Alice Comyn, Countess of Buchan facts for kids

Alice Comyn was an important Scottish noblewoman who lived from 1289 to 1349. She held the titles of Countess of Buchan and Lady Beaumont. Alice was part of the powerful Comyn family, who supported the Balliols in their fight for the Scottish throne against their rivals, the Bruces.

Alice was the niece of John Comyn, Earl of Buchan. When he died, she became his heir. Her husband, Henry de Beaumont, later successfully claimed the Earldom of Buchan because of her. His long fight to get this title was one of the reasons for the Second War of Scottish Independence. Alice was also the grandmother of Blanche of Lancaster, which means she was the great-grandmother of King Henry IV of England.

Alice's Family Background

Alice Comyn was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, in 1289. She was the oldest daughter of Alexander Comyn, who was the Sheriff of Aberdeen. Her mother was Joan le Latimer. Alice's grandfather was Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan.

She had a younger sister named Margaret. Margaret later married Sir John Ross, and then Sir William Lindsay. Alice's uncle was John Comyn, Earl of Buchan. He was one of the most powerful nobles in Scotland.

John Comyn died in December 1308 without any children. This made Alice his heir to the title of Countess of Buchan. However, the earldom had been taken by the crown before her uncle's death.

Marriage and Children

Around 1310, Alice married Henry de Beaumont, who was Lord Beaumont. Henry was a very important person in the wars between England and Scotland during the 1200s and 1300s. You can learn more about these conflicts in the main article: Wars of Scottish Independence.

Because Alice married Henry, who was English, the Scots saw her as English too. This meant they recognized her sister Margaret's right to the Earldom of Buchan instead of Alice's.

Alice and Henry had many children together:

• Katherine de Beaumont (died 1368), who married David III Strathbogie, Earl of Atholl. They had children.
• Elizabeth de Beaumont (died 1400), who married Nicholas Audley, 3rd Baron Audley. She did not have children.
• Richard de Beaumont
• John de Beaumont (died young)
• Thomas de Beaumont
• Alice de Beaumont
• Joan de Beaumont, who married Sir Fulk FitzWarin.
• Beatrice de Beaumont, who married Charles I, Count of Dammartin.
• John de Beaumont, 2nd Lord Beaumont (1318-1342). He married Eleanor of Lancaster in 1330 and had children. He died in a tournament.
• Isabel de Beaumont (around 1320-1361). She married Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster in 1337. They had two daughters, Maud, Countess of Leicester and Blanche of Lancaster.
• Agnes de Beaumont, who married Thomas de Lucy.

Countess of Buchan Title

In April 1313, Isabella MacDuff was released from prison and placed with the Beaumont family. Isabella was the widow of Alice's uncle, John Comyn. King Edward I had kept her in a cage for four years in Berwick, England. This was because she had crowned Robert the Bruce king of Scotland in 1306. Isabella was later sent to a convent and then to one of the Beaumont family homes, where she died.

In 1314, Alice's husband, Henry de Beaumont, fought on the English side at the Battle of Bannockburn.

Between 1317 and 1321, Alice inherited the English lands of her younger sister, Margaret.

On January 22, 1334, Henry de Beaumont was called to the Parliament of England as the Earl of Buchan. He was recognized as the earl until November 16, 1339. On February 10, 1334, he also sat in the Scottish Parliament with the same title. Henry's strong desire to claim Alice's inherited earldom of Buchan was one of the reasons for the Second War of Scottish Independence. This was a conflict between the Comyns and their old rivals, the Bruces.

Alice died on July 3, 1349, when she was sixty years old. Her husband Henry had died earlier, in 1340, in the Low Countries. After Alice's death, the earldom of Buchan was no longer held by the Comyn family.

Alice had many famous descendants, including Kings Henry IV of England and Henry V of England, Philippa of Lancaster, and Anne Boleyn.

In Fiction

Alice Comyn appears as a character in Barbara Erskine's novel Kingdom of Shadows (1988). This book is based on the life of Isabella MacDuff.

See Also

• Comyn family
• Wars of Scottish Independence