Why do the Titles of our Scottish Ancestors only appear from before 1745 ?
They were abolished after the Culloden Defeat in 1745-46; to quote Wikipedia...
Feudal lordships were all but abolished by Act of Parliament in 1747, following the Jacobite rising. A feudal barony no longer carries any political power as such, although the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 has preserved the baronies themselves, and the quality, precedence and heraldic rights pertaining to these baronies.
Between 1500 and 2000 feudal baronies may have been created, mostly in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, since only about 400 baronies are identified as existing in 1405.[2] Because they fell into disuse, the substantiating paperwork for only a few hundred survives or has been identified. Burke's Landed Gentry for Scotland lists only about 130.
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This is fascinating history! Thank you!
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