Duncan (MacDuff) MacDuff IVth Mormaer of Fife (abt. 1289 - 1353)

Born about 1289 in Fife, Scotland

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 1353 at about age 64 in Fife, Scotland [uncertain]

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Biography

Duncan (MacDuff) MacDuff IVth Mormaer of Fife is a member of Clan MacDuff.

Birth and Childhood

Duncan MacDuff was born in 1289 to Duncan MacDuff, third Mormaer of Fife and Joan Clare, daughter of Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester.^[1][2] Born in the same year as his father's murder by Sir Patrick Abernethy and Sir Walter Percy, Duncan IV inherited the rank of Mormaer of Fife, with the hereditary rights to ordain Scottish monarchs and lead the charge in battle (Privilege of MacDuff).^[3][2][4][5] However, given Duncan's youth on 17 November 1292, the crowning of John Balliol was delegated to Sir John St. John, a member of Parliament and trusted diplomat of Edward I of England,^[3][6] while Duncan remained under the watchful guardianship of the Bishop of St. Andrews.^[3] Fourteen years later, Duncan again missed a coronation, this for Robert the Bruce on 25 March 1306, as he was being held in England as ward of Edward I. Instead, Robert called upon Duncan's sister, Isabella MacDuff, Countess of Buchan, to officiate in his absence, which instigated another colorful chapter in the annals of Scottish history.^[7][8][9]

Marriage

The papal dispensation for the marriage of Duncan to Mary DeMonthermer, daughter of Ralph Monthermer and Joan of Acre, second daughter of King Edward I was dated 12 October 1306.^[10][1][11] As Ralph Monthermer and Joan of Acre were married in 1297,^[10] Mary would have been no more than nine years old when she married 17-year-old Duncan, both of whom were held in England at this time.^[12] However, prior to an agreement between Robert I and Duncan signed in Crichton in Lothian on 23 August 1315 that addressed the transfer of rights of the mormaerdom of Fife should Duncan die without an heir, Duncan had been released and allowed to return to Scotland, with Mary granted safe conduct by Edward II to join her husband in a charter dated 28 January 1320.^[13][1] Circa 1321, daughter Elizabeth was born and as Duncan's marriage to Mary produced no male heirs, he was succeeded by his daughter who became Countess of Fife, married and widowed four times.^[1][14]

Notable Events

In 1289, when Duncan became Mormaer of Fife, he also became the last Gaelic earl from the male line of his ancestor Donnchad MacDuff (1113 - 1154).^[15][16] What is disputed among historians, however, is Duncan's place within the MacDuff mormaerdom, where Sir Robert Sibbald deemed Duncan the 13th Mormaer of Fife,^[17] while some refer to him as the seventh^[18] and others, as the 10th^[19] and 12th Mormaer.^[20] More recently, medieval historian Andrew McDonald stated that Duncan was the ninth Mormaer of Fife, as is shown in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.^[5] Given this uncertainty, Duncan's place in the line of MacDuff mormaers is not stated in this biography.

Of far greater significance, however, than Duncan's place in his pedigree, is the Declaration of Arbroath, where he and seven other earls, as well as 31 barons, attached their seals to the document, written in response to the Wars of Scottish Independence, which began with Edward I's invasion of Scotland in 1296.^[21][20] Although Duncan's youthful allegiance had vacillated between England and Scotland, by adulthood he was a Scottish loyalist, who is distinguished as having been the first to place his seal on the Declaration of Arbroath, dated 6 April 1320.^[19][22][23]

Monument to the Battle on Halidon Hill

Four years later, Duncan, an ardent Bruce/David II supporter, fought in the disastrous Battle of Dupplin Moor where, upon being captured by the rebels supporting Balliol, was forced to crown Edward Balliol King of Scots at Scone on 24 September 1332.^[24][18][25] Following the defeat of the Bruce loyalists at Dupplin Moor, the unpopular Edward Balliol was ambushed several months later by David II supporters and was forced to flee to England. After pleading for support from Edward III, Balliol was officially recognized as King of Scotland and Edward III made preparations for war, arriving at Berwick Castle in May of 1333.^[26] Edward's cruel siege began, while the beleaguered Scottish troop's anticipated relief forces were blocked and overcome by Edward's three dismounted divisions and archers. Culminating on 19 July 1333, Duncan fought in the rear guard of the Scottish army at the Battle of Halidon Hill,^[27] a short distance from Berwick Castle, in this major engagement in the Scottish struggle for independence and one of the greatest military defeats in the history of the Scottish army. Battle ended, the governor of Berwick Castle acquiesced and surrendered the castle the following day.^{[28][29][30][31]} Surviving the horrors of the English archers, where thousands of Scottish soldiers perished, it is likely, but uncertain, that Duncan was captured and held for ransom only to return to battle once again and later suffer the indignities of capture anew.

