| Clan Leslie | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Lesselyn [1] | |||
 Crest: A demi griffin Proper, armed, beaked and winged Or | |||
| Motto | Grip fast [2] | ||
| Profile | |||
| Region | Lowlands | ||
| District | Aberdeenshire | ||
| Plant badge | Rue [2] | ||
| Chief | |||
 | |||
| Hon. Alexander Leslie | |||
| Seat | Wardhill Castle | ||
| Historic seat | Balquhain Castle | ||
| |||
| |||
Clan Leslie is a Lowland Scottish clan. The progenitor of the Clan, Bartolf , was a nobleman from Hungary, who came to Scotland in 1067. He built a castle at Lesselyn, from which the clan name derives.
From 1457 the Clan Chief of Clan Leslie also held the position of Earl of Rothes. The Chief is currently the Hon. Alexander Leslie, [2] [3] the brother of James Malcolm David Leslie, 22nd Earl of Rothes (born 1958).
The first Leslie in Aberdeenshire was Alexander who was appointed Constable of the Bass of Inverurie in 1080 on behalf of the king, his brother-in-law. [4]
The progenitor of the Clan Leslie is a man named Bartolf who was a nobleman from Hungary, who came to Scotland in 1067. [5] Bartolf was in the retinue of Edgar the Ætheling, brother of Saint Margaret of Scotland, who was later the queen of Malcolm III of Scotland. [5] Bartholf later married Malcolm III's sister, Princess Beatrix of Scotland. [4]
Bartolf was said to be a man of intellect and bravery and as a result Malcolm III made him governor of the royal Edinburgh Castle and gave him estates in Fife, Angus, the Mearns and Aberdeenshire. [5] It is said that Bartolf helped the queen across a dangerous river on a horse and that Bartolf told her to "grip fast", which is where the Leslie family motto originates. [5]
Bartolf established himself in the Garioch district of Aberdeenshire, at a place then known as Lesselyn. [5] At Lesselyn he built a castle and it is from there that the name evolved into Lesley, and the various spelling variations. [5] Bartolf's son was named Malcolm and was made constable of the royal Inverury Castle, which he held for David II of Scotland. [5] His great-grandson was Sir Norman Lesley who acquired the lands of Fythkill in Fife, which were later called Lesley, in about 1282. [5]
The family sided with Robert the Bruce against firstly The Comyn in the Buchan and secondly King Edward I and as a result were awarded further tracts of Aberdeenshire. [5] They fought at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Sir Andrew de Lesly was one of the signatories of Declaration of Arbroath, was sent to the Pope in 1320 asserting Scotland's independence. [5] His grandson, Walter died at the Battle of Harlaw in 1411 together with six of his cousins from Balquhain. [6]
The chiefly line of the Clan Leslie passed to a junior branch of the family, from whom the present Earl of Rothes descends. [5] In 1391, Sir Norman Lesley believed that his only son, David, had been killed in the Crusades, [5] and therefore passed over his estates to his cousin, Sir George Lesley. [5] Then in 1398, after George Lesley had taken possession of the castle and lands, David returned from the Crusades and claimed possession of his estate. [5] The family managed to resolve the matter peacefully and in 1445 Sir George Lesley's grandson, also called George, was created a Lord of Parliament as Lord Lesley of Leven, and all of his lands were united into the barony of Ballinbreich. [5] At some point before 1458, he was then advanced to the title of Earl of Rothes. [5]
During the Anglo-Scottish Wars, George de Lesly was the Leslys' first Earl. His son George Leslie, the 2nd Earl, and his grandson were killed at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. [7] The third Earl, also George, carried out a private family vendetta on the life of David Beaton, cardinal Archbishop of St Andrews. At the trial he was acquitted. [5]
George Leslie, 4th Earl of Rothes, was one of the Scottish commissioners at the marriage of Mary, Queen of Scots, as heir to the throne of France in 1558. [5] George, along with the Earl of Cascillus and two others, died in mysterious circumstances, believed to be poisoning for refusing to allow the crown of Scotland to be settled on the Dauphin of France. [5]
Fetternear which became the home of the Leslies of Balquhain, Wardes, and Warthill includes the remains of a 14th-century palace, home of Bishop Alexander Kininmund who, in 1320, drafted the Declaration of Arbroath, the letter sent to Pope John XXII in Avignon declaring that the Scots would never be subjected to English rule. It also incorporates the remains of even earlier palaces and sites of settlement dating back 4,000 years. [5]
John Leslie, Bishop of Ross was born in 1526. He was the most loyal of Mary, Queen of Scots's supporters during the turbulent times of 1562. It was John Leslie who wrote for her the famous History of Scotland. [5] He, the second baron of Wardes, was awarded extensive lands in the Garioch from James IV and was five times married. He is now represented in the Garioch by the Leslies of Warthill descended from his second son. [5]
During the 17th century, Lesleys fought in Germany, France, Sweden and in the Baltic as mercenaries. [5] Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven, fought on the Continent and then returned to Scotland to command the Covenanter army. [5] His seat was Balgonie Castle or the Tower of Balgonie, which he improved and extended. [5] Alexander Leslie won a great victory over the English royalists at the Battle of Newburn in 1640. [8]
