| William, possibly an illegitimate son,
certainly a relative, of Archibald, 3rd
Earl of Douglas, was in 1390 granted lands at Leswalt by him.
He was self-styled 'Lord of Leswalt.
Sheriff of Wigton, he was dismissed by Margaret,
Duchess of Touraine as part of a power struggle in the south west of
Scotland.
Under duress, he transferred lands at Lochnaw to Andrew Agnew,
Constable of Lochnaw Castle, receiving Cruggleton in exchange.
Marriage 1 Katherine, dau of 1st Lord Maxwell (She
married 2nd Gilbert, Lord Kennedy.)
Children
- George,
d1463
Scottish History Society
Wigtownshire Charters
Third Series, Vol. LI. Appendix pp161, 162.
" ** No.134
November 10 1426. Charter by William de Douglas lord of Leswalt,
to Andrew Agnew, scutifero meo, of the office of Constable of Lochnale
(Lochnaw)
with the 4 merk and 20d lands of Lochnale (Lochnaw)
and the lands of Garruchquere in the barony of Leswalt,
excepting and reserving the lake of Lochnale,
with all the fees and duties of the said office
and with the office of heritable bailie of that barony.
(Note: not an appointment as "Sheriff of Wigtownshire", but as
"Constable of Lachnale / Lochnaw (castle) ".
Leswalt with some lands in the Rhynnes was
erected into a barony in 1426 by
the lady of Galloway in favour of William Douglas of Leswalt, who had
already been in possession (ibid., 86). His paternity is not yet
established, but it seems likely that he was close in blood to the
Drumlanrig family. William Douglas of Drumlanrig in 1427 was sent to
England as a hostage for James I. On 9 May 1429 at Middleham as a hostage
he was visited by William Douglas of Leswalt, who in Drumlanrig's
confinement had been given charge for 10 years of the castle of Drumlanrig.
The two William Douglas's entered into an indenture discharging the 10
year
grant, replacing it with a mutual obligation that Leswalt was to have free
access to Drumlanrig castle at any time whilst the same liberty was
accorded
to the other party with reference to the castle of Lochmaw (Hist. MSS.
Com.,
app. part viii, p. 10).
William Douglas of Leswalt witnessed a charter on 29 July 1430.
There is some reason to think he may have married Katherine Maxwell,
daughter to Herbert, lord Maxwell. He must have been dead by 1438 when
Katherine became first wife of Gilbert lord Kennedy.
William Douglas was succeeded by George Douglas of Leswalt, who married
Christiane Ruthven and died without lawful heirs before Oct. 1468, when
the
crown granted his lands to the Queen Mother (R.M.S., 1424/1513 762).
By 1477 the widowed Christiane had married Sir John Campbell of Wester
Louden (ibid., 1286) and she was still drawing her terce in 1488 (ibid.,
1718).
At the death of George Douglas, the Kennedies claimed the lands as heirs to
George on the ground that John lord Kennedy and George Douglas were
fratres
ex parte matris, and Alexander Kennedy, son of John, was given a crown feu
which he resigned in 1506 in favour of his elder brother David, 3rd Lord
Kennedy (ibid., 2954).
This charter gives the lands of the barony, outwith the parish of Leswalt,
as Mule, Gartrowen, Drummokloch, Balcar, Mekill Larg, Auchmattill,
Pollanregane and Culmore in the Rhynnes.
In 1507 Patrick Sinclair, servitor to the crown, was granted an annual rent
of 27 pounds furth of the fermes of Leswalt. As late as 1546 Patrick
Sinclair of Woodhouslie was still drawing this annuity when he gifted it
with Woodhouslie and Spottis in Butill to his natural son John Sinclair
(R.M.S., 1514/46 3198)."
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