James, 2nd Earl of Douglas and Mar
(c. 1358 - 8/1388)
Official Seal of James,
2nd Earl of Douglas and Mar
James Douglas was born circa 1358 to William, 1st Earl of Douglas, and Margaret, Countess of Mar. He had already gained a knighthood by 1380 when his father granted him land holdings in Liddesdale, County of Roxburgh, on the Scottish boarder. Until his father's death, he was more commonly known as Sir James Douglas of Liddesdale.
During the 1370s, Sir James married Princess Isabel Stewart, daughter of Robert II, King of Scotland. Robert was the son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland, and Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, and Isabella of Mar. The marriage was arranged by Sir James' father in order to reconcile an earlier dispute with King Robert, and thereby demonstrate the Douglas family's support for the Scottish monarchy. Sir James and Isabel had no male issue, however, Sir James did have two sons with an unknown mistress as follows:
a) William, 1st of Drumlanrig (c. 1378 - 1427)
b) Archibald (b. ca. 1380)
A fever took the life of Sir James' father, William, 1st Earl of Douglas, on May 1, 1384, thereby resulting in James' inheritance of his father's primary land holdings. With this inheritance, James became known as the 2nd Earl of Douglas.
Shortly after William's death, French troops under the leadership of the famous knight Geoffroi de Charny (possible nephew of the Knight Templar, Geoffroi de Charney), joined forces with Sir James and Sir David Lindsay, 1st Earl of Crawford in order to launch an invasion of northern England. As a side note, de Charney is the first historically documented owner of the Shroud of Turin.
The united army decimated the land holdings of the Earls of Nottingham and Northumberland, only to be halted by a truce signed on July 7, 1384. With the truce in effect, de Charny returned to France, but pledged his support for Scotland in the future.
With the expiration of the aforementioned truce in May of 1385, Sir James again organized his forces and prepared for war with England. Supported by French troops led by Jean de Vienne, Sir James elected not to engage Richard II's far larger army, but rather, conducted targeted raids within English territory. English forces were successful in destroying several Scottish abbeys, as well as burning Edinburgh. Sir James' army, also commanded by one of Sir James' cousins, Sir Archibald "the Grim" Douglas (son of Sir James "the Good" Douglas), laid siege to the cities of Durham and Carlisle. By year's end, disagreements developed among the various factions comprising the Scottish army, resulting in French forces returning their homeland.
Official Battle Banner of
Sir James, 2nd Earl of Douglas and Mar
In 1386, Sir James joined forces with Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany, and attacked the countryside of Cumberland in northwestern England. The campaign was successful, and culminated in the burning of the city of Cockermouth in far western Cumberland.
With a large contingent of Richard II's forces occupied with crushing an internal rebellion in England (1388), Scottish nobles determined that the time was right to strike. However, the English learned of the intended invasion through espionage -- a fact of which the Scottish nobles were keenly aware. Thus, the Scottish army was divided with Sir Robert Stewart's forces moving on Cumberland and Sir James' division laying siege to Northumberland.
Sir James' forces decimated the territory between Redesdale and Brancepeth before establishing a strategic position at Newcastle. The army of Newcastle was commanded by Sir Henry "Hotspur" Percy and his brother, Sir Ralph. Sir James, realizing that he lacked the proper accouterments to lay siege to the castle, entrenched his forces nearby.
The entrenchment was followed by numerous military encounters between the two forces, culminating in Sir James challenging Sir Henry to a duel by joust. Sir James proved victorious during the tournament, resulting in the capture of Sir Henry's official banner.
Banner of Sir Henry "Hotspur" Percy
Captured by Sir James Douglas Following a Duel
Following his successes in northern and central Northumberland, Sir James forged on to Ponteland in the southern part of the region. There, he ravaged the town and laid its castle to waste before moving north once again until he reached Otterburn.
The exact date of what followed is a matter of conjecture as Scottish authorities contend that the event occurred on August 5, 1388, whereas English sources state that it occurred on August 19, 1388. In any event, Sir Henry, seeking to settle his score with Sir James, mounted a surprise evening attack on Sir James' forces. The ensuing confusion resulting from fighting in the dark proved devastating for English forces.
The Scots decided to split their forces in two and surround the English army. Sir James marched to the left and John Dunbar, Earl of Moray, moved to the right. Despite a three to one advantage, Sir Henry's forces were decimated with both Sir Henry and his brother, Sir Ralph, being captured by Scottish forces. Nonetheless, the Scots would lose one of their greatest leaders during the melee. When the fighting had ceased, it was learned that Sir James had been killed during the battle.
Upon removing Sir James' body from the battlefield the following day, his soldiers transported his body back to Scotland. He was later buried at Melrose Abbey, Roxburghshire. As Sir James did not have a male heir with his wife, most of his land was inherited by his sister, Isabel Douglas. Sir James' son with is mistress, William Douglas, inherited those lands that could only be claimed by a male heir -- in this case, Drumlanrig. Drumlanrig would continue to be a Douglas stronghold for centuries.
Death of Sir James Douglas
During the Battle of Otterburn