163-559: Clan Scott is a Scottish clan and is recognised as such by the Lord Lyon King of Arms . Historically the clan was based in the Scottish Borders . The Latin word Scotti was originally used to describe the Celts of Ireland . However the historian George Fraser Black notes in his Surnames of Scotland that the earliest certain record of the name was that of Uchtred 'Filius Scott', in
326-508: A balladin , taught her to dance. Her future sister-in-law, Elisabeth of Valois , became a close friend of whom Mary "retained nostalgic memories in later life". Mary's maternal grandmother, Antoinette de Bourbon , was another strong influence on her childhood and acted as one of her principal advisors. Portraits of Mary show that she had a small, oval-shaped head, a long, graceful neck, bright auburn hair, hazel-brown eyes, under heavy lowered eyelids and finely arched brows, smooth pale skin,
489-423: A civil war against Regent Moray and his successors. As an anointed queen, Mary refused to acknowledge the power of any court to try her. She refused to attend the inquiry at York personally but sent representatives. Elizabeth forbade her attendance anyway. As evidence against Mary, Moray presented the so-called casket letters —eight unsigned letters purportedly from Mary to Bothwell, two marriage contracts, and
652-756: A joust , fifteen-year-old Francis and sixteen-year-old Mary became king and queen of France. Two of the Queen's uncles, the Duke of Guise and the Cardinal of Lorraine , were now dominant in French politics, enjoying an ascendancy called by some historians la tyrannie Guisienne . In Scotland, the power of the Protestant Lords of the Congregation was rising at the expense of Mary's mother, who maintained effective control only through
815-541: A "clan" in legislation of the Scottish Parliament in 1384. Many clans have often claimed mythological founders that reinforced their status and gave a romantic and glorified notion of their origins. Most powerful clans gave themselves origins based on Irish mythology . For example, there have been claims that the Clan Donald were descended from either Conn , a second-century king of Ulster , or Cuchulainn ,
978-493: A Scottish Parliament held at a nunnery near the town agreed to the French marriage treaty . With her marriage agreement in place, five-year-old Mary was sent to France to spend the next thirteen years at the French court. The French fleet sent by Henry II, commanded by Nicolas de Villegagnon , sailed with Mary from Dumbarton on 7 August 1548 and arrived a week or more later at Roscoff or Saint-Pol-de-Léon in Brittany . Mary
1141-650: A better claim than Mary. In late 1561 and early 1562, arrangements were made for the two queens to meet in England at York or Nottingham in August or September 1562. In July, Elizabeth sent Sir Henry Sidney to cancel Mary's visit because of the civil war in France . Mary then turned her attention to finding a new husband from the royalty of Europe. When her uncle, the Cardinal of Lorraine , began negotiations with Archduke Charles of Austria without her consent, she angrily objected and
1304-678: A charter from around 1120. In 1195 Henricus le Scotte witnessed a charter by David, Earl of Strathearn . At the beginning of the thirteenth century a Master Isaac Scotus witnessed charters by the Bishop of St Andrews . Michael Scott "The Wizard" (1175 – c.1232) was a real-life scholar and philosopher, whom Walter Scott described in The Lay of the Last Minstrel as "addicted to the abstruse studies of judicial astrology , alchemy , physiognomy , and chiromancy . Hence he passed among his contemporaries for
1467-400: A clan is the only person who is entitled to bear the undifferenced arms of the ancestral founder of the clan. The clan is considered to be the chief's heritable estate and the chief's Seal of Arms is the seal of the clan as a "noble corporation". Under Scots law, the chief is recognised as the head of the clan and serves as the lawful representative of the clan community. Historically, a clan
1630-490: A clan. As noted above, the word clan is derived from the Gaelic word clann . However, the need for proved descent from a common ancestor related to the chiefly house is too restrictive. Clans developed a territory based on the native men who came to accept the authority of the dominant group in the vicinity. A clan also included a large group of loosely related septs – dependent families – all of whom looked to
1793-460: A commercial landlord, letting land to the highest bidder, was a clear breach of the principle of dùthchas . The Jacobite rising of 1745 used to be described as the pivotal event in the demise in clanship. There is no doubt that the aftermath of the uprising saw savage punitive expeditions against clans that had supported the Jacobites, and legislative attempts to demolish clan culture. However,
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#17328553566931956-506: A complete set. There are incomplete printed transcriptions in English, Scots, French, and Latin from the 1570s. Other documents scrutinised included Bothwell's divorce from Jean Gordon. Moray had sent a messenger in September to Dunbar to get a copy of the proceedings from the town's registers. Mary's biographers, such as Antonia Fraser , Alison Weir , and John Guy , have concluded that either
2119-544: A daughter, ruefully exclaimed, "It cam wi' a lass and it will gang wi' a lass!" His House of Stuart had gained the throne of Scotland in the 14th century through "a lass"—via the marriage of Marjorie Bruce , daughter of Robert the Bruce , to Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland —and it would be lost from his family "wi' a lass". This legendary statement came true much later – not through Mary, but through her great-great-granddaughter Anne, Queen of Great Britain . Mary
2282-539: A descendant through the maternal line has changed their surname in order to claim the chiefship of a clan, such as the late chief of the Clan MacLeod who was born John Wolridge-Gordon and changed his name to the maiden name of his maternal grandmother in order to claim the chiefship of the MacLeods. Today, clans may have lists of septs . Septs are surnames, families or clans that historically, currently or for whatever reason
2445-556: A devout Catholic, she was regarded with suspicion by many of her subjects, as well as by the Queen of England. Scotland was torn between Catholic and Protestant factions. Mary's illegitimate half-brother, the Earl of Moray , was a leader of the Protestants. The Protestant reformer John Knox preached against Mary, condemning her for hearing Mass , dancing, and dressing too elaborately. She summoned him to her presence to remonstrate with him but
2608-665: A duty to obey her. The early years of her personal rule were marked by pragmatism, tolerance, and moderation. She issued a proclamation accepting the religious settlement in Scotland as she had found it upon her return, retained advisers such as James Stewart, Earl of Moray (her illegitimate half-brother), and William Maitland of Lethington , and governed as the Catholic monarch of a Protestant kingdom. Mary married her half-cousin Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley , in 1565, and in 1566 she bore him
2771-417: A forgery, but despite this, the designs are still highly regarded and they continue to serve their purpose to identify the clan in question. A sign of allegiance to the clan chief is the wearing of a crest badge. The crest badge suitable for a clansman or clanswoman consists of the chief's heraldic crest encircled with a strap and buckle and which contains the chief's heraldic motto or slogan . Although it
2934-410: A high forehead, and regular, firm features. She was considered a pretty child and later, as a woman, strikingly attractive. At some point in her infancy or childhood, she caught smallpox , but it did not mark her features. Mary was eloquent, and especially tall by 16th-century standards (she attained an adult height of 5 feet 11 inches or 1.80 m); while Henry II's son and heir, Francis, stuttered and
3097-457: A house belonging to the brother of Sir James Balfour at the former abbey of Kirk o' Field , just within the city wall. Mary visited him daily, so that it appeared a reconciliation was in progress. On the night of 9–10 February 1567, Mary visited her husband in the early evening and then attended the wedding celebrations of a member of her household, Bastian Pagez . In the early hours of the morning, an explosion devastated Kirk o' Field. Darnley
3260-481: A journey on horseback of at least four hours each way to visit the Earl of Bothwell at Hermitage Castle , where he lay ill from wounds sustained in a skirmish with John Elliot of Park . The ride was later used as evidence by Mary's enemies that the two were lovers, though no suspicions were voiced at the time and Mary had been accompanied by her councillors and guards. Immediately after her return to Jedburgh, she suffered
