Sir Alexander KIRKPATRICK of Knock and Conheath. 1st Lord Kirkmichael
The estates of Kirkmichael and Conheath were bestowed on Alexander (a young man at the time) as reward for his valour in making a captive of the 9th Earl of Douglas at Burnswark in 1484, when a grateful Scottish King rewarded him with the estates.
The estate of Kirkmichael had been forfeited by Lord Crichton and his brother Gavin after being found guily of treason, outlawed,and all their estates confiscated. This grant may be seen in Lord Haddingtons collections in the JS Library of Edinburgh.
The lands of Knock, Over and Nether Glenkiln, Craigshields, Dalcrum and Auchenskew were also held by Alexander. The Ross Kirkpatricks had earlier held Knock, but that land passed to Douglas of Drumlanrig in 1558.
A Thomas Kirkpatrick of Knock, whose name appears in a grant of arms, dated 16th May 1791, is believed to have lived there about the year 1649.
It will be noted that the Kirkmichael-Kirkpatrick's tended to use names, pertaining to - Margaret, Elizabeth, Jane, Alexander, Thomas, and William- as do the Conheath branch, Alexander and Janet that occur so frequently amongst the Kirkpatrick's of Kirkmichael are derived from the house of Darnley (Sir (Roger Kirkpatrick had married the Hon. Margaret Somerville, daughter of Alexander, Lord Darnley, the ancestor of James VI of Scotland and I of England)
(Research): The Charteris family of Amisfield and Kilpatrick's of Kirkmichael were constantly feuding. In Pitcairn's Criminal Trials, voume 1, under date March 19 and 20, 1526, John Charteris of Amisfield, Robert and John his sons, Robert Charteris his brother and thirty-nine others, found caution to underlie the law on May 29, in the Tolbooth of Edinburgh, for the slaughter of Roger Kilpatrick, son and heir of Sir Alexander Kilpatrick(sic) of Kirkmichael,Knight, and for the mutilation of the latter; and on the 24«sup»th«/sup» of the same month, Sir Alexander Kilpatrick and his sons, Robert, John, and William, found caution to appear the same day to answer for all crimes to be imputed against them by John Charteris of Amisfield.
He also became security for the entry of William Kilpatrick, his brother, the two sons of the latter, and twenty-three others the same day.