John Comyn (Cumyn) ( – ) was

Lord of Badenoch {{Use dmy dates, date=April 2022 The Lord of Badenoch was a magnate who ruled the lordship of Badenoch in the 13th century and early 14th century. The lordship may have been created out of the territory of the Meic Uilleim, after William Comyn, ju ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. He was Justiciar of Galloway in 1258. He held lands in Nithsdale ( Dalswinton, a Comyn stronghold, and Duncow) and Tynedale.

Life

The Comyn family were in effective power in

from 1249 to 1255, when Alexander III of Scotland was a minor; John was one of those with court influence. The Comyns were ousted by

Alan Durward Alan Hostarius (or Alan Durward) () (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 Coluim, Mormaer of ...

, 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 John, King of England, King John and Isabella of Ang ...

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 ...

(1265), with John Baliol the elder and Robert Bruce the elder, and was captured. In 1267 he was given licence to crenellate Tarset Castle in Tynedale (by present-day Lanehead, near

Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and 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 nearby, and close to Hadrian's Wall. Hexham was the administra ...

), 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 clan chief, chief, the ...

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 beco ...

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 is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

'' he died in 1274, and was nephew of Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan, Constable of Scotland, 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, 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 and Dervorguilla of Galloway; had issue. * William of Kirkintilloch (died 1291), married Isabella Russell, daughter of John Russell and Isabella, Countess of Menteith; 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; had issue. * a daughter who married Sir William Galbraith, 4th of that Ilk; had issue. * a daughter who married firstly Richard Siward and secondly Geoffrey de Mowbray; had issue. * a daughter who married Sir Andrew Moray; had issue.Balfour Paul J., ''Scots Peerage'' voll i, p. 506
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Notes

Citations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Comyn, John I, Lord of Badenoch Comyn Comyn Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain Nobility from Highland (council area) 13th-century Scottish nobility Clan Comyn Lords of Badenoch