Dictionaries of the Scots Language
Dictionars o the Scots Leid

Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

Hide Quotations Hide Etymology

Abbreviations Cite this entry

About this entry:
First published 1968 (SND Vol. VII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

ROTHESAY, n. Also †Rothsay. The name of a town in Bute, and the site of a royal castle, now ruinous, used in Sc. titles: 1. Duke of Rothesay, a title conferred on the eldest son of the reigning monarch of Scotland, and, since 1603, of Great Britain. The earliest holder was David, eldest son of King Robert III of Scotland, who was created Duke of Rothesay in 1398. The title continued in sporadic use until 1469, when Parliament conferred the principality of Scotland on the eldest son of the King in all generations and, although no specific grant of the title was made, from this date onwards the eldest son of the Sovereign has always been styled Duke of Rothesay; 2. Rothesay Herald, one of the three Scottish heralds (Sc. 1738 J. Chamberlayne Present State 214). [′rɔθse]1. Sc. 1738 J. Chamberlayne Present State of Scotland 147:
His Royal Highness Frederick, Duke of Rothsay, Prince of Wales.Sc. 1828 Scott F. M. Perth ix.:
His eldest son, a young man of spirit and talent, whom in fondness he had created Duke of Rothsay, in order to give him the present position of a dignity next to that of the throne.Sc. 1966 Whitaker's Almanac 215:
H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, Earl of Chester, Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick and Baron Renfrew.2. Sc. 1863 G. Seton Law & Pract. Heraldry Scot. 37:
The Heralds attached to the Lyon Court are six in number, viz., Islay, Rothesay, Marchmont, Albany, Ross, and Snowdon. . . . Rothesay has his title from the Castle of the same name.Sc. 1930 Encycl. Laws Scot. IX. 338:
By the Act of 1867 the number of heralds was reduced to three, the present heralds being Albany, Rothesay, and Marchmont.