William Little

WILLIAM LITTLE

Evidence from the National Records of Scotland

26 October 1532: Contract of marriage in form of an indenture between William Litill [Little], son of Marion Adamsoun [Adamson], and Margaret Murray, sister of Andrew Murray, 26 October 1532. National Records of Scotland, Papers of the Viscounts and Barons of Elibank, reference GD32/26/25

Biographical Summary by Find A Grave

Birth: 1525 Death: 1601. William was the son of Clement Litil a burgess merchant of Edinburgh. Baron William Littil was an Edinburgh merchant and then Bailie and twice Lord Provost of Edinburgh, firstly in 1586 and a second time in 1591. (OR: was it his son William who was Lord Provost in 1591 ?) William Littil inherited the ancient Liberton Tower in Edinburgh from his brother Clement who had inherited it first from their father, and then William built Liberton House, to provide more modern housing. William was the father of William Littil of Liberton (Little). William was the brother of advocate (lawyer) of Clement Littil. Clement wrote the founding text to assist John Knox in establishing the first Scottish Kirk (Parliament). The two brothers are buried together at Grey Friars Church in Edinburgh. Four female figures, representing emblems of Justice, Mercy, Peace and Love was erected in 1683 over the grave of William Little of Over Libertoun in Greyfriars Churchyeard.

Edinburgh University Library

Edinburgh University Library is one of the oldest and largest research libraries in the country, its books and manuscripts attracting scholars and students from all over the world. The Library traces its origin to the gift of 276 books to the Town and Kirk of Edinburgh, by Clement Little, an advocate (lawyer) who died in 1580. In 1579 Clement, and his brother, William Little, had served on a committee set up ‘for taiking of ordour anentis the founding of ane universitie’, and by the end of the year the founding of ‘ane college of theologe’ had been decided. This became the ‘Tounis College’ and subsequently the University.

Biographical Summary for Clement Little by Find A Grave

Clement Littil (founder of the Edinburgh University Library) died in 1580 and his brother William Littil (Provost of Edinburgh) who died in 1601are both buried at Grey Friars Church cemetery in Edinburgh.

What Clement was, how great that Little were
Thus citizens, that Bibliotheck declare.
This noble pair of brethern did contend In merits great each other to transcend. For both did good, This to the mother town That to the muses: whence came thou renown.

History of Liberton House

Liberton House is a late 16th century fortified laird’s house, which has been added to and altered over the centuries.

On the 15th of July 1528, Alexander Dalmahoy, a descendent of the family who built Liberton Tower, granted part of the barony of Over Liberton to Clement Little, a burgess of Edinburgh. The Littles were a prosperous Edinburgh merchant family. Variably spelled Litil or Littill, etc.

It seems that one of Little’s sons, William Little (later Lord Provost of Edinburgh), built Liberton House in 1570, as a lintel inscribed with “Williame 1570 Litil” forms part of a now re-sited carved armorial panel on the south side of the north-west range. It was probably intended as a more luxurious replacement for Liberton Tower, which seemed to fall out of use by around 1610.

Built on an L-plan, the longer side is aligned approximately north-east by south-west, with the smaller wing projecting to the east-north-west. In the re-entrant angle, to the north, is a round stair tower, with the main entrance door to its left. The doorway is covered by gun loops in the stair tower.

The doorway entered straight into the main hall, off which was a private chamber to the north-east, and the old kitchen in the projecting wing. The spiral staircase gave access to a further storey above, while the round stair tower was topped off with a square caphouse. There was more accommodation within a garret.

A further part of the barony was granted to Little’s son, William Little (later Lord Provost of Edinburgh) by Alexander Dalmahoy (possibly the son of the previous one) on the 15th of December 1587.

In 1641 another William Little, the grandson of Provost Little, bought the remainder of the barony of Over Liberton from a George Winram. His son, yet another William Little, inherited the estate upon his father’s death in 1662. This William Little is responsible for considerable alterations to Liberton House, and a pediment over a dormer window is carved with the date 1675.

Further work was evidently carried out in the last quarter of the 17th century as on the south-west corner of the house is a carved stone featuring the Little arms, the initials W and L (for William Little) and the date 1683.

It seems that it was at this time that Liberton House was extended to the north, with a new wing forming a U-shape around a central courtyard. This new two storey extension contained servants’ accommodation and a new kitchen.

When William Little died childless in 1686, the estate passed to his nephew, William Rankine, who assumed the name of Little. This latest William Little married Helen, the daughter of Sir Alexander Gilmour, 1st Baronet, of Craigmillar.

William’s great-great grandson would succeed to the Craigmillar property upon the death of Sir Alexander Gilmour, 3rd Baronet, in 1792, taking the name Little Gilmour of Liberton and Craigmillar. The Gilmours would own Liberton House right into the 20th century.

In the first half of the 19th century considerable alterations were made, including the removal of the original high-pitched roof, a new storey added, the gables heightened, the top of the square room over the stair tower modified, and an angled porch added to the base of the stair tower.

Inside many of the rooms were altered, with features blocked in with lath and plaster walls, or removed completely. In the late 19th century many of these modern internal alterations were reversed by the then tenant G. Godfrey Cunninghame.

During the 20th century the house was unoccupied for a number of years, suffering neglect and weather damage before being gutted by fire in 1991. Liberton House was bought by Nicholas Groves-Raines, and extensively restored by his practice Groves-Raines Architects to form a family home.