[This is a verbatim transcript prepared by Robert John Usher-Somers, son of Muriel Isabel Irene Usher-Somers, of a genealogical  research carried out by Helen Stephen Cowie in 1960. Comments in square brackets [ ] are those of Robert John Usher-Somers - December 1995]

                                                  GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH


   --Carried out by Helen Stephen Cowie.





Our first known ancestor was Thebotan, Duke of Sleswick, whose son;

II  Eatem the Noisy, was the father of

III  Rognwald the Viking, (died 898)

Surnamed the Wise and Mighty, who flourished in the time of King Alfred the Great, and who was the friend of Harald Fairhaired, the conqueror of Norway. In the intervals of war and rapine, Rognwald ruled over two Norwegian provinces N. and S. Moeri and ?  and he was also Jarl of the Orkneys. He was finally burnt in his own halls by Harald's sons, who thought he was too powerful. His own sons amply avenged him.


The  most famous of these was the great Viking Rolf the Ganger, who descended on the coasts of France, and founded Nor(se)many. He was the ancestor of William the Conqueror.



Our man, however, was his elder brother:

IV  Evnor (died 942), a bold ruffian with one eye who defended the Orkneys against all comers. He was followed by his son;

V  Torphin, the Skull-Splitter, a title he no doubt richly earned. The chronicles relate with pardonable astonishment that he "died a natural death in his bed”. He was succeeded by his son;

VI  Lodovic, of whom not much is known, except that he married an Irish princess, and was the father of;

VII Sigurd the Stout, who figured in all the chronicles of the time. He was eventually killed at the Battle of Clontarf, (1014), fighting with Sitric Silkbeard against Brian Boru. He left three sons - Somerled, Brusee or Brucius and Eynor, of whom the most important to us is;

VIII  Brusee of Brucius [sic][perhaps this should be or Brucius], who held two-thirds of the Orkneys and had powerful interests in other countries. He died in 1033. His son;


IX  Rognwald Brucesson, (1012-1046).

(married Ostrida, daughter of Regenwald, Duke of Gottland), was brought up at the court of Olaf of Norway and was the life-long friend of Hardrada (brother of Olaf), whose life he had saved. He was strangely named "the Holy". These two companions fought and roistered from the Orkneys to Constantinople, spending some time in Russia, where they are supposed to have ammassed [sic] much treasure. By his marriage with a Swedish princess, Rognwald Brucesson had two sons, Ulf and Eyliff, who accompanied him to East.


He was murdered in 1046 in the Orkneys, while trying to re-gain his power there. His sons then parted from Hardrada incensed, it is supposed, because he did nothing to avenge their father's death. They soon afterwards appeared in Normandy, at the court of Robert the Magnificent, father of William the Conqueror, and of course their distant Kinsman. They were there baptised into the W. Christian Church under the names of Regenwald and Robert. From this time on they were known as the seigners de Bruis or de Bruys. They both built castles in Normandy, the ruins of which still exist. (Castles of Brix (Brusee) in the diocese of Contanes, nr Valaques.

X  Robert de Bruis, (married Emma, daughter of Alan, Duke of Brittany), accompanied the Conqueror to Hastings in 1066, but died soon afterwards. His elder son retained the lands in Normandy, but his second son;

XI Adelme de Bruis, (died 1094)

(Married Emma, daughter of Sir William Ramsay), had been in England since 1050, when he went as a boy in the train of Queen Emma, mother of the Confessor. He had large grants of land both in the south and north of England. Before the Conquest he had helped Malcolm Canmore to regain the Scottish throne from Macbeth, for this he was given lands in Annandale. His son;

XII Robert de Bruis (died 1141)

(Married Agnes, daughter of Fulke de Paganell, 1st. Lord of Cleveland), was brought with Malcolm's son Prince David, King David I, and he was consequently much infuriated when King Stephen called on him as an English baron to follow him to the Battle of the Standard, 1138. He did so under  protest first relinquishing all his Scottish lands to his second son;

XIII Robert de Bruis or Brus (le Meschir)

(born 1124, died 1171, m. Euphemia).

When aged fourteen gallantly led the Annandale men to the support of King David. This child was captured by his own father, and King Stephen, according to the chronicle "returned him to his mother". He was the first Bruce to be named "Lord of Annandale". He was succeeded first by his son;

XIV Robert de Bruis,

Who married the daughter of William the Lion, but died without heirs in 1191, and then by his second son;

XV William de Bruis, (m. Christina)

a powerful baron on both sides of the Border, who died in 1215. His son;



XVI Robert de Bruis, (the Noble, d.1247)

married Isabel of Scotland, niece of William the Lion. This marriage gave the later Bruces a claim to the throne. Their son was;

XVII Robert the Competitor, (1210-1295)

married Isabel de Clare, daughter of Gilgert de Clare, 3rd Earl of Gloucester, and when Balliol was preferred, he gave his Scottish estates rather than pay homage. His sons were Robert, father of King Robert, and

