Clan Sinclair

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Clan Sinclair
Clann na Ceàrda or Clan na Ceàrdaich
The Rt. Hon. Malcolm Ian Sinclair
The 20th Earl of Caithness[2]
Historic seatCastle Sinclair Girnigoe[4]
Septs of Clan Sinclair
Budge,[5] Caird, Clouston, Clyne,[5] Groat,[5] Laird, Linklater, Lyall,[5] Mason, Purdie, Snoddy, Peace, Wares.[5]
Clan branches
Earls of Caithness (chiefs)
Lords Sinclair
Sinclair of Roslin
Sinclair of Thurso
Sinclair of Keiss
Sinclair of Stemster and Dunbeath[6]
Sinclair of Murkle[6]
Sinclair of Assery[6]
Sinclair of Lybster[6]
Sinclair of Scotscalder[6]
Sinclair of Geise[6]
Sinclair of Greenland and Rattar[6]
Sinclair of Freswick[6]
Sinclair of Mey[6]
Sinclair of Ulbster[6]
Sinclair of Durran[6]
Sinclair of Olrig[6]
Sinclair of Dunbeath and Latheron[6]
Sinclair Sutherland of Brabster[6]
Sinclair of Barrock[6]
Sinclair of Stirkoke[6]
Sinclair of Dun[6]
Sinclair of Southdun[6]
Sinclair of Brabsterdorran[6]
Sinclair of Forss[6]
Sinclair of Achingale and Newton[6]
Sinclairs of Lybster, Reay[6]
Sinclairs of Hoy and Oldfield[6]
See also:
Sinclair of Herdmanston
Sinclair baronets
Allied clans
Clan Sutherland (18th century)
Rival clans

Clan Sinclair (

Barons of Roslin and later the Earls of Orkney and Earls of Caithness
.

The Sinclairs are believed to have come from

Norman conquest of England, before arriving in Scotland in the 11th century. The Sinclairs supported the Scottish Crown during the Scottish–Norwegian War and the Wars of Scottish Independence
.

The chiefs were originally Barons of Roslin, Midlothian and William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness and Baron of Roslin founded the famous Rosslyn Chapel in the 15th century. He split the family lands, disinheriting his eldest son from his first marriage, William ("the Waster"), who inherited the title of Lord Sinclair,[note 1] instead giving the lands of Caithness to the second son from his second marriage, William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness, in 1476, and the lands at Roslin to his eldest son from his second marriage, Sir Oliver Sinclair.

In the 16th century the Sinclairs fought against England during the Anglo-Scottish Wars and also feuded with their neighbors the Clan Sutherland. During the Jacobite rising of 1715 the Sinclairs supported the Jacobite cause, but during the Jacobite rising of 1745, while the clan largely had Jacobite sympathies, their chief, the Earl of Caithness, supported the British-Hanoverian Government.

The current chief is Malcolm Sinclair, 20th Earl of Caithness.

Origins

No certain record exists but it is likely that the Sinclairs came from Saint-Clair in Normandy.[11] The Saint-Clairs first went to England (before they came to Scotland) with William the Conqueror during his invasion of England.[12] The name was originally "Saint-Clair" which was a place name.[12] Richard of Saint-Clair and Brittel of Saint-Clair are both mentioned in the Domesday Book.[12] William of Saint-Clair accompanied Saint Margaret of Scotland, daughter of Edward the Exile to Scotland in 1068, where she eventually married Malcolm III of Scotland. In return for his efforts, the king supposedly granted Sinclair the barony of Roslin, Scotland "in free heritage".[12]

One of the earliest recorded Sinclairs in Scotland was

Haddingtonshire in 1160.[12]

The chiefs of Clan Sinclair, the Earls of Caithness, descend from William St. Clair who was sheriff of Edinburgh and who was granted the barony of Roslin (Rosslyn) in 1280.[11]

