CAHUN, HUGH [SSNE 778]

Surname

CAHUN, CAHOUN, COLQUHOUN

First name

HUGH, HUGO

Title/rank

Nationality

SCOT

Region

Social status

Education

Religion

Text source

Hugh Cahun, son of Alexander Colquhoun of Colquhoun and Luss and his wife, ? Buchanan, came to Sweden circa 1565 with his brother William [SSNE 6046] bringing troops of Scottish cavalry to serve in the army. Hugh was apparently one of the first Scots to support king Johan III in his struggle with his brother, Erik XIV. This is probably the same Cahun who in 1574 was accused of embezzling his troops' wages. He in turn revealed an alleged plot by Archibald Ruthven [SSNE 5514] and Gilbert Balfour [SSNE 1703] to kill the Swedish king. However the Scottish troops refused to sail for Livonia until Cahun was brought to justice and he was beheaded in Stockholm in October. Eventually Ruthven and Balfour were also imprisoned and died. Hugh's son, Peter is said to have lived moved to Poland and has been identified in the past with Peter Cahun, owner of the copper mine in Sweden although doubt has been cast on this. 

P. Möller, 'Colquhon-Cahun-Gahn-Canonheilm; en boskillnad' in Person Historisk Tidskrift, 1966, pp.85-119; J. Berg and B. Lagercrantz, The Scots in Sweden (Stockholm, 1962), p.15, pp.21-22; T. Fischer, The Scots in Sweden (Edinburgh, 1907), pp.56-7.

Service record

SWEDEN, CAVALRY

Arrived 1565-01-11

Departed 1574-10-30, as CAPTAIN OF HORSE

Capacity OFFICER, purpose MILITARY