John Comin (Earl of Buchan)

Comins , a family of Norman descent, first appeared in Scotland during the reign of King David I. In 1136, William Comin , who had previously been in the service of the King of England, Henry I of Bockler , became Chancellor of Scotland . William Comin became one of the French-speaking foreigners whose power and status in Scotland were completely dependent on the king. They were used by King David I and his successors to extend royal power to the semi-independent outskirts of the kingdom. Comin's first land grant came in the south of Scotland. In 1212, William Comin , the Justiciary of Scotland , married Marjorie, the only daughter and heiress of Fergus , the Celtic Earl or Mormair Buchan . Buchan County covered a large area in the northeast of Scotland. William was succeeded in 1233 by his son Alexander Komin, 2nd Earl of Badenoch (d. 1289). William Comin also acquired for his other son, Walter Comin, the southern part of the county of Moray (the lordship of Badenoch) and the lordship of Lohaber. By the middle of the 13th century, the Comins owned territory from Aberdeenshire in the west to Loch Linne . The comins retained their position under the rule of kings Alexander II and Alexander III .

In 1290, the seven- year -old Queen of Scotland Margaret (1286–1290) died on her way from Norway to Scotland. Thirteen competitors began to claim the Scottish crown, among them the main ones were Lord Robert Bruce of Annandale , the grandfather of King Robert Bruce , and Baron Barnard Castle of John de Balliol . John II Comin, Lord of Badenoch (1242-1302), sometimes known as the Black Comin, also claimed the royal throne. In 1292, after the intervention of the King of England, Edward I Plantagenet, John de Balliol (1292-1296) was declared the new king of Scotland.

In 1289, after the death of his father, Alexander Comin, 6th Earl of Buchan , John Comin became the 7th Earl of Buchan. At that time, John Comin was about thirty years old. He was a prominent dignitary at the court of King John Balliol , receiving by 1293 the post of constable of Scotland. John Comin, Earl of Buchan, was one of the Scottish nobles who were summoned by King Edward I of England to participate in the English war against France. When King John Balliol agreed to the King’s demand for a Scottish contingent in the war with France, Earl Buchan and other Scottish leaders took control of the kingdom. The new regents of Scotland formed an alliance with France and prepared for war against England. In the first phase of the war, John Comin, Earl of Buchan, and his cousin, John the "Red" Comin, Lord of Badenoch , attacked the English city of Carlisle , led by Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick . Thus, during the war of independence of Scotland, the struggle between the Comins and the Bruce began.

The siege of Carlisle was unsuccessful. In 1296, King Edward I of England with great strength entered Scotland and defeated the army of John Balliol at the Battle of Dunbar. Scottish king John Balliol and John Comyn, Earl of Buchan, surrendered to the King of England at Montrose in July of that year, along with other leading Scottish nobles. Earl Buchan was dispossessed, exiled to England, and imprisoned in the Tower of London . In June 1297, John Comin, Earl of Buchan, promised the King of England to take part in the war against France. In the same 1297, a massive uprising broke out in Scotland, led by Andrew Morey in the north and William Wallace in the south of the kingdom. In July 1297, the English king Edward I released Count Buchan to Scotland, instructing him to crush the rebellion.

Andrew Morey was the son of Sir Andrew Morey of Petty (d. 1298), the Justiciary of Scotland, and his mother was the daughter of John Comin, Lord of Badenoch . The Mores and Comins were long-standing political allies. In 1296, after the defeat of the Scots at the Battle of Dunbar, Justiciary Andrew Morey was captured by the British and imprisoned in the Tower of London , where he died. Earl Buchan did not openly join the rebels Andrew Morey. In September 1297, the Scots under the command of William Wallace and Andrew Morey defeated the British army in the Battle of Stirling Bridge . Shortly after this battle, Andrew Morey died of his wounds, and William Wallace was appointed guardian of Scotland.

In 1298, after his defeat from the British at the Battle of Falkirk, William Wallace resigned as guardian. He was replaced by Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, who sided with the Scottish patriots, and John "Red" Comin, Lord of Badenoch, who returned to Scotland. In 1299, William de Lamberton , Bishop of St. Andrews, a supporter of the Bruce party, was elected the third guardian. In 1301, William Lumberton was forced to abandon the post of guardian due to the fact that the Red Comin announced that he no longer wanted to cooperate with him. As early as 1300, Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick , also resigned as the custodian (regent) of Scotland.

From about 1300 to 1304, the Comins ( John the "Red", Lord Badenoch , and John, Earl of Buchan) actually led the Scots' military operations during the Revolutionary War. Earl Buchan received the post of Justiciary of Scotland north of the River Fort. He took part in raids against the British, and in Galloway , where he, as sheriff of Wigtown , tried to raise the local population to revolt against the British. In 1302, John Comin, Earl of Buchan, joined the Scottish delegation sent to Paris to prevent the conclusion of a peace treaty between England and France. In his absence, his cousin, John "Red" Comin won the English army at the Battle of Roslyn .

In 1303, a large-scale invasion of the English army took place under the command of King Edward I Plantagenet . The British crossed the River Fort and invaded northern Scotland, threatening Buchan and Badenoch, the Comin regions. In February 1304, John "Red" Comin was forced to conclude a peace treaty with King Edward I of Strathord. Edward I appointed Governor of Scotland John of Breton, Earl of Richmond . Earl Buchan became a member of the Regency Council under John of Breton. In September 1305, Earl of Buchan participated in the Anglo-Scottish Parliament at Westminster .

Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick , and John the "Red" Comin, Lord of Badenoch, claimed the Scottish throne. On February 10, 1306, by order of Robert Bruce, his main rival, John the "Red" Comin, was killed during negotiations at a church in Dumfries . His son and heir, John IV Comin , was ordered to England by order of Edward I. On March 25 of the same 1306, Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, was crowned in .

After successful military campaigns in the areas of Galloway and Argyle, the new Scottish king Robert Bruce concentrated all his strength and effort against John Comin, Earl of Buchan. Robert Bruce’s campaign against Earl Buchan lasted from the end of 1307 until the spring of 1308 . In May 1308, at the Battle of Inveruri, Robert Bruce defeated John Comin, Earl of Buchan. After Comin's flight to England, his possessions in Buchan County were devastated and looted.

In England, John Comin was well received by the new king, Edward II , who appointed him guardians of the Western marks in June 1308 . But before the end of 1308, John Comin passed away. His niece and heiress, Alice Comin (1289–1349), the eldest daughter of Alexander Comin (d. 1308) and Joan de Latimer, married the French nobleman in the English service, Henry de Beaumont (c. 1280–1340), around 1310 . Henry Beaumont began to claim the county of Buchan by the right of his wife Alice Comin.

John Comin, Earl of Buchan, was married to Isabella Macduff (d. Circa 1314), daughter of Duncan III, Earl of Fife (1270-1288), and Joan de Claire (1264 - after 1302), daughter of Gilbert de Claire, 7th Count of Gloucester . The marriage was childless.

• Barrow, G., Robert Bruce and the Commubity of the Realm of Scotland, 1976.
• Barron, EM, The Scottish War of Independence, 1934.
• Young, A., Robert the Bruce's Rivals: the Comyns, 1212–1314, 1997.
• Tout, Thomas Frederick (1887). "Comyn, John (d.1313?) . " In Stephen, Leslie. Dictionary of National Biography. 11. London: Smith, Elder & Co.