Scottish–Norwegian War

During the

Haakon IV of Norway invaded Scotland. However, at the Battle of Largs in 1263 he was faced with William St. Clair who commanded a wing of Alexander III of Scotland's army.[13] In 1264, William St. Clair was ordered by King Alexander of Scotland to support the forces of the king of England at the Battle of Lewes.[13]

Wars of Scottish Independence

Interior of Rosslyn Chapel which was founded by William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness

During the Wars of Scottish Independence, Sir William Sinclair of Rosslyn was captured at the Battle of Dunbar (1296) and died later, probably in the Tower of London.[13] Henry, his son, was also captured and later sent to St Briavels Castle,[13] and in 1296 he swore fealty to Edward I of England.[11]

In 1303 the Battle of Roslin took place where Scots under Henry Sinclair of Rosslyn and the Clan Comyn defeated an English force.[13] The Battle of Loudoun Hill took place in 1307 where Scots under Robert the Bruce, assisted by Henry Sinclair of Rosslyn again defeated the English.[13]

The family initially favoured John Balliol's claim to the throne but later it became paramount that they gave their loyalty to Robert the Bruce.[11] The Battle of Bannockburn was fought in 1314, where the Clan Sinclair fought in support of Robert the Bruce.[11] After the battle Robert the Bruce gave William Sinclair his sword.[13] The Battle of Donibristle took place in 1317, William Sinclair, Bishop of Dunkeld, rallied the Scots army to defeat an English invading force in Fife.[13]

Sir William Sinclair, heir to Henry, and, it is claimed, his brother John, were among the Scots killed with Sir James Douglas at the Battle of Teba (1330),[11] cutting short their attempt to carry Robert Bruce's heart to the Holy Land.[11] They, or at least their bones, are said to be buried in Rosslyn Chapel.[13] The Battle of Neville's Cross took place in 1346 where Sir John Sinclair of Herdmanston was taken prisoner[13]

Later 14th century

In 1379,

Haakon VI of Norway.[12] However the earldom of Orkney was later resigned by order of James III of Scotland.[13]

Zeno brothers, for the first time by Johann Reinhold Forster in 1784[14]); believers in this hypothesis claim he possibly landed in both Massachusetts and Nova Scotia.[11][15][16] The voyage to America is largely disputed.[17] According to a biography published many years after his death, he died in battle against the English around the year 1400.[13]

15th century

Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney was taken prisoner by the English at Battle of Homildon Hill in 1402 but was soon released.[13] In 1406 he escorted Prince James to France but the ship was captured by the English and both were imprisoned in the Tower of London.[13] In 1407 he escaped or was released on payment of a ransom.[13]

William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness (3rd Earl of Orkney and Baron of Roslin) was High Chancellor of Scotland between 1454 and 1458.[11] He had been granted the earldom of Caithness in 1455.[12][11] He split the family lands, disinheriting his eldest son from his first marriage, William ("the Waster"), who later became the Lord Sinclair, instead giving the lands of Caithness to the second son from his second marriage, William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness, in 1476, and the lands at Roslin to his eldest son from his second marriage, Sir Oliver Sinclair.[12][18]

16th century

William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness was killed fighting for James IV of Scotland at the Battle of Flodden in 1513.[19][11] There was a loss of 300 Sinclairs including George Sinclair of Keiss, Henry Sinclair, 4th Lord Sinclair,[20][21] Sir John Sinclair of Herdmanston, the Bishop of Caithness as well as James IV of Scotland.[12][13]

John Sinclair, 3rd Earl of Caithness (1490–1529) died at the Battle of Summerdale in May 1529 in Orkney. He was succeeded by his son George Sinclair, 4th Earl of Caithness. William Sinclair, 5th Lord Sinclair was taken prisoner.[12][13] At the Battle of Solway Moss in 1552, Scots commanded by Oliver Sinclair of Pitcairns were beaten by the English.[13] In 1568,

Loch Leven Castle.[13] In 1570, John Sinclair, Master of Caithness, son of George Sinclair, 4th Earl of Caithness burned the local Cathedral in pursuit of the Morays who had taken refuge in the steeple.[13] George Sinclair, 4th Earl of Caithness later imprisoned his son, the Master of Caithness, for making peace with the Morays.[11]

In 1588

James VI of Scotland.[13]

17th century and Civil War

A Victorian era, depiction of a member of the clan by R. R. McIan, from The Clans of the Scottish Highlands, published in 1845.

