Bethune Clan Crest
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CREST: An otter’s head erased Argent MOTTO: Debonnaire TRANSLATION: Gracious VARIATIONS: Beaton |
| Clan Bethune is one of the most historic and influential clans in Scottish history, with a legacy that spans over 900 years. The name “Bethune” has two main derivations: one from the French town of Bethune and the other from the Gaelic “Macbeheatha”, meaning “son of life”. The Bethune family was renowned for their skills as physicians in the 13th and 14th centuries in Scotland and Ireland, and they quickly established themselves as a powerful and influential force in the country. | |
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| The Bethune family first came to England with William the Conqueror in 1066 and accompanied Richard the Lion Heart on his crusade to the Holy Land. Robert de Bethune was one of the first members of the family to appear in Scotland around 1165, and he was a witness to a charter of lands near Tranent in East Lothian. The Bethune family soon became faithful supporters of Robert the Bruce, and Alexander de Bethune was knighted by the king for his bravery in battle. He was killed at the Battle of Dupplin Moor in August 1332.
The family continued to grow in influence and power over the centuries, and many famous names in Scottish history descended from the Bethune of Balfour line. Sir David Bethune, second son of Sir John Bethune of Balfour, was a boyhood friend of James IV and was appointed Lord High Treasurer of Scotland. His daughter, Janet, was to become the wife of James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, and her son rose to be Regent of the kingdom and Duke of Chatelherault in France. One of the most famous members of the Bethune family was Cardinal Bethune, also known as Cardinal Beaton. He was born at Balfour in 1494 and became a cardinal of the Holy Roman Church in 1538. He was determined to stamp out the growing threat of Protestantism and embarked upon a campaign of persecution. However, his actions proved to be a fatal mistake, and he was killed by William Kirkcalky of Grange and James Melville of Raith in 1546. Another notable member of the Bethune family was Robert Bethune, a younger son of the Laird of Creich, who accompanied Mary, Queen of Scots to France on her marriage to the heir to the French throne. On the queen’s return to Scotland in 1561, he was appointed a Master of the Royal Household and keeper of the Royal Palace at Falkland. His eldest daughter, Mary Bethune, was one of the famous “four Maries,” the queen’s ladies-in-waiting. Clan Bethune also contracted many spectacular marriages into other noble houses, including the Earls of Rothes, Glencairn, Lindsay, and Wemyss. The Earls of Lindsay still hold lands in Fife and bear the name and arms of Bethune, placing them in precedence to their equally ancient Lindsay ancestry. |
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