Sir Alexander Comyn & Joan le Latimer

11820370. Sir Alexander Comyn & 11820371. Joan le Latimer

~1262, Alexander born in Scotland, 2^nd s/o 23640740. Earl Alexander Comyn & 23640741. Elizabeth de Quincy.

~1272, Joan born in England, d/o 15208896. William Latimer & 15208897. Alice Ledet.

11/16/1272, Edward I succeeded Henry III as King of England. [While on crusade.]

7/13/1285, Alexander de Comyn of Buchan, witnessed his brother John’s quitclaim of rights to half of Wygglesmer. (S) POMS. [John had been enfeoffed by their father with lands in Leicester and Warwick in 1283.]

~1288, Alexander married Joan.

1289, Alexander’s father died, his brother John the heir.

1290, The Maid of Norway died [d/o Queen Margaret of Scotland, sister of King Edward I.] There were 14 competitiors for the crown, which immersed Scotland in crisis.

1292, Alexander Comyn of Buchan, sheriff of Dingwall. (S) Medieval Scotland, 1998, P178.

1292, King Edward awarded the Scotland to John Balliol, an ally of the Comyn family.

4/27/1296, Alexander [and his brother John, earl of Buchan] captured at the battle of Dunbar, Scotland, by King Edward, and imprisoned in the Tower of London.

7/27/1296 at Elgin, Alexander with King Edward I of England.

9/4/1296, Joan Comyn, of the king’s [of England] special grace, to receive 200 marks of land in Tyndale for her sustenance. [A week later she was granted permission to transfer her household to England.]

3/30/1296, King Edward invading Scotland with a force of 25,000, captured Berwick-upon-Tweed, an important Scottish port of northeast England, sacked the town and massacred thousands of its inhabitants.

9/29/1296, Protection in Scotland for Alexander Comyn of Boghan in Scotland and in England. (S) CPRs.

1297, Alexander appointed Sheriff of Aberdeen. [Held until 1304.]

6/6/1297, Oath by Alexander Comyn of Buchan to serve Edward I against the French. London. (S) UKNA.

1297, Alexander sealed a document with a seal bearing “S’ALEXANDRE CVMYN D’BVC”. (S) Scotland’s Historic Heraldry, 2006, P44.

1297, Alexander’s brother, earl John, turned against England, but Alexander remained loyal.

9/11/1297, The English loss at Stirling. English forces under the command of John, Earl of Surrey, were defeated at the battle of Stirling Bridge by Sir William Wallace.

7/22/1298, King Edward defeated Sir William Wallace (Braveheart) at the battle of Falkirk, Scotland. The Scots defensive position was strong, but based on spearmen with support of some cavalry and archers. Edward’s armored knights were repulsed by the amassed spear points. King Edward brought up his Welsh longbowmen. They cut gaps into the Scottish ranks through which the mounted English knights could charge. The Scots were routed, but Wallace escaped.

2/15/1299, Safe-conduct, until Whitsunday, for Joan wife of Alexander Comyn, who is staying in Scotland, going to Scotland to have a colloquy with her husband and returning to England, and for her men. (S) CPRs.

8/1299, Sir Alexander Comyn was burning and devastating the district beyond the Firth of Forth. (S) Robert Bruce, Barrow, 2005, P141. [William Wallace, John Comyn and Robert Bruce had stirred up rivalries and war in Scotland.]

7/9/1300, Siege of Caerlaverock castle in Scotland began.

2/24/1303, An English invasion force, coming by Borthwick castle near Catcune, were decimated by Scotish archers in the third and last skirmish of the battle of Roslin Muir [aka Roslin Glen]. The Scots were commanded by Sir Simon Fraser. English forces under John de Seagrave and Ralph de Confreys had already been defeated.

1303, Sir Alexander Comyn, sheriff of Aberdeenshire when King Edward I of England visited.

4/1304, King Edward started the 90-day siege of Stirling castle. King Edward first used the Warwolf siege engine, the largest trebuchet ever constructed, in a successful siege.

1304, Alexander the sheriff of Aberdeen. (S) Medieval Scotland, 1998, P178.