On 21 October 1601, Henry Sinclair, 6th Lord Sinclair died and was succeeded by grandson Henry.[13] In 1606, George 5th Earl of Caithness, was by an Act of Parliament allowed to change the name of Girnigoe Castle to Sinclair Castle. See: Castle Sinclair Girnigoe.[13]

The Battle of Kringen took place on 26 August 1612 in Otta, Norway. George Sinclair was killed with most of his men in an ambush.[13]

In 1650 Major Sinclair assisted

Rosslyn Castle but the Chapel was spared.[13] In 1651, at the Battle of Worcester, John Sinclair, 10th Lord Sinclair was captured by Cromwell's forces and imprisoned in the Tower of London and then at Windsor Castle until 1660 when he was liberated by General Monck.[13] In 1657, George Sinclair 6th Earl of Caithness was present when Oliver Cromwell was proclaimed Chief Magistrate of the three nations in Edinburgh.[13]

In 1680 a feud took place between George Sinclair of Keiss and Sir John Campbell of Glenorchy over the right to the lands and title of the earldom of Caithness. This resulted in the Battle of Altimarlach, where, legend has it that so many Sinclairs were killed that the Campbells were able to cross the river without getting their feet wet.[11] Clearly, however, the Sinclairs had influence in high places as only a few years later, in 1681, they regained the earldom by an order of Parliament.[24][25] In 1698, George Sinclair 7th Earl of Caithness died. He was succeeded by John Sinclair of Murchill (Murkle) 8th Earl, his cousin.[13]

18th century and Jacobite risings

Sinclair dress tartan (modern)

During the Jacobite rising of 1715 the Clan Sinclair supported the Jacobite cause, however by the time of the Jacobite rising of 1745 the Clan Sinclair supported the British Hanoverian Government.[13]

In 1708, Chief John, Master of Sinclair (Son of Henry Lord Sinclair) after killing two men in

Tsaritsa Anna of Russia.[13]
\

On 4 June 1745, Sir James Sinclair of Rosslyn, a lieutenant general with the

Duncan Forbes, Lord Culloden was forming the 18 Independent Highland Companies to oppose the Jacobite rising of 1745 the Sinclairs were not offered a company.[27] In 1750, Sir William Sinclair of Dunbeath founded the Baptist church at Keiss.[13]

Castles

The ruins of Roslin Castle, former seat of the Sinclair Barons of Roslin
The ruins of Castle Sinclair Girnigoe as it appeared in 1821, historic seat of the Earls of Caithness, chiefs of Clan Sinclair
The Castle of Mey, former seat of the Sinclairs of Mey
The ruins of Ravenscraig Castle

Castles that were either built by the Sinclairs or came into their possession have included amongst many others:

