Mormaer of Mearns
Encyclopedia
The Mormaer or Mormaerdom of Mearns is the most obscure medieval Scottish Mormaer
dom. It is known only from one source, a source relating that Máel Petair
, Mormaer of Mearns
, killed Donnchad II
. There is good reason to believe that this is not some mistake, and that Mearns was once a Mormaerdom. The early thirteenth century source, known to historians a de Situ Albanie
, adds believability to this because it lists Mearns in a list of 13 Scottish regions which in 6½ pairs each formed one of the seven ancient Kingdoms of the Picts
. Only two of the eleven other regions are not attested in sources as Mormaerdoms, those ones being Fothriff
and Gowrie
. It is probable that by the time Mormaers begin to be consistently attested, i.e. roughly between 1150 and 1250, Mearns was absorbed by the crown and not regranted.
Mormaer
The 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:...
dom. It is known only from one source, a source relating that Máel Petair
Máel Petair of Mearns
Máel Petair of Mearns is the only known Mormaer of the Mearns. His name means "tonsured one of Peter".One source tells us that Máel Petair was the son of a Máel Coluim, but tells us nothing about this. If this weren't bad enough, other sources say that his father was a man called "Loren", and in...
, Mormaer of Mearns
Kincardineshire
The County of Kincardine, also known as Kincardineshire or The Mearns was a local government county on the coast of northeast Scotland...
, killed Donnchad II
Duncan II of Scotland
Donnchad mac Maíl Coluim was king of Scots...
. There is good reason to believe that this is not some mistake, and that Mearns was once a Mormaerdom. The early thirteenth century source, known to historians a de Situ Albanie
De Situ Albanie
De Situ Albanie is the name given to the first of seven Scottish documents found in the so-called Poppleton Manuscript, now in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris...
, adds believability to this because it lists Mearns in a list of 13 Scottish regions which in 6½ pairs each formed one of the seven ancient Kingdoms of the Picts
Picts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
. Only two of the eleven other regions are not attested in sources as Mormaerdoms, those ones being Fothriff
Fothriff
Fothriff, Fortriu or Fothrif was a province of Scotland in the Middle Ages. It is often paired with Fife, not only in De Situ Albanie, but also in early charters....
and Gowrie
Gowrie
Gowrie may refer to several places:* Gowrie, a province in Scotland** Carse of Gowrie, the southern part of Gowrie noted for its farmlandGowrie may also refer to:* Gowrie, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra, Australia...
. It is probable that by the time Mormaers begin to be consistently attested, i.e. roughly between 1150 and 1250, Mearns was absorbed by the crown and not regranted.