Christina Stewart, 4th Countess of Buchan
Christina Stewart Douglas, Countess of Buchan (c. 1548 – 20 September 1580), also known as Christian,[1] was a Scottish noblewoman, the suo jure Countess of Buchan.
She succeeded her grandfather John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Buchan in 1551. In that year she was, as heir to her father, enfeoffed in the lands, jurisdictions, and offices enumerated in her grandfather's charter of 1547. She was only three years of age at her mother's death, and was placed under the guardianship of Margaret Erskine, wife of Sir Robert Douglas of Lochleven.[2]
In January 1549/50, though Christina was only a young child, a contract of marriage was arranged between her and James Stewart, afterwards Earl of Moray and Regent, the son of Lady Douglas by King James V, which gave him possession of her lands. Notwithstanding this he married another lady, and Christina was married to Moray's half-brother, Robert Douglas, second son of Sir Robert Douglas of Lochleven. In his wife's right, Robert Douglas became 5th Earl of Buchan and Sheriff of Banff.[2]
In 1574, they obtained a charter of the family estates, heritable offices, and the Earlshill in conjunct fee, with remainder to the heirs-male of the marriage, heirsfemale, heirs of the body of the Countess, and finally, to the nearest lawful heirs of the Earl. Her husband, as Earl of Buchan, took a prominent part in the political movements made in the minority of James VI, and he supported the Regent Moray in opposition to the Loyalists who favored Mary, Queen of Scots. After the Regent's assassination in 1570, he was one of the four lords to whom the government of the country was committed in name of the King.[2]
They had one son and three daughters:
- James Douglas, 6th Earl of Buchan.
- Christian, married to Richard Douglas, brother of William Douglas of Whittinghame.
- Mariota, married to Alexander Irvine of Drum.
- Elizabeth, married, in 1592, to Andrew Fraser of Muchals, and had issue.
The Earl of Buchan died at Mills of Drum, near Aberdeen, 18 August, and the Countess at Aberdeen 20 September 1580.[2]
References
- ↑ Lodge, Edmund (1838). The Genealogy of the Existing British Peerage: With Sketches of the Family Histories of the Nobility. Saunders and Otley. p. 67. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
- 1 2 3 4 Paul, James Balfour (1904). The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh : D. Douglas. pp. 268–269. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
| Peerage of Scotland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Stewart |
Countess of Buchan 1551–1580 |
Succeeded by Robert Douglas |