Sir Archibald Tod was a 17th-century Scottish landowner and merchant who twice served as Provost of Edinburgh, from 1646 to 1648 and 1651 to 1654. Tod represented a moderate force during a period of political extremes.
Life
He was born in Edinburgh in 1584. His Edinburgh address is unknown but was somewhere on the upper section of the Royal Mile. Given the small population of Edinburgh, rarity of the name, and political connection, it is highly likely that he was the great-grandson of Sir Thomas Tod, four times Provost of Edinburgh in the 15th century. He joined Edinburgh's town council in 1622. He was three times Baillie and twice Dean of Guild. In 1646 he succeeded Sir John Smith of Grothill as Provost. He was elected in preference to the more active figure, the Covenanter, Edward Edgar. On 29 May 1648 he was attacked by a mob on the Royal Mile due to his involvement in a levy on the population towards the war. His term of office was interrupted by James Steuart, of Coltness from 1648 to 1652. Tod did not stand in the controversial 1648 election, which took an unprecedented twelve days to resolve. Steuart held the role when the Covenanters took control of the cityin September 1648. Tod was elected for a second term in 1651, representing a safe moderate line within continuing troubled times. After his second term of office he was succeeded by Sir Andrew Ramsay, Lord Abbotshall in 1654. He died on 9 February 1656 aged 71 and is buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard. The grave is largely illegible but lies between the tomb of William Chalmers and the tomb of John Byres of Coites, behind the sunken vault of John Baptist Medina.
Family
He was married four times but had only one surviving child: Katherine, daughter of his first wife, Helen Jackson. Katherine married David Wilkie, a burgess in the city during Tod's term of office. Katherine Tod later married Walter Chieslie of Dalry who was father of Provost Robert Chieslie. One of his later wives was Margaret Joysie or Jossie. John Jossie was a fellow burgess on Edinburgh council.
Trivia
Tod's grave has lost its original top and inscription. The current top was added around 1930 by the city architectE J Macrae as part of a wider restoration of the older tombs in the churchyard. The new top has reinterpreted the presumably worn Tod coat of arms at the head of the tomb, and instead of three foxes shows three holly leaves.
