Castle macbeth3/16/2023 He was succeeded by his son, John of Islay, who was to be the last Lord of the Isles. James later forgave Alexander however, and he became Earl of Ross in 1437, with Dingwall Castle being his main seat. He was also concerned about the power and influence of the Lord of the Isles however, and in 1428 defeated Mariota and Domhnall’s son, Alexander, in battle at Lochaber, then took the castles of Dingwall and Urquhart by force. When a ransom was paid to the English for James I in 1424, he returned to Scotland, and executed the Duke of Albany’s successor and son, Murdoch Stewart, destroying their power. In 1415 Albany persuaded Euphemia II to resign the earldom in favour of his son, John Stewart, the Earl of Buchan, which was again opposed by Domhnall. The battle was intended to settle the competing claims for the Earldom of Ross, and while the Lord of the Isles withdrew and Albany claimed a strategic victory, the Lord of the Isles had inflicted greater losses on his rival and both sides continued to press their claims. Mariota and Domhnall were unhappy about Albany’s influence, and in 1411 the Lord of the Isles attacked and took Dingwall Castle by force, prior to the Battle of Harlaw. Upon the death of Alexander Leslie in 1402 his daughter became Euphemia II, although she doesn’t seem to have had much influence over her earldom, being a ward of her maternal grandfather, Robert Stewart, the Duke of Albany and Regent from 1406 following the capture of the infant James I. Euphemia married Sir Walter Leslie and had two children, Alexander Leslie, who succeeded his mother to the Earldom, and Mariota, who married Domhnall of Islay, the Lord of the Isles. When the male Ross line failed with the death of Uilleam II’s grandson Uilleam III, the Earldom or Mormaerdom of Ross passed to Uilleam III’s daughter, Euphemia, who became Countess of Ross. The Earls of Ross subsequently held Dingwall Castle for the Crown. Uilleam would later go on to fight alongside Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn. In 1308 Robert the Bruce granted the burgh of Dingwall to Uilleam II, the Mormaer or Earl of Ross (also known as William of Ross), despite Uilleam having earlier sided with Edward against Bruce. During the Wars of Independence, as a royal castle Dingwall was held temporarily for Edward I of England. From 1291 until 1292 Sir William of Braytoft (Willelmus de Braitofthe) was the keeper of Dingwall Castle (as well as Inverness Castle). This earth and wood castle was replaced with a stone one, and it is marked on Matthew Paris’ map, published around 1250, as “Castrum Dinkeval”. What is known is that in the late 12th century a motte and bailey castle was built here for William the Lion at the mouth of the River Peffrey where it discharges into the Cromarty Firth. Whether or not MacBeth was born at Dingwall Castle, supposedly around the year 1005, seems up for debate, as the details of his early life are far from clear. Dingwall Castle was once an important castle, and possibly the birthplace of MacBeth, but now only a few ruins remain.
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