I97142: Jeanette Carson BLAIKLEY (19 Mar 1729

Notes

Burke's Landed Gentry. "King Robert the Bruce granted him in Feb 1323 a large portion of the Royal Forest of Drum. Drum Castle near Aberdeen, Scotland open for viewing owned by the National Trust for Scotland."

"During his campaign, Robert often sought help and refuge from his kinsmen, the Irvines of Bonshaw. He chose from among them, William de Irwyn as one of his principle aides and companions. As the story goes, at one point King Robert found himself put to flight by his enemies with only his aides around him. Exhausted by the chase, the King was compelled to sleep under a holly tree while William stood guard over him. Holly leaves are a prominent feature in all seven family crests which represent the major branches of the Irvine clan. William stood by King Robert again at Bannockburn in June of 1314 and for his service was awarded the Royal Forest of Oaks in Aberdeenshire and Drum Castle which guards it in 1323. This land had previously belong to John Comyn and Robert, as king, was free to do with is as he pleased. Drum was made into a free barony in 1329."
http://www.castles.org/Chatelaine/DRUM.HTM.

The Early Years
Drum Castle has been lived in continuously from at least 1323 to the present day. For over 650 of those years it was occupied by the Irvine family and it is their name that is synonymous with the Castle

King Robert the Bruce
In 1323, King Robert the Bruce gave the Tower of Drum to William de Irwyn. For many years it was thought that William had been the Bruce's secretary and armour bearer through the long struggle for independence with the English. Recent research has questioned this and the Irvine family now believe that William was an official who worked for Bernard, Abbot of Arbroath and Chancellor of Scotland.

A Strategic Position
William must have had the king's trust because Drum was well placed in ensuring the safety of nearby Aberdeen. The word Drum is derived from the gaelic for ridge and, indeed the castle is sited on a ridge above the River Dee 10 miles to the west of Aberdeen. The importance of the site is that here is the lowest fording point on the river above the city. Any army coming north and wanting to by pass the city - with its castle and garrison - and enter the rich agricultural lands of the Garioch and Buchan or even to attack the city from an unexpected direction would have had to cross the river at this point. The Tower of Drum was, therefore, the police station that guarded Aberdeen's backdoor.

How Old?
There is no documentary evidence about the age of the castle before 1323 but a number of clues in the archaeology have allowed us some insight to the possible age of the Tower. Firstly, in the High Hall of the tower is a large fire place. The corners of the fire place are chamfered with a stop some 12 inches above the floor. This style is entirely indicative of the second half of the 13th Century so it is probable that when the Tower was given to William it had already been in existence for some 30 to 40 years. Also, on the northern boundary of Aberdeen spanning the River Don, is the Brig of Balgownie. The arch of the bridge has, unusually, a point, the shape and ratios of which mirror almost exactly the shape of the roof of the High Hall in the tower. The Bridge was known to have been built by Richard Cemantarius, King's Master Mason and First Provost of Aberdeen. The similarity in shape is such that it is very unlikely that two people came up with such a similar design independently in the same area. Richard was dead by the time of the death of King Alexander III in 1286. We can assume, therefore, that the Tower itself dates from before 1286.

Red Harlaw
The Battle of Harlaw was fought at nearby Inverurie on 29 July 1411. At Harlaw, the citizens of Aberdeen together with the men of Angus, the Mearns, the Garioch and Buchan defeated a much larger army of Highlanders and Islanders led by Donald, Lord of the Isles. Such was the slaughter on both sides that the battle, the bloodiest in the history of Scotland, became known as Red Harlaw. Sir Alexander Irvine, third Laird of Drum was killed at Harlaw in single combat with Maclean of Duart known as Red Hector of the Battles - who Alexander also killed. On his way to Harlaw Alexander stopped at a point now called the Drumstone where it is possible to see both Harlaw and Drum. Here he had a premonition that he would die and made his younger brother, (some versions have it as his son) Robert, promise to marry his widow Elizabeth Keith - with whom he had not consummated his marriage - and so help bring about an end to the long running feud with the Keiths. This Robert did, changing his name to Alexander and causing considerable confusion for historians because there were now two 4th Lairds. http://www.drum-castle.org.uk/the_early_years.htm.

Notes

He was summoned to Parliament from 30 July 1460. He betrayed the cause of King Richard III at the battle of Bosworth on 22 Aug 1485, and is said to have set that King's crown on the head of his step-son, the victorious Henry VII. He was created Earl of Derby on 27 Oct 1485. On 24 Jun 1495, he received a visit lasting nearly a month, from the King and Queen, at Knowsley and at Lathom.

