Archibald Douglas 3d earl of Douglas

Archibald Douglas, 3d earl of Douglas 1328?-1400?, Scottish nobleman; illegitimate son of Sir James de Douglas, lord of Douglas. In 1361 he became constable of Edinburgh and in 1364 and 1368 he was warden of the Western Marches. He served as ambassador to France in 1369 and 1371. From 1380 until his death he both arranged truces with the English and engaged them in battle. In 1388, at the death of James Douglas, 2d earl of Douglas and Mar, he succeeded to the earldom and the Douglas estates. He had already acquired—by grant, purchase, and inheritance—Galloway and the Bothwell estates. At his death the Douglas family was the most powerful in Scotland.

Douglas, Archibald Douglas, 3rd earl of [S] (d. 1400), known as ‘the Grim’. Douglas rose to prominence as a supporter of David II. David made him constable of Edinburgh castle (1361), warden of the west marches (1364), and lord of Galloway (1369). He bought the earldom of Wigtown (1372), received Bothwell by marriage, and inherited the earldom of Douglas (1388), creating the Douglas power that dominated Scotland until 1455.

Douglas, Archibald Douglas, 3rd earl of [S] (d. 1400), known as ‘the Grim’. Douglas rose to prominence as a supporter of David II in a period when the steward and the 1st earl of Douglas were in rebellion (1363). David made him constable of Edinburgh castle (1361), warden of the west marches (1364), and lord of Galloway (1369). He bought the earldom of Wigtown (1372), received Bothwell by marriage, and inherited the earldom of Douglas (1388), creating the Douglas power that dominated Scotland until 1455. He was praised by contemporary chroniclers, particularly for endowment of collegiate churches at Lincluden and Bothwell. From 1399 he supported Robert III's heir, the duke of Rothesay, as governor of Scotland, his death significantly weakening the duke's position. Furthermore, by buying his daughter's marriage to Rothesay (1400), he antagonized the earl of Dunbar, whose daughter was already espoused to the duke. Dunbar persuaded Henry IV to invade in retaliation.

Roland Tanner