Clan Moncreiffe
Encyclopedia
Origins of the Clan
The Moncreiffes are of great antiquity, and possibly descend through a female stem of the CeltCelt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic Royal Dynasty. The name Moncreiffe is derived from the Barony of Moncreiffe in Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
. Their lands take their name from the Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
name Monadh Croibhe meaning hill of the sacred bough. This is represented on the clan crest which features the sacred tree.
Although the name is certainly older, the first official record appears when Mathew Moncrieff (brother in law of a co-Regent of Scotland during the minority of Alexander III) was granted a charter for the lands in 1248 A.D.
The lands of Moncreiffe then grew with the addition of Culdares and Duneaves in the Highlands and were incorporated into the Barony of Moncreiffe in 1455
According to some accounts the progenitor of the Clan Moncreiffe was of Anglo-Norman lineage and that a man called Mortimer assumed the name of Moncreiffe after obtaining the lands of that name in the parish of Dunbarney, Perthshire. However, this is disputed.
Another theory by other historians are that the origins of the clan are linked to the ancient Royal House of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
of the great King Niall of the Nine Hostages. The Clan Moncreiffe crest shows a red lion on a silver shield and the colours of Maldred who was the brother of King Duncan I.
16th Century Clan Conflicts & Anglo-Scottish Wars
During the Anglo-Scottish WarsAnglo-Scottish Wars
The Anglo-Scottish Wars were a series of wars fought between England and Scotland during the sixteenth century.After the Wars of Scottish Independence, England and Scotland had fought several times during the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. In most cases, one country had attempted to...
in the 16th century the Laird of Moncreiffe was Chamberlain to young King James III of Scotland
James III of Scotland
James III was King of Scots from 1460 to 1488. James was an unpopular and ineffective monarch owing to an unwillingness to administer justice fairly, a policy of pursuing alliance with the Kingdom of England, and a disastrous relationship with nearly all his extended family.His reputation as the...
. He led the Clan Moncreiffe against the English when they fought at the Battle of Flodden Field
Battle of Flodden Field
The Battle of Flodden or Flodden Field or occasionally Battle of Branxton was fought in the county of Northumberland in northern England on 9 September 1513, between an invading Scots army under King James IV and an English army commanded by the Earl of Surrey...
in 1513.
Battle with the Clan Charteris
Clan Charteris
-Origins of the Name:Chartres, the French city famed for its cathedral, is claimed as the origin of this name. William, a son of the Lord of Chartres, is said to have come to England with the Norman Conquest, and his son or grandson came north to Scotland with the retinue of David I...
1544, In 1544 the Clan Ruthven who held considerable sway over Perth from their nearby Castle Huntingtower, often disputed the authority of the Clan Charteris, which led to a bitter and bloody feud. In 1544 Patrick, Lord Ruthven, was elected Provost of Perth, but at the instigation of Cardinal Beaton, who suspected Ruthven of Protestant sympathies, he was deprived of the office, and John Charteris of Kinfauns was appointed in his stead. The city declined to acknowledge Charteris, and barred the gates against him. Clan Charteris, along with Lord Gray
Patrick Gray, 4th Lord Gray
Patrick Gray, 4th Lord Gray was a Scottish landowner and Sheriff of Angus active during the war of the Rough Wooing as a supporter of the Scottish Reformation.-Family:...
and Clan Leslie
Clan Leslie
Clan Leslie is a Lowland Scottish clan.-Origins:The family name comes from the Leslie lands of Aberdeenshire and was to become famous in Germany, Poland, France and Russia...
, gathered their forces and attacked the town. They were repulsed by the Clan Ruthven who were assisted by their neighbours the Clan Moncreiffe, and Charterises was forced to flee. The Ruthvens remained Provosts of Perth until William Ruthven, Earl of Gowrie, was executed in 1584. In 1552 John Charteris had been killed by the earl’s heir in the High Street in Edinburgh
In 1547 one branch of the Clan Moncreiffe took part in the attempt to restore the deposed King of Sweden.
Three noble Moncreiffe families were also founded in France. One of these families made up part of the Scots Guard of Archers for the King of France.
