Person Laing; Robert (1767-1833); barrister, son of Malcolm Laing and Elizabeth Fickle DS/UK/4573 Laing Robert 1767-1833 barrister, son of Malcolm Laing and Elizabeth Fickle Male African descent Jamaica and London Robert was the son of Malcolm Laing of Kingston, Jamaica, attorney, and Elizabeth Fickle, a "free Mulatto woman" with whom Malcolm had several children; Robert was the youngest child and only one to survive infancy. Elizabeth Fickle died in 1776, and Malcolm Laing in 1781, by which time Robert was in England under the care of William Philp Perrin; Elizabeth was the daughter of Varney Philp of Vere, Jamaica, and therefore a relative of William Philp Perrin, who inherited the Vere plantation. Robert followed his father into the legal profession, and was articled to Thomas Ryder of Lincolns Inn in April 1785, under the guardianship of Duncan Davidson (an executor under Malcolm Laing's will) and admitted to Lincoln's Inn in December 1785. He was called to the bar in 1793. According to a newspaper article in London newspaper 'The News', 10 December 1832, after being called to the bar in 1793, Robert Laing practiced in the Court of Chancery for some years. In 1832, however, he and his family were found in an extreme state of poverty, lodging in Westminster, after he had lost his money in speculation. His wife had died and he had two daughters aged 17 and 15, and a son aged 6. The article states that the curate of St Margaret's church, Westminster had discovered the family and that Mr Laing was 'a gentleman of good birth, a native of Scotland' - Robert appears to have chosen to obscure his Jamaican origins in favour of his Scottish ancestry (his father Malcolm Laing was from Orkney); there were no Robert Laings admitted to the other inns of court (Inner Temple, Middle Temple or Grays Inn) so it seems most probable that this is the correct Robert Laing, and the children mentioned in the article provide further confirmation. Two daughters of Robert Laing, barrister, and Elizabeth Hewitt were baptised in the parish of St Margaret, Westminster, in 1834, by the curate who had sought assistance for the family: Agnes Bruce (born 20 Jun 1815) and Isabella (born 4 Dec 1817). Robert and Elizabeth were unmarried when their daughters were born, but married at St Giles in the Fields, Holborn in Dec 1826. Their son Malcolm was born in Jan 1827 and baptised at Christ Church, Marylebone. A Robert Laing was buried at St Pancras Old Church in 1833.. Complete Yes Will of Malcolm Laing, proved 1888 in Canterbury (available on Ancestry.co.uk) UK Articles of Clerkship (available on Ancestry.co.uk) Lincoln's Inn Black Books (https://www.lincolnsinn.org.uk/library-archives/researching-past-members/) Newsletter of the Orkney Family History Society https://www.orkneyfhs.co.uk/docs/sfndocs/59/59.pdf The News (London) 10 December 1832 (available online on the British Newspaper Archive) International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) 2nd edition - ICA 2004 ISBN 2-9521932-2-3 DERBYSHIRE\71010800 30/11/2024 DERBYSHIRE\71010800 02/12/2024 ac28dcb1-7dbe-412c-81fd-25aec111a61e