John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (nobleman, † 1306)

Sir John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (also John Comyn (III) , John Comyn the younger , John Comyn the son or Red Comyn , † February 10, 1306 in Dumfries ) was a Scottish magnate . As a rival to Robert Bruce , he played an important political role during the First Scottish War of Independence .

Origin and possessions

John Comyn came from the Scottish Comyn clan , which had been the leading Scottish noble family since the mid-13th century. He was the eldest son of his father of the same name, John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch and of his wife Eleanor (in Scottish sources Marjory ), a sister of John Balliol . His father was an important magnate with extensive estates in Scotland and also in England . As head of the Comyn family, his father was named Red Comyn . His son John was called the younger or the son to distinguish them . In 1290 his father was one of the contenders for the Scottish throne , but he supported the claim to the throne of John Balliol, who became the new Scottish king in late 1291. The younger John was knighted by his uncle John Balliol, probably shortly after his accession to the throne in 1292 . His other relatives included his cousin John Comyn, 7th Earl of Buchan , the most important noblemen of northeast Scotland. Comyn had married Joan de Valence , a daughter of William de Valence, 1st Earl of Pembroke , a half-brother of the English King Henry III. During his father's lifetime he received the English possessions of Walwick , Thornton and Henshaw in Tynedale around 1295 . With the death of his father around 1302 he became his heir and inherited the extensive lands, including Badenoch and Lochaber in the Highlands , Bedrule and Scraesburgh in Roxburghshire , Dalswinton in Dumfriesshire , Findogask and Ochtertyre in Perthshire , Machan in the Clyde Valley , Lenzie and Kirkintilloch in Dunbartonshire . In addition to these Scottish lands, he also owned Tarset and Thornton in Tynedale, England, and Ulseby in Lincolnshire . Lochindorb , Ruthven , Inverlochy and Blair Atholl Castle secured his northern Scottish property, as well as Dalswinton Castle and possibly smaller castles in Machan and Kirkintilloch.

Located on an artificial island, Lochindorb Castle was one of the most important castles of the Comyns of Badenoch

Military in the war against England

As a relative and leading supporter of King John Balliol, Comyn played an important role when the war against England broke out in the dispute over English supremacy in early 1296 . Together with seven Scottish earls, including the related John Comyn, 7th Earl of Buchan , he crossed the Solway on March 26th from Annandale and undertook a raid to northern England. They burned the suburbs of Carlisle , but their attack on the city itself failed. Two weeks later Comyn was at Hexham Abbey when the monastery burned down. When the Scots learned that the English King Edward I was approaching with an army, they withdrew to Scotland. On April 22nd, Comyn took part in the retaking of Dunbar Castle , but when the English king surrendered the castle on April 28th after the victory in the Battle of Dunbar , Comyn was captured along with numerous other Scottish nobles and was called Hostage brought to England. His wife was already in England and had been given safe conduct to London after the English king learned of Comyn's struggle on the Scottish side, what he saw as an armed rebellion. Edward I provided for the maintenance of Comyn's wife and children, while he himself was taken to the Tower of London with other Scottish prisoners . In 1297 Comyn promised to support the English king in the war against France in his campaign to Flanders, but before 1298 he was back in Scotland.

