955
1955-1971
1971-1981
1981-1998
1998-2002
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
James Walker, merchant5
Alexander Lyon, hide and
tallow merchant6
James Murray, North
Inveramsey
William Meff, fish merchant7
Harry A Holmes, trawler owner
David M Kilgour, merchant
John Spencer of Binghill
Robert Littlejohn, merchant
Joseph Bisset, engineer
George Strathdee, baker
James R Donald, director
James R Leith, shipowner
Bill Wyllie, seedsman
Bill McKimmie, architect
Provost
MP for Aberdeen
Lord Provost
Lord Provost
Lord Provost
Lord Provost
Lord Provost
Lord Provost
1847-1850
1852-1857
1866-1869
1874-1880
1889-1895
1902-1905
1905-1908
1919-1925
Establishment of a town council can be
traced back to 1179 when the burgh’s
Burgesses were granted a free Hanse ­
freedom to act as a corporate body with
power to make its own rules of local
government.
England. The figure - 100,000 merks
sterling.
In early days, a new Burgess had to pay
not only an entry fee to the Common
Good, he was also required to wine and
dine Council members.
In 1296, letters patent were submitted on
behalf of Aberdeen Burgesses and the
community promising to serve well and
loyally their dear Lord, Edward, King of
England, and his heirs.
When Queen Margaret Tudor, consort to
James IV and sister to Henry VIII,
visited Aberdeen in 1511 she was
escorted into the burgh under a canopy
held by four Burgesses.
In the 15th Century it was absolutely
essential that each Burgess have a
personal residence and possess property
in the burgh. Non-resident Burgesses
could be deprived of their freedom to
trade.
In 1576 it was decreed that after the
feast of St Martin no Burgess would
wear plaid. Penalty - fined 40 shillings.
In 1598 the Guild prohibited members
from wearing blue bonnets. Penalty - £5.
Early Royal charters granted by
successive monarchs were all directed
towards the burgh’s Burgesses, some
exclusively, others also towards the
community.
In 1357, three Burgesses from Aberdeen
were appointed with others from
Edinburgh, Perth and Dundee to
negotiate for the ransom of King David
II held captive, but in comfort, in
Burgh records of November 1736 tell of
a contract drawn up between the Dean of
Guild and William Durward - anent the
town’s dung.
In October 1393, Robert III granted
licence to Aberdeen Burgesses to build a
Town House, 80ft by 30ft, on any
suitable site, but not in the midst of the
market place.
It was customary that a new Burgess’s
entry fee be handed over ceremonially in
a white kid bag. By the 1970s the bags
were in need of cleaning and were duly
washed. They disintegrated.
In the mid-16th Century, one Burgess
granted leave of absence from the burgh
for three years without losing his
freedom status had to arrange that a
fellow Burgess undertook to meet his
share of taxation and other charges.
First mention of the Guild Box fund
comes in burgh records of July 16 1600
when the Town Council ordered that a
suitable box be made to hold offerings
and fines, such to be bestowit to the help
and support of the dacayit brether of
Gild.
Assessors to the Dean of Guild were
first appointed in 1609. Four were then
chosen each year from those who had
held Council office for at least three
years.
In 1738, William Young of Sheddocksley
was admitted as an infant Burgess at the
age of two. He twice served as Provost
of Aberdeen, from 1778 to 1780, and
from 1782 to 1784.
A condition of entry to the Guildry that
has remained through the years states
that no Burgess or any member of his
family shall be anywise burdensome on
the Town of Aberdeen for the space of
ten years from the date of entry.
In medieval days, Burgesses were
encouraged to practise their
marksmanship at the Links range.
Nowadays, some Burgesses can still be
found practising at the Links - on the
golf range.
In keeping with modern practice, both
men and women can qualify for
admission as Burgesses of Guild
provided that they live or have a
business address within the City of
Aberdeen and should ­
●
Be at least 25 years of age
●
Have some years of experience in
industry, commerce or the
professions
●
Hold or have held a position of
responsibility in his or her business
or organisation
●
Have shown involvement in
activities outwith work which are
of benefit to the community
This booklet is not intended as a
definitive history of Aberdeen Burgesses
of Guild. It is designed to give new or
aspiring Burgesses, existing members
and the public an indication of how the
organisation came about and of its role
over the years, particularly from its
inception in the 12th Century until the
far-reaching reforms of local government
in the mid-19th Century.
The Dean of Guild is grateful to
everyone involved in the compilation
and production of this booklet, much of
which is based on a previous history of
the Guild written by the late Kenneth J.
Peters. Those principally involved
include Judith Cripps, City Archivist,
and other staff members of Aberdeen
City Council. In particular, however,
very special thanks are due to Peter
Watson, who researched and prepared
the text, and to Gordon Henry, who not
only designed the graphics and format of
the booklet but also oversaw all other
aspects of its production. Their efforts
made this publication possible.
Text: Peter Watson
©The Burgesses of Guild of the City of Aberdeen
Design: Gordon E. Henry
Photography: Norman Adams
©Aberdeen City Council
Photographs of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Winston
Churchill courtesy of Aberdeen Journals
Printed by Compass Print Ltd
ISBN 0 900017 57 0
Published May 2002
Dean of Guild Badge: Civic
Dean of Guild Badge used 1794-1899
Assessor’s Badge
Dean of Guild Badge
Burgesses Badge: Non-civic