Clan Gordon

The Cocks of the North, Earls and Dukes of Aberdeenshire.

Origin: Grampian & the North-East, Scotland
Motto: Bydand
Famous bearer: George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly
Register: Scottish clan

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Territory of Gordon

The seat of Clan Gordon

Seat vacant

Chief

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Current mission

No shared goal set yet. Once Clan Gordon has leadership, it sets the public focus: a restoration, a gathering, a real-world project that helps its own.

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Motto

Bydand

“Remaining (steadfast)”

What does the Gordon name mean?

The history of Clan Gordon

The Gordons originated in Berwickshire in the 12th century but rose to greatness in the north-east, taking the lands of Strathbogie in the 14th century, later known as Huntly. They became Earls of Huntly in 1445 and Marquesses, then Dukes, of Gordon thereafter.

Known as the 'Cocks of the North', the Gordons were among the most powerful magnates in Scotland, sometimes loyal to the crown, sometimes in open rebellion. They led the Catholic faction through the Reformation period.

The Gordon Highlanders, raised in 1794, became one of the most famous regiments of the British army, their recruiting helped along, by tradition, by the kisses of Jane, Duchess of Gordon.

Champions of the Gordon name

The bearers whose lives are inseparable from this surname. Each has their own page, biography, achievements, geography, connection to the family.

Charles Gordon
The Royal Engineer who led the Ever Victorious Army to put down the Taiping rising, broke the slave routes of the Sudan, and held Khartoum to the very last in the defence that made his name a byword for steadfastness.

Castles the Gordon held

Strongholds this name held for a decade or more, look one up, or rebuild it to explore.

Dunrobin Castle
Passed to the Gordons in 1512 through the marriage of Elizabeth, Countess of Sutherland.
Gordon Castle
Built from 1479 by George Gordon, 2nd Earl of Huntly; principal residence of the Dukes of Gordon.
Fyvie Castle
Held Fyvie after the Prestons and Setons, among the prominent families who shaped the castle.
Abergeldie Castle
In Gordon hands for 600 years; built c. 1550 by Sir Alexander Gordon of Midmar on grounds the family acquired in 1482.
Huntly Castle
Granted by Robert the Bruce to Sir Adam Gordon of Huntly; ancestral home of the chiefs of Clan Gordon, Earls of Huntly.
Aboyne Castle
Held by the Gordons since 1449, when Joan Keith married Alexander Gordon, 1st Earl of Huntly; the present owner is the Marquess of Huntly.
Kenmure Castle
Seat of the Gordons of Lochinvar, later Viscounts of Kenmure, from 1297 until the estate was sold in 1923.
Cluny Castle
Held by the Gordons of Cluny through three branches of the family over the centuries; still owned by Cosmo Linzee Gordon of Cluny.
Inverlochy Castle
Granted in 1505 to Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly, charged with repairing it as a Royal garrison.
Gight
Held by the Gordons of Gight until Catherine Gordon Byron sold the castle in 1787 to the 3rd Earl of Aberdeen.
Auchindoun Castle
Held by Clan Gordon from 1535; the Gordons added the 16th-century extension before the Ogilvys reclaimed the castle in 1594.
Cardoness Castle
The Gordons of Ardwall acquired the mortgaged estate in 1622.
Dornoch Castle
Gifted in 1557 to John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland, and his heirs as hereditary constables of the Palace of Dornoch.
Knock Castle
Granted to the Gordons of Abergeldie by the 4th Earl of Huntly after the battle of Corrichie in 1562.
Colliston Castle
Colliston passed to the Gordon family in the late 17th century.
Glenbuchat Castle
Built in 1590 for John Gordon of Cairnbarrow; the family sold Glenbuchat in 1738.
Park House
Bought by Sir Adam Gordon of Clan Gordon in 1605; later forfeited.
Finavon Castle
Later held by the Gordon Earls of Aboyne.

Landmarks the Gordon held

Palaces, houses and great buildings tied to this name, look one up, or rebuild it to explore.

Balmoral Castle
Tenanted by Alexander Gordon, second son of the 1st Earl of Huntly; the Gordons built a tower house on the estate.

Castles that share the Gordon name

The same name on the map, look one up, see what it looked like in its prime, and recreate it to explore.

Gordon CastlePartial ruin · prime 1823

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Pick any year from 500 to 1945 and any place on earth, the Gordon country, or a shore no Gordon ever reached. The chronicler sets the scene; the deeds are yours.

