George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly (151428 October 1562) was a Scottish nobleman.

Life

He was the son of John Gordon, Lord Gordon, and Margaret Stewart, daughter of

James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauchi ...

and Margaret Drummond. George Gordon inherited his earldom and estates in 1524 at age 10. As commander of the King's Army he defeated the English at the

Battle of Haddon Rig The Battle of Hadden Rig was a battle fought about three miles east of Kelso, Scottish Borders, Kelso, in the Scottish Borders, between Scotland and England on 24 August 1542, during the reigns of King James V of Scotland and Henry VIII of Eng ...

in 1542, was a member of the

council of Regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...

under

James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

and

Cardinal Beaton David Beaton (also Beton or Bethune; 29 May 1546) was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish cardinal prior to the Reformation. Career Cardinal Beaton was the sixth and youngest son of eleven children of John Beaton (Bethune) of Bal ...

and succeeded as

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

on the murder of Beaton in 1546. He was captured at the

Battle of Pinkie Cleugh The Battle of Pinkie, also known as the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh ( , ), took place on 10 September 1547 on the banks of the River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland. The last pitched battle between Scotland and England before the Union of the Cro ...

in 1547, and held in the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

but in autumn 1548 he was released when a ransom was delivered by

Robert Carnegie, Lord Kinnaird Sir Robert Carnegie, Lord Kinnaird, 5th Laird of Kinnaird (c.1490–1566) was a 16th-century Scottish landowner, judge and Senator of the College of Justice. Life He was born at Kinnaird Castle near Brechin around 1490, the son of John Carn ...

. In 1550 he accompanied

Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (french: Marie de Guise; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. She ...

to France. He joined the Protestant

Lords of the Congregation The Lords of the Congregation (), originally styling themselves "the Faithful", were a group of Protestant Scottish nobles who in the mid-16th century favoured a reformation of the Catholic church according to Protestant principles and a Scotti ...

in 1560, although he was "a late, reluctant, and unreliable recruit". He was a religious conservative, however, and he worked for "a form of co-existence between Catholic and reformed worship". Huntly was prepared to accept

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 Scot ...

, until she transferred the

Earldom of Moray 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 th ...

, which had been given to the Earl of Huntly in 1549, to her half-brother

Lord James Stewart James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. A supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for hi ...

, at which point he withdrew to his estates in the North-East of Scotland.

, toured the north-east in August 1562, and was refused entry to

Inverness Castle Inverness Castle ( gd, Caisteal Inbhir Nis) sits on a cliff overlooking the River Ness in Inverness, Scotland. A succession of castles have stood on this site since 1057, although the present structure dates from 1836. The present structure is ...

on Gordon's orders. The Queen's forces captured the Castle before moving to

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 ...

where she issued a summons for Gordon. He refused to answer and was

outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so that anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them ...

ed. He marched on Aberdeen but was defeated by

James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland, James V of Scotland. A supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent ...

at the

Battle of Corrichie The Battle of Corrichie, also known as the Battle of Corrichy was a battle fought near Meikle Tap, near Aberdeen, Scotland, on 28 October 1562. It was fought between the forces of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, chief of Clan Gordon, agains ...

in October 1562. He died of

apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...

after his capture, and his son, Sir John was executed in Aberdeen. Huntly was posthumously forfeited by parliament in May 1563. After his death his body and goods seized at Strathbogie Castle were shipped from Aberdeen to

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. The body stood for the earl at his trial. The goods were taken to

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinbu ...

. When Mary was imprisoned at Lochleven, she was given the earl's cloth-of-estate.

Family

On 27 March 1530 he married Elizabeth Keith, daughter of Robert Keith, Master of Marischal, by whom he had nine sons and three daughters, including; *Thomas Gordon *

George Gordon, 5th Earl of Huntly George Gordon, 5th Earl of Huntly (died 19 October 1576), was Lord Chancellor of Scotland and major conspirator of his time. Biography Second son of the 4th Earl, he was Sheriff of Inverness from 1556. As Captain of Badenoch, he was in charge o ...

*Lady Margaret Gordon, who married John, Master of Forbes, son of

William Forbes, 7th Lord Forbes William Forbes, 7th Lord Forbes (1513-1593) was a Scottish landowner. William was the son of John, 6th Lord Forbes and Christian Lundie. His eldest son John, Master of Forbes, and his half-brother "Black" Arthur Forbes signed a band on 27 April 1 ...

*Lady

Jean Gordon, Countess of Bothwell Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

(154614 May 1629) *Lady Elizabeth Gordon (died 1557) married

John Stewart, 4th Earl of Atholl John Stewart, 4th Earl of Atholl (died 25 April 1579), called the Fair, was a Scottish nobleman and courtier. He was favoured by Mary, Queen of Scots, but later turned against her. Biography Stewart was the son of John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Athol ...

*Alexander Gordon, Lord Gordon (d. 1553), who married Barbara Hamilton *Sir John Gordon of Findlater, executed 1562 after Corrichie. * James Gordon (born 1541) *

Adam Gordon of Auchindoun Adam Gordon of Auchindoun (1545–1580) was a Scottish knight, younger brother of the Earl of Huntly and military leader during the Marian civil war on behalf of Mary, Queen of Scots in north west Scotland. In Scottish ballad lore, Adam became k ...

(born 1545) *

Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun (1538–1594) was a Scottish landowner and rebel. He was a son of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly and Elizabeth Keith, a daughter of Robert Keith, Master of Marischal, who was killed at the battle of Flodden. Hi ...

A letter from Edward Stanhope to the

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

, dated 6 December 1598, describes Richard Rutherford of Hunthill as "cousin german to Earl Huntly".''Calendar of the Manuscripts of the Marquis of Salisbury at Hatfield House'', vol. 8, p. 480 If Stanhope was correct, then it appears George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, fathered an additional daughter: *(daughter) Gordon married John Rutherford of Hunthill

Ancestry

Notes

References

Sources

* *Bonner, Elizabeth, 'The Earl of Huntly and the King of France, 1548: Man for Rent', ''English Historical Review'', vol. 120, no.485 (Feb 2005), 80–103. *Robertson, Joseph, ''Inventaires de la Royne Descosse, Banntayne Club'', (1863), xxii-xxv, 49–56. {{DEFAULTSORT:Huntly, George Gordon, 4th Earl Of 1514 births 1562 deaths 4 Scottish generals Scottish politicians Lords of the Congregation 16th-century Scottish peers Court of James V of Scotland Members of the Privy Council of Scotland Lord Provosts of Aberdeen Lord chancellors of Scotland Privy Council of Mary, Queen of Scots