William Cunningham

• Name	William Cunningham  [1, 2, 3, 4]
  Birth	of Aiket, Ayrshire, Scotland   [5]
  Gender	Male
  Person ID	I26542	Ancestry of PNH, TNH, and others | Ancestor of TWK
  Last Modified	23 Mar 2020

  
  

  Family	Helen Colquhoun   d. Between 13 Jun 1594 and 13 Mar 1596, Aiket, Ayrshire, Scotland
  Marriage	Bef 24 Oct 1564  [1, 6]
  Children	+ 1. Marion Cunningham   d. Jan 1623, Ayr, Ayrshire, Scotland
  Family ID	F15868	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	23 Mar 2020

  
  

• Notes

  He and his family appear to have had some excitement in their lives. From Janet and Robert Wolfe Genealogy, all citing Ancient Criminal Trials in Scotland by Robert Pitcairn, Volume 1, parts 2 and 3 (Edinburgh: The Bannatyne Club, 1833): 1570 On November 4, William Cunningham of Aiket, his servants William Fergushill and Florence Crawfurd, and John Raburne of that Ilk were accused of the murder of John Mure of Cauldwell. They were acquitted on testimony that the murder was committed by the late Alexander Cunningham the younger of Aiket. […] 1578/79 On January 12, Helen Colquhoun did not appear in court. She was accused of administering poison to her husband William Cunningham the previous October. […] 1585 On February 12, brothers Alexander and William Cunningham of Aiket and Patrick Cunningham in Bordland were accused of taking part in the murder of Hugh Mure, Earl of Eglinton. —— Note that while Helen Colquhoun was, on 12 Jan 1579, charged with "administering poison to her husband" the previous October, the inconclusive surviving record does not appear to confirm that her husband actually died at that time. He may have, and the "brothers Alexander and William Cunningham of Aiket" who were accused of taking part in the murder of the 4th Earl of Eglinton may have been the Alexander and William who were among the sons of William Cunningham and Helen Colquhoun. Or the William of this pair may have been this William Cunningham. The Wikipedia article Barony of Aiket, citing Castles of the Clans by Martin Coventry (Musselburgh, Scotland: Goblinshead, 2010), calling the husband of Helen Colquhoun "Robert Cunninghame", asserts that he, who was accused of the murder of John Mure and was the target of a poisoning attempt by his wife, was also among those implicated in the murder of Hugh Mure / Montgomerie, the 4th Earl. Ayr and Its People (citation details below) calls William Cunningham of Aiket "the late" at the time of his daughter Marion's 1595 marriage contract with John Lockhart.

  
  

• Sources

  [S376] Janet and Robert Wolfe Genealogy. [S3859] The Chiefs of Colquhoun and Their Country by William Fraser. Edinburgh, 1869., calls him "James Cunningham of Aiket". [S3858] James Colquhoun, "Colquhoun of Luss." Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica Volume II, new series, 1877, p. 533., calls him "James Cunningham of Aiket". [S3864] A. Francis Steuart, "Poisoning in Scotland, To the Year 1625." Edinburgh Medical Journal 17:468, 1905. [S3863] Ayr and Its People, from 1428 to the Time Of Burns by Joseph D. Shearer. 2004. [S3863] Ayr and Its People, from 1428 to the Time Of Burns by Joseph D. Shearer. 2004., says "by 1550".