Peter McLagan - Politician

Peter McLagan was born in 1823 in Demerara British Guiana (present-day Guyana) to a Scottish father and a Black mother whose name was not recorded. His father also named Peter McLagan was a wealthy Scottish plantation owner who eventually returned to Scotland, with his son when he was still a child. McLagan was raised in the town of Bathgate, West Lothian by his wealthy father. Although the young McLagan was Mixed Race the family wealth shielded him from being racially targeted. Wealth also gave him access to the best education available and to the ‘right’ social circles.

In 1865 McLagan was elected as the Liberal MP for Linlithgowshire (now West Lothian), the first Mixed Race Black man to do so. McLagan held the seat until 1893, a total of 28 years Throughout his long parliamentary career McLagan championed progressive causes. He was a supporter of expanding access to education, he advocated for women’s rights and was a promoter of Irish Home Rule.

Peter McLagan passed away in 1909.

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