Donalbain.    What is amiss?

Macbeth.       You are, and do not know ’t:
The spring, the head, the fountain of your blood
Is stopp’d; the very source of it is stopp’d.

Macduff.    Your royal father’s murder’d.

Malcolm.    O! by whom?

            *                *                *                *                *                *

Malcolm.    What will you do? Let’s not consort with them:
To show an unfelt sorrow is an office
Which the false man does easy. I’ll to England.

Donalbain.    To Ireland, I; our separated fortune
Shall keep us both the safer: where we are,
There’s daggers in men’s smiles: the near in blood,
The nearer bloody.

Macbeth instructing the murderers of Duncan as the weird sisters listen in. In reality, Macbeth was a competent monarch. He defeated and killed Duncan in battle and assumed the Throne of Scotland according to ancient laws of Aedh which date from the reign of  King Donald I (858 - 862), brother and successor of Kenneth MacAlpin.

Donald Bane and Macbeth

    Macbeth was born circa 1005 and died (killed in battle) on August 15,1057. Macbeth was actually a competent monarch who suffered badly at the hands of William Shakespeare. Although he had a sound claim to the throne of Scotland he had to deal with many who would take his place, including Crinan and Duncan's sons Malcolm and Donald Bane.

    Donald Bane, also spelled Donaldbane, or Donalbane, Bane also spelled Ban or Bain was born circa 1033 and died sometime shortly after 1097.  He was king of Scotland from November 1093 to May 1094 and from November 1094 to October 1097.

    Upon the death of his brother Malcolm III Cænmore in 1093 there was a fierce contest for the crown. Donald Bane besieged Edinburgh Castle, took it, and, with the support of the Celtic Scots and the custom of tanistry (the Celtic system of electing kings or chiefs; whereby the successor of a king was elected during his lifetime from the eldest and worthiest of his kin, often a brother or cousin in preference to a descendant), he was king nominally for at least six months. He was expelled by Duncan II, son of Malcolm, assisted by English and Normans and some Saxons. Duncan’s reign was equally short, for Donald Bane had his nephew slain and again reigned for three years.

    These years saw the last attempt of the Celts to maintain a king of their race and a kingdom governed according to their customs. Edgar the Aetheling, who had newly befriended William Rufus, the Norman King of England, led an army into Scotland, dispossessed Donald Bane, and advanced his nephew Edgar, son of Malcolm III, as sole king of the Scots.

    It is fitting that Donald Bane was interred, as was Macbeth, at the Isle of Iona, with the ancient Celtic Kings of Dalriada, Alba and Scotland around him.  He was the last Scottish King to be buried there.

The Descendants of Donald Bane

Generation One
Donald Bane, King Donald III of Scotland
Born circa 1033
Died after 1097, probably circa 1099
Donald Bane was a son of King Duncan I "the Gracious" of Scotland and Ælflaed (Sybil) of Northumbria. He was a descendant of the ancient Kings of Scotland.  Click on Duncan the Gracious for this descent.
Doanld Bane had a daughter:

• Bethoc

Generation Two
Bethoc
Bethoc married circa 1085 to Huctred of Tynedale and they had a daughter:

• Hextilda of Tynedale

Generation Three
Hextilda of Tynedale
Hextilda married first circa 1145 to Richard Comyn of Northallerton and Badenoch, and they had a son:

• William Comyn

Generation Four
William Comyn, Earl of Buchan
Died in 1233
William married first to Sarah, daughter and heir of Robert Fitz Hugh, and they had a son:

• Richard Comyn, who had a son:
• Sir John Comyn, "The Red Comyn #1", who had a son:
• Sir John Comyn, "The Black Comyn", one of the 13 claimants to the Throne of Scotland in 1291 based on this descent from Donald Bane.  Sir John married Alianora de Baliol, a great grand daughter of David, Earl of Huntingdon, a grandson of David "The Saint", King of Scotland. Thier son:
• Sir John Comyn, "The Red Comyn #2", had a claim to the throne of Scotland through both his mother and father. He was murdered by Robert the Bruce on February 10, 1306 at the Church of the Grey Friars, Dumfries.

• Alexander Comyn who married Elizabeth de Quincy, second daughter and co-heir of Roger de Quincy and Helen of Galloway and grand daughter of Magna Charta Surety Saher de Quincy. For this line, see Saher de Quincy.
• Elizabeth

Generation Five
Elizabeth
Died in 1267
Elizabeth married William, Earl of Mar and they had a son:

• Donald

Generation Six
Donald, 6th Earl of Mar
Died circa 1292
Married to Helen, a daughter of Llwelyn Fawr "the Great" ap Iorwerth, Prince of Wales.  For Helen's descent from the ancient Welsh Kings, click on Wales.
Donald and Helen had the following children:

• Margaret (Mary) of Mar,
• Isabel of Mar
• Garnait (Gratney) 7th Earl of Mar
• Duncan of Mar
• Alexander of Mar

Generation Seven
Isabel of Mar
Isabel married to Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland and they had a daughter:

• Princess Marjorie Bruce
  

The sources for the genealogical data on this page is:

Other interesting links include:

• Brian Tompsett, Royal Genealogical Data, http://www3.dcs.hull.ac.uk/public/genealogy/royal/
• Scotland's Kings and Queens, http://www.nwlink.com/~scotlass/
• Encyclopædia Brittanica which has unfortunately reverted to a pay service.

Click to contact Robert Sewell