William St. Clair | |
|---|---|
| Baron of Roslin | |
 Sinclair, Baron of Roslin coat of arms | |
| Successor | Henry St Clair |
| Died | 1297 |
| Noble family | Clan Sinclair |
| Father | Robert de Saint-Clair |
| Mother | Eleoner Dreux |
William St. Clair, 6th Baron of Roslin (died 1297), was a Scottish nobleman of the late 13th century.
According to Roland Saint-Clair, writing in the late 19th century, the "best" theory as to the origin of William St. Clair, is that found in the Genealogie of the Sainteclaires of Rosslyn manuscript which was written in 1690 by Father Richard Augustine Hay (1661 – c. 1736). [1] [2] According to this manuscript, William St. Clair, was the second son of Robert de Saint-Clair in Normandy who had married Eleoner who, in turn, was the relict of Hugh, Lord of Chateauneuf, and daughter of Robert II, Count of Dreux in France, by Yolande de Coucy. [1] [3] [4] Roland Saint-Clair also stated that Van Bassan's History of the St. Clairs is "considerably at variance with contemporary annals". [1] The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography and People of Medieval Scotland do not support the parentage of William, stating that William was the son of another William, [5] and the previous holders of Roslin, were unrelated to the St. Clairs.
According to Bernard Burke, William St. Clair, was made sheriff of the County of Edinburgh for life in 1271, [1] and this date was also given by historian Will Grant. [6] However, according to Alexander Nisbet's Memorial of the ancient family of St Clair of Roslin, he became sheriff of the shire of Edinburgh in 1278 which was the 30th year of Alexander III of Scotland. [7] The Exchequer Rolls of Scotland also show William St. Clair as being sheriff of various shires from 1264 to 1290, including: Haddington (1264–66), Linlithgow (1264), Edinburgh (1266), Dumfries (1288), Edinburgh (1288–90) and Linlithgow (1290). [1] [4]
Early in 1279 Alexander III, King of Scots appointed William St. Clair as guardian of Alexander, Prince of Scotland who, in turn, was the nephew of Edward I of England. [8] A charter of 1280 is the first evidence of the St. Clairs' connection with Roslin, and it is not clear if the people who held the property before then were of the same surname. [1] Around the same time William St. Clair acquired the Knights Templar lands of Gourton from Walter fitz Stephen de Meliville. William St. Clair sat in the Scots Parliament at Scone on 5 February 1283–84. In 1285, William St. Clair was one of the members of the Scottish embassy to France that was tasked with escorting back the queen-elect, Yolande of Dreux, daughter of Robert IV, Count of Dreux and Beatrix, only daughter of John, Count of Monfort. [1] William is also known to have been, in 1290, acting as justiciar of Galloway. [9]
In 1291, William St. Clair was appointed to take fealties in Galloway and in 1292, he was ordered by Edward I of England to take the fealty of the Bishop of Whithorn and Galloway. [1] Later in 1292, William St. Clair appears as the witness to a charter by John, Abbot of Newbattle in favor of William Bisset. He was also a supporter of John Balliol as competitor for the Scottish Crown and was present at Newcastle upon Tyne when Balliol swore fealty to King Edward. However, according to Patrick Fraser Tytler, William St. Clair was among the Scots who defeated the English at the Siege of Dunbar in 1296, but also that the Scots were soon after defeated by the English at the Battle of Dunbar in 1296 where many of them were taken prisoner. [10] They were later permitted to support Edward I of England in his wars in France, as hostages, but Rotuli Scotiae shows that Sir William de St. Clair was among those who were sent as prisoners to the Tower of London. [1] [4] [11] The History of the St. Clairs states that he was also one of the victorious leaders at the Battle of Roslin in 1302 or 1303 where the English were defeated. [1]
William St. Clair, may have been "the Seemly St. Clair" who married Agnes, daughter of Patrick Dunbar, Earl of March. On 7 April 1299, Edward I of England issued two years' protection for Amicia, widow of William de St. Clair, dwelling by the king's leave in the county of Edinburgh. William St. Clair is known to have left the following children: [1] [5]
Henry I Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, Lord of Roslin was a Scottish nobleman. Sinclair held the title Earl of Orkney and was Lord High Admiral of Scotland under the King of Scotland. He was sometimes identified by another spelling of his surname, St. Clair. He was the grandfather of William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness, the builder of Rosslyn Chapel. He is best known today because of a modern legend that he took part in explorations of Greenland and North America almost 100 years before Christopher Columbus. William Thomson, in his book The New History of Orkney, wrote: "It has been Earl Henry's singular fate to enjoy an ever-expanding posthumous reputation which has very little to do with anything he achieved in his lifetime."
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.
Rosslyn Chapel, also known as the Collegiate Chapel of Saint Matthew, is a 15th-century Episcopal chapel located in the village of Roslin in Midlothian, Scotland. The chapel was founded by William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness with a ground-breaking ceremony in 1456. After the Scottish Reformation in 1560, it was largely abandoned but, following a visit by Queen Victoria, it was rededicated in 1862. It was the target of a bombing in 1914 during the suffragette bombing and arson campaign. The interior contains some fine carvings which many historians have sought to interpret.
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 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.
There are Masonic degrees named after the Knights Templar but not all Knights Templar Orders are Masonic.
Roslin Castle is a partially ruined castle near the village of Roslin in Midlothian, Scotland. It is located around 9 mi (14 km) south of Edinburgh, on the north bank of the North Esk, only a few hundred metres from the famous Rosslyn Chapel.
Baron of Roslin or Rosslyn was a Scottish feudal barony held by the St Clair or Sinclair family.
William St Clair of Roslin, 20th Baron of Roslin (1700-1778) was a member of the Clan Sinclair. His title, Baron of Roslin, was not a peerage but a noble title of feudal origin in the Baronage of Scotland. He had an interest in sport and was a skilled golfer and archer. He redesigned the Old Course at St. Andrews to 18 holes thus affecting all golf courses since. He was the son of Alexander St Clair, 19th Baron of Roslin.
Father Richard Augustine Hay (1661-c.1736) was prior of St. Pierremont, France, and antiquary.
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 St Clair was a Scottish noble and by tradition the 8th Baron of Roslin.
William St Clair was a Scottish noble and the 13th Baron of Roslin.
William St Clair was a Scottish nobleman and the 14th Baron of Roslin.
William St Clair was a Scottish nobleman and the 15th Baron of Roslin.
William St Clair was a Scottish nobleman and the 16th Baron of Roslin.
John St Clair was a Scottish nobleman and the 17th Baron of Roslin.
James St Clair was a Scottish nobleman and the 18th Baron of Roslin.
Lord Herdmanston was a title in the Peerage of Scotland that was held by the Sinclair or St Clair family.
Burke, Nisbet, Van Bassan, Hay and Tytler
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : "Sinclair, William (fl.1266-1303)". Dictionary of National Biography . London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)