Guardian of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish Resistance

During the war, the British Crown had confiscated Comyn's northern English possessions, and the prolonged imprisonment of the Comyn family's leading members made their leading political position in Scotland no longer undisputed. After the forced abdication of John Balliol, James Stewart , Bishop Robert Wishart and William Wallace , who had been appointed sole Guardian of Scotland in early 1298 , took over the political leadership. Comyn probably supported the further Scottish resistance after his return and was a member of the Scottish cavalry on July 22, 1298 at the Battle of Falkirk . Given the English superiority, the Scottish knights are said to have fled the battlefield, whereupon the English were able to decisively defeat the Scots. Allegedly Wallace is said to have blamed the Comyns for the defeat, but this is not certain. In any case, he resigned his post as Guardian after the defeat, whereupon Comyn took over the office together with Robert Bruce . There was certainly tension between Wallace and Comyn, and the relationship between Comyn and Bruce was difficult. While the Comyns in the succession controversy after the death of King Alexander III. had supported John Balliol's claim to the throne, Bruce's grandfather had claimed the crown himself. Comyn resigned from his position as Guardian as early as December 1298. On August 19, 1299, during a council meeting in Peebles, there was an open rift between supporters of the Comyns and those of Robert Bruce. John Comyn allegedly assaulted Bruce, whereupon Bishop William Lamberton of St Andrews was elected as the new Guardian alongside Comyn and Bruce to reconcile the two. Nevertheless, during a Scottish parliament in Rutherglen on May 10th, 1300 there was a new break between Comyn and Bruce. Comyn had gotten into an argument with Lamberton and no longer wanted to serve as Guardian with him. To keep Comyn and Lamberton in office, Bruce has now been ousted and replaced by Ingram de Umfraville , a relative of John Balliol and an ally of the Comyns. This alliance was dissolved between December 1300 and May 1301, after which John de Soules was elected sole Guardian. According to the chronicler John Fordun , on the other hand, Comyn is said to have served as Guardian without interruption until 1304, and de Soules is said to have supported Comyn in 1301 and 1302 at the express request of John Balliol. In the autumn of 1302 Comyn was sole Guardian when de Soules traveled to France as envoy. In early 1303 John Comyn was apparently the leader of the Scottish resistance to the English occupation, because on February 24, 1303 an army under his leadership defeated an English army at the Battle of Roslin .

Surrender of the resistance under Comyn

After this victory, Comyn and Simon Fraser waged a guerrilla war against the English occupiers in southern Scotland until at least autumn 1303 . The English king then led a retaliatory campaign from the summer of 1303, during which he occupied Lochindorb Castle, one of the most important castles of Comyn, in October 1303. Given this military superiority, it became clear that the Scots could not defeat the English in open field battle. With their French allies having made a peace with England on May 20, 1303 , the Scottish nobles had no hope of winning the war. On February 6, 1304, Comyn began surrender negotiations as sole Guardian with the Earl of Ulster , the English commander in western Scotland. He refused to surrender unconditionally and demanded an amnesty for all Scottish fighters and the return of their lands. To this end, he demanded that the Scottish laws, customs and privileges from the time of King Alexander III. are still valid. Indeed, the English agreed to return their lands to the Scots, but refused to restore pre-Scottish independence rights. To do this, they demanded that several Scottish leaders go into exile, at least temporarily, including Bishop Robert Wishart of Glasgow. John Comyn, Alexander Lindsay , David Graham and Simon Fraser were ordered to seize William Wallace and hand over to the King of England. Under these conditions, the Scottish barons, with the exception of William Wallace, Simon Fraser and John de Soules, surrendered to King Edward I on February 9, 1304. The government of Scotland was taken over by John of Brittany , a nephew of the king, as its governor. He was to be advised by a council made up of twenty-two Scots, including John Comyn and Robert Bruce.

Greyfriars Church in Dumfries, where Comyn was murdered, was rebuilt in the 19th century

assassination

Despite this surrender, Scotland was not finally pacified. Captured William Wallace was cruelly executed on August 23, 1305 to the indignation of the Scots. The two still rival leading nobles, John Comyn and Robert Bruce, met for talks on February 10, 1306 at Greyfriars Church, the church of the Franciscan Settlement in Dumfries . Bruce killed Comyn in the process.

A rivalry for political supremacy in Scotland had existed between Comyn and Bruce since at least 1286. The Comyns suppressed attempts by Robert de Brus , Robert Bruce's grandfather, to claim the crown in 1286 and 1287 . Instead, they supported John Balliol's claim to the throne and, after his coronation, his reign. After Balliol's forced abdication, Comyn was able to regain political leadership against Bruce, making it the greatest obstacle for Bruce to gain the crown. Comyn, a distant descendant of King Donald III. himself had a claim to the throne, in addition he was considered the heir of John Balliol. The exact causes and the course of the act are still controversial today.