2nd Baron Stanley, Constable of England for life, Earl of Derby, and 1st Earl of Warwick.
also called (1459-85) 2ND BARON STANLEY, a prominent figure in the later stage of England's Wars of the Roses. Great-grandson of Sir John Stanley (d. c. 1414), who created the fortunes of the Stanley family, Thomas Stanley began his career as a squire to King Henry VI in 1454. At the Battle of Blore Heath in August 1459, Stanley, though close at hand with a large force, did not join the royal army, while his brother William fought openly for York.
In 1461 Stanley was made chief justice of Cheshire by Edward IV, but 10 years later he sided with his
brother-in-law Warwick in the Lancastrian restoration. Nevertheless, after Warwick's fall, Edward IV made Stanley steward of his household. About 1482 he married, as his second wife, Margaret Beaufort, mother of the exiled Henry Tudor (the future Henry VII).
Stanley was one of the executors of Edward IV and was at first loyal to the young king Edward V. However, he acquiesced in Richard III's accession and retained his office as steward, avoiding entanglement in the rebellion (1483) on behalf of Henry Tudor in which his wife was deeply involved. He was made constable of England and was granted possession of his wife's estates with a charge to keep her safe in some secret place at home. Richard III could not well afford to quarrel with so powerful a noble, but he became suspicious when, early in 1485, Stanley asked leave to retire to his estates in Lancashire, and in the summer Richard asked Stanley to send his son Lord Strange to court as a hostage. After Henry Tudor had landed, Stanley made excuses for not joining the King. On the morning of Bosworth (August 22), when Richard summoned Stanley to join him, he received an evasive reply and thereupon ordered Lord Strange to be executed, although his order was neglected and Strange escaped. After the Battle of Bosworth Field, Stanley, who had taken no part in the fighting, placed the crown on Henry's head. Henry VII confirmed him in all his offices and created him earl of Derby. His son Thomas succeeded him as 2nd earl of Derby.
SOURCE: "Derby, Thomas Stanley, 1st earl of" Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Note:

In 1454, Thomas was a squire to the King. He married Eleanor Neville, daughter of the Earl of Salisbury. He succeeded his father as Lord Stanley in 1458. Unlike his father, his politics were ambiguous. In 1459, he kept aloof from Blore Heath despite being ordered to join Lord Audley by the Court. In 1460, he fought with the Lancastrians at Northampton but survived and a year later Edward IV made him Chief Justice of the County Palatine of Chester. Between 1462 and 1475, he had a dispute with Lord Scrope over the ownership of the Isle of Man. During Warwick's rebellion in 1470, he again avoided commitment but took Hornby castle for the Crown after Henry's readeption.
Nonetheless, when Edward IV returned to power in 1471, Stanley was made Steward of the Household and in 1475 served with Edward in France. In 1482, he fought with Duke Richard of Gloucester in Scotland but also married Margaret Beaufort and so gained an interest in her son, Henry Tudor.
In 1483, Edward IV died. Stanley was wounded in the scuffle in the council chamber when he and Hastings were arrested. Hastings was butchered but Stanley was soon released due to Richard III's fears that his sons would raise Cheshire and Lancashire in rebellion. He carried the mace at Richard's coronation and remained Steward of the household.
When his wife was involved in Buckingham's rebellion, he remained aloof and afterwards locked her away and helped bring down the Duke of Buckingham. For this he was made Constable of England. Richard sent him as an envoy to Scotland in 1484 but in 1485, Richard demanded his son, Lord Strange, as a hostage. When Henry Tudor landed at Milford Haven, Stanley refused to stop him marching through Wales, claiming illness. At Bosworth, he remained aloof until the battle was decided but crowned Henry afterwards. When Richard tried to threaten him with the death of his son, Stanley replied, "I have other sons!"
In 1486, Henry VII created him Earl of Derby and he served at the coronation as Constable of England. He became High Steward of the Duchy of Lancaster and Keeper of the Forests North of the Trent. Later he became godfather to Prince Arthur. In 1495, Henry VII visited him at Knowsley for a month. He died in his bed!

"The first earl Stanley married Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII - their son Lord Strange was held captive by Richard III. At Bosworth Fields Lord Stanley and his brother deserted to Henry VI and Lord Stanley is credited with having picked up the crown and placing it on Henry's head. William Stanley in Elizabeth I's reign was accused of having delivered up Deventer in the Netherlands to the Spaniards and in the reign of James I, was in contact with Thomas Winter the Gunpowder Plotter.

Members of many of the families intermarried with the Winters of Barningham (who were entitled to bear their arms) fought at Crecy. Barningham Winter, Norfolk had been held by Roger Bigot soon after the Conquest and William de Warenne, earl of Surrey also held 30 acres of land in Norfolk. The following families connected with the Winters of Barningham are mentioned in the Crecy and Calais records:
Braylesford of Derby, William Hetherset, Hampton, Bedingfeld or Bedingfilde, Lucy, Dengayne." ^[S504] ^[S3780]

My Southern Family

Jeanette Carson BLAIKLEY

19 Mar 1729 - 1780

ID Number: I97142

Notes

Sources

Margaret Harvie HAWKINS

1788 - 1831

ID Number: I61763

Notes

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WILLIAM de IRWYN 1st Lord of Drum

ABT 1290 - 1335

ID Number: I6490

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William Joseph MCCULLEY

Danny Lester ROBINSON

Catherine SNEAD

1785 - 1870

ID Number: I89905

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THOMAS STANLEY 1st Earl of Derby, K.G.

ABT 1435 - 29 Jul 1504

ID Number: I26388

Notes

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Charles T. THORNTON

ABT 1800 - ____

ID Number: I74367

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Robert Witherspoon WILSON

7 Apr 1710 - 1785

ID Number: I49163

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