Sir John Giffard, of Yester

5I. JOHN GIFFARD (HUGH 1, WILLIAM 2, JOHN 3, HUGH 4)

• m. ISABEL _____ (d. after 1320)
• d. before 1320

Issue- ·  7I. JOHN- m. EUPHEMIA MORHAM, d.c.1328 Ref: (1) Calendar of Writs preserved at Yester House 1166-1503- Charles C. Harvey, Ed., Scottish Record Society, Edinburgh, 1916- No. 18 (2) Ibid- No. 22

Biography

https://sites.rootsweb.com/~mainegenie/GIFFARD.htm

Sir John Giffard, son of Sir Hugh Giffard II, appears in the 1296 Ragman Rolls where he is listed as a knight. The information given indicates that he signed the rolls at Berwick upon Tweed. The Ragman Rolls were a document that nearly all the barons and landowners of Scotland were forced to sign pledging loyalty to King Edward I of England.

The proof and documentation that this Sir John Giffard II is the son of Sir Hugh Giffard II and the father of the next Sir John Giffard III, (married to Euphemia Morham), is found in the Yester writs #18 & 22. This generation in the Lords of Yester is often said to have been a William Giffard, but examination of the Yester writs prove this to be erroneous. In Yester writ #18, dated circa 1320, Hugh Fotheringay writes a charter concerning exchange of lands with Sir John Giffard III. Fotheringay states that he is returning the lands of Balnoch in Tealing to John Giffard which his deceased father Sir John Giffard had gifted to him. Hugh Fotheringay also states that Isabel, the mother of Sir John Giffard III, is still living at the time of the charter. Additional confirmation of the line of succession i.e., (Hugh II--John II--John III), is found in writ #22 where John Giffard III states his grand-father was Sir Hugh Giffard. The date of this document is circa 1327.

Hugh Fotheringay (Fotheringham) is certainly the same Hugh Fotheringay of Perth who signed the Ragman Rolls in 1296 along with Sir John Giffard II. There would seem to be a close connection between these two individuals of the same generation. Sir John Giffard's only known charter is the one making a gift of the Tealing lands to Hugh Fotheringay. Another curious fact is found in the great similarity of the respective coats of arms of the two families. Giffard of Yester being gules, three bars ermine; Fotheringham of Scotland being ermine, three bars gules. (Fotheringham being the later spelling of the Scottish Fotheringays.)

The later adult years in the life of Sir John Giffard and his wife Isabel would have been ones of turmoil and difficulty, owing to the Scottish wars of independence with the English Kings Edward I and Edward II. The period 1296-1315 saw the great battles of Falkirk, Stirling Bridge, and Bannockburn. The rise of the Scottish legendary heros William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, Simon Fraser, and James Douglas also occurs in this period. The English invasion of Scotland led to the taking and occupation of Yester Castle in 1306 (An Englishman, Adam de Welle, is known to have possession of Yester Castle during this period). The fate of Sir John Giffard II and Isabel at this time is not recorded. Scottish families were often split in loyalty to Scotland or England during this period and often changed their allegiance between the opposing armies. In June of 1311, the Scottish forces of Robert the Bruce regained Yester Castle from the English. In order to deny its re-occupation by the English, the castle was leveled to the ground by the Scots. Sir John Giffard's son would rebuild Yester Castle in a newer form and style a decade later.

Sir John Giffard II died prior to 1320, his spouse Isabel is known to have lived past this date. The son and heir of Sir John Giffard II and his wife Isabel was:

Sir John Giffard III born circa 1285-1290. He married Euphemia Morham by 1220, and succeeded as the next Lord of Yester.

References

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_de_Giffard
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yester_Castle
• http://www.maybole.org/history/castles/yester.htm
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27524933/john-giffard
• https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Unknown-137154
• https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/ecco/004896980.0001.000/1:254?rgn=div1...
• http://community-2.webtv.net/NUbrubun55/GIFFARDOFYESTER/page2.html (dead link)