Earl of Carrick
For the title in the Peerage of Ireland, see Earl of Carrick army into Galloway to bring justice upon Gille Brigte.
(Ireland).
Earl of Carrick or Mormaer of Carrick is the title ap-
plied to the ruler of Carrick (now southern Ayrshire), sub-
sequently part of the Peerage of Scotland. The position
came to be strongly associated with the Scottish crown
when Robert the Bruce, who had inherited it from his
maternal kin, became King of the Scots in the early 14th
century. Since the 15th century the title of 'Earl of Car-
rick' has automatically been held by the heir to the throne,
meaning Prince Charles is the current Earl.
1 Early rulers
The ruins of Turnberry Castle on the Carrick coast, former seat
of the Earls of Carrick
The earldom emerged in 1186, out of the old Lordship
of Galloway, which had previously encompassed all of
what is now known as Galloway as well as the southern
part of Ayrshire. Though the Lords of Galloway recog-
nised the King of Scots as their overlord, their lordship
was eectively a separate kingdom, and had its own laws.
The rst Lord recorded is Fergus, who died in 1161 leav-
ing two sons: Uchtred and Gille Brigte (Gilbert). As was
the custom then, the two brothers shared the lordship and
the lands between them. In 1174, they joined with King
William the Lion in his invasion of Northumberland.
However, after King William was taken prisoner by the
English, the Galwegians broke into rebellion. Uchtred,
who remained loyal to the Scottish king, was savagely
murdered by Gille Brigtes son Mel Coluim, and Gille
Brigte took control of the entirety of Galloway. In 1175,
King William was restored to liberty, and he marched an
However, he seems to have contented himself with ex-
acting a ne, leaving Gille Brigte to go unharmed.
In 1176, Gille Brigte obtained an agreement with King
Henry II of England, in which he became his vassal; in
exchange, he paid the English king the then enormous
sum of 919 9s. and gave his son Duncan (Donnchadh)
as a hostage. Gille Brigte then spent the next decade car-
rying out devastating raids on King Williams territory,
with the protection of the English.
Earl Duncans seal. The caption reads sigillvm dvncani lli gille-
ber, Latin for seal of Duncan/Donnchadh son of Gilbert/Gille
Brigte. The symbol in the centre is a grin; later earls used the
device of a chevron
Gille Brigtes death in 1185 was the signal for general tur-
moil amongst the Galwegians. Roland, son of the mur-
dered Uchtred, defeated the supporters of Gille Brigte in
1185, and planted forts across Galloway to secure his au-
thority. This angered King Henry, and he marched a large
force to Carlisle in preparation for invasion. However,
war was averted at a meeting between Roland, William
and Henry, when it was agreed that Roland would rule
the main part of Galloway, while Gille Brigtes son Dun-
can would rule the northern section, known as Carrick.
Duncan agreed to these terms, and renounced all claims
1
2 2 ROYAL EARLS

to the Lordship of Galloway, becoming the rst Earl of Around 1313, King Robert made his younger brother Ed-
Carrick. ward the Earl of Carrick. Edward had no issue, save a
Duncan married Avelina, daughter of Alan, High Steward natural son he had by Lady Isabella Strathbogie, daugh-
of Scotland. His son or grandson Niall's eldest daughter ter of John, Earl of Atholl. The title therefore became
Marjorie succeeded him, becoming Countess of Carrick extinct on his death at the Battle of Faughart in 1318.
in her own right. She married rstly Adam de Kilcon- After briey being held by Roberts son David prior to his
quhar. In 1269, Adam journeyed to the Holy Land under accession to the throne, the title was granted in 1332 to
the banners of King Louis IX of France, as part of the Alexander, Edwards bastard. However, Alexander was
Eighth Crusade. He never returned, dying of disease at killed the next year at the Battle of Halidon Hill and the
Acre in 1270. The next year, the widowed Countess hap- title again became extinct.
pened to meet Robert de Brus hunting in her lands. Ac- In 1368, King David created his great-nephew John Stew-
cording to legend, Marjorie imprisoned Robert until he art the Earl of Carrick. David died unexpectedly in 1371.
agreed to marry her. They were married at Turnberry He had no children, meaning he was succeeded by his
Castle, without their families knowledge or the requi- nephew Robert Stewart, Johns father. After Roberts
site consent of the King. When news got out, Alexander death in 1390, John succeeded him, taking the regnal
III seized her castles and estates, but she later atoned for name Robert III; thus the Earldom of Carrick again
her foolishness with a ne, and Robert was recognised as merged with the Crown.
her husband and Earl of Carrick jure uxoris.;[1] They had
ve sons and ve daughters: Robert, Edward, Thomas, The title was next held by Robert IIIs son David, who was
Alexander, Nigel, Isabel, Mary, Christina, Matilda and also created Duke of Rothesay and Earl of Atholl. David
Margaret. died childless in 1402, and the Earldom was regranted
to his brother James; however he was generally known
by the higher title Prince or Steward of Scotland. James
acceded to the throne in 1406, and his titles merged with
2 Royal earls the Crown.

