Sir Alexander COMYN 6th Earl of Buchan, Constable and Justiciar of Scotland 6th Earl of Buchan, Constable and Justiciar of Scotland (1217-1290)

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Sir Alexander COMYN 6th Earl of Buchan, Constable and Justiciar of Scotland 6th Earl of Buchan, Constable and Justiciar of Scotland was born in 1217 in Buchan, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. He died on 6 Apr 1290 in Buchan. He was buried in Apr 1290 in Deer Abbey, Banff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. He married Elizabeth DE QUINCY.

Biography

Family

Alexander was the oldest son of William Comyn, earl of Buchan, and his second wife Margaret Buchan, countess of Buchan. His date of birth has been estimated as occurring circa 1214, based upon his parents' marriage "in or before" this same year. Alexander had two younger brothers: William and Fergus; and three sisters: Idonea Comyn, who married Gilbert de la Hay; Agnes Comyn, who married Philip Meldrum; and Elizabeth Comyn, who married William, earl of Mar. He also had a number of half-siblings from his father's first marriage: Richard Comyn; Walter Comyn, earl of Menteith, who married Isabella, countess of Menteith; David Comyn, lord of East Kilbride, who married Isabel de Valognes; William Comyn (a clerk); and Jean Comyn, who married William, 2nd earl of Ross.

Political Alliances

Alexander succeeded his mother, becoming earl of Buchan, sometime between 1242 (when he was styled "heir of Buchan") and 1244 (when he was listed in August of that year as "Earl of Buchan," one of the conservators of a truce with England). Along with his half-brother Walter, earl of Menteith, he quickly became a dominant force in Scottish politics. He became Justiciar of Scotland north of the Forth in 1252, was removed from that position in 1255 when the Comyn family fell from power, but was reinstated as Justiciar again in 1258 and held the office without interruption until his death in 1289.

By 1264, he was also the sheriff of Wigtownshire and Dingwall. He held castles at Kingedward, Dundarg, Cairnbulg, Rattray, Slains, and Ellon as well as lands near Scone, and in Fife and Mortlach. With his marriage to one of the three co-heiresses of Roger de Quincy, he gained further lands in Fife, Galloway, Dumfriesshire, and Lothian, and extensive properties in England. In 1270 his wife's eldest sister Margaret, countess of Darby, resigned the hereditary office of Constable of Scotland (which had passed to her on her father's death) to Comyn.

When his brother Walter died in 1258, Alexander Comyn became the de facto leader of the Comyn family and the head of its political party. He was named as a recurring witness on Alexander III's charters, and he had a military role in suppressing the threat to northern Scotland posed by Norway. Like his father he contributed financially to a number of religious institutions, thereby garnering political support from influential clergymen. He was a benefactor to Deer Abbey, Arbroath, Lindores, Inchholm, Scone, and St Andrews. And like his elder brother, the earl of Menteith, he consolidated his position even further by marrying all of his daughters to major Scottish barons: Patrick, earl of Dunbar; Malise, earl of Strathearn; Gilbert de Umfraville, earl of Angus; William Brechin; and Nichols de Soules. At the time of his death in 1289, he was the most senior of the Six Guardians who had been elected to govern the country on behalf of the absent Maid of Norway.

Marriage and Children

Alexander Comyn married Elizabeth (or Isabella) de Quincy, the daughter of Roger de Quincy, earl of Winchester and hereditary Constable of Scotland, and Ellen of Galloway, daughter and co-heiress of Alan, lord of Galloway. There were at least nine children from this marriage:

Children:

1.) John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan, b. c1259 and bef 3 Dec 1308. Married Isabella MacDuff. Alexander's successor as Earl of Buchan.

2.) Roger

3.) Lord Alexander Comyn, sheriff of Aberdeen, married Joan, sister of William le Latimer, and had issue. He d. bef 3 Dec 1308. Henry de Beaumont would claim the Earldom of Buchan through marriage to their daughter, Alice.

4.) Lord William Comyn, Provost of St. Mary's Church, St. Andrews

5.) Lady Marjorie Comyn, m. Patrick Dunbar, 8th Earl of Dunbar

6.) Lady Agnes Egidia Comyn, m. Maol Íosa III, Earl of Strathearn, aka Malise, 6th earl of Strathearn; d. aft. Aug 1320 (when she was sentenced to life in prison during the Black Parliament)

7.) Lady Elisabetha Comyn, m. Gilbert de Umfraville, 1st Earl of Angus, she d. bef. 17 Feb 1328/9.

8.) Lady Elena Comyn, m. Sir William de Brechin

9.) Lady Annora Comyn, m. Nicholas de Soules

Death

Alexander Comyn died shortly before 6 April 1289. At the time of his death, he was one of the wealthiest and most influential men in Scotland.

Elizabeth DE QUINCY, daughter of Roger DE QUINCY 2nd Earl of Winchester 2nd Earl of Winchester (1195-1264) and Helen DE GALLOWAY (1207-1245), was born in 1220 in Winchester, Hampshire, England. She died in 1282 in Buchan. She was buried in Banff, Banffshire, Scotland. She and Alexander COMYN 6th Earl of Buchan, Constable and Justiciar of Scotland had the following children: