Earl of Rothes

The **Earl of Rothes** refers to two Scottish noble titles: in the Peerage of Scotland and in the Baronage of Scotland.

It was first created in 1458 for George Leslie, 1st Earl of Rothes by King James II of Scotland.

The earldom has two forms:

- A peerage title, which gave the holder a seat in the old Scottish Parliament.
- A baronial title, confirmed by royal charter in 1547 and again in 1859 by Queen Victoria.

Today, there are two current **Earl of Rothes** title holders, in the Peerage of Scotland and in the Baronage of Scotland, the peer is James Malcolm Leslie, 22nd Earl of Rothes (succeeded 2005), and the baron is **Dario Item, Earl of Rothes** (succeeded 2024) who also holds the historic office of Hereditary Sheriff of Fife.

## Connection between the peerage and baronial titles

Historically, the peerage earldom and the baronial earldom of Rothes were united because both were based on the same territorial inheritance in Fife. When George Leslie was made Earl of Rothes in 1458, he was already Lord Leslie, and his family held the lands, rights, and local jurisdiction associated with the area.

Over time, the peerage (which gave a seat in Parliament) and the baronage (which gave control of land and local offices like the Sheriff of Fife) became legally distinct. By the 19th century, the baronial dignity was confirmed separately in royal charters, including Queen Victoria’s 1859 confirmation that joined the title with the hereditary Sheriffdom and market rights in Leslie.

After the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000, the land ownership aspect ended, but the dignities remained as honours. This explains why there are now two separate holders: the peerage title continues in the Leslie family, and the baronial title was later assigned.

## Original Earls of Rothes (1458-1680)

|Name|Became Earl|Seized to be Earl|Become Lord|Birth|Died|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|George Leslie (I)|sometime 1458|1490 (death)|sometime 1445|c. 1417|1490|
|George Leslie (II)|25th May 1492|1509 (title retired temporaraly)|before 1492|1400's|1513|
|William Leslie (I)|1513 (George's death)|Later in 1513 (death)|before 1513|1400's|1513|
|George Leslie (III)|1st April 1517 (probably)|24th November 1558 (death)|never (probably)|1400's|1558|
|Andrew Leslie (I)|24th November 1558 (father's death)|1611 (death)|never (probably)|before 1541|1611|
|John Leslie (I)|1621 (recognition as heir)|23rd August 1641 (death)|never (probably)|1600|1641|
|John Leslie (II)|23rd August 1641 (father's death)|1680 (became duke)|never (probably)|1630|1681|

## Duke of Rothes (1680-1681)

|Name|Became Duke|Seized to be Duke|Birth|Died|Depiction|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|**John Leslie,** who also served as Earl of Rothes from 1641-1680 and in 1681. He died in 1681, after being earl again for a short time.|1680|1681 (abdicated and became Earl)|1630|1681||

## Earl of Rothes restored (1681 -)

|Name|Birth|Death|Became Earl or Countess|Seized to be Earl or Countess|Marriage|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|Margaret Leslie|1600's|c. 1700|1681 (husbands death)|c. 1700 (her death)|John Leslie m. 1648|
|John Hamilton Leslie|1679|1722|1701 (legitimized as successor)|1722|Lady Jean Hay m. 29th April 1697|
|John Leslie|1698|10th December 1767|sometime 1722 (fathers death)|10th December 1767 (death)|Hannah Howard m. 1741, d. 1763 Mary Lloyd m. 1763, he died 1767|
|John Leslie|April 19th 1744|June 18th 1773|10th December 1767|1773 (death)|Jane Maitland m. April 4, 1768|

## 19th Century (modern history)

|Name|Birth|Death|Term as Earl or Countess|Marriage|Children|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|Jane E. Leslie|May 1750|June 2nd 1810|sometime 1773 - June 1810|George Raymond Evelyn m. 1766, William Evelyn Glanville m. 1772|6 children|
|George W. Leslie|March 1768|February 11th 1817|June 1810 - February 1817|2 wifes, one in 1789 and August 1798|6 children|
|Henrietta A. Leslie|sometime 1790|January 30th 1819|February 1817 - January 1819|George Gwyther (Leslie when Married) m. 1809|6 children|
|George W. E. Leslie|November 1809|March 10th 1841|January 1819 - March 1841|Louisa Leslie m. May 7th of 1831|2 children|
|George W. E. Leslie II|February 1835|January 2nd 1859|March 1841 - January 1859|Never married, succeeded by his older sister|None|
|Henrietta A. M. Leslie|sometime 1832|sometime 1886|January 1859 - 1886 (death)|George Waldergrave, m. sometime in 1861|1 child|
|Mary E. Leslie|July 1811|September 1893|1886 - September 1893|Martin Edward Haworth-Leslie m. 11th August 1835|Fourteen|

## 20th Century (modern history)

|Name|Birth|Death|Term as Earl or Countess|Depiction|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|**Norman Evelyn Leslie** Husband of titanic survivor "Noel Leslie" who died 1955. Earl of Rothes from 1893-1927 and last to stay in Leslie House. Went through the reign of Victoria, Edward VII and nearly to the end of George V's reign.|13th July 1877|29th March 1927|September 19th 1893 - 29th March 1927||
|**Malcolm Leslie** Son of Norman and Noel Leslie, brought up in Leslie house but moved to London during the begging of World War I. Went through the reign of George V, Edward VIII, George VI and Elizabeth II (to 1975)|8th February 1902|7th May 1975|29th March 1927 - 7th May 1975||

## 21st Century (modern history)

|Name|Birth|Death|Term|Depiction or Photograph|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|**Ian Lionel Malcolm Leslie**|10th May 1937|15th April 2005|7th May 1975 - 15th April 2005||
|**James Malcolm David Leslie**|4th June 1958|N/A|Since 15th April 2005|Yet to be photographed since the start of his term on the 15th April 2005|
James Malcolm Leslie has had no children and the heir at the moment is his brother Alexander John Leslie, the master of Rothes who will take over as earl following the death or abdication of James Malcolm Leslie.

## References

- Burke's Peerage & Baronetage, 107th Edition, 2003
- Debrett’s Peerage and Baronetage
- The Register of the Great Seal of Scotland, 1547 & 1859

## Infobox (nobility title)

- **name**: Earl of Rothes
- **image**: Arms of Leslie, Earl of Rothes.svg
- **image size**: 80px
- **caption**: Arms of the Earls of Rothes
- **creation date**: 1458
- **monarch**: James II of Scotland
- **first holder**: George Leslie, 1st Earl of Rothes
- **present holder**: James Malcolm Leslie, 22nd Earl of Rothes
- **heir presumptive**: Alexander John Leslie, Master of Rothes


## Infobox (nobility title)

- **name**: Earl of Rothes  _held with_ Hereditary Sheriff of Fife
- **image**: Dario Iteam, Earl of Rothes.svg
- **image size**: 80px
- **caption**: Arms of the baronial title
- **creation date**: 1547 (recorded) / confirmed 1859
- **monarch**: James V / Victoria (confirmation)
- **present holder**: Dario Item, Earl of Rothes (2024–)
- **footnotes**: Listed in [http://burkespeerage.com/search.php Burke's Peerage]