John Comyn (Cumyn) (c. 1215 – c. 1275) was

Lord of Badenoch Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

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 ...

. He was

Justiciar of Galloway The Justiciar of Galloway was an important legal office in the High Medieval Kingdom of Scotland. The Justiciars of Galloway were responsible for the administration of royal justice in the province of Galloway. The other Justiciar positions wer ...

in 1258. He held lands in

Nithsdale Nithsdale (''Srath Nid'' in Scottish Gaelic), also known as Strathnith, Stranith or Stranit, is the strath or dale of the River Nith in southern Scotland. Nithsdale was one of the medieval provinces of Scotland. The provinces gradually lost th ...

(

Dalswinton Dalswinton is a small village in the historical county of Dumfriesshire in Dumfries and Galloway in the south of Scotland. It is located about northwest of Dumfries. To the east of the village a wind farm has been built with a capacity of 30&nb ...

, a Comyn stronghold, and

Duncow Duncow is a small settlement in the civil parish of Kirkmahoe, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Located in the geographical centre of the parish, Duncow was a village in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and was formerly its most populous se ...

) and

Tynedale __NOTOC__ Tynedale is an area and former local government district in south-west Northumberland, England. The district had a resident population of 58,808 according to the 2001 Census. Its main towns were Hexham, Haltwhistle and Prudhoe. The ...

Life

The Comyn family were in effective power in

from 1249 to 1255, when

Alexander III of Scotland Alexander III (Medieval ; Modern Gaelic: ; 4 September 1241 – 19 March 1286) was King of Scots from 1249 until his death. He concluded the Treaty of Perth, by which Scotland acquired sovereignty over the Western Isles and the Isle of Man. His ...

was a minor; John was one of those with court influence. The Comyns were ousted by

Alan Durward Alan Hostarius (or Alan Durward) ( gd, Ailean Dorsair) (died after 1264, or in 1275) was the son of Thomas de Lundin, a grandson of Gille Críst, Mormaer of Mar. His mother's name is unknown, but she was almost certainly a daughter of Máel ...

, but returned to power in 1257-8, before provoking a strong English reaction. He fought for

Henry III of England Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême, Henry a ...

at the

Battle of Lewes The Battle of Lewes was one of two main battles of the conflict known as the Second Barons' War. It took place at Lewes in Sussex, on 14 May 1264. It marked the high point of the career of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, and made h ...

(1265), with John Baliol the elder and Robert Bruce the elder, and was captured. In 1267 he was given

licence to crenellate In medieval England, Wales and the Channel Islands a licence to crenellate (or licence to fortify) granted the holder permission to fortify his property. Such licences were granted by the king, and by the rulers of the counties palatine within the ...

Tarset Castle Tarset Castle is a ruin near Tarset in Northumberland. History A licence to crenellate was granted to John Comyn in 1267, and the castle was built half a mile south-west of the present village of Tarset. The castle, which had four square corner ...

in Tynedale (by present-day Lanehead, near

Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden, Northumberland, Warden nearby, and ...

), by Henry III; Tarset had previously been held by Walter Comyn. He started the construction of

Blair Castle Blair Castle (in Scottish Gaelic: Caisteil Bhlàir) stands in its grounds near the village of Blair Atholl in Perthshire in Scotland. It is the ancestral home of the Clan Murray, and was historically the seat of their chief, the Duke of Atholl, ...

with a tower built in 1269. The place was soon taken back by David, Earl of Atholl. John was the son of a Richard Comyn and was the grandson (through Richard) of William Comyn,

jure uxoris ''Jure uxoris'' (a Latin phrase meaning "by right of (his) wife"), citing . describes a title of nobility used by a man because his wife holds the office or title ''suo jure'' ("in her own right"). Similarly, the husband of an heiress could becom ...

Earl of Buchan. In 1275, John was one of the leaders of a Scottish expedition that crushed a Manx revolt against the Scottish Crown. According to the 1911 ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...

'' he died in 1274, and was nephew of

Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan Alexander Comyn, 2nd Earl of Buchan (died 1289) was a Scoto-Norman magnate who was one of the most important figures in the 13th century Kingdom of Scotland. He was the son of William Comyn, jure uxoris Earl of Buchan, and Marjory, Countess o ...

Constable of Scotland The Lord High Constable is a hereditary, now ceremonial, office of Scotland. In the order of precedence of Scotland, the office traditionally ranks above all titles except those of the Royal Family.p60-61, Bruce, Alistair, Keepers of the King ...

, and of Walter Comyn, Earl of Mentieth. His date of death is also given as 1277. He succeeded his uncle Walter, in 1258, as Lord of Badenoch, and was succeeded by his son

John II John II may refer to: People * John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499) * John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672) * John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302) * John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318) * John II Komnenos (1087–1 ...

, the "Black Comyn". John I was known as the "Red Comyn", the nickname more commonly applied to his grandson.

Family

His first wife was called Eva, and appears to have been the mother of at least his oldest children. His second wife was named Alice and referred to in one document after his death as Lady Alice de Roos (Ros). Alice was the daughter of William de Roos of Helmsley and Lucy FitzPiers. He is known to have had the following issue: * John of Badenoch (died 1303), succeeded his father, married Eleanor de Balliol, daughter of

John de Balliol John Balliol ( – late 1314), known derisively as ''Toom Tabard'' (meaning "empty coat" – coat of arms), 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 ...

and

Dervorguilla of Galloway Dervorguilla of Galloway (c. 1210 – 28 January 1290) was a 'lady of substance' in 13th century Scotland, the wife from 1223 of John, 5th Baron de Balliol, and mother of John I, a future king of Scotland. The name Dervorguilla or Dervorgilla ...

; had issue. * William of Kirkintilloch (died 1291), married Isabella Russell, daughter of John Russell and

Isabella, Countess of Menteith Isabella, Countess of Menteith (1217 – 1272) was the eldest daughter of Muireadhach II, Mormaer of Menteith. When the old mormaer died without legitimate male heir in 1233, the province passed to Isabella. Isabella married Walter Comyn, Lord o ...

; without issue. * Alexander Comyn of Dunphail (died 1330), married Eva, widow of Alexander Murray, had issue. * Robert Comyn (died 1306), married Margaret Comyn, daughter of William Comyn of Lochaber; had issue. * John Comyn of Ulceby; had issue. * a daughter who married

Alexander of Argyll Alexander of Argyll, also known as Alexander of Lorne, and Alexander MacDougall ( gd, Alasdair MacDubhgaill; died 1310), was a Scottish magnate from the late 13th and early 14th century. Alexander was the son of Ewen MacDougall, Lord of Argyll ...

; had issue. * a daughter who married Sir

William Galbraith, 4th of that Ilk Sir William Galbraith, 4th of that Ilk, Lord of Buthernock and Kincaid, was a Scottish noble. He was the eldest son of Arthur Galbraith. William took part in the rescue of the boy king Alexander III from his father-in-law John Comyn I of Baden ...

; had issue. * a daughter who married firstly Richard Siward and secondly

Geoffrey de Mowbray Geoffrey de Montbray (Montbrai, Mowbray) (died 1093), bishop of Coutances ( la, Constantiensis), also known as Geoffrey of Coutances, was a Norman nobleman, trusted adviser of William the Conqueror and a great :wikt:secular, secular prelate, warr ...

; had issue. * a daughter who married Sir Andrew Moray; had issue.Balfour Paul J., ''Scots Peerage'' voll i, p. 506
/ref>

Notes

Citations

References

{{S-end Comyn Comyn Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain 13th-century Scottish people Clan Comyn Lords of Badenoch