Corrie family
The Corrie family, also known as the Currie family, was a Scottish landed family associated with Corrie in Annandale and with estates in southern Scotland and northern England.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
The Corrie family, also known as the Currie family, was a Scottish family whose principal historical association was with the lands of Corrie in Annandale, in the area now covered by the civil parish of Hutton and Corrie in Dumfries and Galloway. The family’s leading branch was known as the Corries of that Ilk. Its history belongs to the medieval and early-modern landed society of the Scottish Borders and southwest Scotland rather than to the modern commercial brand sector. The surnames Corrie and Currie have several possible etymological origins, but this family derived its name from the lands of Corrie. The place-name is connected with the Gaelic word coire, meaning a cauldron, a term commonly used in Scottish toponymy for a rounded mountain hollow or basin. The family’s territorial identity was therefore closely tied to a specific Annandale estate and to the feudal naming practices of medieval Scotland. Members of the family appear in records from the Middle Ages. One early figure was Walter de Corrie, also recorded as Walter de Curry, who appears in the Ragman Rolls and served as keeper of the castles of Dumfries, Wigtown and Kirkcudbright. During the Wars of Scottish Independence, he initially supported the English king and held land at Levington in Cumberland. That property was later devastated by Scottish forces. His son, also named Walter, inherited at a young age, lost his lands in 1310 because of his association with Christopher Seton, and recovered them after apparently returning to the English royal cause. His political allegiance again shifted, and by 1314 the lands had been granted to Sir William Marmion. The younger Walter nevertheless participated in the unsuccessful Scottish siege of Carlisle in 1315 and was knighted by Robert the Bruce. Other records place the family within the wider networks of Scottish and English border politics. A Robert Corry from the valley of Annandale received a safe-conduct from Edward III in 1367–1368. The Corries of that Ilk and the Corries of Newbie subsequently appear repeatedly in public records during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The family held or was associated with a number of properties, including the Barony of Corrie, Kelwood, Comlongan, Ruthwell, Newbie, Stapleton, Robgill, parts of the parish later known as Kirkpatrick-Fleming, and Gretna. These holdings changed over time through inheritance, forfeiture, marriage and conveyance. The family eventually lost the ancestral lands from which it took its name. During the reign of James V of Scotland, an heiress of the family married a Johnstone of Annandale, transferring the old seat away from the Corrie line. A branch retained Kelwood until the end of the sixteenth century, when that estate passed to the Charteris family. Other branches continued under the Corrie or Currie name, including a line associated with Duns in Berwickshire. Later genealogical traditions connected members of the Duns branch with several prominent Curries and with the Currie baronets. The documented descent described in genealogical sources includes the biographer James Currie, the London banker William Currie, and descendants such as Vice-Admiral Mark John Currie, Sir Frederick Currie, the Currie baronets, and Philip Henry Wodehouse Currie, Baron Currie of Hawley. Such links should be understood as lineage claims concerning particular branches, not as evidence that every person bearing the Corrie or Currie surname belonged to the medieval Annandale family. The family’s heraldry featured a red field bearing a silver saltire and, in the upper part of the shield, a silver rose. The Corries of Newbie used the same principal arms. Accounts of the Kelwood branch describe differences in the upper portion of the shield, though heraldic authorities differed over the precise tincture. The family’s arms resembled those of other Annandale families, including the Johnstones and the Torthorwalds, and were influenced by the heraldic environment associated with the Bruce dynasty. The family’s historical importance therefore rests on territorial lordship, border politics, genealogy and heraldry, not on products, services or a contemporary corporate identity.
