Individual Details

Birth

Major William Kneland was the loyal friend of Mary Stuart, Queen of the Scots. Major William was known to devotedly love and defend Mary Stuart. Major William Kneland of Kneland was accused in court for being involved in blowing up Mary Stuart’s discarded husband, Lord Darnley. It will be remembered that Lord or King Darnley was blown up by gunpowder while confined by sickness in the house known as ” Kirk of Field,” on the tenth day of February, 1567. This incident is thought by some to fragment the family later on, such as the name change to “Cleland”.
Major William Kneland had these children:
William Cleland – married a sister of Walter Stewart, first Lord Blantyre, daughter of Sir John Stewart by his wife, Margaret, daughter of James Stewart and granddaughter of King James V. William, Major William’s son, succeeded to the estate of Kneland, changed the spelling of the name to ” Cleland,” and we find that to be the name of the Knelands of that ilk and of the estate thereafter.  Certain it is, that from that time forward the Knelands, of Kneland, became the ” Clelands, of Cleland.” As, however, they were of the same old stock and just as much Kneelands as if they had never changed their name.
Alexander Cleland – married Mary, sister of John Hamilton, first Lord Bargany, and the youngest daughter of Sir John Hamilton, of Bargany, and his spouse, Margaret Campbell, daughter of Rev. Alexander Campbell, Bishop of Brechen, who was descended from the Duke of Argyle, By her he had several sons, the eldest of whom sold the lands of Kneland (then designated as Cleland) to a cousin of his own name. From this point the heirship is broken.
Captain John Kneland
– A different Kneland coat of arms (picture below) was given to Major William or his son, Captain John by Mary Queen of Scots. It contained the lion of Scotland and the cross of Rome. It is thought by some that because of the cross of Rome was included, William and Alexander changed their name to “Cleland”.  The Knelands had supported and fought for Scottish royalty that supported the Catholic church.  However, after the events involving Major William Kneland, the family seems to split.  From “Seven Generations of Kneelands”, “Capt. John Kneland, who was a younger son of Major William Kneland, and who, having a touch of the old Viking forefathers, adopted the sea for a profession, retained the original parchment given by Mary Queen of Scots creating the Coat of Arms, and the document is still in the possession of his descendants in America, and was reproduced in part by other branches of the family.” Captain John is thought to have died near Indonesia at an old age while on a voyage and was buried at sea. The sons of Capt. John Kneland kept the old name, but did break from the Catholic faith. It seems the Knelands that kept the Kneland name went to America, and the Knelands that stayed in Scotland changed their name to “Cleland”. There are many cases where pre-Cleland documents have been changed to say “Cleland” in revision or translation. This makes “Kneeland” a uniquely American name. It was not until the American Revolution and after that some “Clelands” came to America, but kept the Cleland name.