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Clan Dundas (Tartans, Crest) and The Story Behind

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Dundas

Clan Crest: A lion’s head affrontée looking through a bush of oak Proper

Clan Motto: Essayez (Try)

Origin of Name: Gaelic, ‘Dun deas’, meaning ‘south fort’

Lands: West Lothian

Historic Seat: Dundas Castle, near South Queensferry

Clan Chief: David Dundas of Dundas

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Clan Dundas History

'Dun deas' means'south fort' in Gaelic. The Dundas family owned property on the southern shores of the Firth of Forth, close to Edinburgh. Helias, son of Hutred, a younger son of Gospatrick, Prince of Northumberland, is thought to be the ancestor of the family. This lineage also includes the Dunbar and Moncreiff families.

Records from William the Lion's reign mention Serle de Dundas, and both Serle and Robertus de Dundas signed Edward I's Ragman Roll. Sir Hugh Dundas, on the other hand, fought alongside William Wallace, and Sir George Dundas was one of the eight Lairds who fought alongside Robert the Bruce (top), but was killed at the Battle of Duplyn.

During the reign of James VI, Sir James Dundas was the governor of Berwick. Sir James Dundas, knighted in 1641, was a devoted subject who opposed the king's interference with the Church. As a result, he agreed to sign the National Covenant. Following the restoration, he was appointed to the Supreme Court, but his tenure was brief due to his continued support for the Covenant. Lord Arniston received his award at this time.

William Dundas of Kincavel was a descendant of the Blair Dundas. He was imprisoned for his role in the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715.

The eighteenth Laird, George Dundas, fought in the Covenant Wars and served on the committee that tried the Marquess of Montrose. George Dundas, the twenty-third Laird, was a sea captain who died in a shipwreck off the coast of Madagascar in 1792.

Henry Dundas, Viscount Melville, also known as "Uncrowned King of Scotland" and "King Harry the 9th," was a famous member of the Dundas family. After a long political career that included the repeal of the Highland Dress Prohibition Act and a stint as Lord Advocate, he was appointed Secretary of State in 1791. In 1802, he was elevated to the peerage. His imprint is easily discernible in Edinburgh's St Andrews Square, where the impressive building now owned by The Royal Bank of Scotland was built as his home and the imposing statue of the viscount stands on a large column in the square.

Other notable Dundas members were Sir David Dundas (above) who was commander-in-chief of the British army in 1809, Sir Thomas Dundas, Lord Dundas of Skea, the second Marquess who was Secretary of State for India from 1935 to 1937 and Admiral Sir Charles Dundas of Dundas who was an aide-de-camp to George V.

The clan's current chief resides in South Africa.

Clan Dundas Places & People

1st Viscount Melville Henry Dundas (1742-1811)

Born in Dalkeith in 1742, he is a Scottish lawyer and politician. He attended the Royal High School of Edinburgh as well as the University of Edinburgh.

After joining the Faculty of Advocates in 1763, he quickly rose to prominence in the Scottish legal system. He was appointed Solicitor General for Scotland in 1766, but after being appointed Lord Advocate in 1775, he gradually gave up his legal practice to devote his full attention to public affairs. He was elected to the British Parliament for Midlothian in 1774. After serving in subordinate positions under William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, and William Pitt the Younger, he was appointed secretary of state for the Home Department in 1791.

He served as War Secretary under Pitt, his close friend, from 1794 to 1801. In 1802, he was created Viscount Melville and Baron Dunira in the United Kingdom Peerage.

In 1804 he was re-elected as First Lord of the Admiralty under Pitt. However, suspicions had arisen regarding the financial management of the Admiralty, of which Dundas was treasurer between 1782 and 1800; in 1802 a commission of inquiry was appointed, which reported in 1805. The result was Dundas' impeachment in 1806, on the initiative of Samuel Whitbread, for misappropriation of public funds; though he was acquitted, he never held office again. Pitt's death in 1806 could have been another reason for his retreat. In 1809, he was offered an earldom but declined.

In St Andrew's Square, Edinburgh, a monument to him, modeled after Trajan's Column in Rome, stands. It was designed by William Burn in 1821 and funded "by the voluntary contributions of the officers, petty officers, seamen, and marines of these united kingdoms." In 1828, a statue of Dundas was added to the top.

Clan Dundas Tartans

The Sobieski Stuart brothers published the Dundas tartan in the Vestiarium Scoticum in 1842.

Dundas the Elder

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Dundas Contemporary

Clan Dundas Crest & Coat of Arms

Clan Dundas Coat of Arms

Worn by everyone with the same name and ancestry

Description of the Crest:

A lion's head affrontée peering through an oak bush, Proper

Coats of Arms of Clan Dundas

A word about Coats of Arms:

A coat of arms is granted to an individual under Scottish heraldic law (with the exception of civic or corporate arms). A 'family coat of arms' does not exist. With the exceptions noted above, the arms depicted below are personal arms. Only the person who has been granted these weapons has the right to use them.