Clan Colville is a Lowland Scottish clan.

History

Origins of the Clan

The Clan Colville chiefs are of ancient

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

origin. The name is probably derived from the town of Colville in

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. The first of the name to appear in Scotland was Philip de Colville who is found as a witness to a charter to Dunfermline Monastery some time before 1159. In 1174 Phillip de Colville was one of the hostages used for the release of William the Lion under the Treaty of Falaise. Phillip was also granted the baronies of Oxnam and Hecton in

Roxburghshire Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and Berw ...

as well as lands in

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...

. Phillip's son was Thomas de Colville who between 1189 and 1199 was a witness to several charters of William the Lion. Thomas was unjustly suspected of treason and was imprisoned in

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

but he later regained royal favor and died on his own estates in 1219. Thomas's son was William de Colville who acquired the barony of Kinnaird in Stirlingshire which remains the chief's seat to this day. In 1228 William de Colville granted a lease of the part of his barony to the

Abbot of Holyrood The Abbot of Holyrood (later Commendator of Holyrood) was the head of the Augustinian monastic community of Holyrood Abbey, now in Edinburgh. The long history of the abbey came to a formal end in July 1606 when the parliament of Scotland turned th ...

which was confirmed in a charter by Alexander II of Scotland. The heiress of Sir William Colville was E'stace. She was married to Sir Reginald Cheyne, an elderly knight who died in about 1291, leaving her considerable wealth. E'stace appears on the Ragman Rolls of 1296 swearing fealty to

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

. She is recorded on the Ragman Rolls as holding lands in

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire council area and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With a population ...

, Banff, Forfar,

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

and

Kincardine Kincardine may refer to: Places Scotland *Kincardine, Fife, a town on the River Forth, Scotland **Kincardine Bridge, a bridge which spans the Firth of Forth *Kincardineshire, a historic county **Kincardine, Aberdeenshire, now abandoned **Kincardi ...

. The foundation of the fortunes of the Colvilles is attributed to E'stace's considerable abilities by Alexander Nisbet.

14th and 15th centuries

A grant made to Melrose Abbey by E'stace de Colville was confirmed in 1324 by Robert Colville who is described as ''Baro baronial de Ochiltree'' which means ''Baron of the barony of Ochiltree''. The baron made donations to the monks of

Kelso Abbey Kelso Abbey is a ruined Scottish abbey in Kelso, Scotland. It was founded in the 12th century by a community of Tironensian monks first brought to Scotland in the reign of Alexander I. It occupies ground overlooking the confluence of the Tweed ...

and his barony of Ochiltree was confirmed by David II of Scotland in 1350. In 1436 Thomas Colville of Oxnam, who was probably Robert's grandson, was selected to accompany

Princess Margaret Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, (Margaret Rose; 21 August 1930 – 9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and the younger sister and only sibling of Queen Elizabeth ...

, daughter of

James I of Scotland James I (late July 139421 February 1437) was King of Scots from 1406 until his assassination in 1437. The youngest of three sons, he was born in Dunfermline Abbey to King Robert III and Annabella Drummond. His older brother David, Duke of Ro ...

for her marriage to the

Dauphin of France Dauphin of France (, also ; french: Dauphin de France ), originally Dauphin of Viennois (''Dauphin de Viennois''), was the title given to the heir apparent to the throne of France from 1350 to 1791, and from 1824 to 1830. The word ''dauphin'' ...

, later

Louis XI of France Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revo ...

. Robert Colville had also been one of the hostages for the release of James I from English captivity four years earlier. Sir Richard (or Robert Colville) killed John Auchinleck in 1449. Auchinleck was a favourite of the

Earl of Douglas This page is concerned with the holders of the forfeit title Earl of Douglas and the preceding feudal barons of Douglas, South Lanarkshire. The title was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1358 for William Douglas, 1st Earl of Douglas, son ...

(chief of

Clan Douglas Clan Douglas is an ancient clan or noble house from the Scottish Lowlands. Taking their name from Douglas in Lanarkshire, their leaders gained vast territories throughout the Borders, Angus, Lothian, Moray, and also in France and Sweden. The f ...