Commanding the Covenanters Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven, and General Robert Monro captured Edinburgh Castle with a thousand men. [5] [ unreliable source? ]
With the Scots, Leven went into England in 1640 and defeated the King's soldiers at the Battle of Newburn. For this, he was created Earl of Lewis by King Charles I. General Alexander Leslie of Balgonie fought for Gustavus Adolphus, the King of Sweden. He achieved great fame across Europe for his skills in war and returned to Scotland a Field Marshal. [5]
In 1642, Leven went to Ireland and held command alongside Robert Munro (d. 1680) of the Scottish Army. They were sent to put down a rebellion of Irishmen who had killed Scots in Ulster. In 1644, Leven commanded Scottish Covenanter forces to victory over English Royalists at the Battle of Marston Moor in 1644. This battle was the largest battle of the English and Scottish Civil War, and one of the most decisive. It resulted in a Parliamentarian victory, which meant that the north of England was effectively lost to King Charles for the rest of the war. [5]
During the Civil War, General David Leslie, Lord Newark, was victorious commanding his Scottish Covenanters force against a Scottish Royalist force at the Battle of Philiphaugh in 1645. The Royalist army of James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, was destroyed by the Covenanter army of Sir David Leslie, restoring the power of the Committee of Estates. [5]
Dunaverty Castle was a MacDonald stronghold. During the Civil War, it was besieged in 1647 by Scottish supporters of Oliver Cromwell who were led by David Leslie, from Clan Leslie. The MacDonalds surrendered and then 300 of them were massacred. The castle is nothing more than a ruin now, known as Blood Rock. [5]
During the Civil War, David Leslie laid siege to the Royalist garrison at Kincardine Castle. The Castle was being held by the Chief of Clan MacNab. MacNab found that it would not be possible to maintain defense. During the night, sword in hand, at the head of 300 men, they cut their way through the besieging force. All made it through apart from the MacNab chief himself and one other man who were captured and sent to Edinburgh as prisoners of war. The chief was sentenced to death but he escaped and rejoined King Charles and continued to fight. Leslie's Scottish Covenanter force was defeated by the Scottish Parliamentarian forces who were at this point in time loyal to the Parliament of England and Oliver Cromwell at the Battle of Dunbar (1650). [5] Leslie successfully commanded the Scottish Argyll Government Royalist forces at the Battle of Carbisdale (1650) where he was victorious against Scottish Royalist forces commanded by James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose. [5]
Leslie's Royalist Forces were defeated at the Battle of Worcester in 1651. Leslie, who was now commanding Royalist forces, had supported the plan of fighting in Scotland, where royal support was strongest. King Charles, however, insisted on making the war in England. [5]
Leslie was captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London where he remained until the restoration of 1660. [5]
The career of Walter Leslie (1607–1667) was all in Europe, where in the Thirty Years War he rose to prominence after leading the assassination of the Imperial generalissimo Wallenstein and his coterie in 1634, becoming a field marshal and imperial count. [9]
Sir Alexander Leslie of Auchintool was a general in the Russian army and was Governor of Smolensk. [5] The seventh Earl of Rothes was created Duke of Rothes by Charles II in 1680. [5]
John Hamilton-Leslie, 9th Earl of Rothes, was Vice Admiral of Scotland and governor of the royal Stirling Castle. [5] During the Jacobite rising of 1715, he supported the British government and commanded a regiment of cavalry at the Battle of Sheriffmuir. [5] He sold much of the clan estates but Leslie House near Fife remained the seat of the chiefly Earls until 1926. [5]
The Battle of Marston Moor was fought on 2 July 1644, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms of 1639–1653. The combined forces of the English Parliamentarians under Lord Fairfax and the Earl of Manchester and the Scottish Covenanters under the Earl of Leven defeated the Royalists commanded by Prince Rupert of the Rhine and the Marquess of Newcastle.
Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven was a Scottish military officer and peer. Born illegitimate and raised as a foster child, he subsequently advanced to the rank of field marshal in Swedish Army, and in Scotland became Lord General in command of the Army of the Covenanters, a privy councillor, captain of Edinburgh Castle, Lord Balgonie and Earl of Leven. In England he commanded the Army of the Solemn League and Covenant and was senior commander of the Army of Both Kingdoms (1642–1647). Leslie served in the Thirty Years' War, the Bishops' Wars, and most of the English Civil War, fighting primarily in the First English Civil War. Leslie would live a long life, dying roughly at the age of 80 or 81.
Earl of Leven is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1641 for Alexander Leslie. He was succeeded by his grandson Alexander, who was in turn followed by his daughters Margaret and Catherine. Thereafter, there was a dispute relating to succession to the title between David Melville and John Leslie, 1st Duke of Rothes. However, in 1681, Melville's claim was admitted after the Duke of Rothes died. In 1707, Melville succeeded to the title Earl of Melville, and thereafter the earldoms have been united.
