Clan Forbes
Forbes | |||
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Foirbeis | |||
Motto | Grace, me guide. Seat Castle Forbes | | |
Historic seat | Culloden House | ||
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Clan Forbes is a Highland Scottish clan from Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
History
Origins
The name Forbes is most probably a
The next mention is a John Forbes, whose name dates from a 1306 roll containing a list of demands by English and Scottish loyalists to Edward I of England for the forfeited lands of Scotsmen, the lands of John Forbes being demanded or requested by both a William Comyn and a Robert Chival.[5] The next name may be that of his son, Christian, who received a grant of one-third of the lands of Skeith and Ardach by King Robert the Bruce in 1326, but doubt still remains he was a Forbes or of this family,[6] even though in the charter he is named Christian Forbes.[5]
The next name found in records is that of John Forbes dominus ejusdem or Lord of Forbes.[7] He witnessed two charters of Thomas, Earl of Mar in 1358 and 1359 and in 1364 King David II of Scotland confirmed a charter for the lands of Edinbanchory and Craiglogy by Thomas, Earl of Mar granting them to John de Forbes.[8] He was Sheriff of Aberdeen in 1374.[8] In 1378 a charter was granted to John and his wife Margaret by the Bishop of Moray for the lands of Fynrossie on the loch of Spynie. At his death before 20 August 1387 he was described as "a gude man, wise, and mychty, and manly in his time."[9]
The son of the latter, Sir John de Forbes, Lord of Forbes, called "Sir John of the black lip"
15th century
Sir John Forbes's son,
James, second Lord Forbes, married Egidia, daughter of William Keith, 1st Earl Marischal, and had three sons: William, the 3rd Lord Forbes, Duncan, ancestor of the Forbeses of Corsindae and Monymusk, and Patrick, ancestor of the Forbeses, Baronets of Craigievar, now Lord Sempill, and also of the Earls of Granard.[16]
Alexander, fourth Lord Forbes, was in arms with his clan to revenge the murder of James III, but after the defeat at Tillymoss he submitted to James IV.[17] John, the sixth Lord, succeeded his brother Arthur, the 5th Lord Forbes, in 1493. In 1536 he was charged with treason and was imprisoned in Edinburgh Castle, but was honourably acquitted after a long period of confinement.[18] John Forbes, Master of Forbes, his eldest surviving son and heir designate was arrested with his father, also on charges of treason, and was condemned to be hanged, but due to his rank he was beheaded.[19]
16th century
In 1529, Clan Forbes was involved in a feud with the citizens of Aberdeen, who withheld a sort of blackmail, a yearly tun of wine for the fishings of the Don. In July 1530 Arthur Forbes of Brux and his accomplices attacked Aberdeen. The citizens took arms and drove the invaders to Greyfriars Place. The street fights lasted twenty-four hours. One member of clan Forbes and some of the citizens were killed, a good many on both sides were wounded. Several of the inhabitants of Aberdeen, and commissioners were sent to the king to lodge a complaint. On 19 December the following year, the magistrates served letters of law-burrows against Pitsligo, Tolquhon, Corsindae, Brux, Echt, and other gentlemen of the name of Forbes and Lord Pitsligo was obliged to find caution to the council at Perth for his own and friends good behaviour towards the town of Aberdeen. At that time a deadly feud subsisted between Clan Forbes and Clan Leslie; and it is probable that some of the Aberdeen townsfolk had interfered in that quarrel, which furiously raged throughout Aberdeenshire, and was attended by mutual massacres and murders.[2][20][21]
Throughout the 16th century the Clan Forbes were involved in a long and bitter struggle against the
17th century
Alexander, the 10th Lord Forbes, was a Lieutenant general under Gustavus Adolphus during the Thirty Years' War.[23] On his return to Scotland he was given a commission and charged with suppressing uprisings in Ireland. He later retired to Germany and died on 20 April 1672 in Stockholm, Sweden.[24]
18th century
During the
Branches
The
The Forbeses,
The Forbeses of Tolquhon Castle, a very old branch, acquired that estate in 1420, and were progenitors of the Lairds of
Sir William Forbes, eighth Baronet of Craigievar, in 1884 succeeded his kinswoman as Lord Sempill, Chief of Clan Sempill.[2]
Tartans
Tartan image | Notes |
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Forbes Tartan, Scottish Register of Tartans #1214, Approved by Malcolm, 23rd Lord Forbes, Chief of Clan Forbes. |
Clan chief
- Malcolm Forbes, 23rd Lord Forbesand Chief of the Name and Arms of Forbes.