3423-805: A legally recognised group, but does not differentiate between families and clans as it recognises both terms as being interchangeable. Clans or families thought to have had a chief in the past but not currently recognised by the Lord Lyon are listed at armigerous clans . Tartans were traditionally associated with the Highland Clans and following the end of the Dress Act of 1746 banning tartans from being worn by men and boys, "district then clan tartans" have been an important part of Scottish clans. Almost all Scottish clans have more than one tartan attributed to their surname. Although there are no rules on who can or cannot wear
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#17328553566933586-407: A love sonnet or sonnets. All were said to have been found in a silver-gilt casket just less than one foot (30 cm) long and decorated with the monogram of King Francis II. Mary denied writing them and insisted they were forgeries, arguing that her handwriting was not difficult to imitate. They are widely believed to be crucial as to whether Mary shared the guilt for Darnley's murder. The head of
3749-468: A particular tartan, and it is possible for anyone to create a tartan and name it almost any name they wish, the only person with the authority to make a clan's tartan "official" is the chief. In some cases, following such recognition from the clan chief, the clan tartan is recorded and registered by the Lord Lyon. Once approved by the Lord Lyon, after recommendation by the Advisory Committee on Tartan,
3912-406: A pole and used as a standard . Clans which are connected historically, or that occupied lands in the same general area, may share the same clan badge. According to popular lore, clan badges were used by Scottish clans as a form of identification in battle. However, the badges attributed to clans today can be completely unsuitable for even modern clan gatherings. Clan badges are commonly referred to as
4075-576: A potential match between their son and Mary. Both Mary and Darnley were grandchildren of Margaret Tudor, sister of Henry VIII of England, and patrilineal descendants of the High Stewards of Scotland . Darnley shared a more recent Stewart lineage with the Hamilton family as a descendant of Mary Stewart, Countess of Arran , a daughter of James II of Scotland . They next met on Saturday 17 February 1565 at Wemyss Castle in Scotland. Mary fell in love with
4238-583: A range of measures on clan chiefs, designed to integrate them into the Scottish landed classes. Whilst there is debate over their practical effect, they were an influential force on clan elites in the long term. The Statutes obliged clan chiefs to reside in Edinburgh for a large part of the year, and have their heirs educated in the English-speaking Lowlands. Lengthy periods in Edinburgh were costly. Since
4401-488: A rare component of society. Historian T. M. Devine describes "the displacement of this class as one of the clearest demonstrations of the death of the old Gaelic society." Many tacksmen, as well as the wealthier farmers (who were tired of repeated rent increases) chose to emigrate. This could be taken as resistance to the changes in the Highland agricultural economy, as the introduction of agricultural improvement gave rise to
4564-550: A secret conspiracy with Protestant lords, including the nobles who had rebelled against Mary in the Chaseabout Raid. On 9 March, a group of the conspirators accompanied by Darnley stabbed Rizzio to death in front of the pregnant Mary at a dinner party in Holyrood Palace. Over the next two days, a disillusioned Darnley switched sides and Mary received Moray at Holyrood. On the night of 11–12 March, Darnley and Mary escaped from
4727-446: A serious illness that included frequent vomiting, loss of sight, loss of speech, convulsions and periods of unconsciousness. She was thought to be dying. Her recovery from 25 October onwards was credited to the skill of her French physicians. The cause of her illness is unknown. Potential diagnoses include physical exhaustion and mental stress, haemorrhage of a gastric ulcer, and porphyria . At Craigmillar Castle , near Edinburgh, at
4890-487: A short step for that community to become identified by it. Many clans have their own clan chief ; those that do not are known as armigerous clans . Clans generally identify with geographical areas originally controlled by their founders, sometimes with an ancestral castle and clan gatherings, which form a regular part of the social scene. The most notable clan event of recent times was The Gathering 2009 in Edinburgh, which attracted at least 47,000 participants from around
5053-406: A skilful magician". Four generations after Uchtred, Sir Richard Scott married the heiress of Murthockstone and in doing so acquired her estates. Sir Richard was appointed as the ranger of Ettrick Forest and this brought to him the additional lands of Rankilburn. The new laird built his residence at Buccleuch and the estates were generally known by this name. Sir Richard's son, Sir Michael Scott
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5216-462: A son James . But their marriage soured after Darnley orchestrated the murder of Mary's Italian secretary and close friend David Rizzio . In February 1567, Darnley's residence was destroyed by an explosion, and he was found murdered in the nearby garden. James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell , was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley's death, but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567 and in
5379-690: A thousand spears to support him. Like most of the Border Reiver clans the Scotts quarrelled with their neighbours, in particular the Clan Kerr . The feud began on 25 July 1526 when Sir Walter Scott of Buccleuch launched an attack (the Battle of Melrose ) to rescue the young James V of Scotland who was being held by the Douglas Earl of Angus at Darnick just west of Melrose , and in the ensuing fight Kerr of Cessford
5542-578: Is a kinship group among the Scottish people . Clans give a sense of shared heritage and descent to members, and in modern times have an official structure recognised by the Court of the Lord Lyon , which regulates Scottish heraldry and coats of arms . Most clans have their own tartan patterns, usually dating from the 19th century, which members may incorporate into kilts or other clothing. The modern image of clans, each with their own tartan and specific land,
5705-498: Is bewitched", adding that the marriage could only be averted "by violence". The union infuriated Elizabeth, who felt the marriage should not have gone ahead without her permission, as Darnley was both her cousin and an English subject. Mary's marriage to a leading Catholic precipitated Mary's half-brother, the Earl of Moray, to join with other Protestant lords, including Lords Argyll and Glencairn , in open rebellion. Mary set out from Edinburgh on 26 August 1565 to confront them. On
5868-406: Is common to speak of "clan crests", there is no such thing. In Scotland (and indeed all of UK) only individuals, not clans, possess a heraldic coat of arms . Even though any clansmen and clanswomen may purchase crest badges and wear them to show their allegiance to his or her clan, the heraldic crest and motto always belong to the chief alone. In principle, these badges should only be used with
6031-738: Is therefore quite correct to talk of the MacDonald family or the Stirling clan ." The idea that Highlanders should be listed as clans while the Lowlanders should be termed as families was merely a 19th-century convention. Although Gaelic has been supplanted by English in the Scottish Lowlands for nearly six hundred years, it is acceptable to refer to Lowland families, such as the Douglases as "clans". The Lowland Clan MacDuff are described specifically as
6194-611: The Ainslie Tavern Bond , in which they agreed to support his aim to marry the queen. Between 21 and 23 April 1567, Mary visited her son at Stirling for the last time. On her way back to Edinburgh on 24 April, Mary was abducted, willingly or not, by Lord Bothwell and his men and taken to Dunbar Castle , where he may have raped her. On 6 May, Mary and Bothwell returned to Edinburgh. On 15 May, at either Holyrood Palace or Holyrood Abbey , they were married according to Protestant rites. Bothwell and his first wife, Jean Gordon , who
6357-562: The Clan Mackenzie were prepared to play off territorial disputes within and among clans to expand their own land and influence. Feuding on the western seaboard was conducted with such intensity that the Clan MacLeod and the Clan MacDonald on the Isle of Skye were reputedly reduced to eating dogs and cats in the 1590s. Feuding was further compounded by the involvement of Scottish clans in
6520-633: The Clan Sweeney , Clan Lamont , Clan MacLea , Clan MacLachlan and Clan MacNeill , can trace their ancestry back to the fifth century Niall of the Nine Hostages , High King of Ireland. However, in reality, the progenitors of clans can rarely be authenticated further back than the 11th century, and a continuity of lineage in most cases cannot be found until the 13th or 14th centuries. The emergence of clans had more to do with political turmoil than ethnicity. The Scottish Crown's conquest of Argyll and
