1st Generation of Record for Direct Descendants
John de Ness, Constable of Dunoon, Scotland.
2nd Generation
Lord Richard de le Glen in 20 Edward I (or AD 1292) inherited the estate (which was “the glen”) and changed the family name to Glen.
3rd Generation
John de le Glenn inherited the lands called Gaytflat in the tenure of the Glen. His descendants held estates in Kilmun as late as 1373.
4th Generation
Sir Robert Glen must have been almost of age in 1292. In the revolt of Wallace he commanded troops of Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow, who discerned that his Baliff muster his troops under John de Glen against the Prince of Wales. Robert Glenn married Margaret, the 10th daughter of King Robert Bruce I of Scotland. Our traditions state Robert accompanied the heart of his deceased father-in-law King Bruce to the Holy land and the Linlithgow line used two crests, one a martlet, the other an arm, the hand holding a heart in commemoration of that event. King Bruce`s body is buried at Dunfermline, his heart at Melrose. Moreover the Glenns of Bar possessed the Sword of Bruce which a descendant carried to Ireland in 1606, where it was seen a few years since. The inscription on the blade leaves no doubt as to its original ownership.
In 1296, Sarah of the Glen swore fealty to King Edward I of England. Records from September 3rd of that year show Sarah, as the widow of Duncan Glen (d. 1292), petitioning Edward for the restoration of Glen House and her lands, then held by Patrick, the fourth Earl of Dunbar. Duncan and Sarah Glen died without issue.
In 1304, Sir David of Glen was captured while valiantly defending Stirling Castle. That same year, he reached terms with the king and was subsequently held captive in an English prison at Newcastle-on-Tyne, where he remained until 1313. During the siege of Stirling Castle, Sir David fought under Sir William Oliphant against the forces of Edward I. After a grueling three-month standoff, the castle fell, and the defenders, including Sir David, were taken prisoner and transferred to Newcastle. Historical records dated January 13, 1305, and November 12, 1305, note payments made for their maintenance during imprisonment.
Upon his release, Sir David de Glen became a devoted supporter of King Robert the Bruce. Sir David had three sons: Colban, John, and Roger.
CHILDREN:
- Colban
- John
- Roger
In 1324, King Robert the Bruce granted Colban of Glen the lands of Cults in Peeblesshire. Colban, who bore a Celtic name like Duncan of Glen, was married to Annabel Douglas and likely received these lands as tocher (dowry). The lands of Glen, situated on the left bank of the Quair stream in Peeblesshire, gave their name to their early proprietors before the Wars of Scottish Independence. The estate was later split up, and comprised the two estates of Easter Glen and Wester Glen by the 18th century. It was reunited under the ownership of Edinburgh banker Alexander Allan in 1796, who purchased Easter Glen in that year for £10,500. His son William Allan of Glen, Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1829 to 1831, commissioned W. H. Playfair to extend the existing farmhouse. The first parklands were laid out at this time, with drainage and planting carried out around the house, and a garden temple, designed by Playfair, was built.
In 1324, King Robert the Bruce also granted Colban de Glen, Sir David’s eldest son, charters for the lands of Eastshield in Lanarkshire. Queen Elizabeth, Robert the Bruce’s second wife, also bestowed a bequest of one hundred shillings upon him, paid before June 26th, 1328.
In the year 1319, a John of Glen was described as King Robert the Bruce’s “seargand” (a term indicating service) when the King granted him rights to a pond at Balmuto. This John was presumably the son or grandson of Richard, lord of Glen.
5th Generation
Colban de Glen had a son named Robert, in honor of the King, who became a royal favorite. King Robert the Bruce had two wives. His first wife, Isabella, bore him Marjory, who married Walter the Steward. His second wife, Elizabeth, bore him David (his successor) and two daughters, Elizabeth (who died unmarried) and Margaret.
Robert de Glen
Margaret married Robert de Glen with the approval of her brother, King David II, who granted them lands in Nether Pitedie, Fife. Subsequently, Robert de Glen received lands in Glasgow Forest, Aberdeenshire, while Princess Margaret received lands in Morphie, Kincardineshire. Margaret and her husband received a grant of Nether Pitedye, with Margaret being referred to as “the king’s sister” by King David II. Some commentators suggest she was an illegitimate daughter of the King, while others propose she was the daughter of the King’s second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh.
