Robert Boyd, 1st Lord Boyd
Encyclopedia
Robert Boyd, 1st Lord Boyd (died c. 1482) Lord Boyd
, was a Scottish statesman.
at some date between 1451 and 18 July 1454 (the date he took his seat in Parliament). In 1460 he was one of the Regents during the minority of James III
. In 1464 he was one of the commissioners for a truce with Edward IV of England
.
Lord Boyd conspired with his brother, Sir Alexander Boyd, and obtained possession of the young King's person in 1466 and was made by Act of Parliament sole Governor of the Realm; and Great Chamberlain for life, and Lord Justice General in 1467. Early in that year he procured the marriage of his eldest son, Thomas, (created Earl of Arran
for that occasion) with Mary
, elder sister of James III, which aroused the jealousy of the other nobles and made his eventual downfall inevitable since the King regarded the marriage as an unforgivable insult.
Lord Boyd obtained the cession of the Orkney Islands
to Scotland, 8 September 1468, from Christian I, King of Norway, for whose daughter Margaret
, he negotiated a marriage with James III. While absent for that purpose he and his son Thomas (the Earl of Arran) and his brother (and coadjutor) Sir Alexander Boyd, were attainted for high treason
, whereby his peerage became forfeited. He was living Easter 1480/1, and died before October 1482, it is said, at Alnwick
in Northumberland
where he had fled in 1469.
James III's biographer sums Boyd up as an unscrupulous political gambler and an inveterate optimist. To forcibly assume guardianship of an underage King was, indeed, a familiar path to power in mediaeval Scotland, but it was also a dangerous path. Boyd underestimated the dangers, overestimated his support, and made the fatal mistake of marrying his son to the King's sister, an insult the King would not forgive.
and Robert The Bruce
. He was the son and heir of Sir Thomas Boyd of Kilmarnock (died 9 July 1439). Robert married Mariot (or Janet), daughter of Sir Robert Maxwell of Calderwood. She died after 25 June 1472, apparently early in 1473. They had three boys:
Earl of Kilmarnock
The title Earl of Kilmarnock was created in the peerage of Scotland in 1661 for William Boyd, 10th Lord Boyd. That title was also created in the Scottish peerage in 1454 for Robert Boyd, Great Chamberlain of Scotland...
, was a Scottish statesman.
Biography
Robert Boyd was knighted, and was created a Peer of Parliament (Lord Boyd) by James II of ScotlandJames II of Scotland
James II reigned as King of Scots from 1437 to his death.He was the son of James I, King of Scots, and Joan Beaufort...
at some date between 1451 and 18 July 1454 (the date he took his seat in Parliament). In 1460 he was one of the Regents during the minority of James III
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...
. In 1464 he was one of the commissioners for a truce with Edward IV of England
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
.
Lord Boyd conspired with his brother, Sir Alexander Boyd, and obtained possession of the young King's person in 1466 and was made by Act of Parliament sole Governor of the Realm; and Great Chamberlain for life, and Lord Justice General in 1467. Early in that year he procured the marriage of his eldest son, Thomas, (created Earl of Arran
Earl of Arran
Earl of Arran is a title in both the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of Ireland. The two titles refer to different places, the Isle of Arran in Scotland, and the Aran Islands in Ireland...
for that occasion) with Mary
Mary Stewart, Princess of Scotland
Princess Mary, Countess of Arran was the eldest daughter of King James II of Scotland and Mary of Guelders. Her brother was King James III of Scotland. She married twice; firstly to Thomas Boyd, 1st Earl of Arran; secondly to James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton...
, elder sister of James III, which aroused the jealousy of the other nobles and made his eventual downfall inevitable since the King regarded the marriage as an unforgivable insult.
Lord Boyd obtained the cession of the Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
to Scotland, 8 September 1468, from Christian I, King of Norway, for whose daughter Margaret
Margaret of Denmark
Margaret of Denmark was the Queen Consort of Scotland from 1469 to 1486 as the wife of King James III of Scotland. She was the daughter of King Christian I of Denmark , Norway , and Sweden , and his wife Dorothea of Brandenburg...
, he negotiated a marriage with James III. While absent for that purpose he and his son Thomas (the Earl of Arran) and his brother (and coadjutor) Sir Alexander Boyd, were attainted for high treason
High treason
High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...
, whereby his peerage became forfeited. He was living Easter 1480/1, and died before October 1482, it is said, at Alnwick
Alnwick
Alnwick is a small market town in north Northumberland, England. The town's population was just over 8000 at the time of the 2001 census and Alnwick's district population was 31,029....
in Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
where he had fled in 1469.
James III's biographer sums Boyd up as an unscrupulous political gambler and an inveterate optimist. To forcibly assume guardianship of an underage King was, indeed, a familiar path to power in mediaeval Scotland, but it was also a dangerous path. Boyd underestimated the dangers, overestimated his support, and made the fatal mistake of marrying his son to the King's sister, an insult the King would not forgive.
Family
Robert Boyd belonged to an old and distinguished family, of which one earlier Sir Robert Boyd, had fought with Sir William WallaceWilliam Wallace
Sir William Wallace was a Scottish knight and landowner who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence....
and Robert The Bruce
Robert I of Scotland
Robert I , popularly known as Robert the Bruce , was King of Scots from March 25, 1306, until his death in 1329.His paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage , and...
. He was the son and heir of Sir Thomas Boyd of Kilmarnock (died 9 July 1439). Robert married Mariot (or Janet), daughter of Sir Robert Maxwell of Calderwood. She died after 25 June 1472, apparently early in 1473. They had three boys:
- Thomas, Earl of Arran, was in Denmark when his father was overthrown. However, he fulfilled his mission, that of bringing the king's bride, Margaret, to Scotland, and then, warned by his wife, escaped to the continent of Europe. He is mentioned very eulogistically in one of the Paston Letters, but practically nothing is known of his subsequent history.
- Alexander he became head of the family after the death of JamesJames Boyd, 2nd Lord BoydJames Boyd 2nd Lord Boyd , grandson and heir of Robert Boyd, 1st Lord Boyd being only son of Thomas Boyd, Earl of Arran, by Mary, eldest daughter of James II of Scotland, which Thomas was eldest son of the 1st Lord Boyd, but died while his father still lived, in about 1472.In 1482 on the death of...
the son of his elder brother Thomas. - Archibald of Nariston, and afterwards in Bonshaw. Archibald is recorded as being of Nariston in 1472, but it appears that there was a question over his right to the property and he had lost possession by 1500. In 1502 Archibald and his wife Christian Mure had a lease of Bonschaw and Dririg. He was dead before 4 May 1507, when Christian Mure, his widow, and her sons, paid a year's rent on taking over the lease. She was living 28 January 1523. They appear to have had two sons and' three daughters.