6683-493: The Crown Matrimonial , which would have made him a co-sovereign of Scotland with the right to keep the Scottish throne for himself, if he outlived his wife. Mary refused his request and their marriage grew strained, although they conceived by October 1565. He was jealous of her friendship with her Catholic private secretary, David Rizzio , who was rumoured to be the father of her child. By March 1566, Darnley had entered into
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6846-492: The Heritable Jurisdictions Act which extinguished the right of chiefs to hold courts and transferred this role to the judiciary. The traditional loyalties of clansmen were probably unaffected by this. There is also doubt about any real effect from the banning of Highland dress (which was repealed in 1782 anyway). The Highland Clearances saw further actions by clan chiefs to raise more money from their lands. In
7009-689: The Highbridge Skirmish in August 1745. During the action Scott had lost a sergeant and up to six men killed. Scott himself was wounded but the Jacobite MacDonald of Keppoch arranged for his wound to be dressed at Cameron of Lochiel's Achnacarry Castle . Captain Caroline Frederick Scott of Guise's Regiment commanded the successful defence of Fort William in March 1746. He gained a reputation for brutality and has been described as one of
7172-586: The Highland clearances . The loss of this middle tier of Highland society represented not only a flight of capital from Gaeldom, but also a loss of entrepreneurial energy. The first major step in the clearances was the decision of the Dukes of Argyll to put tacks (or leases) of farms and townships up for auction. This began with Campbell property in Kintyre in the 1710s and spread after 1737 to all their holdings. This action as
7335-648: The Jacobite risings was the result of their remoteness, and the feudal clan system which required tenants to provide military service. Historian Frank McLynn identifies seven primary drivers in Jacobitism, support for the Stuarts being the least important; a large percentage of Jacobite support in 1745 Rising came from Lowlanders who opposed the 1707 Union , and members of the Scottish Episcopal Church . In 1745,
7498-458: The Middle Ages ; however, by the early modern period the concept of oighreachd was favoured. This shift reflected the importance of Scots law in shaping the structure of clanship in that the fine were awarded charters and the continuity of heritable succession was secured. The heir to the chief was known as the tainistear and was usually the direct male heir. However, in some cases
7661-524: The National Covenant and opposed Charles I of England 's religious policies. Scott led his cavalry against the royalist, James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose at the Battle of Philiphaugh . Francis Scott, 2nd Earl of Buccleuch died in 1651 and was succeeded by his four-year-old daughter, Mary Scott, 3rd Countess of Buccleuch . The General Assembly for the Church of Scotland allowed Mary to be married at
7824-598: The Outer Hebrides from the Norsemen in the 13th century, which followed on from the pacification of the Mormaer of Moray and the northern rebellions of the 12th and 13th centuries, created the opportunity for war lords to impose their dominance over local families who accepted their protection. These warrior chiefs can largely be categorized as Celtic ; however, their origins range from Gaelic to Norse-Gaelic and British . By
7987-602: The Rough Wooing . Mary married Francis in 1558, becoming queen consort of France from his accession in 1559 until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland in August 1561. The tense religious and political climate following the Scottish Reformation that Mary encountered on her return to Scotland was further agitated by prominent Scots such as John Knox , who openly questioned whether her subjects had
8150-519: The Solway Firth into England by fishing boat on 16 May. She landed at Workington in Cumberland in the north of England and stayed overnight at Workington Hall . On 18 May, local officials led by Richard Lowther took her into protective custody at Carlisle Castle . Mary apparently expected Elizabeth to help her regain her throne. Elizabeth was cautious, ordering an inquiry into the conduct of
8313-525: The clan chief as their head and their protector. According to the former Lord Lyon, Sir Thomas Innes of Learney , a clan is a community that is distinguished by heraldry and recognised by the Sovereign . Learney considered clans to be a "noble incorporation" because the arms borne by a clan chief are granted or otherwise recognised by the Lord Lyon as an officer of the Crown, thus conferring royal recognition to
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#17328553566938476-755: The tribalism that was found in Ancient Europe or the one that is still found in the Middle East and among aboriginal groups in Australasia, Africa, and the Americas. During the 1638 to 1651 Wars of the Three Kingdoms , all sides were 'Royalist', in the sense of a shared belief monarchy was divinely inspired. The choice of whether to support Charles I, or the Covenanter government, was largely driven by disputes within
8639-483: The "long lad", as Queen Elizabeth called him since he was over six feet tall. They married at Holyrood Palace on 29 July 1565, even though both were Catholic and a papal dispensation for the marriage of first cousins had not been obtained. English statesmen William Cecil and the Earl of Leicester had worked to obtain Darnley's licence to travel to Scotland from his home in England. Although her advisors had brought
8802-531: The 14th century, there had been further influx of kindreds whose ethnicity ranged from Norman or Anglo-Norman and Flemish , such as the Clan Cameron , Clan Fraser , Clan Menzies , Clan Chisholm and Clan Grant . During the Wars of Scottish Independence , feudal tenures were introduced by Robert the Bruce , to harness and control the prowess of clans by the award of charters for land in order to gain support in
8965-562: The 17th century, this had declined and most reiving was known as sprèidh , where smaller numbers of men raided the adjoining Lowlands and the livestock taken usually being recoverable on payment of tascal (information money) and guarantee of no prosecution. Some clans, such as the Clan MacFarlane and the Clan Farquharson , offered the Lowlanders protection against such raids, on terms not dissimilar to blackmail . An act of
9128-401: The 18th century, in an effort to increase the income from their estates, clan chiefs started to restrict the ability of tacksmen to sublet. This meant more of the rent paid by those actually farming the land went to the landowner. The result, though, was the removal of this layer of clan society. In a process that accelerated from the 1770s onward, by the early 19th century the tacksman had become
9291-483: The 30th, Moray entered Edinburgh but left soon afterwards, having failed to take the castle. Mary returned to Edinburgh the following month to raise more troops. In what became known as the Chaseabout Raid , Mary with her forces and Moray with the rebellious lords roamed around Scotland without ever engaging in direct combat. Mary's numbers were boosted by the release and restoration to favour of Lord Huntly's son and
9454-426: The Borders. Walter Scott, 1st Lord Scott of Buccleuch therefore sought adventure fighting on the Continent for the Prince of Orange in the Netherlands . His son was Walter Scott, 2nd Lord Scott of Buccleuch who commanded a regiment for the States of Holland against the Spanish. In 1619 he was advanced to the rank of Earl of Buccleuch. During the Scottish Civil War , Francis Scott, 2nd Earl of Buccleuch supported
9617-432: The Church of Scotland. This was supported by many chiefs since it suited the hierarchical clan structure and encouraged obedience to authority. Both Charles and his brother James VII used Highland levies, known as the "Highland Host", to control Campbell-dominated areas in the South-West and suppress the 1685 Argyll's Rising . By 1680, it is estimated there were fewer than 16,000 Catholics in Scotland , confined to parts of
9780-433: The Crown and as a result he was executed in 1685 and his titles were forfeited. However, as Anne Scott had been specifically created Duchess of Buccleuch her titles were unaffected. She was succeeded by her grandson, Francis Scott, 2nd Duke of Buccleuch . Several Scotts fought for the government during the Jacobite rising of 1745 . Captain John Scott commanded two companies of Royal Scots was defeated and taken prisoner at
9943-421: The Crown in the struggle to suppress the power of the Clan Douglas . When the king's cause prevailed Scott was rewarded with tracts of Douglas land. In 1463 Branxholme became a free barony on the annual payment of a red rose to the Crown on the feast day of St John the Baptist . The Scotts had become one of the most powerful of all the Border clans by the end of the fifteenth century and the chief could call upon
