Early life

According to

James Balfour Paul Sir James Balfour Paul (16 November 1846 – 15 September 1931) was the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the officer responsible for heraldry in Scotland, from 1890 until the end of 1926. Life James Balfour Paul was educated at Royal High School, Edinbur ...

's 1908 volume 5 of ''

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 Rober ...

'', Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat was the son of Thomas Fraser of Lovat but it is not known who Thomas's wife was. Hugh succeeded his father before May 1455 and as a minor was put under the care of

Archibald Douglas, Earl of Moray Archibald Douglas, Earl of Moray (1426 – 1 May 1455) was a Scottish nobleman during the reign of King James II of Scotland. He was one of the five brothers from the Black Douglas family who clashed with the king. Life Douglas was the son ...

(d. 1455).

Bernard Burke Sir John Bernard Burke, (5 January 1814 – 12 December 1892) was a British genealogist and Ulster King of Arms, who helped publish ''Burke's Peerage''. Personal life Burke, of Irish descent, was born at London and was educated in London an ...

, in his 1869 ''A Genealogical And Heraldic Dictionary of The Peerage And Baronetage of The British Empire'', designates the same Hugh Fraser as the 3rd Lord Lovat and says that he was the son of Hugh Fraser, 2nd Lord Lovat and his wife who was a sister of David Wemyss "

Of that Ilk "Of that Ilk", otherwise known as "Chief of that Bluid", is a term used in the Scottish nobility to denote a clan chieftain in some Scottish clans. The term '' of that ilk'' means "of the same ame, and is used to avoid repetition in a person's ti ...

", and the grandson of Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat (died 1440) and his wife Janet who was a sister of William Fenton "Of that Ilk". The family tree published by the modern Clan Fraser of Lovat organization agrees with James Balfour Paul in designating him as Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat and that he was the son of Thomas Fraser of Lovat.

Lord Lovat

In 1450 his father sent him to be educated by the Earl of Moray. He was known to the

Regent of Scotland A regent is a person selected to act as head of state (ruling or not) because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. The following is a list of regents throughout history. Regents in extant monarchies Those who held a regency b ...

who was then Duke of Albany when introduced and knighted by

James II of Scotland James II (16 October 1430 – 3 August 1460) was King of Scots from 1437 until his death in 1460. The eldest surviving son of James I of Scotland, he succeeded to the Scottish throne at the age of six, following the assassination of his fathe ...

and thence joined the

Order of the Thistle The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland, who asserted that he was reviving an earlier order. The ...

. Hugh was summoned to Parliament as Lord Fraser of Lovat sometime between 1456 and 1464. In 1464, he made an agreement with a kinsman, Alexander Fraser of Phillorth, that each would agree to support each other's surviving heir, depending on who died first. It recognised the perilous lifespan of a highlander in an age of bloody civil conflict. On 13 May 1471, the Court Auditor on behalf of Malcolm Fleming, 1st Lord Fleming ordered Hugh to pay for some land purchases granted two years previously. Hugh opposed the chaos in the Isles that led to James II's early death. The

Lord of the Isles Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles ( or ; ) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was ...

recruited

Gallowglass The Gallowglass (also spelled galloglass, gallowglas or galloglas; from meaning "foreign warriors") were a class of elite mercenary warriors who were principally members of the Norse-Gaelic clans of Ireland and Scotland between the mid 13th ...

mercenaries to plunder his lands, seize Inverness, march to

Atholl Atholl or Athole () is a district in the heart of the Scottish Highlands, bordering (in clockwise order, from north-east) Marr, Gowrie, Perth, Strathearn, Breadalbane, Lochaber, and Badenoch. Historically it was a Pictish kingdom, becoming ...

and burn the Church of St Bride. His tenants laid siege to

Lovat Castle Lovat Castle was a castle in the Highlands of Scotland, near Kirkhill and Beauly. The castle stood on the south bank of the River Beauly. Originally known as ''Beauly Castle'', it was built by the Bissets in the 11th-12th century. The castle ca ...

