Alexander Comyn, 2nd

Earl of Buchan The Mormaer () or Earl of Buchan () was originally the provincial ruler of the medieval province of Buchan. Buchan was the first Mormaerdom in the High Medieval Kingdom of the Scots to pass into the hands of a non-Scottish family in the male l ...

(died 1289) was a

Scoto-Norman The term Scoto-Norman (also Franco-Scottish or Franco-Gaelic) is used to describe people, families, institutions and archaeological artifacts that are partly Scottish (in some sense) and partly Anglo-Norman (in some sense), after the Norman Conq ...

magnate who was one of the most important figures in the 13th century

Kingdom of Scotland The Kingdom of Scotland was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a Anglo-Sc ...

Life

He was the son of

William Comyn, Lord of Badenoch William Comyn (1163 - 1233) was Lord of Badenoch and 1st Earl of Buchan. He was one of the seven children of Richard Comyn, Justiciar of Lothian, and wife Hextilda of Tynedale. Born in Altyre, Moray, Scotland, he died in Buchan and is buried in ...

, and wife

Marjory, Countess of Buchan Marjory, Countess of Buchan, also known as Margaret of Buchan, was a Scottish noblewoman. Biography She inherited the earldom from her father, Fergus, Earl of Buchan, who died without male issue. Marjory was married to William Comyn, Lord of Ba ...

, the heiress of the last native Scottish

Mormaer of Buchan The Mormaer () or Earl of Buchan () was originally the provincial ruler of the medieval province of Buchan. Buchan was the first Mormaerdom in the High Medieval Kingdom of the Scots to pass into the hands of a non-Scottish family in the male l ...

, Fergus. He was the chief counsellor of Alexander III,

King of Alba The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, Kenneth I MacAlpin () was the founder and first King of the Kingdom of Scotland (although he never held the title historically, being King of th ...

(Scotland) for the entire period of the king's majority and as Scotland's leading magnate, played a key role in safeguarding the independence of the Scottish monarchy. During his long career, Alexander Comyn was

Justiciar of Scotia The Justiciar of Scotia (in Norman-Latin, ''Justiciarus Scotie'') was the most senior legal office in the High Medieval Kingdom of Scotland. ''Scotia'' (meaning Scotland) in this context refers to Scotland to the north of the River Forth and Riv ...

(1258–1289),

Constable of Scotland The Lord High Constable is a hereditary, now ceremonial, office of Scotland. In the order of precedence of Scotland, the office traditionally ranks above all titles except those of the royal family.p60-61, Bruce, Alistair, Keepers of the Kingdo ...

(1275–1289),

Sheriff of Wigtown The Sheriff of Wigtown was historically the office responsible for enforcing law and order in Wigtown, Scotland and bringing criminals to justice. Prior to 1748 most sheriffdoms were held on a hereditary basis. From that date, following the Jacobi ...

(1263–1266),

Sheriff of Dingwall The Sheriff of Dingwall was historically the office responsible for enforcing law and order in Dingwall, Scotland and bringing criminals to justice. Dingwall was granted royal burgh status in 1226 by King Alexander II of Scotland. The seat of the ...

(1264–1266),

Baillie A bailie or baillie is a civic officer in the local government of Scotland. The position arose in the burghs, where bailies formerly held a post similar to that of an alderman or magistrate (see bailiff). Baillies appointed the high constables ...

Inverie Inverie (; ) is the main village on the Knoydart peninsula in the Scottish Highlands. It is located on the north side of Loch Nevis and, although on the mainland of Britain, the network of single-track roads surrounding the village is not conne ...

(in

Knoydart Knoydart () is a peninsula in Lochaber, Highland, on the west coast of Scotland. Knoydart is sandwiched between Lochs Nevis and Hourn — often translated as "Loch Heaven" (from the Gaelic ''Loch Néimh'') and "Loch Hell" (Gaelic: ''Loch ...

) and finally,

Guardian of Scotland The Guardians of Scotland were regents who governed the Kingdom of Scotland from 1286 until 1292 and from 1296 until 1306. During the many years of minority in Scotland's subsequent history, there were many guardians of Scotland and the post ...