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#173285535669310106-438: The Highlands were a largely non-cash economy, this meant they shifted towards commercial exploitation of their lands, rather than managing them as part of a social system. The costs of living away from their clan lands contributed to the chronic indebtedness that was increasingly common for Highland landowners, eventually leading to the sale of many of the great Highland estates in the late 18th and early 19th century. During
10269-413: The Highlands, others also show Lowland clans or families. Territorial areas and allegiances changed over time, and there are also differing decisions on which (smaller) clans and families should be omitted (some alternative online sources are listed in the External links section below). This list of clans contains clans registered with the Lord Lyon Court . The Lord Lyon Court defines a clan or family as
10432-418: The Lord Advocate (Attorney General) writing in 1680, said: "By the term 'chief' we call the representative of the family from the word chef or head and in the Irish [Gaelic] with us the chief of the family is called the head of the clan". In summarizing this material, Sir Crispin Agnew of Lochnaw Bt wrote: "So it can be seen that all along the words chief or head and clan or family are interchangeable. It
10595-438: The Lowlands increased. This gave an advantage in speaking English, as the "language of work". It was found that when the Gaelic Schools Society started teaching basic literacy in Gaelic in the early decades of the 19th century, there was an increase in literacy in English. This paradox may be explained by the annual report of the Society in Scotland for Propagating Christian Knowledge (SSPCK) in 1829, which stated: "so ignorant are
10758-400: The Protestant leaders from the reformation crisis of 1559–1560: the Earls of Argyll , Glencairn , and Moray. Only four of the councillors were Catholic: the Earls of Atholl , Erroll , Montrose , and Huntly , who was Lord Chancellor . Modern historian Jenny Wormald found this remarkable and suggested that Mary's failure to appoint a council sympathetic to Catholic and French interests
10921-490: The Protestant service. Both Protestants and Catholics were shocked that Mary should marry the man accused of murdering her husband. The marriage was tempestuous, and Mary became despondent. Twenty-six Scottish peers , known as the confederate lords, turned against Mary and Bothwell and raised their own army. Mary and Bothwell confronted the lords at Carberry Hill on 15 June, but there was no battle, as Mary's forces dwindled away through desertion during negotiations. Bothwell
11084-452: The Scots took Mary to Dunkeld for safety. In May 1546, Beaton was murdered by Protestant lairds , and on 10 September 1547, nine months after the death of Henry VIII, the Scots suffered a heavy defeat at the Battle of Pinkie . Mary's guardians, fearful for her safety, sent her to Inchmahome Priory for no more than three weeks and turned to the French for help. King Henry II of France proposed to unite France and Scotland by marrying
11247-417: The Scottish Parliament of 1597 talks of the "Chiftanis and chieffis of all clannis ... duelland in the hielands or bordouris". It has been argued that this vague phrase describes Borders families as clans. The act goes on to list the various Lowland families, including the Maxwells , Johnstones , Carruthers , Turnbulls, and other famous Border Reivers ' names. Further, Sir George MacKenzie of Rosehaugh,
11410-439: The Scottish elite. In 1639, Covenanter politician Argyll , head of Clan Campbell , was given a commission of 'fire and sword', which he used to seize MacDonald territories in Lochaber , and those held by Clan Ogilvy in Angus . As a result, both clans supported Montrose's Royalist campaign of 1644–1645 , in hopes of regaining them. When Charles II regained the throne in 1660, the Rescissory Act 1661 restored bishops to
11573-413: The Western Highlands and the Hebrides. Many Highland estates were no longer owned by clan chiefs, but landlords of both the new and old type encouraged the emigration of destitute tenants to Canada and, later, to Australia. The clearances were followed by a period of even greater emigration, which continued (with a brief lull for the First World War) up to the start of the Great Depression . Most of
11736-460: The age of just eleven but she died aged just fourteen. She was succeeded by her sister, Ann Scott , who was considered one of the greatest heiresses in the kingdom. Charles II of England arranged for Anne Scott to marry his illegitimate son, James, Duke of Monmouth who as a result of the marriage assumed the surname Scott. On the day of their marriage the couple were created Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch . Monmouth later rose up in rebellion against
11899-616: The anti-clan legislation was repealed by the end of the eighteenth century as the Jacobite threat subsided, with the Dress Act restricting kilt wearing being repealed in 1782. There was soon a process of the rehabilitation of highland culture. By the nineteenth century, tartan had largely been abandoned by the ordinary people of the region, although preserved in the Highland regiments in the British army, which poor highlanders joined in large numbers until
12062-734: The aristocracy and Gaelic-speaking clans in the Highlands and Islands . When James was deposed in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution , choice of sides was largely opportunistic. The Presbyterian Macleans backed the Jacobites to regain territories in Mull lost to the Campbells in the 1670s; the Catholic Keppoch MacDonalds tried to sack the pro-Jacobite town of Inverness, and were bought off only after Dundee intervened. Highland involvement in
12225-416: The chief as a mark of personal allegiance by the family when their head died, usually in the form of their best cow or horse. Although calps were banned by Parliament in 1617, manrent continued covertly to pay for protection. The marriage alliance reinforced links with neighboring clans as well as with families within the territory of the clan. The marriage alliance was also a commercial contract involving
12388-470: The chief chooses, are associated with that clan. There is no official list of clan septs, and the decision of what septs a clan has is left up to the clan itself. Confusingly, sept names can be shared by more than one clan, and it may be up to the individual to use his or her family history or genealogy to find the correct clan with which they are associated. Several clan societies have been granted coats of arms. In such cases, these arms are differenced from
12551-447: The chief's, much like a clan armiger . Former Lord Lyon Thomas Innes of Learney stated that such societies, according to the Law of Arms , are considered an "indeterminate cadet". Scottish clanship contained two complementary but distinct concepts of heritage. These were firstly the collective heritage of the clan, known as their dùthchas , which was their prescriptive right to settle in
12714-684: The choice was rarely simple; Donald Cameron of Lochiel committed himself only after he was provided "security for the full value of his estate should the rising prove abortive," while MacLeod and Sleat helped Charles escape after Culloden. In 1493, James IV confiscated the Lordship of the Isles from the MacDonalds. This destabilised the region, while links between the Scottish MacDonalds and Irish MacDonnells meant unrest in one country often spilled into
12877-479: The clan tartan is then recorded in the Lyon Court Books. In at least one instance a clan tartan appears in the heraldry of a clan chief and the Lord Lyon considers it to be the "proper" tartan of the clan. Originally, there appears to have been no association of tartans with specific clans; instead, highland tartans were produced to various designs by local weavers and any identification was purely regional, but
13040-459: The clan, the Scotts of Synton from whom the Lords Polwarth descend. Robert Scott died in about 1389, probably from wounds received at the Battle of Otterburn . Robert Scott, fifth of Buccleuch succeeded to the family estates in 1402 after his father, Walter, was killed in battle. In 1420 he acquired half of the lands of Branxholme , consolidating the family estates. He was active in supporting
13203-433: The clans to settle criminal and civil disputes was known as arbitration , in which the aggrieved and allegedly offending sides put their cases to a panel that was drawn from the leading gentry and was overseen by the clan chief. There was no appeal against the decision made by the panel, which was usually recorded in the local royal or burgh court. Fosterage and manrent were the most important forms of social bonding in
13366-435: The clans. In the case of fosterage, the chief's children would be brought up by a favored member of the leading clan gentry and in turn their children would be favored by members of the clan. In the case of manrent, this was a bond contracted by the heads of families looking to the chief for territorial protection, though not living on the estates of the clan elite. These bonds were reinforced by calps , death duties paid to
