David Robertson, 1st Baron Marjoribanks

David Robertson, 1st Baron Marjoribanks (2 April 1797 – 19 June 1873), was a Scottish stockbroker and politician.

Lord Marjoribanks

Background edit

Born David Marjoribanks, he was the fourth son of Sir John Marjoribanks, 1st Baronet, MP and Lord Provost of Edinburgh.[1] He was descended from Joseph Marjoribanks, a wine and fish merchant in Edinburgh who died in 1635 and is thought to have been the grandson of Thomas Marjoribanks of Ratho,[2] head of the lowland clan Marjoribanks.[3] In 1834 Marjoribanks married Marianne-Sarah, eldest daughter of Sir Thomas Haggeston of the Haggeston baronets and co-heir of her mother, Margaret (d. 1823), herself the heiress of William Robertson of Ladykirk. After the marriage Marjoribanks changed his name to Robertson in order to keep his wife's money and property.[4]

Career edit

Robertson worked for a stockbroking firm specialising in Mexican bonds. He eventually served as Member of Parliament for Berwickshire as a member of the Liberal party[5] from 1859 to 1873, the former parliamentary constituency of his brother Charles Marjoribanks. He was also Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire between 1860 and 1873. The latter year he was elevated to the peerage as Baron Marjoribanks, of Ladykirk in the County of Berwick,[6] choosing the original family surname for the title.

Family edit

Lord Marjoribanks died after being knocked down by a horse-drawn bus outside his club in Newcastle in June 1873, aged 76, only a few days after his elevation to the peerage. His sons had predeceased him and his title consequently became extinct. He is buried at Ladykirk and his family mausoleum is nearby at Coldstream. There were two daughters who had their own families:

  • Hon. Sarah Robertson (b.1837); who married in 1856 Watson Askew, who took the name Askew-Robertson for his wife to inherit the estate. They had children.
  • Hon. Alicia Margaret Robertson (1841–1916); who married in 1862 Sir Henry Day Ingilby, 2nd Baronet (1826–1911), and had two children died young.

In 2012, Ladykirk still remained in the possession of a descendant in the female line.[5]

References edit

  1. ^ Marjoribanks,Roger (2014) "Edinburgh Portrait, Sir John Marjoribanks , Bart, MP (1763–1833)" The Book of the Edinburgh Club, Volume 10, Pp 151-156, ISBN 0-9517284-9-0
  2. ^ Marjoribanks, Roger. "Marjoribanks of Lees", The Marjoribanks Journal Number 3, page 14, June 1995. Accessed on 25 October 2009
  3. ^ Clan Marjoribanks web site accessed 29 April 2010
  4. ^ Burke, Bernard (1869). A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire. London: Harrison. p. 745.
  5. ^ a b Marjoribanks, Roger (October 2012) Marjoribanks of the Lees The Coldstream and District Local History Society, Retrieved 9 April 2013
  6. ^ "No. 23988". The London Gazette. 13 June 1873. p. 2879.

External links edit

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Berwickshire
1859–1873
Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire
1860–1873
Succeeded by
Peerage of the United Kingdom
New creation Baron Marjoribanks
1873
Extinct