Walter Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl

Comments

• Walter Stewart, Earl of Fife and Margaret, heiress of Holkettle had no surviving children. Disconnected from them as parents, April 2016.
• Robert Stewart 1st Duke of Albany had no son named Walter. — Disconnected 12/19/2015

Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Vol. 54, by Henderson, T. F.:–

Stewart, Walter, Earl of Atholl (d. 1437), was the second son of King Robert II [q. v.], by his second wife, Euphemia Ross. Robert III [q. v.], Robert Stewart, first duke of Albany [q. v.], and Alexander Stewart, earl of Buchan [q. v.], were his half-brothers. Another son of King Robert II, named Walter, by his first wife, was still alive in July 1362, so that possibly the second Walter was born subsequently to this; but in any case as early as 19 Oct. 1378 he married Margaret, only daughter and heiress of Sir David de Barclay, lord of Brechin, with whom he obtained the estate and also the title of lord of Brechin (Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. pp. 146, 147, quoted in Burnet's Preface to the Exchequer Rolls, vol. iv. p. clx).
On 15 Nov. 1391, he had a safe-conduct to go to England with thirty attendants (Cal. Documents relating to Scotland, 1357–1509, No. 431), and he had similar safe-conducts on 5 Dec. 1391 (ib. No. 433), 10 Jan. 1402–3 (ib. No. 627), and 8 June 1404, in the last instance that he might make a pilgrimage to the shrine of Thomas of Canterbury (ib. No. 656). In 1398 and 1400 he received a hundred marks as keeper of Edinburgh Castle (Exchequer Rolls, iii. 437, 487).
He had a charter of the earldom of Caithness, on the resignation of his niece Euphemia, countess palatine of Strathearn, and is so designated in July 1402 (ib. iii. 545).
In charters of 20 Oct. 1416 and 22 Aug. 1421 he is also mentioned as tutor of Malise, earl of Strathearn [q. v.] (Hist. MSS. 7th Rep. p. 706).
In the safe-conduct of 8 June 1404, he is designated Earl of Atholl and Caithness, the earldom of Atholl having been previously vested in his father, Robert II. On 22 Sept. 1409 he received from the regent Albany a grant of the barony of Cortachy in Forfarshire. He took a leading part in the movement for the return of James I to Scotland in 1424; was a conservator for Scotland of the truce with England, signed 28 March (Cal. Documents relating to Scotland, 1357–1509, No. 949); and at the same time gave surety in twelve hundred marks that his son David would remain a hostage in England for King James's ransom (ib. No. 950).
He was also one of the jury which after the king's return condemned Murdac Stewart, second duke of Albany [q. v.] On 22 July 1427 he had a grant of the earldom of Strathearn for life (Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. i. No. 93), and on 15 May 1430 he resigned the earldom of Caithness in favour of his son Alexander.
In 1437, he engaged in the plot for the assassination of James I, in order that his grandson, Sir Robert Stewart, chamberlain to the king, might succeed to the crown. It was successful so far as the king's assassination was concerned; but the cruel deed in the Blackfriars monastery, on 20 Feb., was approved of by few except those immediately concerned in it. Atholl was captured by the Earl of Angus, and, along with the other conspirators, was put to death in April 1437 after enduring unspeakable tortures. He affirmed that although he had been made aware of the conspiracy, he had used every endeavour to persuade his grandson against it, and believed that he had succeeded. Before execution he was placed on a pillory, and, in bitter mockery of his supposed purpose, his head was encircled with a red-hot iron crown, on which was inscribed ‘The king of traitors.’
By his wife, Margaret, daughter of Sir David de Barclay, he had two sons: David, who seems to have died before him in England, leaving a son, Sir Robert, conspirator with his grandfather; and Alan, in whose favour his father resigned the earldom of Caithness in 1430, and who was killed by Donald Balloch in 1431, leaving no issue.
Sources: Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, vols. iii–iv.; Cal. Documents relating to Scotland, 1357–1509; Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. vol. i.; Douglas's Scottish Peerage (Wood):