) and to avenge Auchinleck's fate, Douglas laid waste to all of the lands that belonged to Colville and besieged and took his Kinnaird Castle, with a great loss of life.

16th and 17th centuries

In 1513 Robert Colville of Hilton was killed at the Battle of Flodden. His son was Sir James Colville of Ochiltree who in 1527 was appointed to the office of Comptroller of the Royal Household. In 1530 he exchanged his lands of Ochiltree for the lands of East Wemyss and Lochorshyre with Hamilton of Finnart. He was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court as Sir James Colville of Easter Wemyss. However he was later accused of treason and his estates were annexed by the Crown, but in 1543 the forfeiture was recalled. Sir James Colville, third of Easter Wemyss was a distinguished soldier who fought in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

for the Prince of Navarre, later

Henry IV of France Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...

. In 1582 he returned to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

with Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell, loaded with commendations from his French patrons. In 1604 Sir James Colville was raised in the peerage with the title 'Lord Colville of Culross', which the chiefs still bear today. The second Lord Colville died without issue in 1640 leaving the title to his cousin as heir. However his cousin did not assume the title and it remained dormant until 1723.

18th century

European Wars

In 1709 John Colville, ''de jure'' seventh Lord Colville, served as a soldier at the Battle of Malplaquet which was a great victory for John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough. He was made heir to the second Lord Colville in 1722, but a petition to the king claiming the Peerage was referred to the House of Lords for an enquiry. In 1723 the House found in favour of Colville, who was placed on the Roll of Peers. He continued his military career and commanded a battalion at the

siege of Cartagena The Battle of Cartagena de Indias ( es, Sitio de Cartagena de Indias, lit=Siege of Cartagena de Indias) took place during the 1739 to 1748 War of Jenkins' Ear between Spain and Britain. The result of long-standing commercial tensions, the war w ...

, where he died in 1741. Colville left a large family who all had successful military careers.

Jacobite risings

During the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Franci ...

Charles Colville supported the British Government and commanded the 21st Regiment of Foot (

Royal Scots Fusiliers The Royal Scots Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1678 until 1959 when it was amalgamated with the Highland Light Infantry (City of Glasgow Regiment) to form the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Mar ...

) at the

Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden (; gd, Blàr Chùil Lodair) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince Wi ...

in 1746. He died in 1775 having achieved the rank of lieutenant general.

Seven Years' War

In 1731 Alexander Colville, 7th Lord Colville of Culross joined the Navy. He soon obtained his own command and by in 1744 became captain of HMS Leopard (1741), a fifty gun frigate. He was later promoted to commodore and obtained command of

HMS Northumberland (1750) HMS ''Northumberland'' was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Plymouth Dockyard to the draught specified by the 1745 Establishment, and launched on 1 December 1750. During the Seven Years' War ''Northumberland'' ...

and sailed to America in 1755 during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

. In 1759 Colville forced the French to raise the siege of Quebec and retreat. In 1769 Colville was promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral.

19th and 20th centuries

Charles Colville General Sir Charles Colville (7 August 1770 – 27 March 1843) was a British Army officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars. He was an ensign in 1781. He served in the West Indies from 1791 to 1797 and while serving there was promoted to li ...

served with distinction during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

and also at the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

. His two elder brothers died without issue and so his son,

Charles Colville, 1st Viscount Colville of Culross Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

, succeeded to the peerage. This Charles Colville was Chief Equerry to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

and Lord Chamberlain to

Queen Alexandra of Denmark Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 to 6 May 1910 as the wife of King ...

. He was created Viscount Colville of Culross in 1902. The brother of the second Viscount was Sir Stanley Colville who was rear admiral and commander in chief at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

between 1916 and 1919. Stanley Colville received some of the country's highest honors, including Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath.

The Clan today

John Mark Alexander Colville, the 13th Lord Colville of Culross gained the title in 1945, and served as a Home Office Minister under Edward Heath and was a member of the UN Human Rights Commission. He died in 2010, and has been succeeded by his son,

, Viscount Colville of Culross a member of the House of Lords, who is currently the Clan Chief.

References

External links

Clan Colville - ScotClans.com
{{Scottish clans Colville