Castles
Castles that have been owned by the Clan Forbes have included amongst many others:
- Castlehill at Druminnor, one and a half miles north-east of Rhynie, Aberdeenshire, was the site of the first stronghold on the lands, which the Forbeses held from 1271 to 1440.[22] They then moved to Druminnor Castle.[22]
- Druminnor Castle, one mile south-east of Rhynie, Aberdeenshire, consists of a keep and tower that has been much altered and was first built by the Forbeses in the fifteenth century.[22] It was modified in the sixteenth century when it was made into an L-plan and there have also been later alterations.[22] The Forbeses feuded with the Leslies, Setons, and the powerful Clan Gordon; twenty Gordons were killed at a banquet held at Druminnor Castle in 1571.[22] In 1770 Druminnor Castle was sold, and the Forbes family moved to Castle Forbes.[22]
- Castle Forbes, a few miles northeast of Alford, Aberdeenshire, was once a tower house, but was replaced with a large castellated mansion of 1815.[22]
- Craigievar Castle, four and a half miles southwest of Alford, Aberdeenshire, was built by the Forbeses.[22] It is an L-plan tower house of seven storeys.[22] The castle was actually started by the Mortimer family but they ran out of money and it was completed by the Forbeses.[22] The castle was taken over by the National Trust for Scotland in 1963 and is now open to the public.[22]
- Battle of Pinkie Cleugh in 1547.[22] The present castle was built by William Forbes, the seventh laird.[22] The tenth Forbes laird of Tolquhon saved Charles II of England's life at the Battle of Worcester in 1651.[22] In 1716 the Forbeses sold the castle to the Farquhars to help cover their losses in the Darien scheme, but the eleventh Forbes laird had to be forcibly removed from the castle by a detachment of soldiers in 1718.[22]
- Corgarff Castle is in a remote spot ten miles northwest of Ballater, Aberdeenshire, and is a tall tower house.[22] It is four storeys high and dates from the sixteenth century.[22] It is the site of one of the most infamous events of the bitter feud between the Clan Forbes and Clan Gordon: a force under Adam Gordon of Auchindoun ravaged through the Forbeses' lands and besieged the castle, which was held by twenty-six women, children, and servants, the men being away.[22] Margaret Campbell, wife of Forbes of Towie, refused to surrender the castle. Gordon of Auchindoun lost patience when she shot one of his men in the knee;[22] Gordon then torched the building, killing everyone inside.[22]
- Culloden House at Duncan Forbes, Lord Culloden, who supported the British-Hanoverian Government during the Jacobite rising of 1745 and was present at the Battle of Culloden.[22] He later protested against the cruel and dishonorable treatment of Jacobite prisoners after the battle,[22] when many wounded Jacobites were brought to Culloden House and were shot or had their heads crushed with musket butts.[22]
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 0-00-472501-8
- ^ a b c d e f g h The Scottish clans and their tartans (Edinburgh: W. & A.K. Johnston, 1900) access link Page 22
- The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 42
- ^ Alistair and Henrietta Tayler, The House of Forbes, Revised Edition (Scotpress, 1987), p. 3
- ^ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 43
- ^ a b Alistair and Henrietta Tayler, The House of Forbes, Revised Edition (Scotpress, 1987), p. 13
- ^ a b John Burke & Sir Bernard Burke, C.B., Burke's Peerage, Baronetage, and Knightage, Ed. Peter Townsend (London: Burke's Peerage Ltd., 1963), p. 938
- ^ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 45
- ^ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 46
- ^ a b George Edward Cokayne, The Complete Peerage of England Scotland Ireland Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant Extinct or Dormant, Vol. V, Ed. H. A. Doubleday & Howard de Walden (London: The St. Catherine Press, Ltd., 1926), p. 544
- ^ ISBN 0-00-470547-5.
- ^ ISBN 0-00-470547-5.
- ^ Alistair and Henrietta Tayler, The House of Forbes, Revised Edition (Scotpress, 1987), p. 29
- ^ a b Alistair and Henrietta Tayler, The House of Forbes, Revised Edition (Scotpress, 1987), p. 31
- The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 49
- The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 51
- The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), pp. 52-3
- The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 53
- ^ Alistair and Henrietta Tayler, The House of Forbes, Revised Edition (Scotpress, 1987), pp. 68-9
- ^ Walter Thom, The history of Aberdeen (Aberdeen: A. Stevenson, 1811), p.170 Internet link
- ^ John Stuart, Extracts from the Council Register of the Burgh of Aberdeen (Aberdeen: The Spalding Club, 1844)[page needed] Internet link
- ^ ISBN 978-1-899874-36-1.
- ^ Duncan A. Bruce, The Mark of Scots (New York: Kensington Publishing Corp., 1996), p. 159
- The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Ed. James Balfour Paul, Vol. IV (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1907), p. 62
- W. & A.K. Johnston. p. 26. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
- ^ ISBN 0-85976-432-X..