Craigievar Catle

Clan Forbes

In that part of north-east Scotland which spreads itself from the mountain ranges of Aberdeenshire to the coast of Banff and Buchan, lie the lands of the Clan Forbes; here the great houses and estates of the clan – once there were no fewer than one hundred and fifty of them – were situated along the winding rivers that flow eastwards and northwards especially along the valley of the Don. Overlooking the Don today stands Castle Forbes, built in 1815 by James Ochoncar, seventeenth Lord Forbes, and still occupied by the direct descendants of Duncan Forbes upon whom the original lands were conferred in a charter dated 1271 by Alexander III.

The Forbes family grew in power in Aberdeenshire throughout the fourteenth century. Sir John Forbes of the Black Lip had four sons: William became the progenitor of the Pitsligo line; John was ancestor of the Forbes of Polquhoun; Alistair of Brux founded the lines of Skellater and Inverernan; while Alexander, his eldest son, fought in the victory at Harlaw in 1411 alongside the Earl of Mar against the invading hordes led by Donald of the Isles, and was elevated to the peerage some time between 1443 and July 1445, when he took his seat in Parliament. Since then the title has been handed down through successive generations, and on the union roll of 1701, Forbes was the premier Lordship of Scotland, a precedence held to this day. ..... more

• A1. Duncan de Forbes, lvd:1272;
  • B1. John de Forbes;
    • C1. John de Forbes;
      • D1. John de Forbes;
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  • E1. John de Forbes, d:1406, m. Margaret Kennedy;  ==>  Clan Kennedy
    • F1. Alexander Forbes, lvd:1380/1448, m. Elisabeth Douglas;  ==>  Clan Douglas
      • G1. Anabella Forbes, b:1424, m. Patrick Gray;  ==>  Clan Gray
      • G2. Elisabeth Forbes, m. Alexander Irvine;  ==>  Clan Irvine
      • G3. James Forbes, 2nd Lord of, m. Edigia Keith;
        • H1. William Forbes, 3rd Lord, m. Christian Gordon;  ==>  Clan Gordon
          • I1. John Forbes, 6th Lord, m1. Elizabeth Barlow, m2. Christian Lundin;
            • J1. [m1]: Janet Forbes, m. William Leslie;  <==  Clan Leslie
            • J2. [m2]: Elisabeth Forbes, m. Gilbert Keith;
            • J3. [m2]: William Forbes, 7th Lord, m. Elisabeth Keith;  ==>  Clan Keith
              • H1. Isabel Forbes, m. Sir John Gordon;  <==  Clan Gordon
        • H2. Patrick Forbes, lvd:1482;
          • I1. David Forbes of Corse, lvd:1510, m. Elisabeth Panter;
            • J1. Patrick Forbes of Corse, m. Marjory Lumsden;
              • K1. N. Forbes;
                • H1. Agnes Forbes, m. Alexander Irvine;  <==  Clan Irvine
    • F2. Sir William Forbes of Kinaldie, 1st of Pitsligo, lvd:1446, m. Agnes Fraser;  ==>  Clan Fraser
      • G1. Sir Alexander Forbes, 2nd of Pitsligo, d:1477, m. Maria Hay;  ==>  Clan Hay
        • H1. Sir Alexander Forbes, 3rd of Pitsligo, m. Christian Ogilvy;  ==>  Clan Ogilvy
          • I1. Sir John Forbes, 4th of Pitsligo, m. Margaret Wemyss;  ==>  Clan Wemyss
            • J1. John Forbes, 5th of Pitsligo, d:1556, m. Jean Keith;  ==>  Clan Keith
              • K1. Alexander Forbes, m. Beatrix Abernethy;  ==>  Clan Abernethy
                • L1. Alexander Forbes, m. Barbara Keith;  ==>  Clan Keith
                  • M1. Sir Alesander Forbes, d:1625, m. Christian Ogilvy;
                    • N1. Mary Forbes, m. Walter Ogilvy;  <==  Clan Ogilvy