DE SOMERVILLE, Thomas of Linton and Carnwath, Lord Somerville, Justiciar of Scotland ²

   Other names for Thomas were DE SOMERVILLE, Thomas of Carnwath ¹ and SOMERVILLE, Thomas Lord of Carnwath.³

   User ID: M414.

  General Notes:

"Lord Somerville is a title in the Peerage of Scotland which is subject to a number of ambiguities. The date of creation is not known with certainty but it was probably created about 1435 for Thomas Somerville, Justiciar of Scotland. The title was omitted in 1606 when an ordered list of the Scottish peerage was produced following the union of the Scottish and English crowns, and the title was not used during the 17th century. In 1723, however, the House of Lords ratified and acknowledged the title for James Somerville the 13th Lord. The consecutive numbers ascribed to the numerous Lords differ according to which authority is consulted. The list below (which begins with this Thomas Somerville as 1st Lord) uses the numbers favoured by Burkes Peerage."

from Wikipedia article (6 April 2023)




"Thomas de Somerville of Linton and Carnwath (commonly called first Lord Somerville, but see infra p. 9, where the numeration adopted requires the reducing by one of the number hitherto applied to each Lord), was born about 1370......

On 26 February 1400-1 his charter of the lands of Newbigging, in favour of his cousin William Newbigging, was confirmed by Robert III. He was served heir to his father on 1 March 1406. On 31 March 1421 he was bailie to Archibald, Earl of Douglas, Lord of Galloway and Annandale, in the lordship of Douglas. On 7 August 1421 he granted to the priory of St. Machutus, at Lesmahagow, a dependency of the Abbey of Kelso, certain lands lying in his towns of Linton and Hoslaw, in the barony of Linton in puram elemosinam.

On 13 December 1423 he had a safe-conduct to England to meet James I., and was one of the guarantors of the treaty for his release, 28 March 1424. On 20 April of the same year he granted a charter in favour of S. Michael's chapel of Cambusnethan. In the same year he, with consent of William, his son and heir, founded the Collegiate Church of Carnwath for a provost and six prebendaries. Of the church then built by him, the north transept, called St. Mary's or College aisle, alone remains, and is now used as the mortuary chapel of the family of Lockhart of Lee and Carnwath.

In June 1424 he granted, also with consent of William his son, an annualrent of ten merks from his lands of Manuel to a chaplain to say perpetual masses for the soul of Randolph Weir at the altar of St. Mary, in Lesmahagow, the patronage to be exercised by himself and Thomas Weir of Blackwood alternately.On 13 January 1424-25 he granted to Robert Maxwell, son and heir of Herbert Maxwell, Knight, Lord of Carlaverock, and his wife Janet, daughter of John Forester of Corstorphine, a charter of the lands of Liberton in Carnwath, on the resignation of Herbert Maxwell, being therein described as cousin of Robert Maxwell.

On the return of James I. from captivity he was one of the few admitted to the King's confidence. He was one of the consenters on the King's behalf to the partition of Hassington by Patrick of Dunbar, Lord of Beill, between the Abbot of Melrose and Walter of Haliburton on the Wednesday in Whitsun week 1428, being described as
Justice.

In an Instrument of Perambulation of the lands of Gladsmuir on 25 September 1430 he is described as 'nobilis vir Thomas de Somervile Dominus de Oarnwath ac Justiciarius Domini nostri Regis ex parte australi de Forth.' As ' Thomas Dominus Somervile ' he appears as one of the conservators of a truce with the English 15 December 1430. He is, however, styled Thomas Dominus de Somervyle when he was one of the conservators of another truce 20 March 1438, and on 13 October 1434, when he presided at the perambulation and definition of marches of the lands belonging to the nuns of North Berwick, he is described as Thomas Symmeruell, Lord of Oarnebeith, Justiciary of the King south of the Forth. He is also called
Thomas de Somervile, dominus de Carnewithe, in a charter of 22 December 1439. He attended the Parliament held at Perth on 10 January 1434-35 when he was elected and sworn one of the Lords Auditors."

from Scots Peerage (vol 8) ^{2 4}

Thomas married Janet STEWART, daughter of Sir Alexander STEWART of Darnley and Daughter TURNBULL, in July 1391.^{1 2} (Janet STEWART was born about 1372.)

  Marriage Notes:

"Janet, married, in 1391, to Thomas de Somerville of Carnwath, and received a charter of the lands of Camnethan, resigned in their favour by Alexander Stewart of Darnley, and Johanetta, his wife."

from Scots Peerage (vol 5)



"In 1392 he had a charter from Robert III. to himself and Janet Stewart, his wife, of the barony of Cambusnethan, in Lanarkshire, together with the corn rent due of old to the King, on the resignation of Sir Alexander Stewart of Darnley and Johanna, his wife. The holding was blench for a pair of gilt spurs." (page 7)

"Before July 1391, during his father's lifetime, he married Janet Stewart, above-mentioned." (page 9)

from Scots Peerage (vol 8)


^{1 2}

Thomas next married Elizabeth KEITH 'lady of Aboyne', daughter of Sir William DE KEITH Great Marischal of Scotland and Margaret FRASER heiress of Touchfraser, about 2 November 1411.^{2 3} (Elizabeth KEITH 'lady of Aboyne' was born about 1358 and died by 1437 ³.)

  Marriage Notes:

"Elizabeth Gordon ... married ... thirdly, Thomas Somerville, probably the Thomas Somerville who was Lord of Carnwath. She, under the designation of Elizabeth of Keith, Lady of the barony of Aboyne, with consent of Thomas Somerville, her husband, granted, on 20 October 1431, infeftment of certain lands in the barony of Aboyne to Sir Alexander Forbes. She had thus succeeded to her mother, Margaret Fraser, in some at least of her large estates, including Aboyne and Cluny. She died about 1436, as in 1437 these lands were in possession of her daughter, whose husband lifted the rents."

from Scots Peerage (vol 4)



"He (Thomas Somerville) married again, in terms of a dispensation dated 2 November 1411, Elizabeth Keith, widow, successively, of Sir Adam Gordon of Huntly and Sir Nicholas Erskine of Kinnoull."

from Scots Peerage (vol 8) ^{2 3}