Sir William Davidson of Curriehill

William Davidson was a Scottish merchant in Amsterdam who served as an agent and a spy for the King.

Active in cloth trade, William settled in Amsterdam after 1640, married a Dutch woman and started to trade in the Baltic region. During his career he was involved in a salt company in Denmark (1666), owned ironworks in Drontheim, Norway and led the tobacco trade with Virginia from 1672.

A wealthy businessman, William actively supported the exiled English king Charles II with money and information obtained through espionage. In gratitude for his allegiance, the king appointed him Conservator of the Staple at Veere, a Dutch town with a large Scottish population, after he restored to the throne in 1660. William’s function as conservator was to protect Scottish trading privileges.

In 1668 he became Lord of Curriehill.