CRAUFORD

1. EUDON-

Eudon was the brother of Alan, Duke of Brittany and was involved in a dispute concerning the ducal title which was resolved upon the creation of the title of Count of Brittany.

Issue-

·  I. Alan Rufus-

·  II. Alan Niger- d. 1093. Alan and his brother Alan Rufus took part in the Norman invasion of England

·  2III. STEPHEN- d.c.1135


2III. STEPHEN (EUDON 1)

d.c.1135

Stephen succeeded to all the Breton lands that had been divided amoung Eudon's sons. Although Stephen and his brothers are sometimes referred to as "earls of Richmond" they were not earls in the strict sense.

Issue-

·  3I. ALAN NIGER-


3I ?ALAN NIGER (EUDON 1, STEPHEN 2)

m. _____ d. of Swane, son of Thor Longus, Lord of Tippermuir and grandson of Leofwine of Northumberland.

Supposedly Alan "the black" was the fourth earl of Richmond and received extensive grants of land from David I in Strath Cluyd in Clydesdale which passed to his youngest son Reginald who took the name of Crawford. However, it seems as though Alan Niger, son of Stephen married Bertha, daughter of Conan III, Duke of Brittany and left no surviving sons as the title of count of Richmond passed to his neice Constance. Perhaps Reginald was his son of a mistress? Alan "the black" did have one illegitimate child Robert "Brito" who witnessed a charter dated 1155 of his brother Conan to Kirkstead Abbey where he is referred to as "Roberto fratre comitis". The records of Durham Cathedral gives Throlongus as overlord of Crawford and does not mention the Earl of Richmond or Reginald. Reginald is more likely to have been a son of Galfridus or Gualterus de Crawfurd. The early generations of the Crawford family are muddled at best with several different lineages found. Unfortunately, I've been unable to find any reference to primary sources which clears up the confusion.

Alan seems to have been marked out as the successor to his father's English lands. In 1139 an unnamed nephew of his was killed at the King's court by the servants of Roger, Bishop of Salisbury, and of the Bishops of Lincoln and Ely, and Alan urged the King to reprisals, thus contributing to the fall of the bishops. In 1140 he seized the castle of "Galclint" with its treasure, ejecting William d'Aubigny and afterwards built a castle at "Hotun," being land of the Bishop of Durham, and ravaged Ripon and the property of the archbishopric of York. In the same year, 1140, King Stephen deprived Reynold de Dunstanville, illegitimate son of Henry I, of his lands in Cornwall and, gave the county to Alan, who seems to have had some claim to it as heir of his uncle Brian. He then assumed the style of Earl of Cornwall. He fought on the side of Stephen at the battle of Lincoln 2 February 1141 but was put to flight at the outset by the charge of the "Disinherited." Later in the same year he was taken prisoner by Ranulf, Earl of Chester, who forced him to do homage and to surrender the Earldom of Cornwall to Reynold de Dunstanville. At Christmas 1141 he was with the King at Canterbury, where as "comes Alanus" he witnessed the King's second charter for Geoffrey de Mandeville. After Easter 1142 a tournament between him and William, Count of Aumale, was stopped by the King. In 1142, he took the castle of Lincoln, with considerable treasure, from Ranulph, Earl of Chester, by scaling the walls at night. In 1143 he invaded the church of Ripon and insulted Archbishop William at the tomb of St. Wilfred. Alan Niger was described as a most deceitful, wicked person, but notwithstanding that character, he appears, like his progenitors, to have been a munificent benefactor to the church. In or shortly before 1145 he issued two charters of confirmation for the abbey of Jervaulx, adding a gift of common of pasture. In 1145 he crossed to Brittany, whence he never returned, and later in the year at Quimper issued a charter confirining the abbey of St. Melaine at Rennes in its rights over the church of St. Sauveur at Guingamp and over their possessions in England. In Brittany he executed two other charters, which have survived, one at Rennes on 6 January 1146 and the other at Ploërrnel.