The exact circumstances of Comyn's assassination remain controversial to this day. This historicizing representation comes from the 19th century.

Scottish version

According to Scottish reports from the 14th and 15th centuries, Comyn had agreed that Bruce would declare himself king in exchange for the possessions of Bruce. Then Comyn would have betrayed the plan to Edward I. Bruce would have found out about the betrayal and confronted Comyn in Dumfries. In the following argument, Bruce would have killed Comyn and his uncle Robert Comyn .

English version

The contemporary English accounts of the murder are rightly biased, but like the chronicle of Walter of Guisborough they paint a different picture. After Guisborough, Bruce feared that Comyn would prevent his reach for the Scottish crown. In fact, Guisborough and other English chroniclers insist that Comyn viewed Bruce's claim to the throne as treason against the rightful claim of John Balliol. According to the English versions of the fact, Bruce sent his two brothers Thomas and Nigel to Dalswinton Castle , where they asked Comyn to meet at Greyfriars Church in Dumfries. The exact purpose of the meeting is unknown, but obviously Bruce was already planning to declare himself king and resume resistance against England. After the meeting initially took place in a friendly atmosphere, Bruce then accused Comyn of betraying him to the English king. The two rivals are said to have accused each other of treason. During the argument, Bruce attacked Comyn with a dagger, and Bruce Comyn's followers fatally wounded with swords. While trying to defend his nephew, Comyn's uncle Robert Comyn was killed by Christopher Seton . According to both Scottish and English lore, Comyn was still alive when Bruce left church. Bruce returned to Lochmaben Castle, where he told his relatives James Lindsay and Roger Kirkpatrick that he presumably killed Comyn. Thereupon Kirkpatrick and other supporters of Bruce rode to the church and murdered the seriously wounded Comyn, to which the motto of the Kirkpatricks I mak siccar ( Scottish Gaelic I play it safe ) would refer.

consequences

The scope of Comyn's assassination was quickly recognized in Scotland and England. After Edward I had initially reacted calmly to the news, he appointed his confidante Aymer de Valence , the brother-in-law of Comyn, governor of Scotland on April 5, 1306 and endowed him with far-reaching powers. Bruce was convicted of murder in a church by Pope Clement V with the excommunication occupied. He acted quickly and was crowned King of Scotland on March 25th. Now he not only had to defend his claim to the throne against the English king, but also fight in Scotland against the remaining members of the Comyn family and break their position in northern Scotland. This led to a Scottish civil war between Bruce and the Comyn family, which Bruce won until 1308. Bruce distributed the Scottish Comyn lands to his followers.

Descendants and inheritance

Comyn had three children with his wife, Joan de Valence:

• John Comyn († 1314)
• Elizabeth Comyn ⚭ Richard Talbot, 2nd Baron Talbot
• Joan Comyn ⚭ David Strathbogie, 10th Earl of Atholl

His wife and children fled to England after Comyn's murder. His heir became his son Johm, who belonged to the English army in 1314, which suffered a decisive defeat at the Battle of Bannockburn . Comyn's son fell in battle. The position of the Comyn family in Scotland was thus lost for good. After 1316, John Comyn's remaining estates in England were divided among his daughters.

Web links

• John 'the Red' Comyn, 2nd of Badenoch on thepeerage.com , accessed August 12, 2015.
• Alan Young: Comyn, Sir John, lord of Badenoch (d. 1306). In: Henry Colin Gray Matthew, Brian Harrison (Eds.): Oxford Dictionary of National Biography , from the earliest times to the year 2000 (ODNB). Oxford University Press, Oxford 2004, ISBN 0-19-861411-X , ( oxforddnb.com license required ), as of 2004

predecessor	Office	successor
John Comyn	Lord of Badenoch 1302-1306	Title vacant until 1314 , then reverted to the Crown
Andrew de Moray (1297), William Wallace (1297-1299)	Guardian of Scotland 1299–1301 Co-regents: William de Lamberton , Robert the Bruce (1299–1300), Ingram de Umfraville (1300–1301)	John de Soules
John de Soules	Guardian of Scotland 1303-1306	no direct successor