James Ross, 4th

Lord Ross The title of Lord Ross was a Lordship of Parliament in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1499 for Sir John Ross, of Halkhead. The second Lord died at the Battle of Flodden. The 12th Lord was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Renfrew in 17 ...

of Halkhead (died 2 April 1581) was a Scottish nobleman and an adherent to the cause of

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 S ...

Origins

Ross was the second, but oldest surviving son of

Ninian Ross, 3rd Lord Ross Ninian Ross, 3rd Lord Ross of Halkhead (died February 1555/6), was a Scottish nobleman. Origins Ross was the son and heir of John Ross, 2nd Lord Ross and Christian, the daughter of Sir Archibald Edmonstone. The Rosses of Halkhead, or Hawkhead, i ...

, who died in February 1555/6. The Rosses of Halkhead, or Hawkhead, in

Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfr ...

, were a

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, not apparently related to the

Earls 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 12 ...

or the

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

family of

Ross Ross or ROSS may refer to: People * Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan * Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning * Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland Places * RoSS, the Republic of Sou ...

Balnagown Balnagown Castle is beside the village of Kildary in Easter Ross, part of the Highland area of Scotland. There has been a castle on the site since the 14th century, although the present building was remodelled in the 18th and 19th centuries. It i ...

. Sir James Balfour Paul, ''

The Scots Peerage ''The Scots Peerage'' is a nine-volume book series of the Scottish nobility compiled and edited by Sir James Balfour Paul, published in Edinburgh from 1904 to 1914. The full title is ''The Scots Peerage: Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert ...

'', Volume VII

Career

Having promised on 5 September 1565 to faithfully serve Queen Mary and

Lord Darnley Lord Darnley is a noble title associated with a Scottish Lordship of Parliament, first created in 1356 for the family of Stewart of Darnley and tracing a descent to the Dukedom of Richmond in England. The title's name refers to Darnley in Sco ...

against the rebellious lords, Lord Ross was ordered on 10 October 1565 to accompany the vanguard of the Queen's army in pursuit of the rebels. Mary and Rizzio were frequent visitors to Ross's estate at Melville, though there were later suggestions by Lord Ruthven that Rizzio and Ross fell out when Ross refused to give Rizzio the lordship of Melville. On 19 April 1567, Ross was among the Lords signing the Ainslie Tavern Bond to indicate their agreement to the marriage between Bothwell and the Queen and, on 8 May 1568, he signed a bond for defence of the Queen at Hamilton. He took part in the

Battle of Langside The Battle of Langside was fought on 13 May 1568 between forces loyal to Mary, Queen of Scots, and forces acting in the name of her infant son James VI. Mary’s short period of personal rule ended in 1567 in recrimination, intrigue, and disast ...

on 13 May 1568, but was captured by the

Regent 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. A supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for hi ...

. Ten years later, in 1578, he appeared in a list of nobles still adhering to the Queen. As a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, he was excommunicated on 20 June 1573, alongside his brother-in-law,

Lord Sempill Lord Sempill (also variously rendered as Semple or Semphill) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in circa 1489 for Sir John Sempill, founder of the collegiate Church of Lochwinnoch. Sempill was killed at the Battle of Flodde ...

. He died on 2 April 1581.

Family

Ross married Jean, daughter of

Robert Sempill, 3rd Lord Sempill Robert Sempill, 3rd Lord Sempill (c. 1505–1576) was a Scottish lord of Parliament. Robert, also ''Semphill'' or ''Semple'', 3rd Lord Sempill (d. circa 1575), commonly called the 'Great Lord Sempill', was the elder son of William Sempill, 2nd L ...

(a descendant of

Robert II of Scotland Robert II (2 March 1316 – 19 April 1390) was King of Scots from 1371 to his death in 1390. The son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland, and Marjorie, daughter of King Robert the Bruce, he was the first monarch of the House of St ...

Robert III of Scotland Robert III (c. 13374 April 1406), born John Stewart, was King of Scots from 1390 to his death in 1406. He was also High Steward of Scotland from 1371 to 1390 and held the titles of Earl of Atholl (1367–1390) and Earl of Carrick (1368– ...

) and also Sir John Ross, 1st Lord of Ross of Halkhead ) who died 28 February 1593. By her, he had issue: *

Robert Ross, 5th Lord Ross Robert Ross, 5th Lord Ross of Halkhead (1563 – October 1595) was a Scottish nobleman. Origins Ross was the eldest son and heir of James Ross, 4th Lord Ross, who died on 2 April 1581, by Jean, daughter of Robert, 3rd Lord Sempill. The Rosses o ...

William Ross, 10th Lord Ross William Ross, 10th Lord Ross of Halkhead (died 1656), was a Scottish nobleman. Origins Ross was the second son of James Ross, 4th Lord Ross, who died on 2 April 1581, by Jean, daughter of Robert, 3rd Lord Sempill. He succeeded to the peerage foll ...

* Elizabeth, who married (contract 20 November 1582) Allan Lockhart, one of the Lockharts of Cleghorn. This couple were ancestors of

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

,http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~dantrogers/pafg1895.htm and linked pages 42nd President of the U.S.A. * Jean, who married first Sir James Sandilands of Calder and secondly (contract 29 July 1580) Henry Stewart of Craigiehall * Dorothy, who married

Alexander Cunningham of Aiket Alexander Cunningham of Aiket (died 1592) was a Scottish landowner. He was a son of John Cunningham and Helen Barclay, daughter of the Laird of Corfin. Aiket Castle is in Dunlop parish in Ayrshire. Alexander Cunningham of Aiket is frequently c ...

* Alison, or Alice, or Helen, who married Sir John Melville of Carnbee * Grisel, who married (contract 18 March 1589/90) Sir Archibald Stirling of Keir and died on 3 October 1618.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, James History of Renfrewshire People from Renfrewshire 1581 deaths Year of birth unknown Lords of Parliament (pre-1707)