Fife

Who he is

Name

Duncan II (Donnchad mac Donnchada)

Title

Earl (mormaer) of Fife; justiciar of Scotia

Since

1154, as a child

Born

Before 1154; he is well over 50

Family

Son of Earl Duncan I. Wife: Ada (Ela), a close kinswoman of Malcolm IV, married 25 December 1160. Sons: Malcolm (who succeeds in 1204 and is married to Matilda, daughter of Gille Brigte of Strathearn), Duncan and David; a daughter. The headship of the kindred (Clann MacDuib) may lie with his cousin's line.

Confidence

high

First of the earls in rank: the earl of Fife enthrones the king at Scone and his kin have special privileges of law (the 'law of Clan MacDuff'). Duncan has been justiciar of Scotia, with Earl Gille Brigte of Strathearn and Bishop Matthew of Aberdeen, since the 1170s; whether he still acts in 1200 is not pinned (his office is usually given to 1203 or 1204). Dies 1204.

Overlord

King William

What it holds

• The earldom of Fife: the earl's demesnes around Cupar, Falkland, Kennoway and Markinch, and the earl's court at Cupar (thin)
• Lands in Strathtay, Strathbraan and Glen Dochart outside the province (thin)
• The right to place the king on the throne at Scone
• The leadership of the men of Fife in the common army

How it was acquired

Hereditary mormaerdom.

Allies and rivals

Married into the royal family and allied to Strathearn by his son's marriage; the bishop of St Andrews and Dunfermline Abbey are his great neighbours.

How things stand that morning

Held by Earl Duncan, in old age.

Wealth

Grain lands of Fife, salt and coal of the Forth shore (thin), cain and conveth of the earldom. No figures.

Military

The men of Fife in the common army. No numbers.

Threats

• Old age; his son Malcolm succeeds in 1204

Places of note

• Cupar: The earl's court and castle (thin)
• Falkland: Earl's residence (thin for 1200)

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The earl and his family are clear; the extent of the earl's demesne within Fife is not.

On the map: Drawn as the whole province; the earl's demesne was a part of it.

Primary sources for Scotland

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of Holyrood, Anonymous (canons of Holyrood, Edinburgh) (about 1150 to 1170, with later additions). Gives nothing for 1200: its original text ends in 1163 and the few additions stop before William the Lion's last decades. Read online
• Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
• Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
• Chronicle of the Kings of Mann and the Isles, Anonymous (monks of Rushen abbey, Mann) (about 1257, with continuations to 1316). The only native record of the kingdom of Mann and the Hebrides. Read online
• History of English Affairs, William of Newburgh (about 1196 to 1198). Ends in 1198, so it gives no 1200 entries of its own; the Stanley continuation has only a line or two for 1200. Read online
• Saga of the Earls of Orkney, Anonymous (Icelandic) (about 1200 to 1230; surviving text mainly from Flateyjarbok, about 1390). The saga's last chapters are about Earl Harald Maddadsson, who in 1200 held Orkney under King Sverre of Norway and Caithness under William the Lion: his long rule, his quarrel with the Scottish king that cost him Caithness in 1196 to 1197, his recovery of it, and the maiming of Bishop John of Caithness and the king's revenge in 1201 to 1202. Read online
• The Registers of Pope Innocent III for 1199 to 1201, Innocent III and the papal chancery (22 February 1199 to 21 February 1201). The pope's outgoing letters for the year, in his chancery's own copy, touching nearly every realm in the atlas. Read online
• The Great Life of Saint Hugh of Lincoln, Adam of Eynsham (about 1210 to 1215). The last book is a day by day account of Hugh's final year by the chaplain who was with him: his dealings with John at the start of the reign, his journey to France and the Grande Chartreuse in 1200, his illness in London, his death at the Old Temple on 16 November 1200 and the funeral at Lincoln on 23 November attended by King John, William the Lion of Scotland, three archbishops and a crowd of bishops and earls. Read online

2 more in the sources library for The British Isles.