John Byset the Elder (died 1257), Lord of

the Aird The Aird (from Scottish Gaelic ''An Àird'', "the high place") is a district of Inverness-shire lying on the south side of the Beauly Firth, between the rivers Beauly and Ness. It includes the villages of Kirkhill, Kiltarlity, Lentran and ...

, 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 ...

nobleman who is the progenitor of the Bissett family of the

Glens of Antrim The Glens of Antrim ( Irish: ''Glinnte Aontroma''), known locally as simply The Glens, is a region of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It comprises nine glens, that radiate from the Antrim Plateau to the coast. The Glens are an area of outstand ...

in medieval northeastern

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, present-day

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

Biography

Born in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, certain details of what is known of his life are limited. John fled to

and then to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

with his uncle

Walter Byset, Lord of Aboyne Walter Byset (died 1251), Lord of Aboyne, was a Scoto-Norman nobleman. Biography Born in Scotland, Walter married in 1233 Ada of Galloway, daughter of Lochlann of Galloway and wife Elena de Moreville. She was the sister of Alan of Galloway. Wal ...

, after Walter had been complicit in the murder of

Padraig, Earl of Atholl Padraig or Patrick of Atholl was Mormaer of Atholl, from 1236/7 until 1241. The Chronicle of Melrose tells us that while he was lodging in Haddington, East Lothian, his enemies, "most wicked men," torched his lodging, killing both him and his two ...

, and two companions at their lodgings after a tournament at Haddington in 1242.Way, pp. 362. They were received into the peace of King

Henry III of England Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of John, King of England, King John and Isabella of Ang ...

. Among these are the date of his death as recorded in the

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luin� ...

. His name has the distinction of being the ancestral element in the Gaelic style Mac Eoin (Bissett) of the Glens used by his descendants in Ireland into the 16th century. He is known to have had a son, John Bissett of Lovat. According to some sources it was Byset who founded

Beauly Priory Beauly Priory was a Valliscaulian monastic community located at "Insula de Achenbady", now Beauly, Inverness-shire. It was probably founded in 1230. It is not known for certain who the founder was, different sources giving Alexander II of Scot ...

in the year 1230.Chisholm-Batten, ''passim''

References

Bibliography

* *
Calendar of Documents, Relating to Ireland, 1171-1251
'. * Chisholm-Batten, Edmund,
The Charters of the Priory of Beauly with Notices of the Priories of Pluscardine and Ardchattan and of the Family of the Founder John Byset
'. London: Houlston & Sons. 1877
alt
* Duffy, Seán, "The Lords of Galloway, Earls of Carrick, and the Bissets of the Glens: Scottish settlement in medieval Ulster", in David Edwards (ed.), ''Regions and Rulers in Ireland, 1100-1650''.

Four Courts The Four Courts () is Ireland's most prominent courts building, located on Inns Quay in Dublin. The Four Courts is the principal seat of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit Court. Until 2010 the build ...

. 2003. * H., J. W., The Earldom and Barons of Ulster, in
The Ulster Journal of Archaeology, Vol. I
'. Belfast: Archer & Sons. 1853. pp. 38–42
altJSTOR
* Hill, George,
An Historical Account of the MacDonnells of Antrim: Including Notices of some other Septs, Irish and Scottish
'. Belfast: Archer & Sons. 1873
alt
* Nicholls, K. W., "Anglo-French Ireland and after", in ''

Peritia ''Peritia'' is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal covering Celtic and Insular medieval studies in the context of the European Middle Ages and European medieval studies in general. It is published by the Medieval Academy of Ireland. History ...

1'' (1982): 370–403. * Roberts, John Lenox. (1997) "Lost Kingdoms: Celtic Scotland and the Middle Ages" * Way, George and Squire, Romily. (1994). ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The

Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs (SCSC) is an organisation that represents many prominent Scottish clan chief, clan chiefs and Scottish clan chief#Chief of the Name and Arms, Chiefs of the Name and Arms in Scotland. It claims to be the pr ...

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

1257 deaths Nobility from Highland (council area) 13th-century Scottish nobility 13th-century Irish people People from County Antrim Year of birth unknown {{noble-stub

Biography

See also

References

Bibliography