Arms of the Earl of Carrick as depicted in Balliol roll.

Marjorie and Robert were succeeded by their eldest son.
When the old House of Dunkeld became extinct, this
Robert, known as the Bruce, became a principal can-
didate for the throne as the great-great-great-great grand-
son of David I. He was crowned at Scone in 1306, caus-
ing his titles (Earl of Carrick, Lord of Annandale and
Baron Bruce in the Peerage of England) to merge into
the Crown.
Prince Charles, the current Earl of Carrick
In 1469, the Scottish Parliament passed an Act declaring
that the eldest son of the King and heir to the throne would
automatically hold the Earldom, along with the Dukedom
of Rothesay. After the Union of the Crowns of Scotland
and England, the Dukedom and Earldom have been held
by the eldest son and heir of the Kings of Great Britain.
Thus Prince Charles is the current Duke of Rothesay and
 3

Earl of Carrick. reverted to crown

James Stewart, Duke of Rothesay (14041437) [be-

came King James I of Scotland in 1406]
3 Stewart earls (1628)
See Duke of Rothesay for further Earls of Carrick.
In 1628, King Charles I created John Stewart the Earl
of Carrick. He had already been made Lord Kincleven
in 1607, also in the Peerage of Scotland. Stewart was
a younger son of Robert, Earl of Orkney, bastard son 6 See also
of King James V; thus he was Charless half-great-uncle.
This title was deemed not to conict with the Earldom of Earl of Orkney
Carrick held by the heir to the throne, as it referred not
Ayrshire (Earl of Carricks Own) Yeomanry
to the province in Ayrshire, but to the lands of Carrick
on Eday in Orkney. John married Lady Elizabeth South- Duchy of Cornwall
well, daughter of Charles Howard, Earl of Nottingham
and widow of Sir Robert Southwell. By her he had one
daughter, Margaret. He is also known to have had two 7 References
natural children: a son, named Henry, and a daughter,
whose name is unknown. As he had no legitimate son,
[1] Skene, Felix James Henry; Skene, William Forbes (1872).
his titles became extinct on his death around 1645. John of Forduns Chronicle of the Scottish Nation. Edin-
burgh. p. 299.

4 List of holders Anderson, Rev'd John; Balfour Paul, Sir James;

Steuart, Archibald Francis (1905) The Scots Peerage
4.1 Early rulers Vol. II pp. 42142. Edinburgh: David Douglas.

Gille Brigte (d. 1185), ruled without comital title Anderson, Rev'd John (1907) Ancient Lords of
Galloway in The Scots Peerage Vol. IV pp. 135
Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick (d. 1250) 8

Niall, Earl of Carrick (d. 1256)
Marjorie, Countess of Carrick (d. 1292)
4.2 Bruce earls
Robert Bruce (12921314) [became King Robert I.
The Bruce of Scotland on 1306, died in 1329]
Irvine, James M. (ed.) (2006) The Orkneys and
Schetland in Blaeus Atlas Novus of 1654. Ashtead:
James M. Irvine. ISBN 0-9544571-2-9
Thomson, William P. L. (2008) The New History of
Orkney. Edinburgh: Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-84158-
696-0

Edward Bruce (13141318) [his brother, became

High-King of Ireland in 1315, died in 1318]

reverted to crown

David Bruce (13281330) [became King David II

of Scotland in 1329, died in 1371]

Alexander de Brus, Earl of Carrick (13301333) [il-

legitimate son of Edward Bruce, died in 1333]

reverted to crown

5 Stewart earls
John Stewart, Earl of Carrick (c. 13681390) [be-
came King Robert III of Scotland in 1390]

David Stewart, Duke of Rothesay (13901402)

4 8 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

8 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

8.1 Text
Earl of Carrick Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earl_of_Carrick?oldid=766125690 Contributors: Smack, Pedant17, Lord
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