Halkerston

A nother name derived from the sport of falconry, so beloved of medieval monarchs. The lands of Hawkerton in the Mearns were held as a feu of the king’s falconer. The arms of three red falcons’ heads on a gold shield are both canting, or punning, and a reference to the office of the bearer. Johan de Haukerstone of the shire of Edinburgh, is shown on the Ragman Roll as rendering homage to Edward I of England in 1296. Black states that his seal is shown bearing an eagle, but at this time an eagle would have been a representation for any form of bird of prey. The name was common around Edinburgh in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and there are still lands known as Halkerston near the village of Inveresk in Midlothian. One of the streets of Edinburgh was known as Halkerston’s Wynd named after either John or David Halkerston. The latter was killed in 1544, when the city was assaulted by English troops. The principal line became the Lairds of Rathillet in Fife.