13529-500: The commission of inquiry, the Duke of Norfolk , described them as horrible letters and diverse fond ballads. He sent copies to Elizabeth, saying that if they were genuine, they might prove Mary's guilt. The authenticity of the casket letters has been the source of much controversy among historians. It is impossible now to prove either way. The originals, written in French, were possibly destroyed in 1584 by Mary's son. The surviving copies, in French or translated into English, do not form
13692-517: The confederate lords and the question of whether Mary was guilty of Darnley's murder. In mid-July 1568, English authorities moved Mary to Bolton Castle , because it was farther from the Scottish border but not too close to London. Mary's clothes, sent from Lochleven Castle, arrived on 20 July. A commission of inquiry, or conference, as it was known, was held in York and later Westminster between October 1568 and January 1569. In Scotland, her supporters fought
13855-534: The couple failed to have children, the temporary union would dissolve. Cardinal Beaton rose to power again and began to push a pro-Catholic pro-French agenda, angering Henry, who wanted to break the Scottish alliance with France . Beaton wanted to move Mary away from the coast to the safety of Stirling Castle . Regent Arran resisted the move but backed down when Beaton's armed supporters gathered at Linlithgow . The Earl of Lennox escorted Mary and her mother to Stirling on 27 July 1543 with 3,500 armed men. Mary
14018-424: The couple together, Elizabeth felt threatened by the marriage because as descendants of her aunt, both Mary and Darnley were claimants to the English throne. Their children, if any, would inherit an even stronger, combined claim. Mary's insistence on the marriage seems to have stemmed from passion rather than calculation; the English ambassador Nicholas Throckmorton stated "the saying is that surely she [Queen Mary]
14181-408: The course of the commission, although he denied it when Elizabeth alluded to his marriage plans, saying "he meant never to marry with a person, where he could not be sure of his pillow". The majority of the commissioners accepted the casket letters as genuine after a study of their contents and a comparison of the penmanship with examples of Mary's handwriting. Elizabeth, as she had wished, concluded
14344-461: The deed in hand or do it, they should defend." Darnley feared for his safety, and after the baptism of his son at Stirling and shortly before Christmas, he went to Glasgow to stay on his father's estates. At the start of the journey, he was afflicted by a fever–possibly smallpox, syphilis or the result of poison. He remained ill for some weeks. In late January 1567, Mary prompted her husband to return to Edinburgh. He recuperated from his illness in
14507-476: The destruction of Scotland's leading Catholic magnate, Lord Huntly, in 1562, after he led a rebellion against her in the Highlands . Mary sent William Maitland of Lethington as an ambassador to the English court to put the case for Mary as the heir presumptive to the English throne. Elizabeth refused to name a potential heir, fearing that would invite conspiracy to displace her with the nominated successor. However, she assured Maitland that she knew no one with
14670-455: The direct heir was set aside for a more politically accomplished or belligerent relative. There were not many disputes over succession after the 16th century and, by the 17th century, the setting aside of the male heir was a rarity. This was governed and restricted by the law of Entail , which prevented estates from being divided up amongst female heirs and therefore also prevented the loss of clan territories. The main legal process used within
14833-424: The documents were complete forgeries, or incriminating passages were inserted into genuine letters, or the letters were written to Bothwell by a different person or written by Mary to a different person. Guy points out that the letters are disjointed and that the French language and grammar employed in the sonnets are too poor for a writer with Mary's education but certain phrases in the letters, including verses in
14996-504: The droving of cattle to the Lowlands for sale, taking a minor share of the payments made to the clan nobility, the fine . They had the important military role of mobilizing the Clan Host , both when required for warfare and more commonly as a large turnout of followers for weddings and funerals, and traditionally, in August, for hunts which included sports for the followers, the predecessors of
15159-501: The emphasis of historians now is on the conversion of chiefs into landlords in a slow transition over a long period. The successive Jacobite rebellions, in the view of T.M. Devine, simply paused the process of change whilst the military aspects of clans regained temporary importance; the apparent surge in social change after the '45 was merely a process of catching up with the financial pressures that gave rise to landlordism. The various pieces of legislation that followed Culloden included
15322-458: The end of November 1566, Mary and leading nobles held a meeting to discuss the "problem of Darnley". Divorce was discussed, but a bond was probably sworn between the lords present to remove Darnley by other means: "It was thought expedient and most profitable for the common wealth ... that such a young fool and proud tyrant should not reign or bear rule over them; ... that he should be put off by one way or another; and whosoever should take
15485-631: The end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. The international craze for tartan, and for idealising a romanticised Highlands, was set off by the Ossian cycle published by James Macpherson (1736–96). Macpherson claimed to have found poetry written by the ancient bard Ossian, and published translations that acquired international popularity. Highland aristocrats set up Highland Societies in Edinburgh (1784) and other centres including London (1788). The image of
15648-502: The entire clan. Clans with recognised chiefs are therefore considered a noble community under Scots law . A group without a chief recognised by the Sovereign, through the Lord Lyon, has no official standing under Scottish law. Claimants to the title of chief are expected to be recognised by the Lord Lyon as the rightful heir to the undifferenced arms of the ancestor of the clan of which the claimant seeks to be recognized as chief. A chief of
15811-524: The estate settled by their clan. This was known as their oighreachd and gave a different emphasis to the clan chief's authority in that it gave the authority to the chiefs and leading gentry as landed proprietors, who owned the land in their own right, rather than just as trustees for the clan. From the beginning of Scottish clanship, the clan warrior elite, who were known as the ‘fine’, strove to be landowners as well as territorial war lords. The concept of dùthchas mentioned above held precedence in
15974-516: The exchange of livestock, money, and land through payments in which the bride was known as the tocher and the groom was known as the dowry . Clan gatherings are a unique feature of Scottish clan culture, where members of a clan convene to celebrate their shared heritage, participate in Highland Games , and discuss clan business. These events serve as a focal point for clan members and help in preserving historical and cultural landmarks, as well as
16137-412: The first phase of clearance, when agricultural improvement was introduced, many of the peasant farmers were evicted and resettled in newly created crofting communities, usually in coastal areas. The small size of the crofts were intended to force the tenants to work in other industries, such as fishing or the kelp industry. With a shortage of work, the numbers of Highlanders who became seasonal migrants to
16300-531: The following month he married Mary. Following an uprising against the couple, Mary was imprisoned in Lochleven Castle . On 24 July 1567, she was forced to abdicate in favour of her one-year-old son James VI. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southward seeking the protection of her first cousin once removed, Elizabeth I of England . As a great-granddaughter of Henry VII of England , Mary had once claimed Elizabeth's throne as her own and
16463-506: The following year at Fotheringhay Castle . Mary's life and execution established her in popular culture as a romanticised historical character. Mary was born on 8 December 1542 at Linlithgow Palace , Scotland, to King James V and his French second wife, Mary of Guise . She was said to have been born prematurely and was the only legitimate child of James to survive him. She was the great-granddaughter of King Henry VII of England through her paternal grandmother, Margaret Tudor . Margaret
16626-531: The idea of a clan-specific tartan gained currency in the late 18th century and in 1815 the Highland Society of London began the naming of clan-specific tartans. Many clan tartans derive from a 19th-century hoax known as the Vestiarium Scoticum . The Vestiarium was composed by the " Sobieski Stuarts ", who passed it off as a reproduction of an ancient manuscript of clan tartans. It has since been proven
