John Randolph, 3rd Earl of Moray (died 17 October 1346) was an important figure in the reign of David II of Scotland, and was for a time joint Regent of Scotland.
John Randolph, 3rd Earl of Moray (died 17 October 1346) was an important figure in the reign of David II of Scotland, and was for a time joint Regent of Scotland.
He was son of the famous Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray, a companion-in-arms of Robert the Bruce. Upon the death of his elder brother Thomas, 2nd Earl at the Battle of Dupplin Moor in 1332, John succeeded to the earldom. He was brother to Agnes Randolph, Countess of Dunbar, sometimes referred to as "Black Agnes". His sister Isobel's daughter Agnes Dunbar, was the mistress of David II of Scotland.
He at once took up arms on behalf of his sovereign and cousin King David II and surprised and defeated Edward Balliol at the Battle of Annan in December 1332. At the Battle of Halidon Hill on 19 July 1333, he commanded the first division of the Scots' Army, supported by Sir Andrew Fraser and his two brothers, Simon and James. Escaping from the carnage there he retired to France.
John returned to Scotland the following year, when he and the High Steward of Scotland (the future King Robert II of Scotland) were appointed joint Regents, and set about trying to restore order to the nation.
He was successful in taking prisoner the Comyn Earl of Atholl, commander of the English forces in Scotland, but, on his swearing allegiance to the Scottish Crown he was set free. Comyn, however, disregarded his oath, returned to the English camp, and resumed his hostilities. In August 1335 led an attack on the Burgh Muir near Edinburgh against a body of Flemish auxiliaries in the English service, under Count Guy de Namur, and forced them to surrender. But escorting the Count to the Borders he fell into an ambush and was made prisoner by William de Pressen, (English) Warden of Jedburgh.
He was confined first at Nottingham Castle, and afterwards in the Tower of London. On 25 July 1340, he was removed to Windsor Castle. In 1341 he was exchanged for the Earl of Salisbury, a prisoner with the French, and Moray then returned to Scotland.
In February 1346 he invaded England with David II of Scotland. At the Battle of Neville's Cross, outside Durham, on 17 October 1346 John, with Douglas, Knight of Liddesdale, commanded the right wing of the Scottish army. He was killed during the first English attack.
He was married to Euphemia de Ross but the marriage was childless. On his death the earldom of Moray reverted to the Crown, but was later given to his nephew, John Dunbar.
The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of military campaigns fought between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late 13th and early 14th centuries.
John Balliol, known derisively as Toom Tabard, was King of Scots from 1292 to 1296. Little is known of his early life. After the death of Margaret, Maid of Norway, Scotland entered an interregnum during which several competitors for the Crown of Scotland put forward claims. Balliol was chosen from among them as the new King of Scotland by a group of selected noblemen headed by King Edward I of England.
David II was King of Scots from 1329 until his death in 1371. Upon the death of his father, Robert the Bruce, David succeeded to the throne at the age of five, and was crowned at Scone in November 1331, becoming the first Scottish monarch to be anointed at their coronation. During his childhood Scotland was governed by a series of guardians, and Edward III of England sought to take advantage of David's minority by supporting an invasion of Scotland by Edward Balliol, beginning the Second War of Scottish Independence. Following the English victory at the Battle of Halidon Hill in 1333, David, his queen and the rump of his government were evacuated to France, where he remained in exile until it was safe for him to return to Scotland in 1341.
The title Earl of Moray, Mormaer of Moray or King of Moray was originally held by the rulers of the Province of Moray, which existed from the 10th century with varying degrees of independence from the Kingdom of Alba to the south. Until 1130 the status of Moray's rulers was ambiguous and they were described in some sources as "mormaers", in others as "Kings of Moray", and in others as "Kings of Alba". The position was suppressed by David I of Scotland some time after his defeat of Óengus of Moray at the Battle of Stracathro in 1130, but was recreated as a feudal earldom by Robert the Bruce and granted to Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray in 1312.
Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, Alasdair Mór mac an Rígh, and called the Wolf of Badenoch, was the third surviving son of King Robert II of Scotland and youngest by his first wife, Elizabeth Mure of Rowallan. He was the first Earl of Buchan since John Comyn, from 1382 until his death. Alexander married the widowed Euphemia I, Countess of Ross, but they had no children. He did have a large family by his longtime mistress, Mairead inghean Eachainn. Alexander was Justiciar of Scotia for a time, but not an effective one. He held large territories in the north of Scotland before eventually losing a large part of them. Alexander is remembered for his destruction of the royal burgh of Elgin and its cathedral. His nickname was earned due to his notorious cruelty and rapacity, but there is no proof that it was used during his lifetime.
Patrick de Dunbar, 9th Earl of March, was a prominent Scottish magnate during the reigns of Robert the Bruce and David II.
Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray was a soldier and diplomat in the Wars of Scottish Independence, who later served as regent of Scotland. He was a nephew of Robert the Bruce, who created him as the first earl of Moray. He was known for successfully capturing Edinburgh Castle from the English, and he was one of the signatories of the Declaration of Arbroath.
Agnes Randolph, Countess of Dunbar and March, known as Black Agnes for her dark complexion, was the wife of Patrick, 9th Earl of Dunbar and March. She is buried in the vault near Mordington House.
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.
Patrick III, 7th Earl of Dunbar was lord of the feudal barony of Dunbar and its castle, which dominated East Lothian, and the most important military personage in the Scottish Borders.
The Lordship of Annandale was a sub-comital lordship in southern Scotland (Annandale) established by David I of Scotland by 1124 for his follower Robert de Brus. The following were holders of the office:
The Guardians of Scotland were regents who governed the Kingdom of Scotland from 1286 until 1292 and from 1296 until 1306. During the many years of minority in Scotland's subsequent history, there were many guardians of Scotland and the post was a significant constitutional feature in the course of development for politics in the country.
Henry de Beaumont, jure uxoris 4th Earl of Buchan and suo jure 1st Baron Beaumont, was a key figure in the Anglo-Scots wars of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, known as the Wars of Scottish Independence.
Clan Dunbar is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands.
John of Islay was the Lord of the Isles (1336–1386) and chief of Clan Donald. In 1336, he styled himself Dominus Insularum, "Lord of the Isles"; because this is the first ever recorded instance of the title in use, modern historians count John as the first of the later medieval Lords of the Isles, although this rather broad Latin style corresponds roughly with the older Gaelic title Rí Innse Gall, in use since the Viking Age, and for instance, the even more similar Latin title dominus de Inchegal, applied to Raghnall Mac Somhairle in the mid-12th century. In fact John is actually styled Rí Innsi Gall or King of the Isles shortly after his death in a contemporary entry in the Irish Annals of Ulster. Clan Donald considers the title "Lord of the Isles" to have been in use at least since Angus Mor Macdonald, who died in 1293. and the title "King of the Isles" in use since Somerled, the Norse-Gael who forged the Kingdom of the Isles in the 12th century.
Sir William Douglas, Lord of Liddesdale was also known as the Knight of Liddesdale and the Flower of Chivalry. He was a Scottish nobleman and soldier active during the Second War of Scottish Independence.
George de Dunbar, 10th Earl of Dunbar and March (1338–1422), 12th Lord of Annandale and Lord of the Isle of Man, was "one of the most powerful nobles in Scotland of his time, and the rival of the Douglases."
Edward Balliol was a claimant to the Scottish throne during the Second War of Scottish Independence. With English help, he ruled parts of the kingdom from 1332 to 1356.
Darnaway Castle, also known as Tarnaway Castle, is located in Darnaway Forest, 3 miles (4.8 km) southwest of Forres in Moray, Scotland. This was Comyn land, given to Thomas Randolph along with the Earldom of Moray by King Robert I. The castle has remained the seat of the Earls of Moray ever since. Rebuilt in 1810, it retains the old banqueting hall, capable of accommodating 1,000 men.
Sir Andrew Murray (1298–1338), also known as Sir Andrew Moray, or Sir Andrew de Moray, was a Scottish military and political leader who supported David II of Scotland against Edward Balliol and King Edward III of England during the Second War of Scottish Independence. He held the lordships of Avoch and Petty in north Scotland, and Bothwell in west-central Scotland. In 1326 he married Christina Bruce, a sister of King Robert I of Scotland. Murray was twice chosen as Guardian of Scotland, first in 1332, and again from 1335 on his return to Scotland after his release from captivity in England. He held the guardianship until his death in 1338.