Issue-

·  ???4I. REGINALD- b.c.1165, m. MARGARET LOUDOUN

Ref:

Dormant, Abeyant, Forfeited, and Extinct Peerages- Sir Bernard Burke, Burke's Peerage, Ltd., London, 1883- p. 162, de Dreux, Earls of Richmond
The Complete Peerage- Vol. X, pp. 788-91
Stephen and Matilda, The Civil War of 1139-53- James Bradbury, Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd., Gloucestershire, 1996
Irish Pedigrees or the Origin and Stem of the Irish Nation- John O'Hart, James Duffy & Co., Dublin, 1892- Vol. II, p. 138
Earls & Dukes of Richmond- http://dialspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/h_earl.html


4I. REGINALD (EUDON 1, STEPHEN 2, ALAN 3)

b.c.1165
m. MARGARET LOUDOUN

Reginald was sheriff of Ayr and was a witness with his son Hugh to a charter from Walter the Steward to the monks of Paisley to the lands of Dalmullin about 1229, to a donation by David de Lindsay to the monastery of Newbattle which was confirmed by King Alexander II in 1232 and with his sons William, John and Adam he witnessed a charter of Hugh de Bygris in 1228/9.(1)

Crawford Castle- Kilbirnie

Issue-

·  I. William-

·  II. John- of Craufordjohn

·  III. Adam-

·  5IV. HUGH-

·  V. Reginald- parson of Strathaven, Lanarkshire

Ref:

(1) Reg. de Passelat- 22; Chart. of Newbattle- 105; Liber St. Marie de Kelso- I, 152

"The Scots Peerage"- Vol.V, pp.488-9


5IV. HUGH (EUDON 1, STEPHEN 2, ALAN 3, REGINALD 4)

Hugh was sheriff of Ayr and had a ratification of a charter from Alan of Galloway on 31 May 1226 to the lands of Crosby.(1) He had a charter of a third part of Steevenstoun, Ayrshire which Margaret Locard had sold to him. From John of Samuelstoun he had a charter of all his rights in the lands of Stevenstoun in exchange for his rights in the lands of Cousland in the tenement of Livingstone about 1246.(2) He and John de Crauford were two of the Scots adhering to King Alexander II on 10 Aug. 1255.(3) The envoys however found them puppets of the English and useless to their own King 21 Sept. 1255.(4)

Issue-

·  6I. HUGH- m. ALICIA ______

·  II. Reginald-

Ref:

(1) Penes Earl of Loudoun
(2) Ibid
(3) Cal. of Docs- I, 381
(4) Ibid- p.2015

"The Scots Peerage"- Vol.V, pp.488-9


6I. HUGH (EUDON 1, STEPHEN 2, ALAN 3, REGINALD 4, HUGH 5)

m. ALICIA ______

Hugh was a witness to the monastery of Paisley about 1229.(1) He had a letter of safe conduct to go to England in 1255 and in 1260 he was involved in a contract between Sir Godfrey Ross and the town of Irvine. In 1271 he and his wife had a charter from Henry, Abbot of Kelso to the lands of Draffen.(2)

Issue-

·  7I. REGINALD- m. CECILIA ______, d. 1297

·  II. Margaret- m. Sir Malcolm Wallace of Elderslie. She was the mother of William Wallace.

Ref:

(1) Reg. de Passelet- 22
(2) Liber de Calchou- II, p.364

"The Scots Peerage"- Vol.V, pp.489-90


7I. REGINALD (EUDON 1, STEPHEN 2, ALAN 3, REGINALD 4, HUGH 5, HUGH 6)

m. CECILIA ______
d. 1297

Reginald was sheriff of Ayr and witnessed a charter of donation by James the High Steward to the monastery of Paisley in 1283-5.(1) He was one of the nominees on the part of Robert Bruce in his competition with John Baliol for the throne of Scotland.(2) Reginald swore fealty to Edward I in 1296 but was murdered by the English in 1297 at the mysterious "Conference of Ayr". Sir Reginald's sister Margaret, was the mother of William Wallace and Sir Reginald's murder along with the murder of Wallace's older brother and his wife was what led to him starting the uprising and Wallace being outlawed.

Issue-

·  8I. REGINALD- d. 13 Feb. 1307

·  II. ______-

Ref:

(1) Reg. De Passelet- p.254
(2) Foedera- II, 553

"The Scots Peerage"- Vol.V, p.490


8I. REGINALD (EUDON 1, STEPHEN 2, ALAN 3, REGINALD 4, HUGH 5, HUGH 6, REGINALD 7)

d. 13 Feb. 1307

Reginald was appointed sheriff of Ayr by Edward I on 14 May 1296 and swore fealty for his lands at Berwick 28 Aug. 1296 and had a protection on 11 June 1297.(1) He became an opponent of the English and was taken prisoner after being wounded at the excursion into Ireland at Loch Ryan by Duncan McDowal on 9 Feb. 1306/7 and taken prisoner. He was executed at Carlisle 13 Feb. 1307 with his head being placed on the castle gate.

Carlisle Castle

Issue-

·  9I. SUSANNA- m. DUNCAN CAMPBELL

Ref:

(1) Cal. of Docs.- II, 739, 961

"The Scots Peerage"- Vol. V, p.490


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