Individual

Go to List of Family Names Go to List of People    < Previous Next >

Birth:          ABT 1090 of Galloway, Scotland
Death:          12 May 1161 Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh, Scotland
Burial:         12 May 1161 Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh, Scotland

Notes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fergus_of_Galloway
Fergus of Galloway (died 12 May 1161) was a twelfth-century Lord of Galloway. 
Although his familial origins are unknown, it is possible that he was of Norse-Gaelic 
ancestry. Fergus first appears on record in 1136, when he witnessed a charter of 
David I, King of Scotland. There is considerable evidence indicating that Fergus was 
married to a bastard daughter of Henry I, King of England. Although the identity of this 
woman is unknown, it is possible that she was the mother of Fergus' three children.

Fergus forged a marital alliance with Óláfr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles through the 
marriage of the latter to Fergus' daughter, Affraic. As a consequence of this union, the 
leading branch of the Crovan dynasty descended from Fergus. When Óláfr was 
assassinated by a rival branch of the dynasty, Galloway itself was attacked before 
Fergus' grandson, Guðrøðr Óláfsson, was able to seize control of Isles. Both Fergus 
and his grandson appear to have overseen military operations in Ireland, before the 
latter was overthrown by Somairle mac Gilla Brigte, Lord of Argyll. The fact that there 
is no record of Fergus lending Guðrøðr support against Somairle could be evidence of 
a slackening of Fergus' authority. Contemporary sources certainly report that Galloway 
was wracked by inter-dynastic strife during the decade.

Fergus' fall from power came in 1160, after Malcolm IV, King of Scotland settled a 
dispute amongst his leading magnates and launched three military campaigns into 
Galloway. The reasons for the Scottish invasion are unknown. On one hand, it is 
possible that Fergus had precipitated events by preying upon Scottish territories. In 
the aftermath of the attack, the king came to terms with Somairle which could be 
evidence that he had either been allied with Fergus against the Scots or that he had 
aided in Fergus' destruction. Whatever the case, Fergus himself was driven from 
power, and forced to retire to the abbey of Holyrood. He died the next year. The 
Lordship of Galloway appears to have been partitioned between his sons, Gilla Brigte 
and Uhtred, and Scottish influence further penetrated into Galloway.
Origins[edit]

Fergus' familial origins are unknown.[3] He is not accorded a patronym in 
contemporary sources,[4] and his later descendants are traced no further than him in 
their charters.[5][note 1] The fact that he tends to be styled "of Galloway" in 
contemporary sources suggests that he was the head of the most important family in 
the region. Such appears to have been the case with Fergus' contemporary Freskin, a 
significant settler in Moray, who was styled de Moravia.[15]

One source that may possibly cast light on Fergus' familial origins is Roman de 
Fergus,[16] a mediaeval Arthurian romance, mainly set in southern Scotland,[17] which 
tells the tale of a knight who may represent Fergus himself.[18] The name of the 
knight's father in this source is a form of the name borne by Fergus' neighbouring 
contemporary Somairle mac Gilla Brigte, Lord of Argyll (died 1164), and could be 
evidence that Fergus' father bore the same name.[19] Conversely, the name of the 
knight's father could suggest that this character represents the historical Somairle 
himself, rather than the father of Fergus.[20] Whatever the case, there is reason to 
suspect that the romance is a literary pastiche or parody of the compositions of 
Chrétien de Troyes;[21] and besides the coincidence of names, the tale has little to 
commend it to the historical Fergus himself.[22]

Despite the uncertainty surrounding his origins, it is possible that Fergus was of 
Norse-Gaelic and native Gallovdian ancestry.[23] Traditionally, the Gallovidians 
appear to have looked towards the Isles instead of Scotland, and the core of his 
family's lands seems to have centred in valley of the river Dee and the coastal area 
around Whithorn, regions of substantial Scandinavian settlement.[24] Whatever the 
case, the fact that Fergus died as an old man in 1161 suggests that he was born 
before 1100.[25]
***
Death and aftermath[edit]

Fergus did not live long after retiring, and died on 12 May 1161, as evidenced by the 
Chronicle of Holyrood.[198] Surviving sources reveal that he overshadowed his sons 
during his lifetime, with Uhtred witnessing only three charters and Gilla Brigte none at 
all. The latter's apparent exclusion from affairs of state could be relevant to the 
subsequent animosity between the siblings, as well as the difficulties Fergus faced 
with the men late in his career.[199] Upon Fergus' death, the lordship appears to have 
been split between the brothers. Although there is no specific evidence for Gilla 
Brigte's share, later transactions involving Uhtred reveal that the latter held lands in 
the lower Dee valley, seemingly centred in an area around Kirkcudbright. The fact that 
this region appears to have formed the core of Fergus' holdings could be evidence 
that Uhtred was the senior successor. Conceivably, Uhtred's allotment consisted of 
the lordship's territory east of the river Cree, whilst Gilla Brigte's share was everything 
east of this waterway.[200]

In the wake of Malcolm's destruction of Fergus, the Scottish Crown moved to further 
incorporate Galloway into the Scottish realm. Uhtred appears to have been granted 
the territory between the rivers Nith and Urr,[202] whilst Gilla Brigte may have been 
wed to a daughter or sister of Donnchad, Earl of Fife (died 1204), the kingdom's 
foremost Gaelic magnate.[203] Scottish authority penetrated into the lordship through 
the installation of royal officials,[204] and Scottish power was perhaps further 
projected into Galloway by a royal castle at Dumfries.[205] Surviving royal acta dating 
to after the fall of Fergus indicate that, from the perspective of the Scottish Crown, 
the Lordship of Galloway had been integrated into the Kingdom of Scotland, and was 
subject to the overlordship of Malcolm himself.[206]


Marriage To ____ Elizabeth (ABT 1101 - )
    m.  

Notes

Parents
____ Henry I "Beauclerc" (1070 - 1 Dec 1135)
OF SCOTLAND Matilda "Atheling" (ABT 1079 - 1 May 1118)

Children by ____ Elizabeth ABT 1101 - 
OF GALLOWAY Uchtred (ABT 1120 - 22 Sep 1174)
MAC FERGUS Bethoc (ABT 1126 - )
OF GALLOWAY Gilbert (ABT 1126 - 1 Jan 1185)

Produced by Fzip 1.7 6/20/2017