Clan Colquhoun
Encyclopedia
Scottish clan
Scottish clans , give a sense of identity and shared descent to people in Scotland and to their relations throughout the world, with a formal structure of Clan Chiefs recognised by the court of the Lord Lyon, King of Arms which acts as an authority concerning matters of heraldry and Coat of Arms...
.
The clan motto shown above in the crest best translates to "if I can."
Origins of the clan
In the 13th century Maol Domhnaich, Earl of LennoxMaol Domhnaich, Earl of Lennox
Mormaer Maol Domhnaich was the son of Mormaer Ailín II, and ruled Lennox 1217–1250.Like his predecessor Ailín II, he showed absolutely no interest in extending an inviting hand to oncoming French or English settlers...
granted the lands of Colquhoun, located in Dunbartonshire
Dunbartonshire
Dunbartonshire or the County of Dumbarton is a lieutenancy area and registration county in the west central Lowlands of Scotland lying to the north of the River Clyde. Until 1975 it was a county used as a primary unit of local government with its county town and administrative centre at the town...
, to Humphry de Kilpatrick. Humphry’s son, Ingelram de Colquhoun, who lived in the reign of Alexander III
Alexander III of Scotland
Alexander III was King of Scots from 1249 to his death.-Life:...
, was the first person recorded as taking Colquhoun as a surname.
Around 1368, Luss
Luss
Luss is a village in Argyll & Bute, Scotland, on the west bank of Loch Lomond.-History:Historically in the County of Dunbarton, its original name is Clachan dubh, or 'dark village'...
, on Loch Lomond
Loch Lomond
Loch Lomond is a freshwater Scottish loch, lying on the Highland Boundary Fault. It is the largest lake in Great Britain by surface area. The lake contains many islands, including Inchmurrin, the largest fresh-water island in the British Isles, although the lake itself is smaller than many Irish...
, was acquired by Sir Robert Colquhoun through marriage. From then on the chiefship has been described as of Colquhoun and Luss.
His grandson Iain Colquhoun of Luss married Margaret, the daughter of the Earl of Lennox. When James I
James I of Scotland
James I, King of Scots , was the son of Robert III and Annabella Drummond. He was probably born in late July 1394 in Dunfermline as youngest of three sons...
returned from English imprisonment a few years later in 1424, one of the people he took his vengeance upon was the unsupportive Lennox. Lennox's position was devastated, and Iain of Luss took advantage of this to win the King’s favour by capturing Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Great Britain. It overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton, and sits on a plug of volcanic basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high.-Iron Age:...
from Lennox.
By 1427 he was Sheriff of Dumbarton and by 1439 he was dead, like his King, killed by those he had treated so badly. By way of compensation, James II
James II of Scotland
James II reigned as King of Scots from 1437 to his death.He was the son of James I, King of Scots, and Joan Beaufort...
made Luss a free barony for Colquhoun’s grandson Sir Iain. It remained this way until the 1745 Jacobite rising.
15th to 16th centuries
In 1424 the Clan LennoxClan Lennox
-Origins of the name:The name Lennox in gaelic comes from the place of the same name. The clan name comes from the title of Earl of Lennox which commanded the vale of Leven between the 12th and 15th centuries.-15th century:...
was decimated and Iain Colqhoun of Luss took advantage of this to win the King's favour by capturing Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Great Britain. It overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton, and sits on a plug of volcanic basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high.-Iron Age:...
from Lennox.
Sir John Colquhoun of Luss was appointed governor of Dumbarton Castle during the minority of King James II of Scotland
James II of Scotland
James II reigned as King of Scots from 1437 to his death.He was the son of James I, King of Scots, and Joan Beaufort...
, and was murdered in 1439 during a raid at Inchmurrin. He was succeeded by his son, also Sir John, who rose to be Comptroller of the Royal Household, and extended considerably the family estates.
In 1457 he received a charter incorporating all his lands into the free barony of Luss. The forests of Rossdhu and Glenmachome together with the lands of Kilmardinny, followed a year later. In 1474 he was part of the embassy to King Edward IV of England
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
, seeking to negotiate a marriage between the infant James IV and Edward’s daughter, Cecilia. He fought at the siege of Dunbar Castle
Dunbar Castle
Dunbar Castle is the remnants of one of the most mighty fortresses in Scotland, situated over the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian.-Early history:...