16789-482: The inquiry with a verdict that nothing was proven against either the Confederate lords or Mary. For overriding political reasons, Elizabeth wished neither to convict nor to acquit Mary of murder. There was never any intention to proceed judicially; the conference was intended as a political exercise. In the end, Moray returned to Scotland as regent and Mary remained in custody in England. Elizabeth succeeded in maintaining
16952-408: The inquisition of her right and title to be our next cousin and heir". The proposal came to nothing, not least because the intended bridegroom was unwilling. In contrast, a French poet at Mary's court, Pierre de Boscosel de Chastelard , was apparently besotted with Mary. In early 1563, he was discovered during a security search hidden underneath her bed, apparently planning to surprise her when she
17115-505: The law. After the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the incidents of feuding between clans declined considerably. The last "clan" feud that led to a battle and which was not part of a civil war was the Battle of Mulroy , which took place on 4 August 1688. Cattle raiding, known as "reiving" , had been normal practice prior to the 17th century. It was also known as creach , where young men took livestock from neighbouring clans. By
17278-531: The legal right to outlaw anyone from his clan, including members of his own family. Today, anyone who has the chief's surname is automatically considered to be a member of the chief's clan. Also, anyone who offers allegiance to a chief becomes a member of the chief's clan, unless the chief decides not to accept that person's allegiance. Clan membership goes through the surname. Children who take their father's surname are part of their father's clan and not their mother's. However, there have been several cases where
17441-702: The legendary hero of Ulster . Whilst their political enemies the Clan Campbell have claimed as their progenitor Diarmaid the Boar , who was rooted in the Fingalian or Fenian Cycle . In contrast, the Clans Grant , Mackinnon and Gregor claimed ancestry from the Siol Alpin family, who descend from Alpin , father of Kenneth MacAlpin , who united the Scottish kingdom in 843. Only one confederation of clans, which included
17604-421: The majority of clan leaders advised Prince Charles to return to France, including MacDonald of Sleat and Norman MacLeod . By arriving without French military support, they felt Charles failed to keep his commitments, while it is also suggested Sleat and MacLeod were vulnerable to government sanctions due to their involvement in illegally selling tenants into indentured servitude . Enough were persuaded, but
17767-399: The modern Highland games . Where the oighreachd (land owned by the clan elite or fine ) did not match the common heritage of the dùthchas (the collective territory of the clan) this led to territorial disputes and warfare. The fine resented their clansmen paying rent to other landlords. Some clans used disputes to expand their territories. Most notably, the Clan Campbell and
17930-628: The most Gaelic part of Ireland, the Plantation of Ulster tried to ensure stability in Western Scotland by importing Scots and English Protestants. This process was often supported by the original owners; in 1607 Sir Randall MacDonnell settled 300 Presbyterian Scots families on his land in Antrim. This ended the Irish practice of using Highland gallowglass , or mercenaries. The 1609 Statutes of Iona imposed
18093-696: The most notorious 'Redcoats' of the Rebellion. One story alleges three Highlanders who surrendered to him were drowned in a mill flume at Lochoy, although there is no independent confirmation of this. The Duke of Buccleuch today is one of the largest private landowners in the United Kingdom, and the internationally famous art collection known as the Duke of Buccleuch collection is held at the family's great houses of Drumlanrig, Bowhill, and Boughton. Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Scottish Gaelic clann , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred' )
18256-591: The national cause against the English . For example, the Clan MacDonald were elevated above the Clan MacDougall , two clans who shared a common descent from a great Norse-Gaelic warlord named Somerled of the 12th century. Clanship was thus not only a strong tie of local kinship but also of feudalism to the Scottish Crown. It is this feudal component, reinforced by Scots law, that separates Scottish clanship from
18419-407: The natural environment of Scotland. Clan affiliations aren't solely based on ancestry; people with no Scottish lineage can also be affiliated with a clan, commonly known as "Clan Friends." Rents from those living within the clan estate were collected by the tacksmen . These lesser gentry acted as estate managers, allocating the runrig strips of land, lending seed-corn and tools and arranging
18582-571: The negotiations foundered. Her own attempt to negotiate a marriage to Don Carlos , the mentally unstable heir apparent of King Philip II of Spain , was rebuffed by Philip. Elizabeth attempted to neutralise Mary by suggesting that she marry English Protestant Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester . Dudley was Sir Henry Sidney's brother-in-law and the English queen's own favourite , whom Elizabeth trusted and thought she could control. She sent an ambassador, Thomas Randolph , to tell Mary that if she married an English nobleman, Elizabeth would "proceed to
18745-485: The opportunity of the regency to propose marriage between Mary and his own son and heir, Edward , hoping for a union of Scotland and England. On 1 July 1543, when Mary was six months old, the Treaty of Greenwich was signed, which promised that, at the age of ten, Mary would marry Edward and move to England, where Henry could oversee her upbringing. The treaty provided that the two countries would remain legally separate and, if
18908-483: The ordinary clansmen rarely had any blood tie of kinship with the clan chiefs, but they sometimes took the chief's surname as their own when surnames came into common use in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Thus, by the eighteenth century the myth had arisen that the whole clan was descended from one ancestor, perhaps relying on Scottish Gaelic clann originally having a primary sense of 'children' or 'offspring'. About 30% of Scottish families are attached to
19071-505: The original clan symbol. However, Thomas Innes of Learney claimed the heraldic flags of clan chiefs would have been the earliest means of identifying Scottish clans in battle or at large gatherings. Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland , was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scotland , Mary
19234-412: The original markers were merely specific plants worn in bonnets or hung from a pole or spear. Clan badges are another means of showing one's allegiance to a Scottish clan. These badges, sometimes called plant badges, consist of a sprig of a particular plant. They are usually worn in a bonnet behind the Scottish crest badge; they can also be attached at the shoulder of a lady's tartan sash , or be tied to
19397-427: The other. James VI took various measures to deal with the resulting instability, including the 1587 'Slaughter under trust' law, later used in the 1692 Glencoe Massacre . To prevent endemic feuding, it required disputes to be settled by the Crown, specifically murder committed in 'cold-blood', once articles of surrender had been agreed, or hospitality accepted. Its first recorded use was in 1588, when Lachlan Maclean
19560-530: The palace. They took temporary refuge in Dunbar Castle before returning to Edinburgh on 18 March. The former rebels Lords Moray, Argyll and Glencairn were restored to the council. Mary's son by Darnley, James , was born on 19 June 1566 in Edinburgh Castle . However, the murder of Rizzio led to the breakdown of her marriage. In October 1566, while staying at Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders , Mary made
19723-585: The parents that it is difficult to convince them that it can be any benefit to their children to learn Gaelic, though they are all anxious ... to have them taught English". The second phase of the Highland clearances affected overpopulated crofting communities which were no longer able to support themselves due to famine and/or collapse of the industries on which they relied. "Assisted passages" were provided to destitute tenants by landlords who found this cheaper than continued cycles of famine relief to those in substantial rent arrears. This applied particularly to
19886-523: The part of the Scots to produce the letters and their destruction in 1584, whatever their content, constitute proof that they contained real evidence against Mary. In contrast, Weir thinks it demonstrates that the lords required time to fabricate them. At least some of Mary's contemporaries who saw the letters had no doubt that they were genuine. Among them was the Duke of Norfolk, who secretly conspired to marry Mary in
