Clan Durie
Encyclopedia
Origins
There is a persistent myth that the origin of the name Durie is from the FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
'Du Roi' but there is no evidence for this. Rather, a younger son of the Earl of Strathearn
Earl of Strathearn
The Mormaer of Strathearn or Earl of Strathearn was a provincial ruler in medieval Scotland. Of unknown origin, the mormaers are attested for the first time in a document perhaps dating to 1115. The first known mormaer, Maol Íosa I is mentioned by Ailred of Rievaulx as leading native Scots in the...
was granted the existing lands of Durie (from the Gaelic for a small or black stream) and took the name. Another discredited story is that the Duries rose to prominence as administrators to Princess Joan, sister of King Henry III of England
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
and wife of King Alexander II of Scotland
Alexander II of Scotland
Alexander II was King of Scots from1214 to his death.-Early life:...
.
The Duries have been in Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
from the 13th century.
14th to 16th century
The Duries briefly held Rossend CastleRossend Castle
Rossend Castle is a historic building in Burntisland, a town on the south coast of Fife, Scotland.A keep, known as the Tower of Kingorne Wester, was in existence on the site from 1119. It was later referred to as Burntisland Castle, and by 1382 was called Abbot's Hall, as it was the home of the...
at Burntisland
Burntisland
Burntisland is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland on the Firth of Forth. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the town has a population of 5,940....
in the 16th century. Rossend was built in 1382 but has an armorial tablet bearing arms of a Durie and the date of 1554. In 1563 the castle was occupied by Mary, Queen of Scots. Rossend Castle and the surrounding estates were confiscated during the Reformation
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was Scotland's formal break with the Papacy in 1560, and the events surrounding this. It was part of the wider European Protestant Reformation; and in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the re-establishment of the church along Reformed lines, and politically in...
.
The Duries were also granted the estate of Craigluscar near Dunfermline
Dunfermline
Dunfermline is a town and former Royal Burgh in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. According to a 2008 estimate, Dunfermline has a population of 46,430, making it the second-biggest settlement in Fife. Part of the town's name comes from the Gaelic word...
where a house was built in 1520. The lands were in the family until the early 20th century. The house had a stone shield bearing the Durie arms and initials of a George Dury and his wife Margarat Bruce.
17th century
The other Durie estates in Scoonie near LevenLeven, Fife
Leven is a seaside town in Fife, set in the east Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the coast of the Firth of Forth at the mouth of the River Leven, north-east of Kirkcaldy and east of Glenrothes....
were sold in 1614 to Sir Alexander Gibson. He became a judge in 1621 and took the judicial title of Lord Durie.
Margarat McBeth the wife of Henry Durie was renowned for her skills with herbs and a favorite of Anne of Denmark
Anne of Denmark
Anne of Denmark was queen consort of Scotland, England, and Ireland as the wife of King James VI and I.The second daughter of King Frederick II of Denmark, Anne married James in 1589 at the age of fourteen and bore him three children who survived infancy, including the future Charles I...
. It is said that Margarat saved the life of King Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
when other physicians had failed.
In the late 17th century George Durie was a Captain in King Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
's Scots Guards
Garde Écossaise
The Garde Écossaise was an elite Scottish military unit founded in 1418 by the Valois Charles VII of France, to be personal bodyguards to the French monarchy. They were assimilated into the Maison du Roi and later formed the first Company of the Garde du Corps du Roi...
and also a provost of Dunfermline
Dunfermline
Dunfermline is a town and former Royal Burgh in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. According to a 2008 estimate, Dunfermline has a population of 46,430, making it the second-biggest settlement in Fife. Part of the town's name comes from the Gaelic word...
.
Chief of the Name and Arms of Durie
The Duries were chiefless for some time until the recognition of Lt-Col Raymond Durie of DurieRaymond Durie of Durie
Lt-Col Raymond Durie of Durie, was an army officer involved in the Yangtze incident’ and who later became chief of the Clan Durie.-Career:...
in 1988. He established his descent through his grandmother, Elizabeth Durie of Craigluscar from Abbot George. Raymond had a distinguished military career which spanned 35 years with Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland....
. His actions were distinguished during the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
s invasion of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. He died in 1999 and the chieftainship passed to his son, the present chief Andrew Durie of Durie, CBE
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
Lands and castles
The main seat of the family of Durie of that Ilk was Durie in the parish of Scoonie, Leven, Fife. Another branch, that of the present Chief, had Craigluscar, near Dunfermline, Fife. Briefly, they held Rossend CastleRossend Castle
Rossend Castle is a historic building in Burntisland, a town on the south coast of Fife, Scotland.A keep, known as the Tower of Kingorne Wester, was in existence on the site from 1119. It was later referred to as Burntisland Castle, and by 1382 was called Abbot's Hall, as it was the home of the...
(Burntisland, Fife) and Grange (near Kinghorn, Fife).