Clan Leask
| Clan Leask | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Motto | Virtute Cresco (Lat. I grow by virtue)[1] | ||
| Profile | |||
| Region | Highlands | ||
| Chief | |||
 | |||
| Jonathan Leask of that Ilk | |||
| Chief of the Name and Armsof Leask | |||
| |||
| |||
Clan Leaskis aScottish clan.[2]
History[edit]
Origins[edit]
There are several possible origins of the surname Leask.[2]One possibility is that it is a diminutive of theAnglo-Saxonwordlisse,which meanshappy.[2]In theNorselanguage it meansa stirring fellow.[2]Professor Leask of Aberdeen believed that the ancestor of the Leaks was Liscus who was chief of theHaedui,a tribe ofGaulswho were described byJulius Caesarduring hisGallic Wars.[2]One of the greatest fortresses in France was the Castle of Boulogne, a possession ofCharlemagnewhich at one time belonged to a family called de Lesque.[2]An early reference to the name is that of Erik Leask who was reputedly chamberlain to the king ofDenmark.[2]
In 1296 William de Laskereske appears on theRagman Rollssubmitting toEdward I of England.[2]In about 1345 William Leask received a charter of confirmation to his lands of Leskgoroune or Leskgaranne fromDavid II of Scotland,son ofRobert the Bruce.[2]He might be the same William Leysk who was recorded in the parish records of the church atEllon, Aberdeenshireas:William de Laysk, the elder, Lordof that Ilk,bequeathed a pound of wax yearly to the altar of the Holyrood in the church of St Mary of Ellon.[2]
In 1390 the second known chief of Clan Leask who was ballie of the barony of Findon, inherited half of the lands of Henry de Brogan, Lord of Achlowne.[2]He also appears as a witness to a charter by theEarl of Orkneyin 1391.[2]
15th and 16th centuries[edit]
In the middle of the 15th century a younger son of Leask went toOrkneyat the request of the earl, who had formed a court atKirkwall Palace.[2]There a branch of the Clan Leask was formed which still shows the longest unbroken male lines of the clan.[2]
The third chief of Clan Leask, Wilfred, signed a bond ofManrentin favour of William Hay,Earl of Errollin 1456 and also resigned his lands in favour of his son and heir.[2]From this point onwards the connection with theClan Hayappears to have remained strong.[2]When the Cheynes of Esslemont allied themselves with the Hays their bond was signed at the Chapel of Laske in 1499.[2]
In 1574 following the deposition ofMary, Queen of Scots,William Leask, seventh chief of Clan Leask signed an oath of allegiance to the childJames VI of Scotland.[2]
17th century[edit]
The register of the Privy Seal records that in 1615 a complaint was made from Alexander Leask that Adam Gordon, brother of the Laird of Gight, put violent hands upon him at the Yet of Leask, wounding him grievously.[2]Later that year the Gordons again attacked the Leasks, setting upon a son of the chief for which George Gordon was outlawed.[2]In 1616, William Leask of that Ilk was accosted by John Gordon of Ardlogy and a party of men withpistolets andhagbuts.[2]
In 1672 Alexander Leask of that Ilk was amongst the noblemen who recorded their coats of arms in a newly established public register.[2]Towards the end of the seventeenth century disaster overtook the family after they invested in the failedDarien scheme,a trading venture with Central America intended to rival theEast India Companythat had been established inLondon.[2]Alexander Leask of that Ilk, the thirteenth chief was forced to give up his estates which were taken over by RobertCumming.[2]
The clan today[edit]
Little is known of the Clan Leask between the disaster of the late seventeenth century until 1963, when a descendant managed to buy back a portion of the family lands and established the Leask Society, with the support of other prominent Leasks. This includes Lieutenant General Sir Henry Leask, who was a governor ofEdinburgh Castleand General Officer commanding the Army in Scotland.[2]In 1968 Moira Anne Helgesen was granted the chiefship of the clan by theLord Lyon King of Arms,[2]whereupon she changed her name and became: Madam Anne Leask of Leask. She died in April 2008 and was succeeded in the chiefship of the clan by Jonathan Leask, who became the 23rd chief of Clan Leask.[3]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^abClan Leask Profilescotclans. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
- ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzWay, George and Squire, Romily.Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia.(Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, TheStanding Council of Scottish Chiefs). Published in 1994. Pages 190 - 191.
- ^Obituary: Madam Anne Leask of LeaskArchived5 January 2009 at theWayback Machine
