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| Clan Swinton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Motto | J'espere ("I hope")[1] |
| Profile | |
| Region | Border |
| District | Berwickshire |
| Chief | |
 | |
| Rolfe William Swinton of that Ilk[2] | |
| Chief of the Name and Arms of Swinton[3] | |
| Seat | New York, United States[4] |
| Historic seat | Swinton House,Berwickshire[4] |
Clan Swinton is a Scottish Border clan ofAnglo-Saxon origin whose ancestral lands straddle the historic boundary betweenEngland andScotland. It is among the oldest landed families inBritain, with its name believed to derive from the Barony of Swinton inBerwickshire, granted toEadulf Ros byKing Malcolm III of Scotland around 1060.[5] It is one of few families in Britain that can trace its patrilineal descent back to a pre-Norman eraAnglo-Saxon ancestor (the other four being theArden family, theBerkeley family, theWentworth family, and theGrindlay family).[6][7]
The Swinton chiefs are likely to have been ofAnglo-Saxon origin, possibly descended from the prominent nobles of thekingdom of Northumbria.[5] The kingdom of Northumberland straddled the modern day border between Scotland andEngland.[5] According to tradition the name was acquired for their bravery in clearing the country ofwild boar, with the family arms alluding to this legend.[5] However, the name is more likely to have been of territorial origin: the village of Swinewood in the county ofBerwickshire was granted byEdgar, King of Scotland, son ofMalcolm III of Scotland toColdingham Priory in 1098 following theNorman Conquest of England to the south .[5]
In around 1136/7, Ernulf de Swinton received one of the first private charters recorded in Scotland which confirmed his property fromDavid I of Scotland.[5] This is one of two original charters of David kept in thecartulary of Durham, both to Ernulf, wherein he is told to "hold his lands as freely as any of the king’s barons", and importantly is termedMiles in both, making him the first recorded instance of a ScottishKnight.[8]
Of note, the charters reference Ernulf's father (Udard), grandfather (Liulf) and great-grandfather (Eadulf) as holding the land before him.[9]Eadulf is believed to have been granted the land by his cousinMalcolm III of Scotland in return for military support againstMacbeth. This, according to 20th century historianJames Lees-Milne, would makeEadulf the first subject ofScotland whose land ownership could be proved, and means the Swinton Family would by this hypothesis be one of only five (seeArden family,Berkeley family,Grindlay family,Wentworth family) that could trace its unbroken land ownership and lineage to before theNorman Conquest, making it one of the oldest landed families in Britain.[10][11][12]
The clan has held the Baronies of Swinton andCranshaws. The latter is now separated from the clan. The family holdsFeudal Barony status with numerous charters confirming this.[13]
In 1296 Henry de Swinton and his brother, William, priest of the church of Swinton, appear on theRagman Rolls swearing fealty toEdward I of England.[5] Henry's great-grandson wasSir John Swinton who was a distinguished soldier and statesman during the reigns ofRobert II of Scotland andRobert III of Scotland.[5] In 1388 he was a commander at theBattle of Otterburn where the Scots were victorious.[5] His second wife wasIsabel Douglas, Countess of Mar but they had no children.[5] His third wife was Princess Margaret who bore him a son,Sir John Swinton, 15th of that Ilk.[5]
Sir John Swinton, 15th of that Ilk was a warrior who fought at theBattle of Baugé in France and is credited with killing theDuke of Clarence, brother ofHenry V of England.[5] The incident appears in a poem bySir Walter Scott,The Lay of the Last Minstrel.[5] However Swinton was later killed in 1424 at theBattle of Verneuil in France.[5]
In 1567 Sir John Swinton was one of the Scottish barons who signed the bond of protection of the infantJames VI of Scotland against theEarl of Bothwell on his marriage to the child's mother,Mary, Queen of Scots.[5]
In 1640 Sir Alexander Swinton, the 22nd chief, became sheriff ofBerwickshire.[5] He died in 1652 but left six sons and five daughters.[5] His second son was anotherAlexander Swinton who was appointed to the Supreme Court of Scotland in 1688 and took the title Lord Mersington.[5]
The eldest son,John, was colonel for the regiment of Berwickshire, and in 1651 he was taken prisoner at theBattle of Worcester.[5] His brother, Robert, died attempting to carry offOliver Cromwell's standard.[5] In 1655 John was appointed by the Lord Protector to the Council of State he established to assist in ruling Scotland.[5] He was said to have been Cromwell's most trusted man in Scotland and his involvement with Cromwell led to his being tried for treason in 1661.[5] He escaped execution but his estates were forfeited and he was imprisoned for six years.[5] He was succeeded by his son, Alexander in 1679 but he died without issue.[5]
Alexander's brother, Sir John, succeeded as the twenty-fifth Laird of Swinton.[5] After a successful career as a merchant inHolland he returned to Scotland in the wake of theGlorious Revolution of 1688 which broughtWilliam of Orange to the throne with his wife, Queen Mary.[5]
Swinton sat in both the Scottish Parliament and, later, in the British, at Westminster.[5] He was appointed as the President of the Committee for Trade in Scotland.[5] John Swinton, the twenty-seventh Laird, became a member of the Supreme Court in 1782, taking the title Lord Swinton.[5]
The modern Swintons have produced some notable public figures. CaptainGeorge Swinton, descended from theSwintons of Kimmerghame, a cadet of the chiefly house, wasLord Lyon King of Arms, and Secretary to theOrder of the Thistle from 1926 to 1929,[5]Major-General Sir Ernest Dunlop Swinton was the author ofThe Defence of Duffer's Drift and was one of the driving forces behind earlytank development and training inWWI.Alan Archibald Campbell-Swinton is regarded by many as the father of modern television.[13] A prominent member of the family is the actressTilda Swinton, who is a great-granddaughter of Captain George Swinton.
The chief of Clan Swinton is Rolfe William Swinton, 36thof that Ilk.[2] His son, Maxim Jasper Swinton, is in line to be the 37th of that Ilk.
