THE BURNETTS
The Burnett family
is one of the most illustrious of Scottish families, with a history going back to before
the Norman Conquest, an ancient coat of arms and a record of many distinguished members in
the church, in letters, in the law and in the military. The Burnetts were originally an Anglo-Saxon family, first recorded in
Arseley, Bedfordshire before 1066.
(There is some speculation that the Burnetts were
actually a Norman family who came to Britain prior to William the
Conqueror, as there are records of persons bearing the name of Burnet in
France during that time. If this proves accurate, it will change the
etymology of the name, as well as a few other historical items regarding
the family). The family first went to Scotland in the 12th
century in the train of David I. They settled in the southern part of
the country, having obtained a grant of lands at Faringdoun in the
county and parish of Roxburgh. The family figured during the 13th
century as benefactors of Melrose and other religious houses. After the
mid 13th century, there are few records of the Burnetts (Burnards)
of Faringdoun, but most scholars agree that the various branches of the
family that developed in the 13th and the 14th
centuries were offshoots of this stem.
Map courtesy of Hammond's New Contemporary World Atlas |