Clan Charteris (Charteris Tartan)

1. About Clan Charteris (Charteris Tartan)

2. Charteris Clan History (Charteris Tartan)

3. Charteris Tartans

There is no official Charteris tartan, however those who bear the name can don the Roxburgh District tartans, which are representative of the area where the Charteris name was historically prevalent.

Roxburgh District Modern

Roxburgh District Ancient

Roxburgh District Muted

4. Charteris Crest & Coats of Arms

4.1  Clan Charteris Crest

Worn by all of the name and ancestry

4.2 Clan Charteris Coat of Arms

Note on Coats of Arms: A coat of arms is given 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 exclusions listed above, the weapons depicted below are personal weapons. The only person authorized to use these weapons is the grantee.

CHARTERIS of Amisfield

Within a double tressure of flory counterflory on argent, a fess of azure Gules

5. Charteris Places & People

5.1 Clan Charteris People

Colonel Francis Charteris, (1672 – 1732)

A British aristocracy known as "The Rape-Master General" had amassed a significant fortune through gambling. For raping a servant in 1730, he was found guilty. Later, he received a pardon; but, not long after, he passed away naturally.

In Amisfield, Dumfriesshire, Charteris was baptized after being born into a prominent Scottish family. But even before he was found guilty of rape, he was well-known and hated as the stereotypical rake in London.

Although he served in the military repeatedly, he was expelled from the army four times—twice by Parliament for accepting bribes and once by the Duke of Marlborough in Belgium for card cheating.

In spite of being discharged from the military, he accumulated a sizeable fortune, and his daughter Janet married James Wemyss, the 5th Earl of Wemyss, in 1720.

Charteris served as the model for the characters in Fanny Hill, A Rake's Progress, and A Harlot's Progress (where he is depicted as the fat lecher in the opening plate). In his Moral Essay III from 1733, Alexander Pope denounced him.

There have been comparisons made between Charteris' sexual excesses and the avarice of politicians like Robert Walpole.

Although the renowned club created by Sir Francis Dashwood did not begin meeting until 1743, other accounts claim that he was a founder member of the Hellfire Club.

He might have belonged to the first "Hell-Fire Club," which Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton created in 1720. A subsequent admirer and legal name change from Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin was Leslie Charteris, the author of Simon Templar, The Saint.

Martin Michael Charles Charteris, Baron Charteris of Amisfield GCB GCVO OBE QSO PC (1913–1999) - Main image

Queen Elizabeth II's confidante and assistant.

Hugo Charteris, Lord Elcho's son, and his brother, the 12th Earl of Wemyss, were the parents of Charteris.

He received his education at Eton and the Royal Military College Sandhurst before serving in the Middle East and earning the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. After his return, he wed Hon.

Mary Margesson, the first Viscount Margesson's daughter, on December 16, 1944. They had three children.

He was appointed as the then-Duchess of Edinburgh's private secretary in 1950 and served in that capacity until 1972, when he was upgraded to the position of private secretary following her accession in 1952.

Before returning to Eton as its Provost in 1977, he served in this capacity up to his semi-retirement.

Most people are probably familiar with Charteris from an interview he gave to The Spectator in 1995, during which he called the Duchess of York "vulgar," the Prince of Wales "whiney," and the Queen Mother "a bit of an ostrich."

6. Associated Names

Differences in spelling include: Chatres, Charters, Charteris, Chatters and Chatteris

Clan Branches

Charteris of Dumfries Charteris of Kinfauns