Described by Karl Marx as ‘the pleasant character mixture of swindler and prophet’, John Law inherited Lauriston Castle at the age of 12. At the age of 21 he sold the castle to his mother in order to pay off gambling debts. This, however, was only the beginning of John’s unbelievable story. With a meteoric rise to the very top of the French Establishment, followed by an even more spectacular fall from grace, listen to John’s story and decide for yourself, was he an economic genius or a swindler of such proportions never seen in Europe before or since?
Tracy Robertson is Steward of Lauriston Castle and is researching lots of different histories and stories about the house and its former residents.
Why not make a day of it at Lauriston and have some lunch at Mimi’s café on-site after your lecture experience?
John Law - Swindler or Prophet?