John Sinclair | |
|---|---|
| Earl of Caithness | |
 Earl of Caithness Coat of Arms | |
| Predecessor | William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness |
| Successor | George Sinclair, 4th Earl of Caithness |
| Died | 1529 |
| Noble family | Clan Sinclair |
| Father | William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness |
| Mother | Margaret Keith |
John Sinclair (died 1529) was a Scottish nobleman, 3rd Earl of Caithness and chief of the Clan Sinclair, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
He was the son of William Sinclair, 2nd Earl of Caithness and Margaret, daughter of Sir Gilbert Keith of Inverugie. [1] His father had been killed at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. [2]
Soon after Flodden, Adam Gordon, Earl of Sutherland and husband of Elizabeth Sutherland, 10th Countess of Sutherland, made overtures to John Sinclair, 3rd Earl of Caithness in anticipation of dangers in the North, and they entered into a bond of friendship for mutual alliance and support. This included an exchange of lands. [2] John Sinclair, 3rd Earl of Caithness had sasine of the earldom on 24 November 1513. He received a charter from the Crown for himself and his wife Elizabeth Sutherland of Duffus that was dated 14 July 1527 for the lands of Keiss, Stane, and Rowdale in the earldom of Caithness and sheriffdom of Inverness. This charter also granted to William Sinclair, the earl's son and heir apparent, the earldom of Caithness under reservation of his father's life-rent, and his spouse's reasonable terce. On 18 July 1527, the earl received a charter for the lands of Greeneland and Wester Clyth in Caithness. A bond of "manhood" was entered into by John Sinclair, 3rd Earl of Caithness and William Sinclair, 5th Lord Sinclair dated 15 February 1528–29. [3]
The Earl of Caithness and Earl of Sutherland later came into continuous opposition with each other and eventually Sutherland brought a case before the Lords of Council and Session to recover his lands. Gavin Dunbar, Bishop of Aberdeen pronounced his decision at Edinburgh on 24 March 1524, and both parties were satisfied and the two Earls lived in peace with each other from then onward. In 1528, the Earl of Caithness was one of those included in James V of Scotland's proposed extirpation of the "Kin of Clanquhattane" (Clan Chattan), although nothings seems to have been done about that troublesome clan. [2] This was during the time of William Mackintosh, 15th of Mackintosh who was chief of the confederation of Clan Chattan. [4]
John Sinclair, 3rd Earl of Caithness was killed in an expedition to Orkney in 1529. [1] In 1528-29 there had been insurrection led by the brothers James Sinclair and Edward Sinclair who were from the Orkney Isles against William, Lord Sinclair who himself had wasted Orkney and Shetland the previous year. [3] According to Roland Saint-Clair there had been a formidable but abortive attempt to separate the Orkneys from the dominion of the Crown. [2] There had been great cruelties practiced by both sides. The Earl of Caithness coming to the aid of his kinsmen was slain with many of his followers at the Battle of Summerdale on 18 May 1529. [3] The Earl of Caithness had been the author of this rebellion but in the battle his insurgents were encountered by James Sinclair, the Governor of Orkney, who defeated Caithness, killing him and five-hundred of his men. [2]
He had married Elizabeth, daughter of William Sutherland, 5th of Duffus, [1] and had the following children:
William Sinclair (1410–1480), 1st Earl of Caithness (1455–1476), last Earl (Jarl) of Orkney, 2nd Lord Sinclair and 11th Baron of Roslin was a Norwegian and Scottish nobleman and the builder of Rosslyn Chapel, in Midlothian.
Earl of Caithness is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland, and it has a very complex history. Its first grant, in the modern sense as to have been counted in strict lists of peerages, is now generally held to have taken place in favor of Maol Íosa V, Earl of Strathearn, in 1334, although in the true circumstances of 14th century, this presumably was just a recognition of his hereditary right to the ancient earldom/mormaership of Caithness. The next year, however, all of his titles were declared forfeit for treason.