20049-472: The permission of the clan chief; and the Lyon Court has intervened in cases where permission has been withheld. Scottish crest badges, much like clan-specific tartans , do not have a long history, and owe much to Victorian era romanticism , having only been worn on the bonnet since the 19th century. The concept of a clan badge or form of identification may have some validity, as it is commonly stated that
20212-600: The return of James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell , from exile in France. Unable to muster sufficient support, Moray left Scotland in October for asylum in England. Mary broadened her privy council, bringing in both Catholics ( Bishop of Ross John Lesley and Provost of Edinburgh Simon Preston of Craigmillar ) and Protestants (the new Lord Huntly, Bishop of Galloway Alexander Gordon , John Maxwell of Terregles and Sir James Balfour ). Before long, Darnley grew arrogant. Not content with his position as king consort, he demanded
20375-525: The romantic highlands was further popularised by the works of Walter Scott . His "staging" of the royal visit of King George IV to Scotland in 1822 and the King's wearing of tartan, resulted in a massive upsurge in demand for kilts and tartans that could not be met by the Scottish linen industry. The designation of individual clan tartans was largely defined in this period and they became a major symbol of Scottish identity. This "Highlandism", by which all of Scotland
20538-410: The second Laird of Buccleuch was a staunch supporter of Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence . Michael distinguished himself at the Battle of Halidon Hill in 1333, being one of the few that escaped the carnage. However he was later killed at the Battle of Durham in 1346. Michael left two sons: Robert Scott, the third laird and John Scott who founded the important cadet branch of
20701-441: The senior surviving legitimate descendant of Henry VII through her grandmother, Margaret Tudor . Henry II of France proclaimed his eldest son and daughter-in-law king and queen of England. In France, the royal arms of England were quartered with those of Francis and Mary. Mary's claim to the English throne was a perennial sticking point between her and Elizabeth. When Henry II died on 10 July 1559, from injuries sustained in
20864-532: The style of Ronsard , and some characteristics of style are compatible with known writings by Mary. The casket letters did not appear publicly until the Conference of 1568, although the Scottish privy council had seen them by December 1567. Mary had been forced to abdicate and held captive for the better part of a year in Scotland; the letters were never made public to support her imprisonment and forced abdication. Historian Jenny Wormald believes this reluctance on
21027-400: The territories in which the chiefs and leading gentry of the clan customarily provided protection. This concept was where all clansmen recognised the personal authority of the chiefs and leading gentry as trustees for their clan. The second concept was the wider acceptance of the granting of charters by the Crown and other powerful landowners to the chiefs, chieftains and lairds which defined
21190-585: The use of French troops. In early 1560, the Protestant lords invited English troops into Scotland in an attempt to secure Protestantism. A Huguenot uprising in France, the Tumult of Amboise , made it impossible for the French to send further support. Instead, the Guise brothers sent ambassadors to negotiate a settlement. On 11 June 1560, their sister, Mary's mother, died, and so the question of future Franco-Scots relations
21353-582: The wars between the Irish Gaels and the English Tudor monarchy in the 16th century. Within these clans, there evolved a military caste of members of the lesser gentry who were purely warriors and not managers, and who migrated seasonally to Ireland to fight as mercenaries. There was heavy feuding between the clans during the civil wars of the 1640s; however, by this time, the chiefs and leading gentry preferred increasingly to settle local disputes by recourse to
21516-409: The world is thinking. Men say that, instead of seizing the murderers, you are looking through your fingers while they escape; that you will not seek revenge on those who have done you so much pleasure, as though the deed would never have taken place had not the doers of it been assured of impunity. For myself, I beg you to believe that I would not harbour such a thought. By the end of February, Bothwell
21679-417: The world. It is a common misconception that every person who bears a clan's name is a lineal descendant of the chiefs. Many clansmen, although not related to the chief, took the chief's surname as their own either to show solidarity or to obtain basic protection or for much needed sustenance. Most of the followers of the clan were tenants, who supplied labour to the clan leaders. Contrary to popular belief,
21842-535: The young queen to his three-year-old son, the Dauphin Francis . On the promise of French military help and a French dukedom for himself, Arran agreed to the marriage. In February 1548, Mary was moved, again for her safety, to Dumbarton Castle . The English left a trail of devastation behind them once more and seized the strategic town of Haddington . In June, the much-awaited French help arrived at Leith to besiege and ultimately take Haddington . On 7 July 1548,
22005-436: Was Henry VIII 's older sister so Mary was Henry VIII's great-niece. On 14 December, six days after her birth, she became Queen of Scotland when her father died, perhaps from the effects of a nervous collapse following the Battle of Solway Moss or from drinking contaminated water while on campaign. A popular tale, first recorded by John Knox , states that James, upon hearing on his deathbed that his wife had given birth to
22168-420: Was crowned in the castle chapel on 9 September 1543, with "such solemnity as they do use in this country, which is not very costly", according to the report of Ralph Sadler and Henry Ray . Shortly before Mary's coronation, Henry arrested Scottish merchants headed for France and impounded their goods. The arrests caused anger in Scotland, and Arran joined Beaton and became a Catholic. The Treaty of Greenwich
22331-444: Was a pressing one. Under the terms of the Treaty of Edinburgh , signed by Mary's representatives on 6 July 1560, France and England undertook to withdraw troops from Scotland. France recognised Elizabeth's right to rule England, but the seventeen-year-old Mary, still in France and grieving for her mother, refused to ratify the treaty. Francis II died on 5 December 1560 of a middle-ear infection that led to an abscess in his brain. Mary
22494-470: Was a staunch supporter of Mary, Queen of Scots . His son, another Walter Scott went on to become a daring military leader who was known as "Bold Buccleuch". In 1596 he rescued his vassal, William Armstrong , who was known as "Kinmont Willy", from the Fortress of Carlisle which had been thought to be impregnable. James VI of Scotland 's accession to the English throne was followed by a royal policy to pacify
22657-462: Was accompanied by her own court including two illegitimate half-brothers, and the "four Marys" (four girls her own age, all named Mary), who were the daughters of some of the noblest families in Scotland: Beaton , Seton , Fleming , and Livingston . Janet, Lady Fleming , who was Mary Fleming's mother and James V's half-sister, was appointed governess. When Lady Fleming left France in 1551, she
22820-411: Was alone and declare his love for her. Mary was horrified and banished him from Scotland. He ignored the edict. Two days later, he forced his way into her chamber as she was about to disrobe. She reacted with fury and fear. When Moray rushed into the room after hearing her cries for help, she shouted, "Thrust your dagger into the villain!" Moray refused, as Chastelard was already under restraint. Chastelard
22983-439: Was an indication of her focus on the English throne, over the internal problems of Scotland. Even the one significant later addition to the council, Lord Ruthven in December 1563, was another Protestant whom Mary personally disliked. In this, she was acknowledging her lack of effective military power in the face of the Protestant lords, while also following a policy that strengthened her links with England. She joined with Moray in
23146-407: Was christened at the nearby Church of St Michael shortly after she was born. Rumours spread that she was weak and frail, but an English diplomat, Ralph Sadler , saw the infant at Linlithgow Palace in March 1543, unwrapped by her nurse Jean Sinclair , and wrote, "it is as goodly a child as I have seen of her age, and as like to live." As Mary was an infant when she inherited the throne, Scotland
23309-501: Was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics , including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North . Perceiving Mary as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen-and-a-half years in captivity, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth in 1586 and was beheaded
