Clan Charteris

Clan Charteris is a Lowland Scottish clan.

The claimed origin of the name Charteris is that it is from the city of Chartres in France.

William, a son of the Lord Chartres, is said to have come over with the Norman conquest of England. William's son or grandson came to Scotland with the retinue of David I of Scotland. An early reference to the name is found in a charter of around 1174 to Kelso Abbey. In this charter the name appears written in Latin as de Carnoto.

A charter dated 1266 gives evidence of four generations of Charterises: Robert de Carnoto, a knight who is said to be the son of Thomas, who was the son of another Thomas, who was the son of Walther. In 1280 Sir Thomas de Charteris was appointed Lord Chancellor of Scotland by Alexander III of Scotland.

In 1296 Andrew de Charteris rendered homage to Edward I of England and appears on the Ragman Rolls. However, he soon took up the fight for Scottish independence. As a result, his estates were forfeited to John Balliol, who was the English-sponsored King of Scotland. Andrew's son, William Charteris, was a supporter of Robert the Bruce and was with Bruce when Comyn was killed at Dumfries in 1306. Sir Thomas Charteris was a faithful supporter of the Scottish Crown and was appointed ambassador to England. He was appointed as Lord High Chancellor of Scotland in 1342 by David II of Scotland and was killed at the Battle of Durham in 1346.

In 1526 a feud arose with the Clan Kirkpatrick (Kilpatrick). It is recorded in Pitcairn's Criminal Trials of Scotland that John Charteris of Amisfield, along with his brother and two sons, were charged with the murder of Roger Kilpatrick, son of Alexander Kilpatrick in March 1526.