Battle of Neville's Cross

In the years following the Battle of Halidon Hill, conflict continued between the Scots and the English, as well as Scot versus Scot, where in all likelihood Duncan remained actively engaged in the battles and numerous skirmishes that continued across the English-Scottish border.^[32] This ongoing conflict climaxed on 17 October 1346 at the Battle of Neville's Cross, where the Scots once again suffered a resounding defeat. Following this failed insurrection by King David II, the king was captured and supporters John Graham, Earl of Menteith, and Duncan, Mormaer of Fife, were arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London at the order of Edward III for breach of sworn allegiance to Balliol and taking arms against England. Deemed traitors, both John Graham and Duncan MacDuff were sentenced to death, to be attainted, drawn, hanged, beheaded, their bodies quartered and their heads placed on London Bridge. Fortunately for Duncan, he was spared because of his kinship to the King and was allowed to return to Scotland in 1350 to raise funds for his ransom. Sir Graham was not so fortunate.^[33][34][18]

Death

Following the Battle of Neville's Cross, a more challenging and costly battle loomed in the form of the Black Death that crossed Scottish borders in 1350, killing approximately 20 percent of the Scottish population of one-million by 1352.^[35] While Duncan IV, Mormaer of Fife and sometime Guardian of Scotland, may or may not have survived the plague, he continued to rule Fife until his death in 1353 of unknown causes. Although daughter Elizabeth succeeded as Countess of Fife, she resigned the mormaerdom to her brother-in-law Robert Stewart, Earl of Menteith and Duke of Albany 30 March 1371, the year of her mother Mary (DeMonthermer) MacDuff's death, thus bringing to a close the powerful, but battleworn rule of the Gaelic Mormaers of Fife.^[1][14]