XVIII Sir John de Bruis,

whose family was given part of Annandale, called Clackmannan. He followed his nephew King Robert to the Battle of Bannockburn. His son was;

XIX Sir Thomas de Bruis or Bruys

(m. Marjorie Charteris, Died 1359), who was followed by his son;

XX Sir Roberto de Bruys, or de Bruis

(m. Isabel, daughter of Sir R. Stewart, and was slain at Shrewsbury 1403. He had two sons, the second of whom was;

XXI Sir Edward de Bruys

who married Agnes, heiress of the de Airths, Their son was;

XXII Sir Robert de Bruis

(m. a daughter of Sir A. Livingstone.) He was the 1st Bruce of Airth. Accused of treason, he was beheaded in 1449. His son was;

XXIII Sir Alexander Bruce of Airth

(m. Margaret, daughter of Sir Malcolm Forrester). In his time Kinnaird was added to the family estates. He was succeeded by his son;


XXIV Sir John de Bruis

(m. (1471) to Elizabeth, daughter of Sir John Menteith. "Slaughtered by the Menteiths" in his father's lifetime, 1483, and followed by his son;

XXV Sir Robert Brus of Airth

(m. Lady Euphemia Montgomery). who fell at Flodden 1513. His son was;

XXVI Robert Brus or Bruce

(m. Janet, daughter of Sir Walter Farrester of Carden, one of the Lords of the Articles pro judicius.

Captain of Edinburgh castle. Defended it successfully against the English, 1544. Killed in 1548 in a riot. His son was;

XXVII Sir Alexander Bruce

(d. 1600) Influential man. Married Lady Jane Livingstone, gt-gt-grand daughter of King James I, and his Queen Jane Beaufort, thus ensuring our descent not only from King Robert the Bruce, but also from his enemy King Edward I.

XXVIII Robert Bruce of Kinnaird

(m. Martha, daughter of Sir George Douglas). He came under the influence of the Protestant Reformers abroad, and became a Presbyterian divine in the teeth of his outraged family. He was, however no ranter, and was the friend and counsellor of King James VI, until he ventured to doubt James' version of the Gowrie Conspiracy. He then led a rather chequered life until Charles Ist's succession, but died peacefully at Kinnaird in 1631. His family "relapsed into Prelacy". He was succeeded by his eldest son;



XXIX Robert Bruce of Kinnaird

(m. Margaret daughter of Sir William Menteith of Kerse).

Slain at Naseby,1645, fighting for King Charles I. He was followed by his elder son;

XXX Colonel Robert Bruce

(m. Dame Marianne Rollu, widow of Sir J. Bruce.) Killed at the Battle of Worcester 1651. He was succeeded by his brother;

XXXI Alexander Bruce of Kinnaird

(Died 1711. Married Helen Bruce daughter of Sir R. Bruce of Clackmannon.) Also at Worcester, but survived. Lost almost all his fortune in the cause of the Stuarts. Married his cousin Helen Bruce of Clackmannon, and in their marriage contract a clause was inserted, that if there were no sons, the eldest daughter "unless she married a gentleman of the name of Bruce must require her husband and eldest son to assume her name and arms". This actually happened, for they had only two daughters, of whom the elder;


XXXII Helen Bruce

(Married David Hay of Woodcock), inherited Kinnaird in 1711 and was known as the lady of Kinnaird. Only one of her sons survived her, namely;

XXXIII David Bruce of Kinnaird

(1696-1758) Was "out" in the  '15, but escaped after being taken prisoner at Preston. This is familiar ground, for he was the father of James Bruce the Traveller by his first marriage to Mary Graham, and by his second to Agnes Glen, he was father of six sons, only two of whom left any descendants. One of these sons was;


XXXIV William Bruce

whose daughter was;

XXXV Mary Bruce

who married Robert Stephen, a man of Huguenot descent. This was a runaway marriage as the Bruces refused to be reconciled to Mary and her husband.

XXXVI John Stephen

(m. Elizabeth Maclean). An architect, whose daughter;

XXXVII Elizabeth Stephen

(m. James Baird). Journeyed to New Zealand, and lived in Southland as a Presbyterian minister. Their son;



John Bruce Baird (Surgeon)

Married Margaret L.A. Bowman. Their children;

Audrey Margaret Grant

Isobel Muriel [Muriel Isabel Irene] Usher-Somers

Arthur Graham Baird
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Another son of David Bruce (Thomas) left a son, William who inherited the estate of Alderston form his unmarried aunt, Elizabeth Bruce. He was reconciled to the Stephens, and promised to leave Alderston to John Stephen his cousin, Mary's son, and his family. This he failed to do. He died unmarried in 1860 at the age of 80, bequeathing Alderston to a Mrs Marr, wife of Dr Marr, who is said to have been his own illegitimate daughter.

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January 12th 1960.