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 1396 - 1449 (~ 52 years)
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| Name |
Alexander MACDONALD [2] |
| Suffix |
10th. Earl of Ross |
| Born |
Jul 1396 |
Dingwall, Ross-Shire, Scotland  [2] |
| Gender |
Male |
| FamilySearch ID |
LB1M-87T |
| TitleOfNobility |
[3] |
| King of the Hebrides |
| TitleOfNobility |
Between 1423 and 1449 [3] |
| 9th Lord of the Isles of Islay |
| TitleOfNobility |
Between 1437 and 1449 [3] |
| 10th Earl of Ross |
| Name |
Alexander MACDONALD [3] |
| Occupation |
Between 1439 and 1449 [3] |
| Justicar of Scotland |
| Buried |
1449 |
Fortrose Cathedral, Fortrose, Ross-shire, Scotland [2] |
| Died |
7 May 1449 |
Dingwall, Ross-Shire, Scotland [2] |
| Person ID |
I594767848 |
Carney Wehofer Feb 2024 Genealogy |
| Last Modified |
14 Feb 2023 |
| Father |
Donald MACDONALD, 8th Lord of the Isles, b. Abt 1351, Western Isles, Scotland , d. 8 May 1423, Dingwall, Ross-Shire, Scotland (Age ~ 72 years) |
| Mother |
Mariota LESLIE, Countess of Ross, b. 1363, Leslie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland , d. 1429, Dingwall, Ross-Shire, Scotland (Age 66 years) |
| Married |
8 Oct 1395 |
Dingwall, Ross-Shire, Scotland [2] |
| Family ID |
F536729019 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family |
Elizabeth SETON,, Countess of Huntly, b. 1405, Huntly Castle, Strathbogie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland , d. 1449, Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (Age 44 years) |
| Married |
1425 |
Clackmannanshire, Scotland [3] |
| Children |
| | 1. Florence Flora MACDONALD, b. 10 Dec 1425, Kirkton, Cromartyshire, Scotland , d. 1463, Glenorchy, Argyll, Scotland (Age 37 years) |
| | 2. Celestine MACDONALD, 1st of Lochalsh, b. 1429, Cromarty, Ross & Cromarty, Scotland , d. 1476, Rosemarkie, Ross & Cromarty, Scotland (Age 47 years) |
| | 3. Lady Mariota MACDONALD, b. 1432, Western Isles, Strathclyde, Scotland , d. 1455, Sutherland, Scotland (Age 23 years) |
| | 4. John MACDONALD, 4th and last Lord of the Isles, 13th Earl of Ross, b. Abt 1435, Tulloch Castle, Inverness-shire, Scotland , d. 1503, Renfrewshire, Scotland (Age ~ 68 years) |
| | 5. Hugh MACDONALD, 1st of the Macdonalds of Sleat branch "?isdean", b. Abt 1436, Dingwall, Ross-Shire, Scotland , d. 1498, Skye Isle, Inverness-shire, Scotland (Age ~ 62 years) |
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| Last Modified |
14 Feb 2023 |
| Family ID |
F536729615 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
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| Notes |
- Alexander was the great grandson of King Robert II of Scotland and inherited his father Domhnall's alliance with King James I of Scotland against the power of the Albany Stewarts, who by the time James returned to Scotland from English captivity in 1424 ruled more of Scotland than King James could. By 1425 James had decided to destroy the Albany Stewarts once and for all. In May of this year, Alexander attended the Stirling parliament, and sat on the jury of 21 knights and peers which ordered the execution of Murdoch (Muireadhach), Duke of Albany, along with his son Alexander and his ally Donnchadh, Earl of Lennox.[2]
However, the destruction of the Albany Stewarts removed the main reason for the co-operation between the King and the Lord of the Isles.[3] It is possible that, as Michael Brown believes, James acknowledged Alexander's control of the earldom of Ross as a reward for his support against Albany, as in 1426 Alexander used the style "Master of the Earldom of Ross".[4] However, Richard Oram takes a different view, and sees Alexander's adoption of this title and occupation of much of the earldom as a provocation towards James, since it had passed to him after the death of John Stewart, Earl of Buchan and Ross in 1424, and James was legally entitled the hold the earldom. Alexander's use of this title, if it were provocation, would have been compounded in the king's mind by the fact that Alexander's uncle John M?r MacDonald was harbouring and protecting James M?r (or James the Fat), the son of Duke Murdoch, while James M?r was claiming James' throne.[5]
Captivity
Inverness Castle, the location of Alexander's first captivity. Although the modern castle is not medieval, the site is.
