Earl of Fife
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The Earl of Fife or Mormaer of Fife referred to the Gaelic
Gaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
comital lordship of Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
which existed in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
until the early 15th century.
The Mormaer
Mormaer
The title of Mormaer designates a regional or provincial ruler in the medieval Kingdom of the Scots. In theory, although not always in practice, a Mormaer was second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a toisech.-Origin:...
s of Fife were the highest ranking native
Gaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
nobles in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. They frequently held the office of Justiciar of Scotia
Justiciar of Scotia
The Justiciar of Scotia was the most senior legal office in the High Medieval Kingdom of Scotland. Scotia in this context refers to Scotland to the north of the River Forth and River Clyde....
- highest brithem
Brehon Laws
Early Irish law refers to the statutes that governed everyday life and politics in Early Medieval Ireland. They were partially eclipsed by the Norman invasion of 1169, but underwent a resurgence in the 13th century, and survived into Early Modern Ireland in parallel with English law over the...
in the land - and enjoyed the right of crowning the Kings of Scots. The Mormaer's function, as with other medieval Scottish lordships, was kin-based. Hence, in 1385, the Earl of Fife, seen as the successor of the same lordship, is called capitalis legis de Clenmcduffe (=Lord of the Law of the Children of Macduff).
The lordship existed in the Middle Ages until its last earl, Murdoch (Muireadhach), Duke of Albany
Duke of Albany
Duke of Albany is a peerage title that has occasionally been bestowed on the younger sons in the Scottish, and later the British, royal family, particularly in the Houses of Stuart and Hanover....
, was executed by James I of Scotland
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...
.
Chief (ceann) of Clann meic Duib
The deputy or complementary position to mormaer or earl of Fife was leadership of Clan MacDuffClan MacDuff
Clan MacDuff is a Scottish armigerous clan, which is registered with Lyon Court, though currently without a chief. Moncreiffe wrote that the Clan MacDuff was the premier clan among the Scottish Gaels. The early chiefs of Clan MacDuff were the Earls of Fife...
(clann meic Duibh). There is little doubt that the style MacDuib, or Macduff, derives from the name of King Cináed III mac Duib
Kenneth III of Scotland
Cináed mac Duib anglicised as Kenneth III, and nicknamed An Donn, "the Chief" or "the Brown", was King of Scots from 997 to 1005. He was the son of Dub...
, and ultimately from this man's father, King Dub
Dub of Scotland
Dub mac Maíl Coluim , sometimes anglicised as Duff MacMalcolm, called Dén, "the Vehement" and Niger, "the Black" was king of Alba...
(d. 966). Compare, for instance, that Domhnall, Lord of the Isles, signed a charter in 1408 as MacDomhnaill. The descendants of Cináed III adopted the name in the same way that the descendants of Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig
Brian Boru
Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig, , , was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill. Building on the achievements of his father, Cennétig mac Lorcain, and especially his elder brother, Mathgamain, Brian first made himself King of Munster, then subjugated...
called themselves Uí Briain, although it does seem that at least initially MacDuff was a style reserved for the man who held the Mormaership of Fife.
The chieftaincy
Scottish clan chief
The 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...
of the clan
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...
was not always held by the mormaer, especially after the mormaerdom became subject to the laws of feudal primogeniture in the reign of Donnchadh I
Donnchad I, Earl of Fife
Mormaer Donnchad I , anglicized as Duncan or Dunecan, was the first Gaelic magnate to have his territory regranted to him by feudal charter, by David I in 1136. Donnchad I, as head of the native Scottish nobility, had the job of introducing and conducting King Máel Coluim IV around the Kingdom upon...
. For example, at the Battle of Falkirk
Battle of Falkirk
The Battle of Falkirk, which took place on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence...
, it is the head of the clan who led the men of Fife, rather than the Mormaer.