, held by rebels against the king, where he was killed by a cannonball.
The Clan Colquhoun were among the clans who fought against the English at the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh
Battle of Pinkie Cleugh
The Battle of Pinkie Cleugh, on the banks of the River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland on 10 September 1547, was part of the War of the Rough Wooing. It was the last pitched battle between Scottish and English armies, and is seen as the first modern battle in the British Isles...
in 1547, where the Colquhoun chief was killed. Clan chiefs from Clan Hunter
Clan Hunter
Clan Hunter is a Scottish clan which has its seat at Hunterston in Ayrshire. It has historical connections with both the 'Highlands' and 'Lowlands' of Scotland due to several centuries of operation in some of the formerly Gaelic speaking Scottish Islands including Arran, Bute and the Cumbraes...
, Clan Macfarlane
Clan MacFarlane
Clan MacFarlane is a Highland Scottish clan. The clan claims a descent from the old line of the Earls of Lennox. For some time there had been some controversy as to the descent of these earls, with both Gaelic and Anglo-Saxon origins given. Though today it is accepted that Clan MacFarlane is of...
, Clan Munro
Clan Munro
-Origins:The main traditional origin of the clan is that the Munros came from Ireland and settled in Scotland in the 11th century and that they fought as mercenary soldiers under the Earl of Ross who defeated Viking invaders in Rosshire...
and Clan Farquharson
Clan Farquharson
Clan Farquharson of Invercauld is a Highland Scottish clan. The clan hails from Aberdeenshire and is a member of the Chattan Confederation.-Origins:Farquhar - from the Gaelic 'fear' and 'char' meaning 'dear one'...
also died at this battle. A good clan chief was expected to lead by example; this meant being first into battle at the head of the clan. For this reason many clan chiefs died during battle. Because of the awful number of Scottish lives lost at the Battle of Pinkie the 10 September is known in Scotland as 'Black Saturday'.
17th century
The Battle of Glen FruinBattle of Glen Fruin
The Battle of Glen Fruin was fought on February 7, 1603 between the Clan Gregor and its allies on one side, and the Clan Colquhoun and its allies on the other...
saw Luss
Luss
Luss is a village in Argyll & Bute, Scotland, on the west bank of Loch Lomond.-History:Historically in the County of Dunbarton, its original name is Clachan dubh, or 'dark village'...
invaded by the Clan Gregor in 1603 and the defeat of five hundred Colquhoun men, three hundred of whom were on horseback, by four hundred MacGregor men. Over two hundred of the Colquhoun men were lost when the MacGregors, who had split into two parties, attacked from front and rear and forced the horsemen onto the soft ground of the Moss of Auchingaich. It meant the proscription of the Clan Gregor. It wasn’t until the 18th century that the enmity between the clans was interred when, at Glen Fruin on the site of the massacre, the chiefs of the Clan Gregor and Colquhoun met and shook hands.
Though throughout the internet, identified as the Eleventh Laird of Luss, it was the Sixteenth Laird of Colquhoun and Eighteenth Laird of Luss, Sir John Colquhoun, who became a baronet of Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
in 1625. William Fraser provided a wonderful genealogical tree of the Colquhoun and Luss lineage, which reflects the same. It is entirely proper to point out that whereas his work was commissioned by the then 'current' Laird of Luss, Sir James Colquhoun, twenty-six of Colquhoun and twenty-eighth of Luss, some instances of history seem to have been deemed 'unnecessary to elaborate upon' such as the one following, however the descendant lines of the two houses appears correct and clearly points to the Eighteenth Laird of Luss being the first Baronet of Novia Scotia. Seven years later, however, he vanished along with Lady Catherine Graham, his wife’s sister. He was accused of using witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
and sorcery to woo her and never returned to clear his name. On that subject Fraser was absolutely and completely evasive.:
"This arose from various misfortunes, to which it is unnecessary here
particularly to allude, further than that they required his residing
abroad for a considerable time during the period of his ownership of
the estates."