, but his clan remained loyal, easily repelling the invasion. The MacDonalds victory at a battle at Caplach, west of

Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...

returned peace to the glen of

The Aird The Aird (from Scottish Gaelic ''An Àird'', "the high place") is a district of Inverness-shire lying on the south side of the Beauly Firth, between the rivers Beauly and Ness. It includes the villages of Kirkhill, Kiltarlity, Lentran and ...

. On 31 March 1472, Hugh agreed to protect the citizens of the hill

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

Nairn Nairn (; ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Highland (council area), Highland Council council areas of Scotland, area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness, at the point where the River Nair ...

. He bought Oreland for 50

Merks The merk () is a long-obsolete Scotland, Scottish silver coin. Originally the same word as a Mark (currency), money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 1 ...

off William Wallace of Craigie, and, planted some orchards. The late medieval period was lawless and violent, and after a period of peace, he was obliged to act for the King in the wars of the Lords of the Isles and his kinfolk. Clannish feuds broke out in

Sutherland Sutherland () is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in the Scottish Highlands, Highlands of Scotland. The name dates from the Scandinavian Scotland, Viking era when t ...

and

Caithness Caithness (; ; ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Scotland. There are two towns, being Wick, Caithness, Wick, which was the county town, and Thurso. The count ...

. 18 peasants were killed in a dispute that burnt

Beauly Priory Beauly Priory was a Valliscaulian monastic community located at "Insula de Achenbady", now Beauly, Inverness-shire. It was probably founded in 1230. It is not known for certain who the founder was, different sources giving Alexander II of Scot ...

. Some racial disputes between

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

and

Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...

descendants of the feudal clan system were complicated by

James III of Scotland James III (10 July 1451/May 1452 – 11 June 1488) was King of Scots from 1460 until his death at the Battle of Sauchieburn in 1488. He inherited the throne as a child following the death of his father, King James II, at the siege of Roxburg ...

's minority. Two years earlier he was party to a charter ratified on 28 February 1480. Hugh Fraser of Lovat was among the party of nobles who met the King when he crossed the

Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is a firth in Scotland, an inlet of the North Sea that separates Fife to its north and Lothian to its south. Further inland, it becomes the estuary of the River Forth and several other rivers. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate ...

to Blackness, Falkirk in an effort to crush the rebellious incursions. The English defeated James, who was slain at

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

before his loyal lords could intervene. Lovat lived to old age, but his favourite son was slain at the

Battle of Flodden The Battle of Flodden, Flodden Field, or occasionally Branxton or Brainston Moor was fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland and resulted in an English victory ...

alongside

James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James I ...

Family

Burke stated that he married Lady Margaret, daughter of the Earl of Glamis and was succeeded by his son, Thomas Fraser, 4th of Lovat. However, according to James Balfour Paul, Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat married Violetta, daughter of

Patrick Lyon, 1st Lord Glamis Patrick Lyon, 1st Lord Glamis (140221 March 1459) Privy Council of Scotland, P.C. was a Scottish nobleman, created Lord Glamis on 28 June 1445. He was a son of Sir John Lyon of Glamis () and Elizabeth Graham, daughter of Sir Patrick Graham of Du ...

(d. 1459) and they had the following children: # Thomas Fraser, 2nd Lord Lovat (heir and successor). #Margaret Fraser, married Hector de Kilmalew and had a son, Alexander. #Egidia Fraser, who married Ferquhard Mackintosh, 12th of Mackintosh. The modern Clan Fraser of Lovat organization states that Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat also had a son called Hugh Fraser from who descend the cadet branches, the Frasers of Fairfield,

Merkinch Merkinch (from the Scottish Gaelic: ''Marc-Innis'', meaning "The Horse Island") is an area of the city of Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. Originally an island separated from the rest of the city by a small river to the south known as The A ...

, Aberchalder, Foyers, Kinmonarie, and Dunchea. According to James Balfour Paul, Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat died before 14 October 1501.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lovat, Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord 1430s births 1500s deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain Nobility from Highland (council area) Clan Fraser Clan Fraser Chiefs Lords Lovat Lords of Parliament (pre-1707) Peers created by James II of Scotland