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William, 6th Earl of Douglas
William, 6th earl of Douglas, 1423?–1440, Scottish nobleman, eldest son of Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Douglas.
In answer to an invitation from the young James II, who was at that time controlled by Sir William Crichton and Sir Alexander Livingstone, Douglas and his brother visited the royal castle at Edinburgh and were there beheaded after the infamous Black Bull Dinner. The judicial murder achieved a temporary break in the wealth and power of the Douglas family. William had been 3rd Duke of Touraine, Lord of Galloway and Annandale, and Count of Longueville.
Now the earldom passed to his uncle, James Douglas, son of Archibald Douglas, 3rd Earl of Douglas, who possibly connived in the murder, and Galloway went to Margaret, sister of the 6th Earl, who eventually married William Douglas, 8th Earl. The rest of the lands and titles were lost to the family.
2nd version ARCHIBALD, 5TH EARL OF DOUGLAS (c. 1391-1439), succeeded to his father's English and Scottish honours, though he never touched the revenues of Touraine. He fought at Bauge in 1421, and was made count of Longueville in Normandy.
His two sons, WILLIAM, 6th EARL (1423 7-1440), and David, were little more than boys at the time of their father's death in 1439. They can hardly have been guilty of any real offence when, on the 24th of November 1440, they were summoned to court by Sir William Crichton, lord chancellor of Scotland, and, after a mock trial in the young king's presence, were beheaded forthwith in the courtyard of Edinburgh Castle. This murder broke up the dangerous power wielded by the Douglases. The lordships of Annandale and Bothwell fell to the crown; Galloway to the earl's sister Margaret, the " Fair Maid of Galloway"; while the Douglas lands passed to his great-uncle JAMES DOUGLAS, 7TH EARL OF DOUGLAS, called the " Gross," of Balvany (1371-1444), lord of Abercorn and Aberdour, earl of Avondale (cr. 1437), younger son of the 3rd earl.
The latter's sons, WILLIAM (c. 1425-1452) and JAMES (1426-1488), became 8th and 9th earls respectively; Archibald became earl of Moray by marriage with Elizabeth Dunbar, daughter and co-heiress of James, earl of Moray; Hugh was created earl of Ormond in 1445; John was lord of Balvany; Henry became bishop of Dunkeld.
The power of the Black Douglases was restored by the 8th earl, who recovered Wigtown, Galloway and Boti1well by marriage (by papal dispensation) with his cousin, the Fair Maid of Galloway. He was soon high in favour with James II., and procured the disgrace of Crichton, his kinsmen’s murderer, by an alliance with his rival, Sir Alexander Livingstone. In 14~o James raided the earl’s lands during his absence on a pilgrimage to Rome; but their relations seemed outwardly friendly until in 1452 the king invited Douglas to Stirling Castle under a safe-conduct, in itself, however, a proof of strained relations. There James demanded the dissolution of a league into which Douglas had entered with Alexander Lindsay, the ~‘ Tiger” earl (4th) of Crawford. On Douglas’s refusal the king murdered him (February 22) with his own hands, the courtiers helping to despatch him. The tales of the hanging of Sir Herbert Herries of Terregles and the murder of McLellan of Bombie by Douglas rest on no sure evidence. Source: http://21.1911encyclopedia.org/D/DO/DOUGLAS_SIR_CHARLES.htm (dead link)
Father: Archibald 5th Earl of
Douglas b: ABT. 1390
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