In 1586 William Moncreiffe the 11th chief of Clan Moncreiffe enterd into a treaty with the powerful Clan Murray
Clan Murray
Clan Murray is a Highland Scottish clan. The Murrays were a great and powerful clan whose lands and cadet houses were scattered throughout Scotland.- Origins of the Clan :...
for mutual defense. This bond was established further by frequent intermarrying between the two clans. Five Lairds, chiefs of Clan Moncreiffe were made officers in the Atholl Highlanders which was the Duke of Atholl's (chief of Clan Murray) private army.
17th Century & Civil War
Sir John Moncreiffe the 12th chief of Clan Moncreiffe was promoted from a Baron to a Baronet of Nova Scotia in April 1626. However John was unable to support the King and signed the National Covenant in 1638.His son also called John personally raised a company of the King's Scots Guards by warrant of King Charles II in 1674. This John was heavily in debt and in 1667 a charter was secured for a family agreement where by the Barony of Moncreiffe was sold to Thomas Moncreiffe who was a direct descendant of the eight Laird of Moncreiffe. Thomas also became chief of the Clan Moncreiffe. He was the 14th chief and was made a Baronett by King James VII.
Other Achievements
Other notable achievements of the family were to produce three renowned Scottish judges and an Episcopal Bishop of GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
.
Two brothers, William and Malcom Moncreiffe, emigrated to the United States of America in the 1890s and settled in Big Horn, Wyoming
Big Horn, Wyoming
Big Horn is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Sheridan County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 198 at the 2000 census and 490 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...
. Using their family's capital from Scotland they established a very successful business raising registered sheep, and played an important role in bringing the sport of polo to the area. Part of the Moncreiffe ranch is now a historic house museum and art gallery called the Bradford Brinton Memorial. On the nearby Big Horn Mountains a ridge of 8000 feet (2,438.4 m) elevation is referred to as "Moncreiffe Ridge".
Clan Chief and Seat
A new seat for the Chief at Moncreiffe, the first major country house completed by Sir William BruceWilliam Bruce (architect)
Sir William Bruce of Kinross, 1st Baronet was a Scottish gentleman-architect, "the effective founder of classical architecture in Scotland," as Howard Colvin observes...
in 1679. It was the family seat until it was destroyed by fire in November 1957, claiming the life of Sir David Moncreiffe of that Ilk, Baronet, the twenty-third Laird. This tragedy led to the chiefship of the great Scottish herald and historian Sir Iain Moncreiffe.
Sir David’s sister, Miss Elizabeth Moncreiffe of Moncreiffe, was his heir, but declared that it was her wish that he be succeeded by her cousin, Sir Iain, the Baron of Easter Moncreiffe, while she retained the feudal barony of Moncreiffe. She built a modern country house on the site of the old seat which incorporates the doorway reclaimed from the ashes of the burned house. Sir Iain died in 1985 and the chiefship reverted to Miss Moncreiffe. On her death, the chiefship passed to Sir Iain’s younger son, the Hon. Peregrine Moncreiffe of Easter Moncreiffe — his elder brother having assumed the name and arms of Hay on succeeding their mother as Earl of Erroll
Earl of Erroll
The Earl of Erroll is an ancient title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1453 for Sir William Hay.The subsidiary titles held by the Earl of Erroll are Lord Hay and Lord Slains , both in the Peerage of Scotland. The Earls of Erroll also hold the hereditary office of Lord High Constable...
.
Clan Profile
- Gaelic Name: Monadh Craoibhe.
- Motto: Sur Esperance (Upon hope).
- Badge: Oak.
- Lands: Perthshire.
- Origin of Name: Gaelic, Monadh Craoibhe (The Hill of the Sacred Bough).
Clan Septs
SeptsSept (social)
A sept is an English word for a division of a family, especially a division of a clan. The word might have its origin from Latin saeptum "enclosure, fold", or it can be an alteration of sect.The term is found in both Ireland and Scotland...
- Moncreiffe of Montcreiffe - Chief branch.
- Moncreiff of Tulliebole - Founded by the Rev. Archibald Moncreiff, who married Catherine Halliday, heiress of Sir John Halliday of Tulliebole Castle, in 1722. Upon her death in 1740, the estate passed to Moncreiff.
- Moncrieff of Bandirran
- Scott-Moncreiff
- Moncreiff of Kinmouth
Spelling variations of the Clan Moncreiffe include:
Moncreiffe, Moncrieffe, Moncrieff, Moncreiff, Moncrief, Moncreiff, Montcrieff, and Muncrief.
Scott-Moncrief is a branch of the Moncrieffs of Bandirran.