Research Notes

While the Wikipedia article, Donnchadh IV, Earl of Fife, indicates that Duncan was present at the negotiations which led to the Treaty of Edinburgh in March 1328, which advanced the long-sought acknowledgment of Scotland's independence,^[36] no additional sources have been located to corroborate this claim.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Cawley, C. (21 September 2020). Scotland, mormaers, earls, lords (Ch. 4, sec. B). Retrieved from Foundation for Medieval Genealogy: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Maxwell, H. E. (1913). The chronicle of Lanercost, 1272-1349 (p. 59). Glasgow: J. Maclehose and Sons. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Leighton, J., Swan, J., & Steward, J. (1840). History of the county of Fife: From the earliest period to the present time (Vol. I, pp. 28, 29). Glasgow: J. Swan. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
4. ↑ MacFarlane, W. (1900). Genealogical collections concerning families in Scotland (Vol. 1, p. 155). Edinburgh: Scottish History Society. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} McDonald, A. (2020). Macduff family. Retrieved from the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography: Available online; accessed 11 October 2020.
6. ↑ Cokayne, G. E. (1949). The complete peerage or a history of the House of Lords and all its members from the earliest times (Vol. XI, pp. 323, 324). In White, G. H. (Ed.). Retrieved from the personal library of Pamela Moen; accessed 6 October, 2020.
7. ↑ Murison, A. F. (1899, e-Book 2014). King Robert the Bruce: The coronation of Bruce (Ch. 3, p. 35). Edinburgh and London: Oliphant Anderson & Ferrier. Retrieved from Gutenberg.org: Available online; accessed 7 October 2020.
8. ↑ Gray, T. (1907). Scalacronica: The reigns of Edward I, Edward II and Edward III (pp. 30, 31). Trans. Herbert Maxwell. Glasgow: J. Maclehose. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 8 October 2020.
9. ↑ Balfour Paul, J. (1905). The Scots peerage: Founded on Wood's ed. of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland; containing an historical and genealogical account of the nobility of that kingdom (Vol. 2, p. 258). Edinburgh: D. Douglas. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 8 October 2020.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Cawley, C. (20 July 2020). England, kings 1066-1837 (Ch. 3, Sec. A [Edward], no. 7). Retrieved from Foundation for Medieval Genealogy: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
11. ↑ Weir, Alison (2008). Britain's royal families, the complete genealogy (p. 83). London: Vintage Books. Retrieved from the personal library of Pamela Moen; accessed 13 October 2020.
12. ↑ Gray, T. (1907). Scalacronica: The reigns of Edward I, Edward II and Edward III (p. 31). Trans. Herbert Maxwell. Glasgow: J. Maclehose. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 8 October 2020.
13. ↑ People of Medieval Scotland 1093 - 1371. (n.d.). Agreement between King Robert I and Duncan (IV) earl of Fife (1/53/80 RRS, v, no. 72). Retrieved from POMS: Available online; accessed 18 October 2020.
14. ↑ ^{14.0 14.1} Weir, Alison (2008). Britain's royal families, the complete genealogy (p. 216). London: Vintage Books. Retrieved from the personal library of Pamela Moen; accessed 13 October 2020.
15. ↑ MacFarlane, W. (1900). Genealogical collections concerning families in Scotland (Vol. 1, p. 158) Edinburgh: Scottish History Society. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
16. ↑ Miscellany of the Scottish history society (Vol. I, p. 441). (1893). Edinburgh: University Press by T. and A. Constable. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 14 October 2020.
17. ↑ Sibbald, R. (1803). The history, ancient and modern, of the sheriffdoms of Fife and Kinross, with the description of both, and of the firths of Forth and Tay, and the islands in them ... with an account of the natural products of the land and waters (p. 230). Cupar, Fife: R. Tullis. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 11 October 2020.
18. ↑ ^{18.0 18.1 18.2} MacFarlane, W. (1900). Genealogical collections concerning families in Scotland (Vol. I, pp. 157, 158). Edinburgh: Scottish History society. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 september 2020.
19. ↑ ^{19.0 19.1} Maxwell, H. E. (1913). The chronicle of Lanercost, 1272-1349 (p. 269). Glasgow: J. Maclehose and sons. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
20. ↑ ^{20.0 20.1} Douglas, R. (1764). The peerage of Scotland: Containing an historical and genealogical account of the nobility of that kingdom, from their origin to the present generation: Collected from the public records, and ancient chartularies of this nation, the charters, and other writings of the nobility, and the works of our best historians (p.275). Edinburgh: R. Fleming. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
21. ↑ National Records of Scotland. (2005). The Declaration of Arbroath: 700th anniversary display. Retrieved from the National Records of Scotland: Available online; accessed 4 October 2020.
22. ↑ Rose, A. (2003). Kings in the north: The house of Percy in British History (p. 255). London: Orion Books, Ltd. Retrieved from the personal library of Pamela Moen; accessed 7 October 2020.
23. ↑ Balfour Paul, J. (1907). The Scots peerage founded on Wood's edition of Sir Robert Douglass (Vol. IV, p. 12). Edinburgh: David Douglas. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 8 October 2020.
24. ↑ Bain, J. (1901). The Edwards in Scotland, A.D. 1296-1377. Being the Rhind lectures in archaeology for 1900. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (p. 84). Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 13 October 2020.
25. ↑ Rose, A. (2003). Kings in the north: The house of Percy in British History (p. 256). London: Orion Books, Ltd. Retrieved from the personal library of Pamela Moen; accessed 7 October 2020.
26. ↑ Rose, A. (2003). Kings in the north: The house of Percy in British History (pp. 257, 258). London: Orion Books, Ltd. Retrieved from the personal library of Pamela Moen; accessed 7 October 2020.
27. ↑ Tytler, P. F. (1841). History of Scotland: Battle of Halidon Hill (Vol. II, p. 383). Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 8 October 2020.
28. ↑ English Heritage. (1995). English heritage battlefield report: Halidon Hill 1333. Retrieved from historicengland.org.uk: Available online; accessed 8 October 2020.
29. ↑ Medieval, second war of Scottish independence, Battle of Halidon Hill (1333). (2019). Part of the CastlesFortsBattles.co.uk network. Retrieved from Battlefields of Britain: Available online; accessed 4 October 2020.
30. ↑ Tikkanen, A., Lotha, G., & Rodriguez, E. (Eds.). (2014, 2018). Battle of Halidon Hill. Retrieved from Encyclopaedia Britannica: Available online; accessed 3 October 2020.
31. ↑ Ramsay, J. H. (1913). Genesis of Lancaster; or, the three reigns of Edward II, Edward III, and Richard II, 1307-1399 (pp. 231, 232). Oxford: The Clarendon press. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 7 October 2020.
32. ↑ Tytler, P. F. (1841). History of Scotland (Vol. II, pp. 30-66). The years between 1333 and 1346. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 13 October 2020.
33. ↑ Fraser, W. (1880). The Red Book of Menteith (Vol. I., pp. 105-108). Edinburgh: Privately printed. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 30 September 2020.
34. ↑ Ramsay, J. H. (1913). Genesis of Lancaster; or, the three reigns of Edward II, Edward III, and Richard II, 1307-1399 (p. 342). Oxford: The Clarendon press. Retrieved from Internet Archive: Available online; accessed 7 October 2020.
35. ↑ Undiscovered Scotland. (n.d.). Timeline: 1300 to 1350. Retrieved from Undiscovered Scotland: Available online; accessed 4 October 2020.
36. ↑ Wikipedia. (1 March 2020). Donnchadh IV, Earl of Fife. Retrieved from Wikipedia: Available online; accessed 28 September 2020.