Burke, "Vicissitudes of Families", pp 103-4:–

"Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, Strathearn and Caithness (died 26 March 1437) was a Scottish nobleman, the son of Robert II of Scotland and Lady Euphemia Ross.
"Hatred against King James I rankled deeply in the hearts of some of the principal nobility, who resented his severity, and especially the relentless rigour with which he had destroyed the illustrious princes of the House of Albany. The King's uncles, sons of the second marriage of his grandfather, had escaped at that time, and the Earl of Athol had been distinguished by his nephew's favour. He had even been benefited at the expense of his grandnephew, Malise, Earl of Strathern, son of the daughter of his elder brother, David: for under pretence that Strathern was a male fief, the King deprived Malise of that earldom in 1427, and conferred it on Walter, Earl of Athol, for life.
"Notwithstanding the high favour in which Athol and his grandson and heir, Sir Robert Stewart, were held by the King, they were deeply concerned in the conspiracy which terminated in his murder, in the monastery of the Dominicans at Perth, on the night of the 20 Feb 1436. Sir Robert Stewart, who was chamberlain, availed himself of the privileges of his office, in preparing for the admission of the conspirators; and he and his grandfather were in the King's company up to the very moment when the murder took place. Sir Robert Steward was taken, and, after cruel tortures, was beheaded. The aged Earl was also taken, tried, and condemned; and although he protested his own innocence, he admitted that he had knowledge of his grandson's complicity in the conspiracy, from which he had vainly attempted to dissuade him. The cross on which his grandson had been tortured previous to his death, was taken down, and a pillar was set up in its stead, to which the Earl was bound, with a paper crown fastened on his head, inscribed with the title "Traitor!". His head was then struck off, and having been adorned with an iron crown, was stuck on the point of a spear. His extensive estates were forfeited, and among them the spoils of his elder brother. The earldom of Strathern reverted to the crown, and it was annexed thereto by Act of Parliament in 1455."

Our Royal, Title, Noble and Commoner Ancestors and Cousins:

Sir Walter Stewart, Earl Caithness, Atholl, & Strathearn, Lord Brechin{1,2,3}
Last Edited: 27 May 2013
M, #6483, d. 26 March 1437
Father: Sir Robert II Stewart, King of Scotland, Earl of Atholl, Strathearn, 7th Steward of Scotland4,5 b. 2 Mar 1316, d. 19 Apr 1390
Mother: Euphemia Ross4,5 b. c 1329, d. 20 Feb 1388
Sir Walter Stewart, Earl Caithness, Atholl, & Strathearn, Lord Brechin married Margaret Barclay, daughter of Sir David Barclay, Lord of Brechin and Janet Keith, before 19 October 1378; They had 2 sons (David; & Alan, Earl of Caithness). By an unknown mistress he also had a son (Alan, Canon of Aberdeen, Dunblane, & Dunkeld).{2,3}
Sir Walter Stewart, Earl Caithness, Atholl, & Strathearn, Lord Brechin and Elizabeth Graham obtained a marriage license on 1 August 1404; Date of dispensation for being related in the 3rd degree of affinity. However, the marriage never took place.{3}
Sir Walter Stewart, Earl Caithness, Atholl, & Strathearn, Lord Brechin died on 26 March 1437 at Stirling, Stirlingshire, Scotland; Beheaded for being an accessory to the assassination of King James I of Scotland.{2,3}
Spouse 1: Margaret Barclay d. b 1 Aug 1404
Children
1. David Stewart2,3 d. a Feb 1434
2. Alan Stewart, Earl of Caithness2,3 d. 1431

Spouse 2: Elizabeth Graham

Citations
1. Unknown author, Burke's Guide to the Royal Family, p. 318.
2. Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, 2nd Edition, Vol. III, p. 560.
3. Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. I, p. 637.
4. Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, 2nd Edition, Vol. III, p. 538.
5. Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. I, p. 614.
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Links

• OxfordReference.com: The Oxford Companion to British History (2 ed.), eds. Crowcroft & Cannon, (subscription req.)
• Wikitree: Walter Stewart (abt. 1360 - 1437).
• ExecutedToday.com: 1437: Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl.
• Encyclopedia.com: Atholl, Walter Stewart, Earl of.
• Stewart Society: WALTER Stewart, Earl of Atholl.
• Unofficial Royalty: "Assassination of James I, King of Scots (1437)", by Susan Flantzer, 2020.
• European Heraldry: "House of Stewart later Stuart".

from Wikipedia:

Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, Strathearn and Caithness (c. 1360 – 26 March 1437) was a Scottish nobleman, the son of Robert II of Scotland. Stewart advocated for the ransom and return to Scotland of the future king in exile, James I, in 1424. In 1425 he served as a member of the jury of 21 which tried and executed his nephew Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany. Eventually, however, Atholl turned against the King and conspired in his assassination in 1437. He was tried for murder and was executed after three days of torture.

