I thought I might take it back to the man, who by marrying the Scottish Kings’ daughter, started the House of Stewart.
His name is Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland.
There isn’t a lot about Walter, actually there isn’t any pictures of him. He was the son of James Stewart, 5th High Steward of Scotland and Giles de Burgh, daughter of Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster. He was born around 1292 in Dundonald, Scotland.
At the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, Walter fought on the Scottish side commanding with James Douglas, Lord of Douglas, the left wing of the Scots’ Army.
According to another version however, Walter was the minor leader of one of the four Scottish schiltrons (a compact body of troops forming a shield wall), but because of his youth and inexperience, its effective leader was James Douglas, Lord of Douglas. This is however disputed as some claim that there were only three Scottish schiltrons at Bannockburn.
For his service at Bannockburn, Walter was appointed Warden of the Western Marches and rewarded with a grant of lands of Largs, which had been forfeited by John Balliol, who was King of Scotland from 1292 to 1296.
In 1316, Walter gifted these lands to Paisley Abbey.
Upon the liberation of Robert the Bruce’s wife, Elizabeth de Burgh and their daughter Marjorie Bruce, from their long captivity in England, Walter was sent to receive them at the Anglo-Scottish Border and bring them back to the Scottish court. He would later in 1315 marry Marjorie Bruce, receiving the Barony of Bathgate in Linlithgowshire as part of Marjorie’s dowry.
While Robert the Bruce was absent in Ireland, Walter and James Douglas, Lord of Douglas managed government affairs and spent much time defending the Scottish Borders.
Upon the capture of Berwick-upon-Tweed from the English in 1318, Walter got command of the town which, on 24 July 1319, was laid siege to by King Edward II of England. Several of the siege engines were destroyed by the Scots’ garrison and the Steward suddenly rushed in force from the town to drive off the enemy.
In 1322, with James Douglas, Lord of Douglas and Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray, he made an attempt to surprise Edward II of England at Byland Abbey, near Malton, Yorkshire. However, Edward II escaped by being pursued towards York by Walter and 500 horsemen.
Walter and Marjorie only had one son before Marjorie passed away on 2 March 1316. Some say she died from falling from a horse while she was pregnant, bringing on a premature birth. Some say it was a year later.
Whenever Marjorie died, Robert, later Robert II of Scotland, was born on 2 March 1316.
Walter remarried to Isabel de Graham, they had three children. John, Andrew and Egidia.
On 9 April 1326 at Bathgate Castle, Walter passed away. He was buried at the Abbey Church of Paisley, alongside Marjorie and the previous five high stewards of Scotland. An engraved memorial on the floor of the abbey reads in part:
In everlasting memory of the high stewards of Scotland.
Here rest their bodies where stood the high alter of this Abbey Church of Paisley.
The History Queen 