Princess Margaret Bruce remarried in 1344 to William, fifth Earl of Sutherland, jointly receiving a charter for the Earldom in 1345. Margaret died in 1358, leaving three sons: Alexander (who died young), John (d. 1361), and William (who succeeded as Earl).
The death of Robert de Glen, Princess Margaret’s first husband, is unrecorded. Royal charters mention a Sir Robert de Glen, Rector of Liberton (1357, 1367), suggesting his entry into the clergy may have dissolved the marriage. King David II revoked a land grant in Aberdeenshire “lately in the hands of Robert de Glen.”
King Robert the Bruce granted John de Glen, Sir David’s second son, lands in Balmutache (Balmuto), Fife. These remained in the family until the early fifteenth century, when Mariota, Sir John Glen’s co-heiress, married Sir John Boswell of Balgregie. Their descendant, Thomas Boswell, acquired Auchinleck estate and died at the Battle of Flodden (1513).
King Robert the Bruce granted Roger de Glen, Sir David’s youngest son, an annuity, continued by David II. A Lennox Glen descendant settled near Stirling, but their early history is untraced.
CHILDREN:
- William de Glen, b. 1325, d. 1373
Robert of Glen was succeeded by William de Glen, who passed away before 14 June, 1373. His son Paul was of age.
CHILDREN:
- Paul de Glen, b. 1480, d. 1554
6th Generation
Paul de Glen received payment from the King, 1664 (30 Sept.38 David II). William’s son and heir, he conveyed lands in Kilmun to Sir Archibald Campbell of Lochow. He married Marion Cunningham (b. 1488 in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland. They had one son.
CHILDREN:
- James Glen of Bar, b. 1502, d. 1545
Robert was succeeded by James Glen of Bar, the first of that name in this line.
7th Generation
Paul’s son and heir, John Glen of Bar, entered into the service of Robert Stewart of Lorne. He had safe conduct 16 July, 7 Henry VI (1429); also this John had safe conduct several times during 9 to 10 Hen. VI, Lorne being then a hostage in England. This John may have had multiple sons, including William and Alan.
Thomas Glen, perhaps a brother to John, was a prisoner of war in England, 6 April, 10 Hen VI (ca. 1431).
8th Generation
William Glen, son of John, appears to have held Gaytflat as well as Bar. Under the designation Wilemo Glen, armiger, he is named as a witness at a donation of fishing rights at Crochat-Shot by Robert Lord Lyll to the Monastery at Paisley on 25 Sept. 1452.
CHILDREN:
- Robert Glen, who was deceased by the year 1506
Rental records from the lands of Paisley Abbey contain several references to Alan Glen, who is identified as the son of John, lord of Glen.
9th Generation
Heir of William of Bar, James Glen of Bar was at Flodden Field 9 Sept. of 1513. In 1517 he was Capt. of Footmen. He executed a bond on 4 January, 1565 for delivery of the castle of St. Andrews to the King and Queen upon six hours notice, under penalty of 5000 marks.
He received the lands of Bar, Bridge-end, and Lyntchels in the lordship of Paisley from Robert, Abbot of Paisley. James Glen of Bar granted an obligation to Hugh Campbell of Kilbirnie on January 30th, 1558-9, agreeing to protect him in the infeftment of the Woodend of Greenock concerning the liferent of Dame Marion Montgomery, widow of William, Lord Semple. Joining the forces of Queen Mary at the Battle of Langside, he was forfeited by the Regent in 1568 but was restored in 1573.James Glen served as the captain of 102 foot soldiers at the Battle of Flodden. The Battle of Flodden, Flodden Field, or occasionally Branxton or Brainston Moor was fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland and resulted in an English victory. Around the year 1525, “James Glen of ye Bar” is mentioned in the Paisley Abbey rental records. He served on an assize in 1543 and died a year later.
CHILDREN:
- James
- William
- Alexander
- Archibald
- David
- Mary
10th Generation
James Glen of Bar, the eldest, Groom of the Chamber, to Darnley, was killed at Kirk a Field. He was forfeited in 1568 but was restored by Treaty of Perth, 1573. This James appears in various legal documents, including witnessing a charter in 1560 and a letter of reversion in 1566. The latter instrument reveals a long-standing dispute between James and John Semple of Fullwood in 1562. In the year 1564, upon a petition by James Glen of Bar, Robert Sempill, the third Lord Sempill, was stripped of his Commission of the Judiciary by the Privy Council for abusing Glen. James Glen of Bar was married to Catherine Hamilton. From a document dated 1568, we learn that James had sons named William (his heir) and James.