1304, Alexander Keeper of Urquhart and Tarwedale castles.

1304, King Edward give custody of Aboyne castle to Alexander. [Later suspended because of a protest of the earl of Athole.]

1305, Alexander Comyn of Buchan makes 4 requests: 1) He states that the King gave him the shrievalty of Aberdeen to hold at pleasure, which he has held during war and peace without receiving any allowance for his expenses in his account. He requests a reasonable allowance for his costs and expenses. 2) He asks the King to vouchsafe to him a fee of £20 annually, which he was granted by Alexander III, in consideration of his good behaviour and his damages. 3) He asks that he might be quit of a ransom, as he has never left the King's faith since he did homage to him at Berwick. 4) He states that some people whom he had annoyed in time of war by what he did for the King's benefit are harrassing him now, in time of peace, and he requests a letter to the Lieutenant that he should not be harrassed for things done in time of war. (S) UKNA.

2/10/1306, John Comyn (III) of Badenoch murdered by Robert Bruce. The Comyn family joined England in opposition to Bruce’s ambitions.

3/5/1306, Robert the Bruce had himself crowned king of Scotland.

1308, Alexander died. [Possibly at the battle of Inverurie. His daughters would be heiresses of his older brother John, earl of Boghan, in 1311.]

[––Joan––]

11/27/1308, Robert de Wauton brought charges against Alice Latimer [widow of Joan’s brother William] and Joan Comyn. (S) CPRs.

11/16/1311, Commitment at will to Joan late the Avife of Alexander Comyn of the keeping of the manor of the Templars of Faxflet, co. York. (S) CFRs.

3/22/1312, Order to acquit Joan, late the wife of Alexander Comyn, in the extent of the Templars' manor of Faxflet, co. York, of £30 granted to her by the king in aid of her maintenance. (S) CCRs.

12/11/1313, Joan, late the wife of Alexander Comyn, keeper of the manor of Faxflet, Yorkshire. (S) CCRs.

2/24/1314, Protection for 1 year without clause for Joan Comyn. (S) CPRs.

7/30/1316, Joan granted the manor of Malton, Yorkshire by the king for her sustenance, allowing her to take £50 yearly from its issues. (S) CPRs.

10/24/1319, Commission … on complaint by Joan, late the wife of Alexander Comyn of Bouham, … carried away her goods at Malton, co. York. (S) CPRs.

1320, Joan granted safe conduct to go to Scotland with 1 knight, 6 squires, 6 men of office, and 10 grooms to seek restitution of her lands in Scotland.

6/2/1323, Joan granted protection to travel to Scotland on business. (S) CPRs.

3/27/1327, Joan granted £40 yearly from the issues of Yorkshire. (S) CPRs.

4/24/1328, Order to pay Joan Comyn of Boghan £20 out of the issues of the bailiwick of the sheriff of York. (S) CCRs.

10/19/1329, Order to pay Joan Comyn of Boghan £20 out of the issues of the bailiwick of the sheriff of York. (S) CCRs.

10/1/1340, Joan living.

(S) Magna Carta Ancestry, P61. (S) Chaloner’s Treatise of the Isle of Man, App. D. (S) Records of the Sheriff Court of Aberdeenshire, Issue 28, 1904. (S) Wife and Widow in Medieval England, Walker, 1993.

Family notes:

·         Alexander Comyn of Badenoch was contemporary to this Alexander. Both appear in rolls of 1296.

Children of Alexander and Joan: [2 daughters]

i. Alice Comyn (5910185), born ~1290 in Scotland.

ii. Margaret Comyn, born ? in Scotland.

7/14/1311, Grant to Henry de Bello Monte, who has married Alice, one of the nieces and co-heiresses of John Comyn, of the custody of the manor of Whitewyk, co. Leicester, during the minority of the heirs. Master William Comyn surrendered to the kin this manor, which John Comyn his brother, sometime earl of Boghan, had held in chief, … it is the inheritance of Alice and Margaret, the nieces and co-heireses of himself and his late brother. (S) CPRs.

Margaret married John de Ross, s/o William the Earl of Ross.