Baron of MacDuff explained
Baron of Macduff is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland.
The current baron is The Much Honoured Eric Cotton Dexter, 9th Baron of MacDuff.
The title originates in Macduf contained mostly within the boundaries of the Town of Macduff, in the Banff and Buchan area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland.[1] Clan MacDuff traces origins to the historic, Lowland, Scottish Duff Clan.[2] William Shakespeare's MacBeth has always played a role in the legend of Clan MacDuff, as few can determine the line between The Duff Family history and historical fiction.[3] This ambiguity worked to the benefit of future MacDuff Barons, who were able to prove they were descended from the first Duff to receive a charter in Northeast Scotland. In 1404 David Duff received the charter, in Aberdeenshire, from Robert III of Scotland.[4] In 1759, William Duff was granted the historic Celtic Title of “Fife”, further tying the Duffs of Northeast Scotland, with their ancient Lowland ancestors - the original Earls of Fife from the 11th century.[5] William Duff had five sons - the eldest, James, would become the 2nd Earl Fife and the 1st Baron of MacDuff.[6] James invested heavily in the village of Doune, or “Down”, across the River Deveron from Banff. He built a harbor there in 1760, which quickly became more successful than the harbor at neighboring Banff, which had been established much earlier.[7] In 1783 a charter was granted by King George III, changing the name from Doune to Macduff in his favor and, although a lesser title than Earl, bestowing on him the dignity of the 1st Baron of Macduff.[8]
Barons of MacDuff
James Duff, 2nd Earl Fife, 1st Baron of MacDuff
Born: 1729
Died: 1809
Preceded by: N/A
Succeeded by: Alexander Duff
Seat: Duff House
Alexander Duff, 3rd Earl Fife, 2nd Baron of MacDuff[9]
Born: 1731
Died: 1811
Preceded by: James Duff
Succeeded by: James Duff
Seat: Duff House
James Duff, 4th Earl Fife, 3rd Baron of MacDuff
Born: 1776
Died: 1857
Preceded by: Alexander Duff
Succeeded by: James Duff
Seat: Duff House
James Duff, 5th Earl Fife, 4th Baron of MacDuff
Born: 1814
Died: 1857
Preceded by: James Duff
Succeeded by: Alexander Duff
Seat: Duff House
Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife, 5th Baron of MacDuff[10]
Born: 1849
Died: 1912
Preceded by: James Duff
Succeeded by: Lady Alexandra Duff
Seat: Mar Lodge
Princess Alexandra, 2nd Duchess of Fife, 6th Baroness of MacDuff[11]
Born: 1891
Died: 1959
Preceded by: Alexander Duff
Succeeded by: Alexander Ramsay of Mar
Seat: Mar Lodge
Alexander Ramsay of Mar, 7th Baron of MacDuff[12]
Born: 1919
Died: 2000
Preceded by: Lady Alexandra Duff
Succeeded by: James Mark Domesek
Seat: Mar Lodge
James Mark Domesek, 8th Baron of MacDuff[13] [14]
Born: unknown
Died: unknown
Preceded by: Alexander Ramsay of Mar
Succeeded by: Eric Cotton Dexter
Eric Cotton Dexter, 9th Baron of MacDuff[15]
Born: 1971
Died: N/A
Preceded by: James Mark Domesek
Succeeded by: N/A
J.C. Dexter, Younger of MacDuff
Born: 2000
Died N/A
Heir Apparent to the Barony of MacDuff
References
- Book: Charter to James, Earl of Fife For Uniting and Erecting the Lands of Down and others therein mentioned into a Barony As also erecting the Village of Down now to be called the Village of MacDuff into a Burgh of Barony. National Records of Scotland. 1783.
- Book: Way, George, Squire, Romily. Collins Scottish Clan and Family Encyclopedia. Harper Collins. 1998. 419–420.
- Book: Tayler, Alistair and, Henrietta Tayler. The Book of Duffs. W. Brown. 1914. 212.
- Book: Anderson, William. The Scottish Nation: or the Surnames, Families, Literature and Honours, and Biographical History of the People of Scotland.. A. Fullerton & Company. 1864. Google Books. 212.
- Book: Cokayne, George Edward. Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct, Or Dormant; Volume 2. William Pollard & Co.. 1889. 462.
- Book: Fife, James Duff, 2nd Earl of 1729-1809, Henrietta Tayler, and Alistair Norwich Tayler. Lord Fife and his factor: being the correspondence of James, Second Lord Fife, 1729-1809. Heinemann. 1925. 149–159, 226.
- Book: Smiles, Samuel. Life of a Scotch Naturalist, 4th Edition. J. Murray. 1877. 129.
- Book: Fife, James Duff, 2nd Earl of 1729-1809, Henrietta Tayler, and Alistair Norwich Tayler. Lord Fife and his factor: being the correspondence of James, Second Lord Fife, 1729-1809. Heinemann. 1925. 149–159, 226.
- Book: Mosley, Charles. Burke's Peerage Baronetage & Knightage: Clan Chiefs, Scottish Feudal Barons, 107th Edition, Volumes I-III. Burke's Peerage and Gentry LLC. 2003. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.. I.,1021, 1759.
- Book: Pine, L.G.. The New Extinct Peerage 1884-1971: Containing Extinct, Abeyant, Dormant and Suspended Peerages With Genealogies and Arms. Heraldry Today. 1972. London, UK. 124.
- Book: Eilers, Marlene A.. Queen Victoria's Descendants. Genealogical Publishing Co.. 1987. Baltimore, Maryland. 176.
- Book: The General Register of Sasines, Book 1001, Folio 70. Public Records Office, Register House. 1982. Edinburgh, UK. 76.
- Book: The General Register of Sasines, Fiche 52, Frame 33. Counties of Caithness, Moray and Aberdeen. 2002. Banff UK. 40.
- Book: The General Register of Sasines, Fiche 98, Frame 41. County of Banff. 2004. Banff, UK. 11–13.
- Book: Scottish Barony Register, Vol.5, Folio 44-46. 2021. Edinburgh, UK. 44–46.
