Thomas Kennedy of Bargany (died 1597) was a Scottish courtier and landowner.

Life

Military career

Thomas Kennedy and his father fought for

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 his ...

at 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.

Inheritance

In May 1585 Thomas Kennedy took possession of several properties in Ayr as heir to his father, in Sandgate and Woodgate, some of which his father had acquired in 1544. He was knighted in May 1590 at the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional fo ...

. Bargany Castle, demolished in the seventeenth century, was on the south side of the

Water of Girvan The Water of Girvan (or River Girvan) ( gd, Garbhan / Abhainn Gharbhain) is a river in South Ayrshire, which has its source at Loch Girvan Eye in the Carrick Forest section of Galloway Forest Park. This river passes through the villages of Stra ...

in Dailly parish in Ayrshire.

Legal issues

Bargany helped the

Earl of Cassilis Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

in an attempt to gain the lands of

Crossraguel Abbey The Abbey of Saint Mary of Crossraguel is a ruin of a former abbey near the town of Maybole, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Although it is a ruin, visitors can still see the original monks’ church, their cloister and their dovecot (pigeon tower ...

in August 1570. He brought the new owner Allan Stewart to the Earl at

Maybole Castle Maybole Castle is a 16th-century castle located on High Street in Maybole, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Originally built for the Earls of Cassillis, it is an L-shaped construction with Victorian two-storey extensions. It is associated with a lege ...

and then they went to the Abbey, from where the Earl abducted him and took him to

Dunure Castle Dunure Castle is located on the west coast of Scotland, in South Ayrshire, about south of Ayr and close to the village of Dunure. Today the castle stands in ruins on a rocky promontory on the Carrick coast, overlooking the small harbour of Dunur ...

and tortured him with fire until he signed a lease of the lands. Bargany, who was not at Dunure, realising he was implicated, sought legal help for Stewart then besieged Dunure and brought Stewart to Ayr where he revoked the lease. In 1591 his brother-in-law, the lawyer Sir Patrick Vans of Barnbarroch, came to

Ardstinchar Castle Ardstinchar Castle is a late medieval castle in the west coast of Ayrshire at the mouth of the River Stinchar. It was built by Hugh Kennedy of Ardstinchar in the mid-15th century. In the 1770s, the castle was demolished and the stone was used t ...

. They discussed his legal case with Sir John Seton of Barns. Seton was a kinsman of Bargany's wife, and he hoped to gain the return of lands of Lethmold, which had passed to Seton by the forfeit 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 ...

. Bargany employed another lawyer, George Mark, and wrote to Barnbarroch rehearsing his offer to Seton, and hoping he would "both effectuously and secretly" work in his favour.

Edinburgh riot, son forced to marry

Thomas Kennedy of Bargany took part in a riot in Edinburgh on 17 November 1596. The laird had appeared with others in the Tolbooth of Edinburgh and made a religious protest. The incident was regarded as a conflict between the gentlemen of the king's household known as 'cubiculars' and the financial officers called the '

Octavians The Octavians were a financial commission of eight in the government of Scotland first appointed by James VI on 9 January 1596. James VI's minister John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane had died on 3 October 1595, and his financial sit ...

'. Two family chronicles mention that Bargany was punished by

James VI 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 ...

who arranged a marriage for his son that was to "the wreck of his house".

Death

He died in November 1597.Keith Brown, 'A House Divided: Family and Feud in Carrick', ''The Scottish Historical Review'', vol. 75, no. 200, Part 2 (October 1996), pp. 168-196 at p. 180.

Family

He was the son of Thomas Kennedy of Bargany and Margaret Campbell, a daughter of

Hew Campbell of Loudon Hew Campbell of Loudon (died 1561) was a Scottish landowner. He was a son of Hugh Campbell of Loudon and Isobel Wallace. Campbell was Sheriff of Ayr. His first name is sometimes spelled "Hugh" or "Huw". He signed his name "Hew Campbell". Gilber ...

, Sheriff of Ayr. Thomas Kennedy married Isobel Stewart, a daughter of

Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Ochiltree Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Ochiltree (c. 1521–1591) fought for the Scottish Reformation. His daughter married John Knox and he played a part in the defeat of Mary, Queen of Scots at the battle of Langside. Biography Andrew's father, Andrew Stewar ...

and Agnes Cunningham. He married secondly Agnes Montgomerie daughter of Hugh Montgomerie, 2nd Earl of Eglinton. Their children included: *

Gilbert Kennedy of Bargany and Ardstinchar Gilbert Kennedy of Bargany and Ardstinchar (c. 1577 – 1601) was a Scottish landowner and murder victim. Kennedy had inherited a long-standing family feud with John Kennedy, 5th Earl of Cassilis, on the death of his father, Thomas Kennedy of Barg ...

, who married his cousin Jean Stewart, a daughter of Andrew, Master of Ochiltree and

Margaret Stewart, Mistress of Ochiltree Margaret Stewart, Mistress of Ochiltree (died 1627) was a courtier in the household of Anne of Denmark in Scotland and looked after her children Prince Henry, Princess Elizabeth, and Charles I of England Career Margaret was the daughter of Henr ...

. Jean Stewart was a maiden in the household of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Thomas 16th-century Scottish people 1597 deaths

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...