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Bisset Clan
Bisset Crest: An Oak tree trunk, sprouting,
proper.
Bisset Clan Motto: Abscissa Virescit (Love is the
token of peace).
Bisset Clan History:
When William the Lion returned to Scotland from
captivity in France and England in 1174 , he brought with him a group
of young Anglo-Normans whom he had befriended, and among them was one
Henricus Byset, who is on record as having witnessed a Charter c.1198.
John Byset, the son of Henricus, was granted lands in Morayshire.
Bisset fortunes unfortunately suffered a severe
blow in 1242 when, at a tournament held at Haddington, Walter Byset,
Lord of Aboyne, was “worsted” by the young Earl of Atholl. In
revenge, he is alleged to have set fire to the Earl's house while he
slept, an act for which he and his nephew John were banished from the
Kingdom, his lands being dispersed among other members of his
family. It is nonetheless uncertain that the crime was
actually committed by Walter since in an attempt to free himself from
suspicion, he requested that the Bishop of Aberdeen issue a statement
excommunicating all of those who had taken part in the murder.
It did not end there, however, as a pardon was
later granted to the son of the Earl of Atholl for killing some Bysets
in Ireland, presumably Walter and John. Nevertheless. John Bisset's
descendants appear to have survived, and the name is still found in
Antrim, where they became known as the MacEoin Bissets of the Glens.
In the late 13th century, Sir Simon Fraser of
Oliver in Peeblesshire acquired the Bisset lands around Beauly through
marriage, and other Bisset family members married into the Grants. The
Bisset surname is therefore often given as a Sept of these Clans. The
principal surviving line of Bisset is held by the Bissets of Lessendrum
in Aberdeenshire.
Around 1301, Baldred Bisset, Parson of Kinghorn
and an “Official” of St Andrews, wrote a letter to the Pope in Rome
denouncing the behaviour of Edward I of England towards
Scotland.
An Andrew Bisset fought with the 76th Regiment of
Foot/Macdonald Highlanders in the American Revolutionary War. A family
of Bissets are today located in Nova Scotia.
Places of Interest: In 1230, John Bisset founded a priory at Beauly in
Inverness-shire. Its ruins could still be seen in the 18th century.
Beauly Castle, the seat of the Frasers of Lovat, was built on the site
of the Bisset stronghold.
Click here to buy a unique personalised Clan Bisset certificate.
Click
here for Bisset tartan.
Click
here for Bisset Kilts and Highland Dress.
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