Thomas Fleming of Fulwood (ca 1325 - after 1375)

Thomas lived during tumultuous times when powerful families vied for the Scottish crown; others vied with each other for wealth and influence; and numerous wars were fought against England. Scotland was impoverished and this had an adverse effect on the Fleming family wealth. 

In 1351 the English King allowed his prisoner, Scotland’s King David II, to visit Scotland after he provided several Scottish nobles as hostages. Thomas Fleming was one of those hostages, no doubt “volunteered” by his grandfather Malcolm as a means of advancing the family’s interests. (This indicates that Thomas’ father had probably died before this, otherwise he would have been the heir and therefore the hostage.) Eventually, the Scottish nobles agreed to pay the English King a ransom of 100,000 merks for the release of King David II. Thomas’ grandfather, Malcolm, sat in the Parliament that approved the treaty and ransom deal in 1357. So, Thomas was again held hostage in 1358 by the Sheriff of Northumberland pending payment of the ransom.

In the normal course of events, Thomas would have succeeded his grandfather Malcolm as Sheriff of Dunbarton. It is unclear why this hereditary sinecure went instead to Thomas’ cousin and heir, Malcolm Fleming of Biggar, who held the role in 1364 and thereafter. It is probable that Thomas had his hands full with defending his earldom and could not therefore devote himself to the Dunbarton administration role. 

The Earldom of Wigtown was in suspension for some time after the death of Thomas's grandfather, Malcolm. This was probably because of agitation by Archibald “the Grim”, 3rd Earl of Douglas, who resented the erection of a new regality within the bounds of his territory. Nevertheless, the King reaffirmed Thomas Fleming’s charter as Earl of Wigtown in 1366.

Thomas must have had money trouble because he divested himself of much of his inherited wealth, bit by bit. His financial difficulties may have been a result of The Black Death, the most devastating plague in history, that swept through Scotland at this time. It is estimated to have killed between 75 million and 200 million people worldwide and famine usually followed it as society everywhere was so badly disrupted. 

In 1371 he mortgaged his lands at Lenzie to William Boyd for 80 pounds and committed to repaying this loan at a rate of 12 merks annually. In the following year this debt was transferred to his cousin and heir, Malcolm Fleming of Biggar.

Also in 1372, in order to pacify Archibald the Grim, Thomas Fleming sold him the lands at Wigtown and, with them, the earldom for 500 pounds. He also sold land at Kirkintilloch to Gilbert Kennedy in 1375.

In keeping with his main adversary, Thomas Fleming left a grim legacy, possibly as a result of the devastating effects of The Black Plague. He had failed to secure his grandfather's hard-won earldom and been forced to sell some of the family's real estate assets. He produced no surviving children, so his heir was his cousin, Malcolm Fleming of Biggar (grandson of Robert Fleming) who had already taken over Thomas's debts.