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
The Kingdom of Scotland was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a Anglo-Sc ...
.
Life
He was the son of
William Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, and wife
Marjory, Countess of Buchan, the heiress of the last
native Scottish Mormaer of Buchan,
Fergus. He was the chief counsellor of
Alexander III,
King of Alba (Scotland) for the entire period of the king's majority and as Scotland's leading magnate, played a key role in safeguarding the independence of the Scottish monarchy. During his long career, Alexander Comyn was
Justiciar of Scotia (1258–1289),
Constable of Scotland (1275–1289),
Sheriff of Wigtown (1263–1266),
Sheriff of Dingwall (1264–1266),
Baillie
A bailie or baillie is a civic officer in the local government of Scotland. The position arose in the burghs, where bailies formerly held a post similar to that of an alderman or magistrate (see bailiff). Baillies appointed the high constables ...
of
Inverie (in
Knoydart) and finally,
Guardian of Scotland
The Guardians of Scotland were regents who governed the Kingdom of Scotland from 1286 until 1292 and from 1296 until 1306. During the many years of minority in Scotland's subsequent history, there were many guardians of Scotland and the post ...
(1286–1289) during the first
interregnum
An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of revolutionary breach of legal continuity, discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one m ...
following the death of
Alexander III. In 1284 he joined with other Scottish noblemen who acknowledged
Margaret of Norway as the heiress to King Alexander.
[''Foedera'', p. 228] He died sometime after 10 July 1289.
Marriage and issue
Alexander had at least nine children with his wife, Elizabeth (or Isabel or Isabella) de Quincy, daughter of
Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester, and wife
Helen of Galloway:
*
John Comyn, Earl of Buchan
John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan (circa 1260 – 1308) was a chief opponent of Robert the Bruce in the civil war that paralleled the War of Scottish Independence. He should not be confused with the better known John III Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, ...
, Alexander's successor as Earl of Buchan;
* Roger;
* Lord
Alexander Comyn,
sheriff
A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...
of
Aberdeen
Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...
, married Joan, sister of
William Latimer, 4th Baron Latimer, and had issue.
Henry de Beaumont would claim the Earldom of Buchan through marriage to their daughter,
Alice
Alice may refer to:
* Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname
Literature
* Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll
* ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...
;
* Lord William Comyn,
Provost of St. Mary's Church,
St Andrews
St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...
;
* Lady Marjorie Comyn married
Patrick IV, Earl of March;
* Lady Agnes Egidia Comyn married
Malise III, Earl of Strathearn;
* Lady Elisabetha Comyn married
Gilbert de Umfraville, Earl of Angus Gilbert may refer to:
People and fictional characters
*Gilbert (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Gilbert (surname), including a list of people
Places Australia
* Gilbert River (Queensland)
* Gilbert River (Sout ...
;
* Lady Elena Comyn married Sir William de Brechin;
* Lady Annora Comyn married
Nicholas I de Soules.
References
Sources
*
Rymer, Thomas;''Foedera Conventiones, Literae et cuiuscunque generis Acta Publica inter Reges Angliae'', London, 1745. (Latin
* Young, Alan; ''Robert the Bruce's Rivals: The Comyns, 1213–1314'', (East Linton, 1997).
* Young, Alan and Cumming, George; ''The Real Patriots of Early Scottish Independence'', Birlinn, (Edinburgh, 2014).
13th-century births, Comyn, Alexander
Comyn, Alexander
Year of birth unknown
Nobility from Aberdeenshire
Alexander
Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here ar ...
Comyn, Alexander
Comyn, Alexander
Comyn, Alexander
13th-century mormaers
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