Lord Thirlestane and Boltoun

Earl of Lauderdale is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. The current holder of the title is Ian Maitland, 18th Earl of Lauderdale.

The title was created in 1624 for John Maitland, 2nd Lord Maitland of Thirlestane, Berwickshire. The second Earl was created Duke of Lauderdale and by popular naming represented the "L" in the Cabal ministry an acronym which amounted to the first major, perennial delegation of power from the monarch to a cabinet. He died without male issue when the dukedom became extinct. The earldom passed to his brother Charles, 3rd Earl. Charles married, in 1652, Elizabeth, daughter of Richard Lauder of Haltoun and by this marriage came into that family's great estates.

Other titles associated with the earldom are: Viscount of Lauderdale (created 1616), Viscount of Maitland (1624), Lord Maitland of Thirlestane (1590) and Lord Thirlestane and Boulton (1624). All of these titles are in the Peerage of Scotland. The Earl of Lauderdale is the hereditary chief of Clan Maitland. The title Viscount of Maitland is sometimes used as a courtesy title for the Earl's eldest son and heir. The eldest son is also known as the Master of Lauderdale.

The Earl of Lauderdale, as The Bearer of the National Flag of Scotland, one of the Officers of the Royal Household in Scotland, has the right to bear the saltire.

The historical family seat is Thirlestane Castle, near Lauder, in Scotland home of Captain the Hon. Gerald Maitland-Carew and his family. He is the eldest son of Lady Sylvia Maitland – who became wife to the 6th Baron Carew – she was the eldest of two children of the 15th Earl of Lauderdale; her brother was killed in action in North Africa, aged 27 and left three daughters. Therefore the earldom passed to a cadet branch and the castle passed down the more direct female line.

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