Thomas Dun

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Thomas Dun († after July 2, 1317 ) was a Scottish pirate.

Thomas Dun was from Scotland. As a seafarer, he was promoted to captain before 1313. During the First Scottish War of Independence between May 18 and June 12, 1313 he supported the landing of the forces of the Scottish King Robert Bruce on the Isle of Man, together with ships from Angus Og MacDonald of Islay . When Edward Bruce , a brother of the Scottish King, landed with an army in Ireland in 1315 , he was also supported by the privateer Dun. Ireland was largely under English rule at the time, and Edward Bruce hoped, with the support of the Irish people, to beat the English there. Before his crossing from Scotland, Bruce apparently concluded an agreement with Thomas Dun in which the latter promised to cover the passage of the Scottish army with four armed ships. In addition, he wanted to ensure the sea connection between Ireland and Scotland. When Bruce landed in Ireland with his army, Dun was patrolling the Irish Sea with his ships . He appeared before Dublin and on September 12th before Holyhead in North Wales, where he hijacked an English ship. For fear of Dun the crossing of the English official John Hotham was delayed, who wanted to sail from Chester to Ireland on the instructions of the King . He first had to organize escort ships manned by soldiers and therefore only reached Ireland on November 5th. In doing so he missed the parliament for which the Irish barons had gathered in Dublin. From the summer of 1316 at the latest, Dun blocked the Northern Irish Carrickfergus Castle with his ships , which had long been besieged by Scottish troops from the land side. Dun apparently served as negotiator in negotiations with the English occupation, which eventually surrendered in September 1316. In May 1317 the English government ordered that two galleys should be equipped for the hunt for dun in Devon and Cornwall , as the dun was used by all English merchant ships in the Irish Sea and was notorious for its cruelty. On June 28, 1317, the Irish nobleman John de Athy was appointed admiral of an English fleet. On July 2, 1317, an English fleet under the command of Athy defeated Thomas Dun's ships in a sea battle. Dun was captured with 40 of his men. Before Dun was executed, he revealed the Earl of Moray's plans to attack the Isle of Man. Athy sent the severed head to the Irish justiciar Roger Mortimer in Dublin.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Penman: Robert the Bruce. King of the Scots . Yale University Press, New Haven 2014, ISBN 978-0-300-14872-5 , p. 132.
  2. ^ A b G. O. Sayles: The Siege of Carrickfergus Castle, 1315-16 . In: Irish Historical Studies , Vol. 10, No. 37 (Mar., 1956), p. 98.
  3. ^ Ian Mortimer: The greatest traitor. The Life of Sir Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, Ruler of England, 1327-1330. Pimlico, London 2003, ISBN 0-7126-9715-2 , p. 70.
  4. ^ Geoffrey WS Barrow: Robert Bruce and the Community of the Realm of Scotland . Eyre & Spottiswoode, London 1965, p. 280.
  5. ^ Ranald Nicholson: Scotland. The later Middle Ages . Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh 1974, p. 94.
  6. ^ Ian Mortimer: The greatest traitor. The Life of Sir Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, Ruler of England, 1327-1330. Pimlico, London 2003, ISBN 0-7126-9715-2 , p. 86.
personal data
SURNAME Dun, Thomas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION scottish pirate
DATE OF BIRTH 13th Century
DATE OF DEATH after July 2, 1317