Notable bearers of the Gordon name

George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly
Jane, Duchess of Gordon
Lord George Gordon (1751–1793), president of the Protestant Association

Stories of Clan Gordon

Lord George Gordon and the Riots
1780
On the second of June 1780, Lord George Gordon, third son of the third Duke of Gordon, twenty-eight years old, member of Parliament for Ludgershall and president of the Protestant Association, led a procession of about fifty thousand petitioners through Westminster to present a petition to the House of Commons calling for the repeal of the Catholic Relief Act of 1778. The procession became, within a few hours of the petition being received, the worst civil disorder in London's recorded history. Over the next eight days, the worst nights being the sixth and seventh of June, organised mobs burned the prisons of Newgate, the Fleet, the King's Bench, the Clink and the New Bridewell; the houses of Lord Mansfield (Lord Chief Justice), of the Catholic Bishop of London and of two Catholic chapels; the Bank of England was held by troops on the seventh, when about three hundred rioters were killed by musketry. About two hundred and eighty-five rioters and onlookers were killed in total. About four hundred and fifty were arrested. Twenty-five were hanged. Lord George Gordon was tried for high treason at the King's Bench on the fifth of February 1781, was acquitted in February (defended by Thomas Erskine in his most celebrated jury-trial, the speech being preserved in Erskine's collected speeches as the founding speech of the modern criminal-defence bar). Gordon converted to Judaism in 1787, was sentenced for libel in 1788 to five years in Newgate (the prison the mob he had led had burned eight years earlier), and died there of typhus in 1793.
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Frequently asked

What does the surname Gordon mean?

From the lands of Gordon in Berwickshire, granted to Adam, ancestor of the family, in the 12th century. The name is of disputed origin, possibly from Welsh 'gor dun' (great fort) or a Gaelic personal name. The Gordons originated in Berwickshire in the 12th century but rose to greatness in the north-east, taking the lands of Strathbogie in the 14th century, later known as Huntly.

Where does the Gordon family come from?

The Gordon family is rooted in Grampian & the North-East, in Scotland. Within that, the name was particularly concentrated in Buchan & Mar. The atlas page for the name records the historical territory it has held over the centuries.

Is Gordon Scottish or Irish?

Gordon is a Scottish surname; its home on this atlas is Scotland, where the historical territory and family record of the name are concentrated. The same or similar spellings can surface in Irish records, but the lineage documented on this page is the Scottish one.

How old is the Gordon surname?

The Gordons originated in Berwickshire in the 12th century but rose to greatness in the north-east, taking the lands of Strathbogie in the 14th century, later known as Huntly. European hereditary surnames crystallised broadly between the 12th and 14th centuries, and the Gordon name took its modern form within that long settlement.

What is the Gordon family known for?

The Cocks of the North, Earls and Dukes of Aberdeenshire. The Gordons originated in Berwickshire in the 12th century but rose to greatness in the north-east, taking the lands of Strathbogie in the 14th century, later known as Huntly.

What is the Gordon motto?

The motto of the Gordon family is "Bydand", which translates as "Remaining (steadfast)". Family mottoes were registered with the chief of the name and carried on the heraldic arms and battle-banners.

What does "Bydand" mean in English?

"Bydand" is the motto of the Gordon family. In English it means "Remaining (steadfast)". The phrase is typically rendered in Latin, though some Highland families carry their motto in Gaelic and some Norman lines in Old French.

Is there a Gordon family crest or coat of arms?

There is no single coat of arms that belongs to everyone named Gordon. Heraldic arms were granted to individuals and descend through specific documented lines, so a "family crest" matched to a surname alone is decorative rather than genealogical. In Scots heraldry the convention is different again: clansfolk wear the chief's crest inside a strap-and-buckle badge, the crest stays the chief's property, worn in allegiance rather than owned. The motto associated with the principal line is "Bydand".

Who is the most famous Gordon?

The best-known bearer of the Gordon name is George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly. Other prominent figures of the family include Jane, Duchess of Gordon and Lord George Gordon (1751–1793), president of the Protestant Association.

Who are some famous Gordons?

Notable bearers of the Gordon name include George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly, Jane, Duchess of Gordon and Lord George Gordon (1751–1793), president of the Protestant Association. Each is profiled on the family page, with cross-links to the geography, stories, and historical events tied to their life.

What stories are told about the Gordon family?

The Gordon family is associated with Lord George Gordon and the Riots. Each story has its own page on this site with the full account, the date, the location, and the other families involved.

What is the story of Lord George Gordon and the Riots?

On the second of June 1780, Lord George Gordon, third son of the third Duke of Gordon, twenty-eight years old, member of Parliament for Ludgershall and president of the Protestant Association, led a procession of about fifty thousand petitioners through Westminster to present a petition to the House of Commons calling for the repeal of the Catholic Relief Act of 1778. The procession became, within a few hours of the petition being received, the worst civil disorder in London's recorded history. The event is dated to 1780.

Where is the Gordon surname found today?

Scotland is the primary historical home of the Gordon surname. In the modern era, the name is also borne across the wider diaspora, particularly in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, where families carry the line of descent from the same Scotland origin recorded on this page.

What does the Clan Rising page for the Gordon family cover?

The Clan Rising page for the Gordon family covers the meaning of the surname, the historical geography of the name, the family motto, famous bearers of the name, traditional stories and the seat of the head of the family. Each section is linked to the underlying atlas of Scotland so the name can be read in the geography that shaped it.

Who is the head of the Gordon family today?

The seat for the head of the Gordon family is currently vacant on this register. Clan Rising is rebuilding the chief and family structure for the modern era, and the family page allows readers to claim the seat or pledge to the name.