The great earldoms of the country, frequently in some cases, passed through and into the hands of dowagers and heiresses at various points in the late Middle Ages.
Across Europe events such as plague or ongoing warfare had an adverse effect on the male population, and so, noblewomen and their position in society, law, and politics became an increasingly urgent question.
Isabella of Fife's position as a woman with significant land, wealth and potential influence was not a unique one.
He died without issue the following year, and she was married again in January 1363 to Sir Thomas Bisset of Upsetlington in Berwickshire.
Isabel was persuaded to resign the earldom on 30 March 1371 to Robert Stewart, Earl of Menteith (later Duke of Albany), who was her brother-in-law by her second marriage.