The family Woods of Keil.
Keil View Estate is owned by the Much Honoured Roy Alexander Woods. Laird of Keil who resides in Orton Goldhay in Cambridgeshire. Roy has three children by his wife Jennifer who sadly passed away in November 1996. Under traditional Scottish law son Darren is titled 'Younger of Keil' and daughters Sharon and Spring Louise are titled 'Maid & Ms of Keil'. The Woods family can trace their Scottish ancestry back to Kelso Roxburgh in 1654 when this area was known as Northumbria stretching from Edinburgh in the north to York in the south. The family are connected to the ancient family Wood of Largo in Fife. This information was gathered from the dispatches of James Wood of Lambieletham, grandson of Sir Andrew Wood Laird of Largo and Admiral to King James lll & lV of Scotland. Sir Andrew's father William Wood was a Scion of an ancient and noble race of Northumbrians who moved to Largo and Leith around 1458. At Largo is a river known as 'Keil Burn' which runs out into the Firth of Forth. It also flows through a small woodland area known as' Keil Den' which was part of the Largo House estate owned by Sir Andrew Wood. Roy is a member of the Clan Wood Society and represented his family at Scotland's largest Clan gathering at Holyrood Park Edinburgh in July 2009. Darren, Sharon and Spring Louise represented the family at the Highland Games held at Harpenden Hertfordshire in July 2010. On 21st May 2011 Roy was a guest at the inauguration ceremony of Timothy Fawcett Wood as Chief of Clan Wood held at Upper Largo Fife.
In May 2018 the 'Laird' & 'Younger of Keil' along with other clansmen stormed Edinburgh Castle to mark a monumental occasion in Scotland's history when Highland clans lay siege to the castle during the Jacobite uprisings of 1745. Roy and Darren presented their Woods family history book to castle Governor General Mike Ridell-Webster in the Great Hall.
Roy is a serving Knight Templar and was presented with his Armorial Coat of Arms by the Knights of Arkley at a jousting tournament held at Knebworth House, Hertfordshire in August 2015. The Arms were granted by the College of Arms, Institute of Heraldry, Buenos Aires. The same authority who granted Arms to Pope Francis. These arms are recorded and registered with the Heraldry Society of Scotland and the International Register of Arms vol 3 #0541.
On 14th March 2017 the Laird of Keil was sworn in as Lord Baron of Stamford Priory in Lincolnshire at an investiture ceremony held in London with Royal and international guests.