Elizabeth Livingston

Elizabeth Livingston was born circa 1415 at of Callandar, Stirlingshire, Scotland. (Died bef. January 1505/6)

She was the daughter of James Livingston, 1st Lord Livingston1 d. bt 26 Apr 1467 - 7 Nov 1467 and his wife Marian of Berwick1 d. bt 7 Jun 1478 - 19 Oct 1478

Elizabeth married by September 1449 to John MacDonald (1434-1503), 13th Earl of Ross, Last Lord of the Isles, son of Alexander MacDonald, 9th Lord of the Isles, 12th Earl of Ross and Elizabeth his wife. (2. Auchinleck Chronicle, 172 (f. 122r)).

Elizabeth, who married John, Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles. After her husband's forfeiture, King James III on February 8, 1475/76, settled on her a liferent in certain lands for an honourable sustenance in consideration of her loyal services to his parents, himself and his queen, Margaret of Denmark.

Said to have died without issue. But see notes for Elizabeth Macdonald below.

Family

http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/SCOTTISH%20NOBILITY%20LATER.htm#Ale...

JOHN Macdonald ([1435][54]-1498, bur Paisley Abbey). m (separated 1464) ELIZABETH Livingston, daughter of JAMES Livingston Lord Livingston of Callendar & his wife Marian --- (-before 1506). In 1464 the Pope issued a commission, following her petition, confirming her husband's desertion. She was received by the Queen of Scots into her household[58]. Lord John had two illegitimate children by an unknown mistress[59] …

Notes

Series 4 > Acts of the lords of the Isles, 1336-1493 (405) Page 312. <link>

Of his marriage to Elizabeth, daughter ofjames Livingston younger of Callander (later Lord Livingston), chamberlain of Scotland, there is both documentary evidence (CPL, xi, 671; nos.59, A27, A30) and chronicle reference (Asloan MS., i, 224-5, 235; C, 163 and S, 35 makejohn’s mother
a Livingston, instead of his wife). In January 1463/4. a petition by Elizabeth is recorded asking the Pope to admonish John for ejecting her from his lands, and living with another woman, and alleging that she had been imprisoned by him and was in fear of being poisoned (CPL, xi, 671); she had fled to the Scottish court, and for services to the king’s father, himself and his queen received rewards from James Hi (HP, iv, 206-9; nos. A19, A27, A30). John protested that he was willing to receive her and treat her with marital affection (no. 110), but she was taken under the Pope’s protection, and the bishops of Brechin and Orkney were instructed to decree ‘what is canonical’ anent a separation or divorce, n March 1477/8 (B21).

Elizabeth [Livingston] was dead by 1 Jan. 1505/6, and the lands and lordships of Ross and Ardmannach were granted to others (RMS, ii, 2905; RSS, i, 1473, 1633). It has been assumed that there were no surviving children, but Elizabeth stated that she had borne children to John (CPL, xi, 671); in January 1505/6 ‘Elizabeth Ylis dochter to umquhil Johne lord Ills’ had lands in Islay granted to her for one year (RSS, i, 1420).

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Biographical notes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Islay,_Earl_of_Ross

"Early in his life John MacDonald, 13th Earl of Ross, Last Lord of the Isles (d 1503) he was forced to marry a woman he did not love for a promise that was never kept. John's marriage to Elizabeth had been determined by the usual calculations of profit and position, as were those of other important people of the time. There was one important difference with the alliance of John and Elizabeth: he came from a great landed family, she did not. Elizabeth was the daughter of Sir James Livingstone, a powerful politician during the minority of James II, but in a conservative, land-based society, a figure of no lasting significance. John, with a large and hungry following at his heels, rich as he was, always needed more land. Sir James' power was purely personal, and his daughter would not normally have been considered as a suitable match for the Lord of the Isles. It seems he was persuaded to marry her after certain unspecified promises from the king. After Livingstone fell from power in the early 1450s James refused to honour these promises. Instead of growing to love or at least respect Elizabeth, John came to loathe her.[citation needed]"

"His wife, Elizabeth Livingstone, accused him of trying to murder her while she was pregnant. He started his rule as a lion and ended as a sheep[citation needed], having in the process alienated almost everyone, including the closest members of his family.[citation needed]"

John Davidson was the "native esquire and pupil" to John Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles in 1475. Elizabeth Livingston was also granted Greenan lands.

From “Cassilis Papers” (From the Manuscripts of the Marquis of Ailsa). Dr. A.I. Dunlop. Page 103. “Appendix.”<PDF>

References

• The Scots Peerage, Vol. I, edited by Sir James Balfour Paul, (1904) p. 335. <Archive.Org>
• Cokayne, G. E. (1949). Geoffrey H. White (ed.). The Complete Peerage, or a history of the House of Lords and all its members from the earliest times (Rickerton to Sisonby). Vol. 11 (2nd ed.). London: The St Catherine Press Vol. XI, p. 151-153. <Page 151>
• The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom, by George Edward Cokayne, Vol. XI, p. 152, notes.
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Islay,_Earl_of_Ross
• “Acts of the Lords of the Isles, 1336-1493.” Jean Munro, Robert William Munro, Scottish History Society, 1986. <GoogleBooks>
• Cochran-Yu, David Kyle (2016) A keystone of contention: the Earldom of Ross, 1215-1517. PhD thesis. https://theses.gla.ac.uk/7242/
  • (page 179) The Auchinleck Chronicle indicates that by September 1449 Earl John had married Elizabeth Livingstone, daughter of James Livingstone, the king’s chamberlain. 2. Auchinleck Chronicle, 172 (f. 122r).
• ‘The Auchinleck Chronicle’ in Christine McGladdery, James II, (Edinburgh, 1990) Appendix 2, 160-173 <GoogleBooks>; https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/8763927.pdf
• https://archive.org/details/auchinleckchron00thomgoog/page/n68/mode... (this edition does not seem to have folio 122 included)
• https://www.clanmacfarlanegenealogy.info/genealogy/TNGWebsite/getpe... cites
  • Stirnet Genealogy, Peter Barns-Graham, Livingston02: The Scots Peerage (Linlithgow),
  • Burkes Extin ct Peerages 1883 (Linlithgow) (Reliability: 3)
  • E-mail, From Don Thompson rec: 12 Dec 2012 MacFarlane information from Bruce MacFarlane: http://worldconnect.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=mygrtgrt &
  • the Andersons from Mabel Manz : http://madcitydon.com/candacraig/mabel_manz.html (Reliability: 3)
• http://our-royal-titled-noble-and-commoner-ancestors.com/p4796.htm#...
• http://www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk/online/content/index1704.htm#LIVI...
• http://thepeerage.com/p10807.htm#i108064