Stewart was a son of Robert II of Scotland by his second wife Euphemia de Ross, daughter of Aodh, Earl of Ross. He was also a younger half-brother of Robert III of Scotland and an uncle of the above-mentioned James I of Scotland.

Stewart married first, sometime before 1378, Margaret Barclay, Lady of Brechin,[1] by whom he had two sons:
Alan Stewart, 4th Earl of Caithness (d. 1431)
David Stewart, Master of Atholl (d. bef. 1437)

In 1390, Stewart's niece Euphemia resigned to him the Earldom of Caithness. In 1404, he was created Earl of Atholl.

Ransom and return of James I of Scotland
Stewart was energetic in retrieving his nephew James I from the Kingdom of England, which was accomplished in 1424, and was a member of the jury which tried his half nephew, Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany, and culminated in the execution of Albany and two of his sons.[2]

Stewart was made Great Justiciar of Scotland and Earl of Strathearn, with such title being taken from Malise Graham, who subsequently became the Earl of Menteith in 1427.[3] He resigned Caithness to his son Alan in 1428 but regained it on Alan's death without issue in 1431.[citation needed]

The depth of Stewart's loyalties to James is unclear. The chronicler Buchanan (1582) saw in his efforts to return James to Scotland and support him against Albany and his children a deep-laid plan for those two branches of the House of Stewart to destroy each other – and clear his own way to the throne, reviving the old charge of illegitimacy against his half-brother Robert III. Others aver that it was the imprisonment and subsequent death of his son David that turned him against the king.[citation needed]

Assassination of James I
Whatever the cause of Stewart's rage against the King, he joined with his grandson Robert Stewart, Master of Atholl, and Sir Robert Graham in a conspiracy against James I, which assassinated the king on 20 February 1437. Robert Stewart unbarred the doors to the royal apartments, permitting assassins to enter the King's lodging at the Dominican Blackfriars in Perth. The King hid under the floorboards, only to be discovered by Sir Robert Graham, who personally murdered the monarch.[4]

Execution of Walter Stewart
Stewart had little popular support for his cause, and the conspirators were swiftly apprehended. They were attainted and put to death in Edinburgh by a series of tortures remarkable and hideous even for that era. He was tortured over a period of three days.

On the first day: - he was put in a cart with a crane, hoist up, dropped, and jerked violently to stretch his joints. He was then placed in a pillory and "crowned with a diadem of burning iron"[5] bearing the inscription "King of all Traitors".
On the second day: - he was bound to a hurdle and dragged along the high street of Edinburgh (some claim he was also blinded and tortured with red-hot iron pincers on this day, but Buchanan speaks only of the hurdle).
On the third and final day: - he was disembowelled while alive, his entrails burnt before his face, and his heart was torn out and burnt. Finally, his corpse was beheaded and quartered, and the quarters displayed around the realm.

Notes

1. McAndrew, Bruce A., (2006), Scotland's Historic Heraldry, p. 180.
2. George Crawfurd, p. 159, A General Description of the Shire of Renfrew (1818).
3. Nicholas, Harris (1842). History of the Earldoms of Strathern, Monteith, and Airth. William Pickering: Stevens and Norton: Clark, Edinburgh. pp. 19–20.
4. Campbell, Alastair, (2000) A History of Clan Campbell: From Origins to Flodden, p.121.
5. McAndrew, Bruce A., (2006), Scotland's Historic Heraldry, p.181.

Other References

• Anonymous, Notes and Queries, London (1867), p. 277.
• Sutton, D. F., ed. (2009) Rerum Scoticarum Historia (1582). Translated by G. Buchanan. Irvine, California, USA: The University of California. Available at: The Philological Museum, online.
• Riddell, John, Tracts, Legal and Historical: with other Antiquarian Matters (1835), p. 201.