List of mormaers/earls of Fife
- ? Giric mac CináedaKenneth III of ScotlandCináed mac Duib anglicised as Kenneth III, and nicknamed An Donn, "the Chief" or "the Brown", was King of Scots from 997 to 1005. He was the son of Dub...
meic DuibDub of ScotlandDub mac Maíl Coluim , sometimes anglicised as Duff MacMalcolm, called Dén, "the Vehement" and Niger, "the Black" was king of Alba... - ?
- Macduib; = Shakespeare's MacDuffMacduff (thane)Macduff, the Thane of Fife, is a character in William Shakespeare's Macbeth . Macduff plays a pivotal role in the play: he suspects Macbeth of regicide and eventually kills Macbeth in the final act...
(fl. 1057–1058) - Causantín, Earl of FifeCausantín, Earl of FifeCausantín of Fife is the first man we know for certain to have been Mormaer of Fife. Causantín's floruit can be placed between 1095 and 1128. Very little is known about his life and reign as Mormaer of Fife. His father, for instance, is not known by name...
, (fl. 1095–1128)- See Mormaer BethMormaer BethMormaer Beth is a name of a Mormaer mentioned in an unreliable charter granted to Scone Priory, later Scone Abbey, by king Alexander I of Scotland....
and Ethelred of ScotlandEthelred of ScotlandEthelred was the son of King Máel Coluim III and his wife Margaret, the third oldest of the latter and the probable sixth oldest of the former. He took his name, almost certainly, from Margaret's great-grandfather King Æþelræd Unræd, or Ethelred the Unready...
for common confusion here
- See Mormaer Beth
- Gille Míchéil, Earl of FifeGille Míchéil, Earl of FifeMormaer Gille Míchéil, is the second man we know for certain to have been Mormaer of Fife from 1130 to 1133, although it is unlikely he actually was the second. He had at least one son, called Aed...
(1130–1133) - Donnchadh I, Earl of FifeDonnchad I, Earl of FifeMormaer Donnchad I , anglicized as Duncan or Dunecan, was the first Gaelic magnate to have his territory regranted to him by feudal charter, by David I in 1136. Donnchad I, as head of the native Scottish nobility, had the job of introducing and conducting King Máel Coluim IV around the Kingdom upon...
(1133–1154) - Donnchadh II, Earl of FifeDonnchad II, Earl of FifeMormaer Donnchad II , anglicized as Duncan II or Dunecan II, succeeded his father Donnchad I as a child. As a child of the previous Mormaer, he was entitled to succeed his father through primogeniture, but not to lead his kin-group, Clann MacDuib. That probably fell to his cousin, Aed mac Gille...
(1154–1204) - Maol Choluim I, Earl of FifeMaol Choluim I, Earl of FifeMormaer Máel Coluim of Fife , or Maol Choluim anglicised as Malcolm, was one of the more obscure mormaers of Fife.He married Matilda, the daughter of Gille Brigte, the mormaer of Strathearn. He is credited with the foundation of Culross Abbey...
(1204–1228) - Maol Choluim II, Earl of FifeMaol Choluim II, Earl of FifeMáel Coluim II , was a 13th century Mormaer of Fife who ruled the mormaerdom or earldom of Fife between 1228 and 1266...
(1228–1266) - Colbán, Earl of FifeColbán, Earl of FifeMormaer Colbán of Fife ruled Fife, 1266 – 1270/2. He was probably the son of Maol Choluim II. Not much is known about his life and reign. Colbán's death is disputed, and depends on what evidence one interprets. G.W.S. Barrow gives 1272, but Bannerman gives 1270. He married Anna, the daughter...
, (1266–1270/2) - Donnchadh III, Earl of FifeDonnchadh III, Earl of FifeDonnchadh III or Duncan was Earl of Fife from 1270/2 to 1288.He succeeded as only a child, the son of the previous Mormaer Colbán, who died young. During his minority, William Wishart, Bishop of St Andrews, became custos of the Mormaerdom...