18th century
Sir Humphrey Colquhoun, fifth Baronet, represented Dunbartonshire in the last Scottish Parliament in 1703, and strongly opposed the Treaty of Union. On 30 March 1704, having no male heir, he resigned his baronetcy to the Crown and obtained a new patent, allowing the title to pass on his death to the male issue of his daughter’s husband, James Grant of Pluscardine. When Pluscardine’s elder brother died, he succeeded to the substantial estates of his father and once more assumed the name of Grant. He was ancestor of the Earls of Seafield and the Barons Strathspey, on whom the baronetcy devolved. Sir James Grant Colquhoun, fourth son of James Grant and Ann Colquhoun, succeeded to the Colquhoun estates, and built the grand mansion of Rossdhu which was until recently the seat of the chiefs.Colquhouns in America
William Colquhoun was a Scottish CovenanterCovenanter
The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent in that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century...
soldier who fought against Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
's Parliamentarians
Commonwealth of England
The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first England, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Between 1653–1659 it was known as the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland...
at the Battle of Dunbar
Battle of Dunbar (1650)
The Battle of Dunbar was a battle of the Third English Civil War. The English Parliamentarian forces under Oliver Cromwell defeated a Scottish army commanded by David Leslie which was loyal to King Charles II, who had been proclaimed King of Scots on 5 February 1649.-Background:The English...
. William and his brother John were both captured, and both were sent to America as a servants.
William gained his freedom and became a bricklayer on Cape Cod
Cape Cod
Cape Cod, often referred to locally as simply the Cape, is a cape in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States...
. William found that the name Colquhoun is too long to put on a brick and changed it to Cahoon. He was married and had children. One day he was hired to ambush a group of Pequot Indians
Pequot
Pequot people are a tribe of Native Americans who, in the 17th century, inhabited much of what is now Connecticut. They were of the Algonquian language family. The Pequot War and Mystic massacre reduced the Pequot's sociopolitical influence in southern New England...
harassing a town during King Philip's War
King Philip's War
King Philip's War, sometimes called Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, or Metacom's Rebellion, was an armed conflict between Native American inhabitants of present-day southern New England and English colonists and their Native American allies in 1675–76. The war is named after the main leader of the...
. Settlers found his body riddled with arrows and William's head on a pole as a sign of war. The wife remarried and moved down to Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
with the younger sons and changed their names to Calhoun. The older ones stayed on Cape Cod and later owned a portion of Long Pond near Brewster, Massachusetts
Brewster, Massachusetts
Brewster is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, Barnstable County being coextensive with Cape Cod. The population of Brewster was 9,820 at the 2010 census.Brewster is twinned with the town of Budleigh Salterton in the United Kingdom....
.
John Cowen was born Abt. 1636 in Scotland, and died Bet. 1697 – 1703 in Scituate, Massachusetts. He
married Rebecca Short 31 March 1656 in Scituate, Massachusetts
1
.
Notes for John Cowen:
An application to join the Sons of the American Revolution, by Benjamin Rush Cowen, approved 14 February 1896, stated that John Cowen came from Edinboro, Scotland, to Scituate, Massachusetts in 1656. There are no
records to support this claim, however, and most researchers believe that John arrived in Boston in February 1652
aboard the ship "John & Sara." The ship's passenger list included 261 Scots who had been taken prisoner by the
British (Oliver Cromwell's forces) at the Battle of Worcester on 3 September 1651. One of the Scots on the
passenger list was John Coehon (Colquhoun) and it is generally thought that it was this man who appears in
Scituate town records as John Cowin/Cowen.
The Scottish prisoners were marched from Boston to Lynn, Massachusetts, to work for the owners of the Lynn
Iron Works as indentured servants for a certain number of years. However, most were resold to various planters
and mill owners throughout the Colonies. After the period of indenture, these Scots became free men.
The first record of John Cowen in Scituate, MA was his marriage to the widow Rebecca Mann in 1656. The
following year (1657) John took the "oath of fidelitie" and became a "Freeman." Qualifications for this required
that a man must be a church member, orthodox in his religion, and not vicious in his life. At that time the First
Parish Church of Scituate was the only accepted one in the community, so it is assumed that John was a member
of that church. However, the churches of Scituate and Barnstable maintained no regular records at that time and
the handwriten manuscript of the pastor makes no mention of any Cowen, Cowing, or Mann. In 1670 John built
on land he had purchased in Connihassett, north of Sweet Swamp and east of Michael Pierce's farm, in the area
known locally as Egypt. This name was humorously applied to the area as the land of corn and plenty when
other areas were not so blessed with abundance.
