The Frasers of Philorth are a Scottish

lowland Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of ...

family, originally from the

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France * County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France **Duk ...

region of

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 ...

. Castle Fraser, their family seat, is in Sauchen,

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

, Scotland. Since the time of

Alexander Fraser, 11th Lord Saltoun Alexander Fraser, 11th Lord Saltoun (March 4, 1604 – August 11, 1693), was a Scottish peer and the 10th Laird of Philorth. Life Fraser was born in 1604 in the young town of Fraserburgh in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. His father was Sir Alexander ...

, the heads of the Philorth family are the

Lords Saltoun Lords may refer to: * The plural of Lord Places *Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina *Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club People *Traci Lords (born 19 ...

. The current head of the Frasers of Philorth is

Flora Fraser, 21st Lady Saltoun Marjorie Flora Fraser, 21st Lady SaltounIt has recently been determined that Margaret Abernethy succeeded her brother, Alexander Abernethy, 9th Lord Saltoun, in 1668, but only survived him by about 10 weeks and had not previously been counted ...

, who is Chief of the Name and Arms of Clan Fraser since 1 May 1984, by decree of the Court of the Lord Lyon. The family's arms are "'' azure, three cinquefoils

argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

''"—three silver strawberry flowers on a field of blue. The heraldic

cinquefoil ''Potentilla'' is a genus containing over 300Guillén, A., et al. (2005)Reproductive biology of the Iberian species of ''Potentilla'' L. (Rosaceae).''Anales del Jardín Botánico de Madrid'' 1(62) 9–21. species of annual, biennial and perenn ...

is a stylized five-point leaf; the cinquefoils which appear on the Fraser of Philorth coat-of-arms are specifically strawberry flowers. Only the Lady or Lord Saltoun is permitted to display these arms plain and undifferenced.

History

Fraserburgh Alexander's grandson, also Alexander, married a daughter of the

Earl of Ross The Earl or Mormaer of Ross was the ruler of the province of Ross in northern Scotland. Origins and transfers In the early Middle Ages, Ross was part of the vast earldom of Moray. It seems to have been made a separate earldom in the mid 12th ...

, acquiring the lands of Philorth in

Buchan Buchan is an area of north-east Scotland, historically one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It is now one of the six committee areas and administrative areas of Aberdeenshire Council, Scotland. These areas were created by th ...

, plus the castle of Cairnbulg, which has been the seat of the Fraser chiefs from that time forward. In 1504, the family purchased a fishing community called Faithlie, by

Kinnaird Head Kinnaird Head ( gd, An Ceann Àrd, "high headland") is a headland projecting into the North Sea, within the town of Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, on the east coast of Scotland. The 16th-century Kinnaird Castle was converted in 1787 for use as the ...

. On coming into possession in 1569, Sir Alexander, 8th Lord of Philorth, began to build "a large and beautiful town". He laid the foundation of the Tower of Kynnairdshead, since called the Castle of Fraserburgh, and built a church. They created a

burgh of barony A burgh of barony was a type of Scottish town ( burgh). Burghs of barony were distinct from royal burghs, as the title was granted to a landowner who, as a tenant-in-chief, held his estates directly from the crown. (In some cases, they might also ...

in 1546. In 1592, Alexander was given a charter by James VI for Faithlie. He improved the

harbour A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

, making the area a thriving town, which soon became a

free port Free economic zones (FEZ), free economic territories (FETs) or free zones (FZ) are a class of special economic zone (SEZ) designated by the trade and commerce administrations of various countries. The term is used to designate areas in which com ...

and

burgh A burgh is an autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland and Northern England, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when King David I created the first royal burghs. Burg ...

called

Fraserburgh Fraserburgh (; sco, The Broch or ; gd, A' Bhruaich) is a town in Aberdeenshire (unitary), Aberdeenshire, Scotland with a population recorded in the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census at 13,100. It lies at the far northeast corner of Aber ...

, a rival of

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 ...

. Around 1596, the family built

Pittulie Castle Pittulie Castle is an oblong tower house probably dating from 1596,Lindsay, Maurice (1986) ''The Castles of Scotland''. Constable. p.398 half a mile from Pitsligo Castle, Rosehearty, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is a scheduled monument. Built by ...

. Fraserburgh was to have had a

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

, but the religious troubles and competition from

stemmed the town’s growth. By building Fraserburgh Castle the Laird

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debt ...

ed himself, and had to sell the Philorth Castle, which passed out of the family for over 300 years until

Alexander Fraser, 19th Lord Saltoun Alexander William Frederick Fraser, 19th Lord Saltoun (8 August 1851 – 19 June 1933), a Scottish representative peer, was the son of Alexander Fraser, 18th Lord Saltoun. On 7 July 1885, he married Mary Helena Grattan-Bellew and they had five c ...

, bought it back in 1934. Alexander, 9th Lord of Philorth, married the heiress of the

Lord Saltoun Lord Saltoun, of Abernethy, is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1445 for Sir Lawrence Abernethy. The title remained in the Abernethy family until the death in 1669 of his descendant the tenth Lady Saltoun. She was succeeded ...

, a title borne by the Clan Fraser chiefs since that time. The Chiefship was in dispute between the Frasers of Philorth and another branch, which also came from

Tweeddale Tweeddale (Scottish Gaelic: ''Srath Thuaidh/Tuaidhdail'') is a committee area and lieutenancy area in the Scottish Borders council area in south-eastern Scotland. It had also been a province in the Middle Ages. From 1975 to 1996 it was a local gov ...

, the Frasers of Muchalls. In the reign of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

. The

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Belgi ...

expired with the fourth Lord Fraser, who died in 1716 while on the run as a result of his participation in

The Fifteen The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( gd, Bliadhna Sheumais ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts. At Braemar, Aberdeenshire, lo ...

. The first two sons of Andrew, the 2nd Lord Fraser, were not seen in Scotland after the 1650 Battle of Dunbar. One of them, James Fraser, ended up in Massachusetts (USA) as "James Frizzell." He lived in Roxbury, MA; married in 1656; had children; and died in 1717.https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/98345307/james-frizzell

References

External links

Frasers of Philorth from Baronage Press
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frasers Of Philorth Philorth, Frasers of Fraser of Philorth Fraserburgh Scottish Lowlands