(1270/2–1288) - Donnchadh IV, Earl of FifeDonnchadh IV, Earl of FifeDonnchadh IV, Earl of Fife [Duncan IV] was sometime Guardian of Scotland, and ruled Fife until his death. He was the last of the native Scottish rulers of that province....
(1288–1353), considered by King David IIDavid II of ScotlandDavid II was King of Scots from 7 June 1329 until his death.-Early life:...
to have forfeited the earldom - Sir William Ramsay of Colluthie, Earl of Fife (1358-c1360), created by King David II
- and William Felton (d.1358)
- and Walter Stewart (d.1362)
- and Thomas Byset (d.1366)
- and John de Dunbar (d.1371)
- Isabella, Countess of FifeIsabella, Countess of FifeIsabella of Fife was Countess of Fife from 1363 until she resigned the title in 1371. She was the daughter of Donnchadh IV, Earl of Fife, by his wife Mary de Monthermer ....
, (1361–1371), daughter of Donnchadh IV, was persuaded to resign the earldom to - Robert Stewart, Earl of Fife (1371–1420)
- Murdoch Stewart, Duke of Albany, Earl of Fife (1420–1425)
Recreation of 1759
- William Duff, 1st Earl FifeWilliam Duff, 1st Earl FifeWilliam Duff, 1st Earl Fife was a Scottish peer.The son of William Duff of Dipple, in 1719 he married Janet Ogilvie, daughter of James Ogilvy, 4th Earl of Findlater. She died in 1720 and in 1723 he married Jean Grant, daughter of Sir James Grant, Bt...
(c. 1696-1763) - James Duff, 2nd Earl FifeJames Duff, 2nd Earl FifeJames Duff, 2nd Earl Fife was a Scottish Earl, Baron and Minister of Parliament.-Heritage:James Duff was second son of William Duff, 1st Earl Fife, and Jean Grant , his fathers second wife. His father, son of William Duff of Dipple, co. Banff, was M.P...
(1729–1809) - Alexander Duff, 3rd Earl FifeAlexander Duff, 3rd Earl FifeAlexander Duff, 3rd Earl Fife was a Scottish nobleman.Duff was the son of William Duff, 1st Earl Fife and younger brother of James Duff, 2nd Earl Fife....
(1731–1811) - James Duff, 4th Earl FifeJames Duff, 4th Earl FifeJames Duff, 4th Earl of Fife KT, GCH , was a Scot who became a Spanish general.-Biography:James was the elder son of the Hon. Alexander Duff, who succeeded his brother as third Earl Fife in 1809...
(1776–1857) - James Duff, 5th Earl FifeJames Duff, 5th Earl FifeJames Duff, 5th Earl Fife was a Scottish nobleman.Duff was the son of Sir Alexander Duff, younger brother of James Duff, 4th Earl Fife and Anne Stein, the daughter of James Stein of Gilbogie....
(1814–1879) - Alexander Duff, 6th Earl FifeAlexander Duff, 1st Duke of FifeAlexander William George Duff, 1st Duke of Fife KG, KT, GCVO, PC, VD , styled Viscount Macduff between 1857 and 1879 and known as The Earl Fife between 1879 and 1889, was a British Peer who married Princess Louise of Wales, the third child and eldest daughter of King Edward VII and Alexandra of...
(1849–1912) (created Duke of FifeDuke of FifeDuke of Fife is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, named after Fife in Scotland. There have been two creations of the title, the first in 1889 and the second in 1900, both in favour of Alexander Duff, 6th Earl Fife in the Peerage of Ireland and 1st Earl of Fife in the Peerage of the...
in 1889)
External links
- Stirnet: "Fife1"
- University of Glasgow: Genealogical Chart of Early Gaelic Earls (link does not work correctly; after following this link, click on the Genealogical chart of mormaír (earls) of Fife, showing use of Gaelic names link)