23472-474: Was driven into exile. He was imprisoned in Denmark, became insane, and died in 1578. On 2 May 1568, Mary escaped from Lochleven Castle with the aid of George Douglas, brother of Sir William Douglas , the castle's owner. Managing to raise an army of 6,000 men, she met Moray's smaller forces at the Battle of Langside on 13 May. Defeated, she fled south. After spending the night at Dundrennan Abbey , she crossed
23635-409: Was found dead in the garden, apparently smothered. There were no visible marks of strangulation or violence on the body. Bothwell , Moray , Secretary Maitland , the Earl of Morton and Mary herself were among those who came under suspicion. Elizabeth wrote to Mary of the rumours: I should ill fulfil the office of a faithful cousin or an affectionate friend if I did not ... tell you what all
23798-501: Was generally believed to be guilty of Darnley's assassination. Lennox, Darnley's father, demanded that Bothwell be tried before the Estates of Parliament , to which Mary agreed, but Lennox's request for a delay to gather evidence was denied. In the absence of Lennox and with no evidence presented, Bothwell was acquitted after a seven-hour trial on 12 April. A week later, Bothwell managed to convince more than two dozen lords and bishops to sign
23961-422: Was given safe passage from the field. The lords took Mary to Edinburgh, where crowds of spectators denounced her as an adulteress and murderer. The following night, she was imprisoned in Lochleven Castle on an island in the middle of Loch Leven . Between 20 and 23 July, Mary miscarried twins. On 24 July, she was forced to abdicate in favour of her one-year-old son James . Moray was made regent, while Bothwell
24124-448: Was grief-stricken. Her mother-in-law, Catherine de' Medici , became regent for the late king's ten-year-old brother Charles IX , who inherited the French throne. Mary returned to Scotland nine months later, arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561. Having lived in France since the age of five, Mary had little direct experience of the dangerous and complex political situation in Scotland. As
24287-528: Was identified with the culture of the Highlands, was cemented by Queen Victoria 's interest in the country, her adoption of Balmoral Castle as a major royal retreat from and her interest in "tartenry". The revival of interest, and demand for clan ancestry, has led to the production of lists and maps covering the whole of Scotland giving clan names and showing territories, sometimes with the appropriate tartans . While some lists and clan maps confine their area to
24450-485: Was killed. Sir Walter Scott was also wounded in the action. Scott later fought against the English at the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh and four years later was appointed warden of Liddesdale and the Middle Marches . The Kerrs however were biding their time and in 1552 they set upon Sir Walter Scott on Edinburgh High Street and killed him. The feud came to an end when Sir Thomas Kerr of Ferniehirst married Janet Scott who
24613-469: Was made up of everyone who lived on the chief's territory, or on territory of those who owed allegiance to the said chief. Through time, with the constant changes of "clan boundaries", migration or regime changes, clans would be made up of large numbers of members who were unrelated and who bore different surnames. Often, those living on a chief's lands would, over time, adopt the clan surname. A chief could add to his clan by adopting other families, and also had
24776-399: Was promulgated by the Scottish author Sir Walter Scott after influence by others. Historically, tartan designs were associated with Lowland and Highland districts whose weavers tended to produce cloth patterns favoured in those districts. By process of social evolution, it followed that the clans/families prominent in a particular district would wear the tartan of that district, and it was but
24939-610: Was prosecuted for the murder of his new stepfather, John MacDonald, and 17 other members of the MacDonald wedding party. Other measures had limited impact; imposing financial sureties on landowners for the good behaviour of their tenants often failed, as many were not regarded as the clan chief. The 1603 Union of the Crowns coincided with the end of the Anglo-Irish Nine Years' War , followed by land confiscations in 1608 . Previously
25102-538: Was rejected by the Parliament of Scotland in December. The rejection of the marriage treaty and the renewal of the alliance between France and Scotland prompted Henry's " Rough Wooing ", a military campaign designed to impose the marriage of Mary to his son. English forces mounted a series of raids on Scottish and French territory. In May 1544, the English Earl of Hertford (later Duke of Somerset ) raided Edinburgh, and
25265-625: Was ruled by regents until she became an adult. From the outset, there were two claims to the regency: one from the Catholic Cardinal Beaton , and the other from the Protestant Earl of Arran , who was next in line to the throne. Beaton's claim was based on a version of the king's will that his opponents dismissed as a forgery. Arran, with the support of his friends and relations, became the regent until 1554 when Mary's mother managed to remove and succeed him. Henry VIII of England took
25428-502: Was six days old when her father died and she inherited the throne. During her childhood, Scotland was governed by regents , first by the heir to the throne, James Hamilton, Earl of Arran , and then by her mother, Mary of Guise . In 1548, she was betrothed to Francis , the Dauphin of France , and was sent to be brought up in France , where she would be safe from invading English forces during
25591-501: Was succeeded by a French governess, Françoise de Paroy . Vivacious, beautiful, and clever (according to contemporary accounts), Mary had a promising childhood. At the French court, she was a favourite with many people, except Henry II's wife Catherine de' Medici . Mary learned to play lute and virginals , was competent in prose, poetry, horsemanship, falconry, and needlework, and was taught French, Italian, Latin , Spanish, and Greek , in addition to her native Scots . Jehan Paulle,
25754-473: Was succeeded by her only surviving sibling, Elizabeth I . Under the Third Succession Act , passed in 1543 by the Parliament of England , Elizabeth was recognised as her sister's heir, and Henry VIII's last will and testament had excluded the Stuarts from succeeding to the English throne. Yet, in the eyes of many Catholics, Elizabeth was illegitimate and Mary Stuart was the rightful queen of England, as
25917-408: Was the sister of Lord Huntly, had divorced twelve days previously. Originally, Mary believed that many nobles supported her marriage, but relations quickly soured between the newly elevated Bothwell (created Duke of Orkney ) and his former peers and the marriage proved to be deeply unpopular. Catholics considered the marriage unlawful since they did not recognise Bothwell's divorce or the validity of
26080-547: Was the sister of the tenth Laird of Buccleuch. In 1565 a deadly feud arose between the Clan Scott and their neighbours the Clan Eliott . Scott of Buccleuch executed four Eliotts for the minor crime of cattle rustling. In response three hundred Eliotts rode to avenge the fate of their kinsmen and during the battle losses on both sides were heavy but eventually the two clans came to terms with each other. The tenth Laird of Buccleuch
26243-615: Was tried for treason and beheaded. Maitland claimed that Chastelard's ardour was feigned and that he was part of a Huguenot plot to discredit Mary by tarnishing her reputation. Mary had briefly met her English-born half-cousin Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley , in February 1561 when she was in mourning for Francis. Darnley's parents, the Earl and Countess of Lennox , were Scottish aristocrats as well as English landowners. They sent him to France ostensibly to extend their condolences, while hoping for
26406-453: Was unsuccessful. She later charged him with treason, but he was acquitted and released. To the surprise and dismay of the Catholic party, Mary tolerated the newly established Protestant ascendancy, and kept her half-brother Moray as her chief advisor. Her privy council of 16 men, appointed on 6 September 1561, retained those who already held the offices of state. The council was dominated by
26569-539: Was unusually short. Henry commented: "from the very first day they met, my son and she got on as well together as if they had known each other for a long time". On 4 April 1558, Mary signed a secret agreement bequeathing Scotland and her claim to England to the French crown if she died without issue. Twenty days later, she married the Dauphin at Notre Dame de Paris , and he became king consort of Scotland. In November 1558, Henry VIII 's elder daughter, Mary I of England ,
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