History
The Corrie family took its name from the lands of Corrie in Annandale, in what is now Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The place-name is derived from the Gaelic coire, a word referring to a rounded valley or mountain hollow. The family is also known in historical records as the Currie family, although Corrie and Currie have multiple independent surname origins and not every person using either spelling can be assumed to descend from this lineage. The family is recorded from the medieval period. Walter de Corrie, also styled Walter de Curry, appears in the Ragman Rolls and held responsibility for the castles of Dumfries, Wigtown and Kirkcudbright. His political position during the Wars of Scottish Independence was initially aligned with the English crown. He held land at Levington in Cumberland, which was burned and laid waste by Scottish forces. His son, another Walter de Corrie, was about twenty-two when he succeeded him. In 1310 the younger Walter’s lands were confiscated because of his connection with Christopher Seton, who had participated in the killing of Sir John Comyn. The lands were restored after Walter apparently returned to the English royal side, but his loyalty did not remain stable. By 1314 the property had been granted to Sir William Marmion. Walter later joined the Scottish assault on Carlisle in 1315 and was knighted by Robert the Bruce. A further medieval reference records Robertus Corry of the valley of Annandale receiving a safe-conduct from Edward III in 1367–1368. From the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the Corries of that Ilk and the Corries of Newbie appear in a range of public records. The family’s landed connections extended across the border region. Estates and lordships associated with the family included the Barony of Corrie, Kelwood, Comlongan, Ruthwell, Newbie, Stapleton, Robgill, parts of the area later organized as Kirkpatrick-Fleming, and Gretna. The extent and nature of these holdings changed over time, and association with a property does not always indicate uninterrupted ownership. The original Corrie seat was eventually lost through inheritance and marriage. During the reign of James V, a family heiress married into the Johnstone family of Annandale. This marriage transferred the ancestral lands from which the Corrie name had been derived. A branch retained Kelwood until the late sixteenth century, when the property passed to the Charteris family. The loss of the principal estate reduced the family’s direct territorial base, but Corrie and Currie branches continued elsewhere. One later branch settled at Duns in Berwickshire. Genealogical accounts connect this line with a Currie recorded as holding land known as Currie Parks in the early seventeenth century. Descendants associated with this branch included the writer and physician James Currie, known for his biography of Robert Burns. Other descendants entered banking, naval service, diplomacy and the British baronetage. The documented lineage includes William Currie, a London banker; his son Mark Currie; Vice-Admiral Mark John Currie; Sir Frederick Currie, the first baronet; later Currie baronets; and Philip Henry Wodehouse Currie, who became Baron Currie of Hawley. These later figures represent branches or claimed descendants of the wider Corrie-Currie genealogy rather than a single continuing institutional organization. The family’s heraldic identity centered on arms described as a red shield with a silver saltire and a silver rose in chief. The Corries of Newbie used the same arms. Sources differ on the exact differences attributed to the Kelwood branch, describing either a black or a silver chief. In the nineteenth century, Sir Frederick Currie received an English grant of arms. By 1881, however, no coat of arms had been registered in Scotland specifically for the surnames Corrie and Currie as a whole. The family’s arms also influenced the heraldic design associated with the Lowry-Corry Earls of Belmore, whose ancestry included a John Curry from Dumfries who settled in Belfast in the seventeenth century. The surviving historical record presents the Corrie family as a medieval and early-modern Scottish lineage shaped by landholding, border warfare, royal allegiance, marriage and heraldic descent. It is not documented as a modern commercial enterprise, and there are no established products, corporate executives, public listing, or contemporary operating markets associated with the family as a brand.
- 1881
No Scottish registration for Corrie or Currie arms noted
[1]Heraldic authorities recorded that no coat of arms had been registered in Scotland for the names Corrie and Currie as a general surname designation by this date.
- 1599
Kelwood passed from the Corrie branch
[1]The Corrie branch associated with Kelwood retained the estate until the end of the sixteenth century, after which it passed to the Charteris family.
- 1500
Ancestral Corrie lands transferred through marriage
[1]During the reign of James V, a Corrie heiress married a Johnstone of Annandale, causing the family to lose the principal lands from which it derived its name.
Possible identification with a knight at the Battle of Largs
[1]The Norse chronicle Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar describes a Scottish knight named Ferus or Perus at the Battle of Largs. Some modern historians have tentatively identified him with Piers de Curry of Ayrshire, but his connection to the Annandale Corrie family is uncertain.
Walter de Corrie recorded as deceased
[1]Walter de Corrie, an early member associated with several castles and with land at Levington in Cumberland, had died by this date and was succeeded by his son.
Lands of the younger Walter de Corrie confiscated
[1]Walter de Corrie’s lands were confiscated because of his association with Christopher Seton during the Wars of Scottish Independence.
Walter de Corrie’s lands granted to Sir William Marmion
[1]After further changes in Walter’s political allegiance, the lands were granted to Sir William Marmion.
Walter de Corrie took part in the siege of Carlisle
[1]Walter participated in the unsuccessful Scottish siege of Carlisle and was knighted by Robert the Bruce.
Robert Corry received an English safe-conduct
[1]A Robert Corry from the Annandale valley was granted safe-conduct by Edward III, according to the Rotuli Scotiae.
Products and positioning
A historical Scottish landed family and territorial lineage, not a contemporary consumer or corporate brand.
Sources1 sources
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