Clan Fraser is a

Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Goidelic languages, Gaelic , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred') is a kinship group among the Scottish people. Clans give a sense of shared identity and descent to members, and in modern times have an official ...

of the

Scottish Lowlands The Lowlands ( sco, Lallans or ; gd, a' Ghalldachd, , place of the foreigners, ) is a cultural and historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Lowlands and the Highlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowl ...

.Way, George and Squire, Romily. ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The

Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs (SCSC) is the organisation that represents the Chiefs of many prominent Scottish Clans and Families. It describes itself as "the definitive and authoritative body for information on the Scottish Clan System ...

). Published in 1994. Pages 142 - 143. It is not to be confused with the

Clan Fraser of Lovat Clan Fraser of Lovat ( gd, Friseal french: link=yes, Fraiser) is a Highland Scottish clan and the principal branch of Clan Fraser. The Frasers of Lovat are strongly associated with Inverness and the surrounding area since the Clan's founder gaine ...

who are a separate Scottish clan of the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

(though with a common ancestry). Both clans have their own separate chief, both of whom are officially recognized by the

History

Origins of the clan

The exact origins of the surname "Fraser" can not be determined with any great certainty.Fraser Name Meaning
ancestry.com. Retrieved on 14 June 2015. The Frasers are believed to have come from Plantagenet Anjou in

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 ...

. Traditionally it is thought to have originated in France, but the Oxford Dictionary of Family Names (2016) notes there is no place name in France corresponding with the earliest spellings of the name "de Fresel", "de Friselle", and "de Freseliere", and suggests the possibility it represents a Gaelic name "corrupted beyond recognition by Anglo-French scribes". By the way, the name ''Fraser'' may be an altered form of the French patronymic ''Fresel''. The French surname ''Fresel'' meant "ribbon, braid" in Old French and was probably the nickname for such merchants. In fact, the surnames ''Fresel'' and ''Frezel'' are now centred on Normandy and Artois/French Flanders and not in Anjou because Fresel/Frezel were historically Plantagenet. It sounds like a derived form of ''fraise'' which means "strawberry" in French and such popular etymologies explain many badges and coats of arms. The first Fraser to appear in Scotland was in about 1160 when Simon Fraser held lands at Keith in East Lothian.

Wars of Scottish Independence

About five generations after the first Simon Fraser, another Simon Fraser was captured fighting for

Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventual ...

and was executed in 1306 by

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

. Simon’s cousin was Alexander Fraser of Cowie who was Bruce’s chamberlain. He married Bruce’s sister

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

. Alexander Fraser’s younger brother was another Sir Simon Fraser, from whom the chiefs of the

are descended. One of Simon Fraser’s grandsons was Sir Alexander Fraser of Cowie and Durris. This Alexander Fraser acquired a castle now called Cairnbulg Castle and the lands of Philorth by marriage to Joanna, younger daughter and co-heiress 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 ...

in 1375.

Frasers of Philorth

In 1592, Sir Alexander Fraser of Philorth received charters from James VI of Scotland for the fishing village of Faithlie which later became the town of

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

. Sir Alexander Fraser was also authorized to found a university in the town but this scheme was short-lived due to the religious troubles of the time. The eighth Laird of Philorth built Fraserburgh Castle, which later became the

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 ...

lighthouse. This bankrupted him and Philorth Castle was lost from the family for over three hundred years until 1934 when it was bought back by the 19th

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 ...

Lords Saltoun

17th and 18th centuries

The ninth Laird of Philorth married the heiress of the Abernethy Lords Saltoun. Their son,

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 ...

, was severely wounded at the

Battle of Worcester The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...

in 1651. He survived thanks to his servant, James Cardno, who rescued him from the battlefield. In 1666 the tenth Lord built Philorth House a mile from Fraserburgh which remained the family seat until it burned down in 1915. Sir Alexander Fraser of Durris was personal physician to

Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651, and King of England, Scotland and Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest surviving child of ...

. He was educated at

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 ...

and accompanied the king on his campaign throughout 1650. After the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

he sat in the Scottish Parliament and he featured in the diaries of Samuel Pepys. The Fraser family took no part in the

Jacobite risings , war = , image = Prince James Francis Edward Stuart by Louis Gabriel Blanchet.jpg , image_size = 150px , caption = James Francis Edward Stuart, Jacobite claimant between 1701 and 1766 , active ...

, although their distant Highland relatives in the

were Jacobites.

19th and 20th centuries

The sixteenth Lord Saltoun commanded the Light Companies of the First Guards at the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

in 1815. The nineteenth Lord Saltoun was a prisoner of war during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Later, in 1936 he became a member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

and promoted the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

References

External links

Website of Lady Saltoun, Chief of the Name and Arms of FraserFraser Heraldry
Fraser Societies
Clan Fraser Society of AustraliaClan Fraser Association for CaliforniaClan Fraser Society Scotland UK

Clan Fraser Society of North America
{{Scottish clans

Fraser Fraser may refer to: Places Antarctica * Fraser Point, South Orkney Islands Australia * Fraser, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen * Division of Fraser (Australian Capital Territory), a former federal e ...

Scottish Lowlands