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Malcolm Fleming of Biggar, hostage for King James I
(c1399 - before 1440)
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Malcolm Fleming, eldest son of Sir Malcolm Fleming of Biggar and Cumbernauld, spent five years as a hostage in England for King James I. He died shortly before his father, so the family estates passed to his younger brother Robert.

Heir of Biggar

Malcolm was born around 1399, the eldest son of Sir Malcolm Fleming of Biggar and Cumbernauld and Elizabeth Stewart, daughter of Robert, Duke of Albany. In January 1421 he witnessed a precept of his uncle Murdoch, Duke of Albany, for a charter to William, Lord Graham, of the barony of Dundaff.

Hostage for the King

King James I was released from English captivity in 1424 in return for a ransom of sixty thousand marks, secured by the delivery of Scottish nobles as hostages. On 9 November 1427 Malcolm went to England as a hostage in place of Andrew Gray, and he was not released until 20 June 1432. When a further hostage was sought from his family that June, his father did not offer him again, and Alan Cathcart volunteered instead.

Legacy

Malcolm died before 20 November 1440, only days before his father was executed after the Black Dinner. As he left no heir, the family estates passed to his younger brother Robert, who became the 1st Lord Fleming.