David Leslie, 1st Lord Newark was a Scottish military officer and peer. During the Thirty Years' War, he joined in the Swedish Army in 1630 and served under Alexander Leslie. Returning to Scotland in the final days of the Bishops' War, Leslie fought in the English Civil War and Scottish Civil Wars on the side of the Covenanters and Royalists. After the Stuart Restoration, Leslie was raised to the peerage of Scotland as Lord Newark by Charles II of England.
The Battle of Tippermuir was the first battle James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose, fought for King Charles I in the Scottish theatre of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. During the battle, Montrose's Royalist forces routed an army of the Covenanter-dominated Scottish government under John Wemyss, Lord Elcho. The government side took heavy losses.
William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton was the son of Robert Douglas of Lochleven and Margaret Erskine, a former mistress of James V of Scotland.
Clan Gordon is a Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the most powerful Scottish clans. The Gordon lands once spanned a large territory across the Highlands. Presently, Gordon is seated at Aboyne Castle, Aberdeenshire. The Chief of the clan is the Earl of Huntly, later the Marquess of Huntly.
The Battle of Boldon Hill was a day-long engagement that took place in modern-day Tyne and Wear between English Royalists and an army made up of Scottish Covenanters in alliance with Parliamentarians from nearby Sunderland on 24 March 1644 during the First English Civil War.
Balgonie Castle is located on the south bank of the River Leven near Milton of Balgonie, 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) east of Glenrothes, Fife, Scotland. The castle keep dates from the 14th century, and the remaining structures were added piecemeal until the 18th century. The keep has been recently restored, although other parts of the castle are roofless ruins. Balgonie, excepting the tower which is used for residential purposes, is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. This castle is the subject for several ghostlore stories, including a green lady story.
Fetternear Bishop's Palace is an archaeological site of what was one of the palaces of the medieval bishops of Aberdeen. It is near Kemnay in Aberdeenshire. Later, a ruined tower-house and mansion of Fetternear House were built on part of the site.
Sir George Munro, 1st of Newmore (1602–1693) was a 17th-century Scottish soldier and member of parliament from the Clan Munro, Ross-shire, Scotland. He was seated at Newmore Castle. Between 1629 and 1634 Munro held command in the Swedish army during the Thirty Years' War, and from 1642 in the Scottish Covenanter army during the Irish Confederate Wars before changing his allegiance to the Royalist cause of Charles I in 1648 during the Scottish Civil War and Irish Confederate Wars.
Leslie is a large village and parish on the northern tip of the River Leven Valley, to the west of Glenrothes in Fife. According to the population estimates (2006), the village has a population of 3,092. The village was granted burgh of barony status by James II in 1458 for George Leslie who became the first Earl of Rothes. Later, this was upgraded to a police burgh in 1865.
Clan Forbes is a Highland Scottish clan from Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
The Bishops' Wars were two separate conflicts in 1639 and 1640 fought between Scotland and England with minor factional skirmishing within Scotland. These were the first of what became the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which also included the First and Second English Civil Wars, and the Anglo-Scottish War of 1650-1652.
Balquhain Castle is a ruined tower house in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It was the stronghold of the Leslies of Balquhain. The castle is located 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) west of Inverurie, and is protected as a scheduled monument.
The siege of Newcastle occurred during the First English Civil War, when a Covenanter army under the command of Lord General Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven besieged the Royalist garrison under Sir John Marlay, the city's governor. Eventually, the Covenanters took the city of Newcastle upon Tyne by storm, and the Royalist garrison who still held castle keep surrendered on terms.
Colonel John Cockburn was an officer in the Scottish Covenanter army in the late 1640s and early 1650s during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. In this capacity he led Lowland soldiers against Montrose's Scottish Royalist forces during the First English Civil War (1642-1646), when the Covenanter parliament of Scotland was allied with the English Parliamentarians against King Charles I. Colonel Cockburn led the colourfully defiant but futile Scottish resistance at Hume Castle during the Third English Civil War (1649-1651), when a Parliamentary army led by Oliver Cromwell invaded Scotland after its Covenanter government had made an uneasy alliance with King Charles II.
Robert Melville, 1st Lord Melville was a Scottish diplomat, administrator, jurist, and intriguer, and uncle of the poet Elizabeth Melville.
Bartolf also known as Bartholomew was a Scottish and Hungarian nobleman and the founder of the Leslie family, who currently serve as Earls of Leven and Earls of Rothes and Lord Newark, all of which are situated in the historic kingdom of Scotland. He came over from Hungary in 1067 with Margaret later St Margaret of Scotland.
James Ogilvy, 1st Earl of Findlater (c.1592–1652), known as Lord Ogilvy of Deskford until 1638, was a Scottish nobleman and Royalist supporter. His title was named after Findlater Castle, the ancient seat of the Ogilvies of Deskford and Findlater, a branch of Clan Ogilvy. Despite being a Royalist, he was described as "[not] prepared to go to war for [the King]". Instead Lord Findlater attempted to keep the peace in the north-east of Scotland, peacemaking between Huntly's supporters and the Covenanters.
