Council of Scottish Clans & Associations

Scotland’s Lord Lyon King of Arms Does Some Pretty Amazing Things

4th Annual Scottish Clan & Family Caucus, News and Events | 1 Comment

Scotland’s Lord Lyon has dissolved the UK Parliament in Westminster. Stay on the right side of this guy.

Here he is earlier today dissolving the Westminster (as in the United Kingdom) Parliament from Edinburgh’s Mercat Cross.  No kidding.  A Lord Lyon’s job is never done.  We cannot wait to hear Dr. Morrow’s tales at the Scottish Caucus in April!

So why did Lord Lyon announce the dissolution of the Westminster Parliament today?  Simple.  The old Parliament must dissolve before a new one may be elected. You may have heard some minor rumbles about a really important British general election coming up on May 7, 2015.

Dissolving one parliament and summoning another is no small affair. High Street, Edinburgh as Lord Lyon does his official duty.

With the idea of out with the old and in with the new – something Americans apparently gave up long ago – each UK parliamentary general election is preceded by Scotland’s Lord Lyon announcing the dissolution of the Westminster Parliament as he stands on the Mercat Cross in Edinburgh.  As has been the case since the Union of the Parliaments in 1707, with the assent of the Queen gained later in the afternoon, election season is officially underway in the United Kingdom.