Katherine Beaumont, Countess of Atholl, and the Second Scottish War of Independence (c. 1327–c. 1336)

Katherine Beaumont, countess of Atholl, spent several months besieged within Lochindorb Castle before being rescued by King Edward III of England in July 1336. The king’s campaign through the Highlands, Moray and Aberdeenshire has been seen by modern historians as one of his more chivalric enterprises, but very little is known about Katherine herself beyond her presence at Lochindorb. This article will begin the process of uncovering more of her own history and participation in the Second Scottish War of Independence. It will evaluate the importance of her marriage to David IV Strathbogie and her motherhood of David V within Scottish succession politics, look at her experience in Scotland as it was fought over between Bruce and Balliol, and provide a revised consideration of the siege of Lochindorb. It will also explore how and why such women’s lives and actions are difficult to discern in medieval chronicles, addressing this through the use of alternative documentary and material evidence.