Menteith or
Monteith , a district of south
PerthshirePerthshire, 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...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, roughly comprises the territory between the
TeithThe River Teith is a branch of the River Forth in Scotland. Originating in Loch Lubnaig the river flows thorough/past Callander, Deanston and Doune before joining the Forth near Stirling...
and the
ForthThe River Forth , 47 km long, is the major river draining the eastern part of the central belt of Scotland....
. The region is named for the river Teith, but the exact sense is unclear, early forms including
Meneted,
Maneteth and
Meneteth.
First recorded as the Mormaerdom of Menteith, it became the Earldom of Menteith.
Gille CrístGille Críst is the first known Mormaer of Menteith, but almost certainly not actually the first. He is named in a charter of King Máel Coluim IV, dated to 1164, regarding the restoration of Scone Priory, which had recently been destroyed by fire...
is the first known
mormaerThe title of Mormaer designates a regional or provincial ruler in the medieval Kingdom of the Scots. In theory, although not always in practice, a Mormaer was second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a toisech.-Origin:...
. The lands and the earldom passed to Walter Comyn (d.
Menteith or
Monteith , a district of south
PerthshirePerthshire, 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...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, roughly comprises the territory between the
TeithThe River Teith is a branch of the River Forth in Scotland. Originating in Loch Lubnaig the river flows thorough/past Callander, Deanston and Doune before joining the Forth near Stirling...
and the
ForthThe River Forth , 47 km long, is the major river draining the eastern part of the central belt of Scotland....
. The region is named for the river Teith, but the exact sense is unclear, early forms including
Meneted,
Maneteth and
Meneteth.
First recorded as the Mormaerdom of Menteith, it became the Earldom of Menteith.
Gille CrístGille Críst is the first known Mormaer of Menteith, but almost certainly not actually the first. He is named in a charter of King Máel Coluim IV, dated to 1164, regarding the restoration of Scone Priory, which had recently been destroyed by fire...
is the first known
mormaerThe title of Mormaer designates a regional or provincial ruler in the medieval Kingdom of the Scots. In theory, although not always in practice, a Mormaer was second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a toisech.-Origin:...
. The lands and the earldom passed to Walter Comyn (d. 1258) in right of his wife
IsabellaIsabella, Countess of Menteith was the eldest daughter of Muireadhach II, Mormaer of Menteith. When the old mormaer died without legitimate male heir in 1233, the province passed to Isabella....
, and then through Isabella's sister
MaryMaire inghean Mhuireadhaich or Mary, daughter of Muireadhach II, Mormaer of Menteith, was Countess of Menteith, successor to her sister Isabella . She inherited the title from her father, and married Walter Bailloch, son of Walter Stewart, 3rd High Steward of Scotland...
to
StewartsThe House of Stuart, also known as the House of Stewart, is an important European royal house. Founded by Robert II of Scotland, the Stewarts first became monarchs of the Kingdom of Scotland during the late 14th century. Their direct ancestors had held the title High Steward of Scotland since the...
, and finally to the Grahams, becoming extinct in 1694.
The
Lake of MenteithThe Lake of Menteith , or, until the 20th century, the Loch of Menteith, is a loch in Scotland, located on the Flanders Moss, the flood plain of the upper reaches of the rivers Forth and Teith, upstream of Stirling. The only settlement of any size on the Lake of Menteith is Port of Menteith.The are...
, situated 24 miles south of
Loch VenacharLoch Venachar is a freshwater loch in Stirling district, Scotland, situated between Callander and Brig o' Turk...
, measures 14 miles long by 1 mile broad, and contains three islands. On Inchmahome (
Innis MoCholmaig, island of St Colmaig) stand the ruins of
Inchmahome PrioryInchmahome Priory is situated on Inchmahome , the largest of three islands in the centre of Lake of Menteith, close to Aberfoyle, Scotland....
, an Augustinian
prioryA priory is a house of men or women under religious vows headed by a prior or prioress. Priories are Catholic institutions.Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the...
founded in 1238 by Walter Comyn, and built in the
Early EnglishThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
style, with an ornate western doorway. Queen
Mary I of ScotlandMary I was Queen of Scots from 14 December 1542 to 24 July 1567. She was the only surviving legitimate child of King James V. She was six days old when her father died and made her Queen of Scots...
, when a child of four, lived on the island for a few weeks before her departure to
Dumbarton CastleDumbarton Castle has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Great Britain. It overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton, and sits on a plug of volcanic basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high.- History :...
, and on to France in 1548. On Inch Talla stands the ruined tower of the earls of Menteith, dating from 1428.
The village of Port of Monteith stands on the north shore of the lake.
In
ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's preeminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's
MacbethThe Tragedy of Macbeth, commonly just Macbeth, is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
, Menteith is "a noblemen of Scotland," appearing in Act V, allied with Malcom
et al. to oppose Macbeth's usurpation.
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