At any rate, the king had certainly adopted a more hostile attitude towards Alexander. In 1428, James travelled into the north of Scotland both to assert his authority in Ross and to bring order to the north. James requested a meeting with Alexander, and in August Alexander travelled in good faith to meet James at Inverness, where James was holding court. James however, in an act typical of his kingship, imprisoned Alexander, his mother Mariota (by whose lineage Alexander claimed Ross) and around fifty of his followers, including his uncle and heir-designate John M?r, in the tower of Inverness Castle. Included among the other prisoners were Alexander's most important Ross allies; men such as Aonghas Dubh MacAoidh, the chief of the MacKays of Strathnaver, a man who was reputed to have a warband 4000 strong; a prisoner also was Aonghas' son Niall ?g, the husband of the daughter of the head of the Foulis Munro kindred of Easter Ross, one of Ross' most important families. The head of the Munros himself, George Munro, may also have been arrested, but if he was he was quickly released. William Leslie and John de Ross of Balnagown, two important landowners and kinsmen of Mariota, were also imprisoned, as were the heads of the Wester Ross Lochalsh MacMhathain (Matheson) and the Kintail MacChoinnich (MacKenzie) kindreds. Most of these men, including John M?r, seem to have been released within a short time, although James took a few back to the south with him.[6]
According to Michael Brown and the 17th century History of the MacDonalds, James attempted to do a deal with John M?r, probably offering him the Lordship of the Isles, to which he was heir and for which he had revolted against his brother Domhnall decades before. John however refused to negotiate until Alexander was released. Furthermore, King James' plans met disaster when his messenger James Campbell attempted to arrest "Johannis de Insulis" and killed him in the attempt. King James tried to distance himself from the killing, and had Campbell hanged. Before the end of 1428. Alexander was released on a promise of good behaviour.[7]
War against the King
Oil-painting of James I, King of Scots (1406/24-1437).
Almost as soon as he was released, Alexander was at war with the king. Domhnall Ballach ("the Freckled"), son of his uncle John M?r, may have been seeking revenge for his father's death, and if this was the case, he was supported by his other uncle Alasdair Carrach ("the Curly"), Lord of Lochaber. Together, these two men, the two most important nobles in the lordship, probably helped pressure Alexander into war. In Spring 1429, Alexander's forces advanced on Inverness. Although Maol Choluim Mac an T?isich ("Malcolm MacKintosh"), head of Clan Chattan and custodian of the castle, managed to hold Alexander off, Alexander was still able to burn down the burgh. Alexander, meanwhile, was planning to support James M?r, son of Duke Murdoch, in his claim on the Scottish throne. James M?r had become a serious threat to King James, not merely because was he likely to have the support of Murdoch's former vassals in Lennox, Menteith and Fife, but also because he had obtained the backing of the King of England, who was angry that King James was ignoring his superior status and the terms of his release from captivity in England several years before. Now James M?r had the support of Alexander too.[8]
At this point, however, James was saved by the sudden death of his rival. As the Annals of the Four Masters reports:
Semus Stiuard Mac R?gh Alban, & rioghdhamhna Alban beos iarna indarbadh a h-Albain i n-Erinn do ?cc, iar t-techt loingis ? fheraibh Alban for a chend dia R?oghadh.[9]James Stuart, son of the King of Scotland, and Roydamna of Scotland, who had been banished from Scotland to Ireland, died, after the arrival of a fleet from the men of Scotland to convey him home, that he might be made king.[10]
In the summer, King James raised a large army and after a swift march north through Atholl and Badenoch, the royal army encountered Alexander somewhere around the borders of Lochaber and Badenoch. Although according to Walter Bower Alexander had 10,000 men, when the royal standard was unfurled the Chattan and Cameron kindreds switched over to the King. In the following engagement Alexander was defeated. Although Alexander got away, the king capitalized on his victory by marching further north and seizing the castles of Urquhart and Dingwall. The king now sought Alexander's capture, and sent an expedition armed with artillery into the Hebrides. Alexander, who had probably fled to Islay, found himself in a very difficult position, and on 27 August 1429 surrendered to King James at Holyrood Abbey, near the burgh of Edinburgh. King James was persuaded by his magnates to give Alexander grace, and sent him to Tantallon Castle under the custody of William Douglas, 2nd Earl of Angus, King James' nephew.[11]
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| Sources |
- [SAuth] Jim Carney, compiled by James H Carney [(E-ADDRESS), & MAILING ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Buderim, Queensland 4556 AUSTRALIA.
- [S1160] FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 2 Jan 2023), entry for Donald MacDonald, person ID GSLZ-BNP. (Reliability: 3).
- [S1160] FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 14 Feb 2023), entry for Alexander MacDonald, person ID LB1M-87T. (Reliability: 3).
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