  • Covenanters in 1688. The castle is now owned by the Sinclair-Erskine family.[4][28] The Sinclairs also built the famed Rosslyn Chapel nearby.[4]
  • Battle of Altimarlech in 1681. The castle is now in the care of the Clan Sinclair Trust.[4]
  • Edinburgh High School in 1595, shot and killed Bailie MacMorran in a siege at the school. MacLeod of Assynt who betrayed James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose was later imprisoned in the castle. In 1952 the castle was sold to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother who had it restored.[4]
  • Ravenscraig Castle, near Kirkcaldy dates from the fifteenth century and is one of the first castles in Britain to have been built for both defensive and offensive artillery use. The Sinclairs received Ravenscraig after they resigned the Earldom of Orkney. They owned it until 1650 and it was the Sinclairs who completed the castle. The property later passed to the Sinclair-Erskine family and is now in the care of Historic Scotland who have opened it to the public.[4]
  • Ackergill Tower, near Wick, Caithness,[4] was seized by the Sinclairs in 1547 but later returned to the Clan Keith. It was acquired by the Sinclairs again in 1612.
  • Braal Castle, near Thurso, Caithness, is a ruinous castle that passed to the Sinclair Earls of Caithness by 1547 and then went to the Sinclairs of Ulbster.[4]
  • Dunbeath Castle, near Dunbeath, Caithness,[4] was acquired by the Sinclairs in the 15th century.
  • Keiss Castle, near Wick, Caithness, the original castle of which was held by the Sinclairs of Keiss until they abandoned it for new Keiss Castle in 1755. The old castle is now dangerously ruined.[4]
  • Castle of Old Wick, near Wick, Caithness. During a feud between the Clan Sutherland and Clan Sinclair the castle was starved into submission by John Sinclair, Master of Caithness in 1595. It is now in the care of Historic Scotland.[4]
  • Thurso Castle, near Thurso, Caithness is a ruinous mansion on the site of a castle. It was held by the Sinclairs of Greenland and Rattar in 1612. Thurso Castle was the home of Sir John Sinclair, 1st Baronet of Ulbster who compiled the Statistical Account of Scotland and who died in 1835. This line of Sinclairs had been made Baronets in 1786 and Viscounts Thurso in 1952, and they still live in Caithness.[4]

Clan profile

Sinclair hunting tartan (ancient)
  • Malcolm Ian Sinclair, 20th Earl of Caithness
  • heraldic crest and motto
    ,
  • Chief's motto: "Commit thy work to God" (sometimes styled as Latin: "Revela Domino opera tua")
  • Chief's
    crest
    : A cock rampant
  • Clan
    Whin
  • Lands: Midlothian, Orkney and Caithness
  • Gaelic Name: Mac na Ceardadh
  • Origin of Name: Placename, French: "de Sancto Claro"
  • Pipe Music: "Spaidsearachd Mhic nan Cearda" ("The Sinclair's March")

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The Scots Peerage by James Balfour Paul gives the 1st Lord Sinclair as William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness,[7] and this version is given by the Official Clan Sinclair website's timeline, quoting from Paul's Scots Peerage.[8] However, historian Roland Saint-Clair stated that the 1st Lord Sinclair was the father of the 1st Earl of Caithness, Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, as recorded by public records.[9] Therefore the numbering of the Lords Sinclair is one place different from these two different historians. Bernard Burke, in his a Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire, agrees with Roland Saint-Clair and says that Henry Sinclair (died 1513) and William Sinclair (died 1570) were "in reality" the fourth and fifth Lords Sinclair respectively.[10]
  2. ^ Major Sinclair was John Sinclair, son of Alexander Sinclair of Brims, son of Richard Sinclair of Brims, son of William Sinclair, 2nd of Stemster and Dunbeath, son of Alexander Sinclair, 1st of Stemster and Dunbeath, son of William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness.[23]