CHILDREN:
- William
- Alexander
11th Generation
William Glen of Bar succeeded his father. He died in the year 1608, possibly without any surviving issue.
William was succeeded by his younger brother, Alexander Glen of Bar, on January 23rd, 1610. In February 1629, his nephew, Archibald Glen, became bound to serve himself heir to his lands.
CHILDREN:
- Archibald
12th Generation
In turn, Alexander was succeeded by his son Archibald Glen around the year 1629. Thereafter, Bar Castle passed into the hands of the Hamiltons. Archibald graduated from the University of Glasgow and subsequently served as a Regent of that College. In 1596, he was ordained minister of Rutherglen, from which charge he was translated to Carmunnock in 1603. He died in February 1614 at approximately forty-four years of age. His premature death was attributed to sorcery by Margaret Wallace, wife of a Glasgow merchant, who was later burned as a witch on the Castle-hill of Edinburgh.
By his wife, Janet Muir, Mr. Archibald Glen had two sons.
CHILDREN:
- David
- Thomas
His nephew, Robert Glen, succeeded him in his parochial charge. Robert Glen died in August 1621 and bequeathed his library to his cousins, David and Thomas Glen, the sons of his uncle and predecessor.
13th Generation
Sir (John) David Glen of Glenlora
Sir (John) David Glen of Glenlora (1570-1629) which adjoined Bar 1598-9. He was born in Renfrewshire, Scotland to James Glen of Bar II (1540-1590) and his wife Isabella Renfrew (1550-1604). He married Lady Elizabeth Calder (1569 to 1606) in Gloucestershire, England on April 1, 1590. and they had ten children together. He then married Jean Lauchtoun on August 18, 1606, in Ayr, Ayshire, Scotland. His sons moved from Dunlop to Ireland in 1606. He died on April 6,1629, in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland at the age of 59.
CHILDREN:
- Sir John Glenn of Glenora (1590-1669)
- John Glen (1591-1669)
- Henry Glen (1595-1665)
- James Glen of Bar (1597-1616)
- George Glen (1597-1702)
- John Glenn (1606-1669)
- Margaret Glen (1614-
- Alexander Glen (1617-
- Elizabeth Glen (1621-
- William Penn (1623)
Thomas Glen, the younger son of the Reverend Archibald Glen, became a prosperous trader in the Saltmarket of Glasgow; he died in 1635.
14th Generation:
Sir John Glen of Glenora
Sir John Glen of Glenora was born in Dunlop, Ayrshire, Scotland. He moved from Down to Lifford. He married Jane Kilgore (1595-1620) and they had one son together. He then married Elizabeth Carson and they had six children together. He died in Cloneigh, Donegal, Ireland having lived a long life at 79 years.
CHILDREN:
- John David Glenn of Londonderry (1610-1686)
- Margrat Glen (1614-
- James Glen (1619-
- Elizabeth (Bessie) Glen (1622-1667)
- William Glen (1623-1686)
- James Glen (1625_
- William Glen of Bar (-1686)
15th Generation
John David Glen of Londonderry
John David Glen of Londonderry was born on April 16, 1610 in Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Towards the late seventeenth century, John David Glen of Londonderry leased Foot-o’-Green farm in St. Ninians Parish. He married Mariah Mortimer (1591-1669) and had eight children.
CHILDREN:
- Ninian Glen (1630-
- Thomas Glenn (1650-1686)
- James Glen (1656-1700)
- John Glen (1666-1700)
- David Glenn
- George Glen
- Sarah Sommerfield Glenn
- Martha Glenn
16th Generation
Ninian Glen
When Ninian Glen was born in 1630 in Clonleigh, Donegal, Ireland, his father, John, was 20 and his mother, Mariah, was 39.
He married Helen Hutcheon, who was born in 1631, and they had three children together between 1655 and 1680. He then married Elizabeth Wylie on January 16, 1701, in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. He died on August 24, 1701, in Clonleigh, Donegal, Ireland, at the age of 71.
CHILDREN:
- John Glenn, 1655–1747
- Mathew Glen, 1680–1747
- James Glenn, 1680–1747
By this time, our part of the family had already moved off to the Americas to seek their fortunes.