(1286–1289) during the first

interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of revolutionary breach of legal continuity, discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one m ...

following the death of Alexander III. In 1284 he joined with other Scottish noblemen who acknowledged Margaret of Norway as the heiress to King Alexander.''Foedera'', p. 228 He died sometime after 10 July 1289.

Marriage and issue

Alexander had at least nine children with his wife, Elizabeth (or Isabel or Isabella) de Quincy, daughter of

Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester ( – 25 April 1264), (Roger de Quincy is a subarticle in his father's article.) His dates are given as 1195?-1265 at the beginning of the subarticle, but his death date is given as 25 April 1264 near ...

, and wife

Helen of Galloway Helen of Galloway (fl. thirteenth century) was a daughter and co-heiress of Alan, Lord of Galloway (died 1234) and his first wife, a daughter of Roger de Lacy, Constable of Chester. Helen was the first wife of Roger de Quincy, Earl of Wincheste ...

: *

John Comyn, Earl of Buchan John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan (circa 1260 – 1308) was a chief opponent of Robert the Bruce in the civil war that paralleled the War of Scottish Independence. He should not be confused with the better known John III Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, ...

, Alexander's successor as Earl of Buchan; * Roger; * Lord

Alexander Comyn Alexander Comyn, 2nd Earl of Buchan (died 1289) was a Scoto-Norman magnate who was one of the most important figures in the 13th century Kingdom of Scotland. Life He was the son of William Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, and wife Marjory, Countess ...

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

, married Joan, sister of

William Latimer, 4th Baron Latimer William Latimer, 4th Baron Latimer, KG (24 March 1330 – 28 May 1381) was an English noble, soldier and diplomat. After serving in France and for the household of Edward III, he was impeached during the Good Parliament of 1376, the earliest ...

, and had issue.

Henry de Beaumont Henry de Beaumont (before 1280 – 10 March 1340), ''jure uxoris'' 4th Earl of Buchan and ''suo jure'' 1st Baron Beaumont, was a key figure in the Anglo-Scots wars of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, known as the Wars of Scottish In ...

would claim the Earldom of Buchan through marriage to their daughter,

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

; * Lord William Comyn,

Provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

of St. Mary's Church,

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

; * Lady Marjorie Comyn married

Patrick IV, Earl of March Patrick IV, 8th Earl of Dunbar and Earl of March (124210 October 1308), sometimes called Patrick de Dunbar "8th" Earl of March, was the most important magnate in the border regions of Scotland. He was one of the Competitors for the Crown of Scotl ...

; * Lady Agnes Egidia Comyn married

Malise III, Earl of Strathearn Malise III of Strathearn (Gaelic: ''Maol Íosa''; c. 12571312) was a Scottish nobleman, the ruler of the region of Strathearn. Biography He was the son of Malise II and his second wife Matilda, daughter of Gilbert, Earl of Orkney and Caithness. ...

; * Lady Elisabetha Comyn married

Gilbert de Umfraville, Earl of Angus Gilbert may refer to: People and fictional characters *Gilbert (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gilbert (surname), including a list of people Places Australia * Gilbert River (Queensland) * Gilbert River (Sout ...

; * Lady Elena Comyn married Sir William de Brechin; * Lady Annora Comyn married Nicholas I de Soules.

References

Sources

Rymer, Thomas Thomas Rymer (c. 1643 – 14 December 1713) was an English poet, literary critic, antiquary and historiographer. His lasting contribution was to compile and publish under royal warrant the 17 volumes (the last two posthumously) of the first ...

;''Foedera Conventiones, Literae et cuiuscunque generis Acta Publica inter Reges Angliae'', London, 1745. (Latin

* Young, Alan; ''Robert the Bruce's Rivals: The Comyns, 1213–1314'', (East Linton, 1997). * Young, Alan and Cumming, George; ''The Real Patriots of Early Scottish Independence'', Birlinn, (Edinburgh, 2014). 13th-century births, Comyn, Alexander Comyn, Alexander Year of birth unknown Nobility from Aberdeenshire

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

Comyn, Alexander Comyn, Alexander Comyn, Alexander 13th-century mormaers {{Scotland-royal-stub