III Boyd
Robert Boyd, Male 1290 - after 18 Jul 1333
Born, Noddsdale Water, Cunninghame, Ayrshire.
y (a territorial entity held from the crown) of Kilmarnock, captured by the English at their victory over the Scots of Halidon Hill 1333 and died soon afterward. [Burke's Peerage]e inherited the noble virtues of his father in no ordinary degree'. Brought up during the war of liberation against King Edward, he was amongst the first of the Scottish nobility to join Robert Bruce in his rising. Much of what has been written about Bruce is misleading. In addition to his being Earl of Carrick, Lord of Annandale and Keeper of the Royal Forests of Scotland, Bruce was Lord of the Manor of Huntingdon, owned a town house in London and a suburban manor in Tottenham. Two years before the rising, his brother Alexander took his MA. at Cambridge. Bruce was no wild Scottish chieftain, but an educated noble of Flemish extraction.acking of Edward of England and John Comyn of Badenoch, head of the most powerful family in Scotland at that time. Baliol had fled to France with no intention of returning, leaving Scotland virtually kingless. Bruce had seemingly started planning his rising in 1304, but everything hinged upon the support of John Comyn, a difficult person: the Red comyn must either support Bruce or be dead. The climax came in 1306, when Bruce met the Comyn in Greyfriars church in Dumfries. As they stood before the alter and argued, knives were drawn, and John Comyn fell wounded. According to legend, Bruce ran out of the church crying 'I doubt I have slain the Red Comyn'. Kilpatrick answered his "Do you so doubt? Then I'll mak siccar', and rushed into the church followed by Sir Robert Boyd and finished the job. Legendary as this may be, the fact is that both John Comyn of Badenoch and Sir Robert Comyn were both killed. This was the signal for Bruce's uprising to start. Bruce first went to his castle at Lochmaben, and then to Glasgown to secure the Clyde for his supplies from Ireland. Sir Robert Boyd took Rothesay castle from the sea, and laid siege to Inverkip. Six weeks after the Comyn's death, Bruce was crowned King of Scotland at Scone. For his support in the rising, the King awarded Sir Robert Boyd III with the lands of West Kilbride and of Portincross or Ardneil, which later became the patrimony of the younger sons of the Boyd family, until 1737., and again near Tyndrum, and had to go into hiding, his queen and daughter sent with the ladies of his supporters to Kildrummy castle in the charge of the earl of Athol, Alexander Lindsay and Sir Robert Boyd. The follow year the king returned. Douglas and Sir Robert Boyd led the attack on Arran from Kintrye, but their attack on Turnberry castle, Bruce's own castle, failed. Bruce then raised his standard at Loch Trocl in Galloway, where he defeated an English force sent to capture him. He marched north to defeat the English at Loudoun Hill, defeated John Comyn, Earl of Buchan, at Barrs Hill, and subdued the Earl of Ross. In k1308, Parliament was called at St Andrews and re-affirmed Bruce as King: Sir Robert was present as a member of Parliament. During the next few years, Bruce consolidated his position, capturing all the English-held castles except Stirling, and repulsing an expedition of Edward II of England in 1310. The climax came in 1314 at the Battle of Bannockburn, where Sir Robert Boyd was one of his principle commanders. 'Blind Harry' wrote of this battle:-. These seem to have been followed in 1320 with the lordship and barony of Kilmarnock, fortfeited by Lord Soulis. He also obtained the lands of Trabock in Kyle, parts of Dalsinton and Bridburgh in Dumfries, and the Glenkins of Galloway. Added to his existing holdings, these properties were to set the future of the Boyds, as substantial barons below the great magnate families of Douglas, Stewart and Randolph. Dean Castle north of Kilmarnock was to become the Boyd's stronghold: it was probably a primitive fortification on the motte when it was granted to Sir Robert.dward III of England, ratified by the English parliament in Jun 1323 and renouncing any claim to Scotland. But fighting was still in his blood. Sir Robert was captured at the battle of Halidon Hill in 1333, and died soon afterwards. He left three sons-
Sources
- Lysell, Mike.ged - provided by LifeTimes Research
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