Lord Sinclair is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. According to James Balfour Paul's The Scots Peerage, volume VII published in 1910, the first person to be styled Lord Sinclair was William Sinclair, 3rd Earl of Orkney and 1st Earl of Caithness. However, according to Roland Saint-Clair writing in the late 19th century, William Sinclair's father, Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, who died in 1420, is the first person recorded as Lord Sinclair by public records.
Clan Sutherland also known as House of Sutherland is a Highland Scottish clan whose traditional territory is the shire of Sutherland in the far north of Scotland. The chief of the clan was also the powerful Earl of Sutherland, however in the early 16th century this title passed through marriage to a younger son of the chief of Clan Gordon. The current chief is Alistair Sutherland who holds the title Earl of Sutherland.
Clan Sinclair is a Highland Scottish clan which holds the lands of Caithness, the Orkney Islands, and the Lothians. The chiefs of the clan were the Barons of Roslin and later the Earls of Orkney and Earls of Caithness.
William Sinclair was a Scottish nobleman, the 2nd Earl of Caithness and chief of the Clan Sinclair, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland (1525–1567) was a Scottish magnate. John Gordon supported the chief of his family, his cousin the Earl of Huntly against the Earl of Moray. After Huntly's defeat at Corrichie, he went into exile, and shortly after his return to Scotland he was murdered by a kinswoman.
The Battle of Summerdale was fought on 19 May 1529, and was the last battle to take place on Orkney soil. The battle took place on the boundary of the parishes of Orphir and Stenness in Mainland, Orkney. The battle was fought between the Sinclairs of Orkney and Shetland and the Sinclairs of Caithness, who had the support of James V, King of Scotland.
Donald Mackay, 11th of Strathnaver, was the eleventh chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
George Sinclair was a Scottish nobleman, the 4th Earl of Caithness and chief of the Clan Sinclair, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
John Sinclair, Master of Caithness was a Scottish nobleman.
George Sinclair was a Scottish nobleman, the 5th Earl of Caithness and chief of the Clan Sinclair, a Scottish clan based in northern Scotland.
William Mackintosh, 15th of Mackintosh was the chief of the Clan Mackintosh, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands. He was also chief of the confederation of clans that was known as the Clan Chattan.
William Sinclair of Newburgh, Aberdeenshire was a Scottish nobleman and the 3rd Lord Sinclair. In The Scots Peerage by James Balfour Paul he is designated as the 2nd Lord Sinclair, but historian Roland Saint-Clair designates him the 3rd Lord Sinclair in reference to his descent from his grandfather, Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, the first Lord Sinclair. Roland Saint-Clair references this to an Act of the Scottish Parliament in which William Sinclair's son, Henry Sinclair, 4th Lord Sinclair, was made Lord Sinclair based on his descent from his great-grandfather, Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, the first Lord Sinclair. 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 was "in reality" the fourth holder of the title of Lord Sinclair.
Oliver St Clair was a Scottish noble and the 12th Baron of Roslin.
William Sinclair was a Scottish nobleman and the 5th Lord Sinclair. In The Scots Peerage by James Balfour Paul he is designated as the 4th Lord Sinclair in descent starting from William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness and 3rd Earl of Orkney, but historian Roland Saint-Clair designates him as the 5th Lord Sinclair in descent from the father of the 1st Earl of Caithness and 3rd Earl of Orkney, Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, who is the first person recorded as Lord Sinclair in public records. Roland Saint-Clair references this to an Act of the Scottish Parliament in which the 4th Lord Sinclair was made Lord Sinclair based on his descent from his great-grandfather, Henry II Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, the first Lord Sinclair. 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 William Sinclair was "in reality" the fifth Lord Sinclair.
William Sutherland, 5th of Duffus was a member of the Scottish nobility and a cadet of the Clan Sutherland.
William Sutherland, 6th of Duffus was a member of the Scottish nobility and a cadet of the Clan Sutherland.
Alexander Sutherland, 8th of Duffus was a member of the Scottish nobility and a cadet of the Clan Sutherland.
William Sutherland, 9th of Duffus was a member of the Scottish nobility and a cadet of the Clan Sutherland.