James Douglas, Lord of Douglas. Sir James 'Black' Douglas - Wars of Independence. Sir James Douglas also known as the Black Douglas, the right hand man of Robert the Bruce. Early Years Sir James Douglas was also known as the Black Douglas and was a knight of some renown and a trusted ally of Robert the Bruce.
His father, Sir William Douglas the Hardy, had been a supporter of William Wallace and was the defender of Berwick castle when it was successfully sieged by Edward I in 1296. He ended his days as a prisoner in the Tower of London. James was educated in Paris and returned to Scotland in 1306 to find his lands had been seized by the English King Edward I and awarded to another. When James went to the English court to try and get his lands back Edward became angry upon realising whose son he was and James had to flee. Douglas pledged his services to Robert the Bruce shortly afterwards and the two embarked on an exciting journey which would take Bruce to the throne and win Douglas back his lost ancestral lands. Sir James Douglas. DOUGLAS, SIR JAMES, one of the most remarkable men of the heroic age to which he belonged, and the founder of the great fame and grandeur of one of the most illustrious houses in Scotland, was the eldest son of William Douglas, a baron, or magnate of Scotland, who died in England about the year 1302.
The ancestry of this family have been but imperfectly and obscurely traced by most genealogists; but it now seems to be established beyond doubt, that the original founder came into this country from Flanders, about the year 1147; and, in reward of certain services, not explained, which he performed to the abbot of Kelso, received from that prelate a grant of lands on the water of Douglas, in Lanarkshire. In this assignation, a record of which is yet extant, he is styled Theobaldus Flammaticus, or Theobald the Fleming. James 'The Good' Lord Douglas, 1286-1330.
Le Hardi's son, SIR JAMES Of DOUGLAS (1286—1330), lord of Douglas, called the,” Good,” whose exploits are among the most romantic in Scottish, history, ,was educated in Paris.
On his return he found an Englishman., Robert de Clifford, in possession of his estates. His offer of allegiance to Edward I. being refused, he cast in his lot with Robert Bruce, whom he joined before his coronation at Scone in 1306. Sir James Douglas. Douglas became one of Robert I's key supporters and military leaders.
Later writers held up Sir James as the exemplar of chivalry in his long loyalty to the king. This appears to be where he acquired his epithet 'the Good'. It seems the relationship of the two developed into one of trust and friendship. From 1307 to 1327, Sir James fought for the king, initially in Galloway, later in the Borders (using the Forest of Selkirk as his base), and he also took annual raiding parties into England, as far south as Pontefract on one occasion. Overview of Sir James Douglas. Sir James Douglas (Scottish noble) Good Sir James Douglas and his tomb. Jul 21, 2011 Posted in Douglas, Major Events | 2 comments.
Bruce's heart - Wars of Independence. As Bruce lay dying in 1329 he asked Sir James Douglas to take his heart on crusade against the enemies of Christ.
Douglas carried Bruce’s heart into battle against the Moors in Spain before it was returned to Scotland and finally buried at Melrose Abbey. On Bruce’s death his heart was cut from his body and embalmed. It was placed in a silver casket. Douglas gave land to Newbattle Abbey so that each year a mass would be sung for St Bride and 13 poor people would be fed so the saint would intercede with God for his immortal soul. Sir James Douglas and a handful of Scots knights sailed from Scotland. The Scots set sail, heading west. In Castile an English knight marvelled at Douglas’s unscarred face - he expected the famed warrior to be covered in battle scars, as he himself was.
Earl James aka Good Sir James and the Black Douglas of Douglas, II (c.1286 - 1330. Sir James Douglas (also known as Guid Sir James and the Black Douglas), (1286 – August 25, 1330), was a Scottish soldier and knight who fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence.
He was a son of Sir William Douglas the Hardy, who had been a supporter of William Wallace (the elder Douglas died in 1298, a prisoner in the Tower of London). His mother was Elizabeth Stewart, the daughter of Alexander Stewart, 4th High Steward of Scotland. Sir James had two children by unknown mothers: Douglas. James Douglas Good Sir James Douglas (1286-25 August 1330), Lord of Douglas from 1298 onwards was the son of the Scottish rebel William "Le Hardi" Douglas, who fought with Wallace against King Edward. It had been such a shock to the English King that a nobleman of Scotland would fight alongside someone like Wallace, that he regarded William as a traitor to noblemen everywhere. This meant that even though King Edward had his father, William Douglas, killed; he would remember the name for years to come. In 1304 the young James was taken by Bishop Lamberton to seek the return of his lands from King Edward, but upon hearing the boys name he cast him out as the son of "that traitor Douglas".
This was to prove a huge mistake! Guerrilla War Having been unable to retrieve his land through peaceful means, James Douglas sought to claim them through rebellion. Ancestors and/or relations of Sir James "The Black" DE DOUGLAS 6th Laird of Douglas. Castle and The Douglas Family.