Origins The name Lockhart was spelt
Locard or
Lokart in early times, The modern spelling (Lockhart) seems to have been introduced in 1330, and refers to the crusades. The history of the Locards dates back to 1066, the family being among those that fought in the Norman Conquest of William the Conqueror. The Locards like many other Scottish families came from
England to
Scotland after they had been dispossessed of lands by
William the Conqueror. The Lee Penny is kept in a gold
snuffbox which was a gift from
Maria Theresa of Austria, Empress of Austria to her general Count
James Lockhart in 1789. The penny gained further fame in the 19th century for inspiring Sir
Walter Scott's 1825 novel
The Talisman.
16th and 17th centuries was purchased in 1681 by
George Lockhart of Lee Castle, whose estate adjoined it. In 1547 Alan Lockhart of Lee was killed at the
Battle of Pinkie Cleugh.
Sir James Lockhart of Lee (b.1594) was appointed by
Charles I of England as a gentleman of the Privy Council and was knighted. He was also appointed to the Supreme Court Bench taking the title of
Lord Lee.
Civil War During the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms he was a zealous royalist and was captured at
Alyth in 1651. His son was Sir
William Lockhart of Lee who was a distinguished soldier and fought at the
Battle of Worcester as a royalist in 1651. However he later reconciled with
Oliver Cromwell and married Cromwell's niece. As a result, he was not in favour with the Stuart monarchs when they were restored in 1660 and made his home in
France. He later campaigned on the continent and
Cardinal Mazarin offered to make him
Marshal of France. Sir
George Lockhart (1630–1689) was the second son of Sir James Lockhart, Lord Lee, Lord Justice Clerk and became one of the most famous advocates at the
Edinburgh Bar. He became Lord President of the Court of Session in 1685 and was M.P. for
Lanarkshire in both the English and Scottish Parliaments. His knighthood was conferred in 1663 and the
Carnwath and Dryden estates acquired by him in 1681. He was murdered on
Easter Sunday 1689 on his way home from church by a dissatisfied litigant named Chiesly of Kersewell and Dalry.
18th century and Jacobite risings George Lockhart, Second of Carnwath (1673–1731) was a fervent
Jacobite; he became Principal Agent to the exiled King James after the
Jacobite rising of 1715. He was one of the Commissioners for the Treaty of Union, and the only one against it. He was one of the earliest of the agricultural improvers. He married Euphemia
Montgomery, daughter of the ninth Earl of Eglinton; they had fourteen children. He died as the result of a duel.
James Lockhart inherited the estates in 1777 and saw service on the continent where he rose to become a count of the Order of Maria Theresa and a general of that empress's imperial forces. == Chief ==