Subsequently, John's name appeared in several court records. The records of 1660 show that John Cowen was
fined 10s for refusing to assist the marshall in the execution of his office. On 5 October 1665, John—with Apt.
James Cudworth—gave a bond for the benefit of the Mann children "until they shall come to attaine the age of
twenty one years." Then on 8 March 1671, he appeared "being bound ouer to answer for speaking of
contemptable words against royal authorities, in that hee should say that hee scorned to be in subjection to any
English Man and that there were never any kings in England, but one crooked backed Richard, a crooked rogue,
just like one hee named, a crooked man well known in the town of Scituate *** it was deferred until the June
court next and the said Cowin to be kept in durance vile till then." At the June court the jury brought him in—not
guilty. In his history of Scituate, Dean called this a "curious evidence of his Scottish Spirit."
Records of the deaths of John and Rebecca have not been found. John probably died after 17 December 1697
(when land granted to John by the town of Scituate was laid out) and before 27 September 1703 (when his son
Israel sold this land).
Children of John Cowing and Rebecca Mann:
- Joseph Cowen, born 3 December 1657 in Scituate, Massachusetts died 26 March 1676 in Rehobeth, Massachusetts.
- Mary Cowen, born 14 May 1659 in Scituate, Massachusetts, Married Benjamin Pierce, Jr .
- John Cowen II, born 10 July 1662 in Scituate, Massachusetts; died December 1729.
- Israel Cowen, born 10 December 1664 in Scituate, Massachusetts; died 15 January 1716/17 in Scituate, Massachusetts.
- Rebecca (Rebekah) Cowen, born 10 May 1666 in Scituate, Massachusetts; died Bef. 10 November 1728 in Dorchester, Ma
Descendants of John Cowing now go by the name Cowen, they live in Massachusetts(Fall River, New Bedford) and Texas(San Antonio).
Cited Sources:
Genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of the state of Massachusetts, Volume 3 (Google eBook).William Richard Cutter, William Frederick Adams Lewis historical publishing company, 1910 – History
Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s–1900s about John Colquhoun. DOBSON, DAVID. The Original Scots Colonists of Early America Supplement: 1607–1707. Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998. 185p.
Clan Colquhoun today
Sir Ivar Colquhoun, 30th Laird of Luss and 32nd Chief of Colquhoun succeeded as chief of the clan in 1948. He was the longest serving chief of the clan having served as chief for almost 60 years until his death in 2008. Upon his death he was succeeded by his surviving son Malcolm.Clan profile
- Clan chiefScottish clan chiefThe Scottish Gaelic word clann means children. In early times, and possibly even today, clan members believed themselves to descend from a common ancestor, the founder of the Scottish clan. From its perceived founder a clan takes its name. The clan chief is the representative of this founder, and...
: Sir Malcolm Rory Colquhoun of Luss, 9th Baronet of LussColquhoun BaronetsThere have been two Baronetcies created for members of the Colquhoun family, one in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia and one in the Baronetage of Great Britain... - Plant badge: DogberryDogwoodThe genus Cornus is a group of about 30-60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods. Most dogwoods are deciduous trees or shrubs, but a few species are nearly herbaceous perennial subshrubs, and a few of the woody species are evergreen...
or HazelHazelThe hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.They have simple, rounded leaves with double-serrate margins...
Pipe Music: The Colquhoun's March
Clan septs
The Clan Colquhoun Society of the United Kingdom considers the following names as septSept (social)
A sept is an English word for a division of a family, especially a division of a clan. The word might have its origin from Latin saeptum "enclosure, fold", or it can be an alteration of sect.The term is found in both Ireland and Scotland...
s of Clan Colquhoun. However several of the names are claimed by other clans, including Clan Gregor – traditional enemy of Clan Colquhoun.
- Cowan (or Cowen), Ingram (or Ingraham), Kilpatrick, King, Kirkpatrick, Laing, McCowan, McMain, McManus, McLintock and McOwan.