The family name of the Earls of Wemyss and March. The name comes from the town of Chartres (France) and William de Chartre came to Britain at the time of the Norman Conquest (1066). His son or perhaps grandson followed King David I to Scotland and was granted the Wardship of Amisfield and settled in Dumfriesshire.
In 1280, Sir Thomas de Charteris was appointed Lord High Chancellor of Scotland by King Alexander III. A later Sir Thomas Charteris was appointed Lord High Chancellor by David II in 1342, but killed 4 years later at the Battle of Durham. Sir John Charteris of Amisfield held vast estates and the important office of Warden of the West Marches. A descendant was the infamous Colonel Francis Charteris, whose daughter Janet married the 5th Earl of Wemyss. Their son Francis inherited the estates belonging to his mother's family and changed his name to Charteris. An Andrew Charteris of Kinfauns was Provost of Perth in the 15th C.
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