References

  1. docx). Sabhal Mòr Ostaig
    . Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  2. ^ a b c "Clan Sinclair Profile". scotclans.com. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  3. ^ "Clan Sinclair Hallmarks". clansinclairusa.org. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  4. ^
    ISBN 978-1-899874-36-1
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 9780007551798
    .
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w Henderson, John. W.S (1884). Caithness Family History. Edinburgh: David Douglas.
  7. ^ Paul, James Balfour (1910). The Scots Peerage; Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland; Containing an Historical and Genealogical Account of the Nobility of that Kingdom. Vol. VII. Edinburgh: David Douglas. p. 569. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  8. ^ "Clan Sinclair (timeline 1420-1476)". clansinclair.org. Retrieved 12 June 2021. Scots Peerage (Paul)
  9. ^ Saint-Clair, Roland (1898). The Saint-Clairs of the Isles; being a history of the Sea-kings of Orkney and their Scottish successors of the sirname of Sinclair. Shortland Street, Auckland, New Zealand: H. Brett. p. 297. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  10. ^ Burke, Bernard (1869). Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire. 59 Pall Mall, London: Harrison. p. 1016. Retrieved 15 June 2021.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  11. ^
    ISBN 0-00-470547-5
    .
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Maclean-Sinclair, Rev. A (1901). The Sinclairs of Roslin, Caithness and Goshen. Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island: The Examiner Publishing Company. Archived from the original on 24 June 2014.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq "Official Clan Sinclair Timeline". clansinclair.org. Clan Sinclair Trust. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  14. ^ Johann Reinhold Forster, Geschichte der Entdeckungen und Schiffahrten im Norden, Frankfurt an der Oder, C.G. Strauss, 1784.
  15. ^ Frederick J. Pohl, Prince Henry Sinclair: His Expedition to the New World in 1398 (1974; 1998).
  16. ^ Earl Henry Sinclair's fictitious trip to America by Brian Smith, First published in New Orkney Antiquarian Journal, vol. 2, 2002.
  17. ^ Fred W. Lucas, The Annals of The Voyages of The Brothers Nicolo and Antonio Zeno in The North Atlantic about the End of the Fourteenth Century and the Claim founded thereon to a Venetian Discovery of America: A Criticism and an Indictment (Stevens, 1898).
  18. ^ Saint-Clair, Roland (1898). The Saint-Clairs of the Isles; being a history of the Sea-kings of Orkney and their Scottish successors of the sirname of Sinclair. Shortland Street, Auckland, New Zealand: H. Brett. p. 297-299. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  19. ^ Guthrie, William (1767). A General History of Scotland. Vol. 4. Paternoster Row, London: A. Hamilton, Robinson and Roberts. pp. 371-372. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  20. ^ Saint-Clair, Roland (1898). The Saint-Clairs of the Isles; being a history of the Sea-kings of Orkney and their Scottish successors of the sirname of Sinclair. Shortland Street, Auckland, New Zealand: H. Brett. p. 299-301. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  21. ^ Paul, James Balfour (1910). The Scots Peerage; Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland; Containing an Historical and Genealogical Account of the Nobility of that Kingdom. Vol. VII. Edinburgh: David Douglas. pp. 571-572. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  22. ^ Gordon, Robert (1813) [Printed from original manuscript 1580 - 1656]. A Genealogical History of the Earldom of Sutherland. Edinburgh: Printed by George Ramsay and Co. for Archibald Constable and Company Edinburgh; and White, Cochrance and Co. London. pp. 202-203.
  23. ^ Saint-Clair, Roland William (1898). "VI Caithness Cadets: The Sinclairs of Stemster and Dunbeath". The Saint-Clairs of the Isles; being a history of the sea-kings of Orkney and their Scottish successors of the sirname of Sinclair. Auckland, New Zealand: H. Brett. pp. 220-221. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  24. ^ "Caithness – Mearnscraft Needlecraft Kits". Retrieved 11 May 2009.
  25. ^ "Scottish Clans (S)". Royal House of Stewart. Archived from the original on 19 November 2005. Retrieved 19 November 2005.
  26. ^ a b c Mackay, Angus (1906). The Book of Mackay. Edinburgh: N. Macleod. p. 189.
  27. ^ MacLeod, Ruairidh. H. F.S.A. Scot (1984). Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. Vol. LIII. p. 312. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  28. ^ The National Monuments Record of Scotland gives the original date of the castle as "around 1390", NMRS Site Reference NT26SE 21.00 [1] Archived 18 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine.

External links

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