Existing studies of early modern Scotland tend to focus on the crown, the nobility and the church. Yet, from the sixteenth century, a unique national representative assembly of the towns, the Convention of Burghs, provides an insight into the activities of another key group in society. Drawing extensively on local and national sources, this book sheds new light upon the way in which parliament acted as a point of contact, a place where legislative business was done, relationships formed and status affirmed.

Alan R. MacDonald is Lecturer in the Department of History, University of Dundee, UK.

Contents: Introduction; Erection and enrolment: gaining entry to parliament; Representation; The convention of burghs, the burgess estate and parliament; Individual burghs and parliament; Edinburgh: the capital and parliament; Hosting the estates; A sense of priority: status, precedence and display; Conclusion; Appendices; Bibliography; Index.