Summary.
The historical record reveals that only a relatively small number of individuals were active in the role of notary within the ‘northern dioceses’ during the pre-reformation period. This paper seeks to identify some of them and to give a little information about their activities. A start is made by tracing the earliest appearance of notaries within the civil administration of Rome. There then follows a description of the development of the functions of notaries in both the civil and ecclesiastical administrations which followed the Empire. A section describes the duties performed by Scottish notaries and compares this with the pattern that was to be found elsewhere during this period. Finally, an attempt is made to identify some of the individuals who acted as notaries in north-east Scotland during the period leading up to the Reformation of 1560 with a particular study being made of the notarial activities of (Sir) John Cristison (1518-1551).
A significant amount of information is given in the form of Tables which are often of considerable size, but are available to download.
