Clan Sutherland
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Clan Sutherland is a Highland Scottish clan whose traditional territory is located in the region of Sutherland in northern highlands of Scotland and was one of the most powerful Scottish clans. The Clan seat is at Dunrobin Castle, Sutherland. The Chief of the clan was also the powerful Earl of Sutherland.
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[edit] History
[edit] Origins of the Clan
The progenitor of the Clan Sutherland was also the progenitor of the Clan Murray who was a Flemish nobleman by the name of Freskin de Moravia. This is why the original Clan Sutherland chiefs who also held the title Earl of Sutherland were all called by the surname de Moravia. The de Moravia line was also the senior line of Murrays. Hugh de Moravia was the grandson of Freskin de Moravia, who was known as Lord de Sudrland. His son, great-grandson of Freskin was William de Moravia, 1st Earl of Sutherland. The clan name of Sutherland, originaly de Sudrland is obviously the place name in the Highlands, Scotland.
Battle of Dornoch 1150c; The Sutherland forbear was Freskin de Moravia, whose father was probably a Flemish noble named Ollec with lands in Morayshire and elsewhere ("de Moravia" being "of Moray"). He was given a commission by King David I of Scotland to gather the Sutherland Gaels together and clear the Norsemen from the area, and he received Strabrock in West Lothian and Duffus in Moray from King David I of Scotland. Some hold that he was therefore probably the hero of the clan legend about the killing of the last Norseman. The crucial battle took place near Dornoch where the Norse chief had gathered his men in a desperate attempt to stop the Scottish advance. The fight at first went the Norsemen's way when they penetrated the Scots formation and the Sutherland chief was injured. As the chief lay wounded though, he spotted a Norse general coming up to support the attack. Finding a horseshoe at hand, he threw it with all of his might, striking the Norseman squarely in the forehead, killing him, and turning the whole battle around. By the end of the day, all of the Norsemen had been killed or captured.
Battle of John o' Groats; Chief Hugh de Moravia, grandson of progenitor Freskin de Moravia is said to have strengthened the family's royal favor by ridding the north of a ferocious band of robbers led by Harold Chisholm. Among the crimes, a number of Sutherland churchmen were tortured by nailing horseshoes to their feet and making them dance to entertain the followers before putting them savagely to death. On hearing of this outrage, King William I of Scotland (William the Lion) ordered chief Hugh of Sutherland to pursue Chisolm to the death and a great fight ensued near John o' Groats. All of the robbers were either killed or captured. Harold Chisolm and the other leaders were given a punishment to fit the crime, horse shoeing and hanging. The rest were gelded to prevent any offspring from men who were so detestable. This seems to have been a frequent punishment of the time. In 1198 an entire sept of the Sinclairs were castrated for the killing of the Bishop of Caithness.
Rebellion of the Sinclairs 1222; The trouble was over tithes imposed by the Bishop of Caithness whose seat was at Dornoch. The Clan Sinclair Earls of Caithness had long resented the fact that the bishopric was under Sutherland control and decided to exploit the discontent over tithes to get rid of the bishop and have the seat moved. There was soon a riot, said to be incited by Sinclair gold. The unfortunate bishop was roasted alive and his cathedral was set on fire. The rioters then headed north to join up with their Sinclair allies. Once again the Lord of Sutherland was given responsibility by the crown for restoring law and order, and for punishing Sinclair for his instigation of the incident. The Clan Sutherland force was gathered and the far northeast was laid waste in a campaign of revenge and repression. Wick and Thorso were burned and the Sinclair stronghold razed to the ground. Eighty men were tried at a summer court session at Golspie and there was strict punishment for the rioters. Four of the ringleaders were roasted and then fed to the town dogs for good measure.
[edit] Wars of Scottish Independence
- In the 14th century during the Wars of Scottish Independence the Clan Sutherland under William de Moravia the 3rd Earl of Sutherland fought at the Battle of Bannockburn (1314).
- Earl Kenneth de Moravia the 4th Earl of Sutherland later led the Clan Sutherland at the Battle of Halidon Hill (1333).
- William de Moravia 5th Earl of Sutherland, whose wife was the daughter of Robert the Bruce and sister of King David II of Scotland, led the clan at Kilblene where he participated in the siege of Cupar Castle Fife. Along with the Earl of March took foray into England.
- Battle of Neville's Cross 1346; William Earl of Sutherland accompanied King David II of Scotland into England where both were captured at the battle of Nevill's Cross by Durham. They remained in prison for over ten years before being released. John, the son of the Earl and Princess Margaret, was designated the heir to the Throne over Robert Stewart, who eventually became King Robert II in 1371
- The two branches of Clan Sutherland most closely related to the Sutherland Earls, or Clan Chiefs, were the Lairds (and later Lords) of Duffus and the Lairds of Forse. The Duffus Lairds descended from Nicholas Sutherland, only brother of William, 5th Earl of Sutherland (d. 1370). The Forse Lairds stem from Kenneth Sutherland, only brother of Robert, 6th Earl of Sutherland (d. 1427). (Robert's half brother John, who was already a grandson of King Robert the Bruce, predeceased his father.) Duffus, as already noted, is outside the country of Sutherland. So also is Forse, which is in Caithness.
- Raid of Dornoch 1372; The habitual enemies of Clan Sutherland were the Clan Sinclair of Caithness, Clan MacKay and the Clan McLeod to the west of Sutherland. The long dispute with the MacKays first came to a head in 1372, when Nicholas Sutherland of Duffus, head of one of the junior branches, murdered Mackay and his heir in their beds at Dingwold Castle where they had met in an attempt to patch up the feud. Much bloodshed followed, including a retaliatory raid on Dornoch. The cathedral was once again set on fire and many Sutherland men were hanged in the town square. After this, the feud quieted down as both sides were called away to fight against the English.
[edit] 15th Century & Clan Conflicts
- Battle of Strathnaver 1407; The Earl of Sutherland was a leader of the Scots invading into the west of England in 1388. He married Margaret Stewart, daughter of Alexander, Earl of Buchan, a younger son of King Robert II. During his long chief-ship, there was a temporary alliance with the Clan MacKay against the Clan McLeod who had invaded Strathnaver in 1407 on rumors that MacKay was mistreating his wife, a MacLeod heiress. Since both Sutherland and MacKay country were laid waste, the old rivals joined forces to pursue the MacLeods, catching them somewhere near Loch Shin where the invaders were killed except for the last man who escaped his pursuers by throwing away his sword and targe and out sprinting his pursuers over the hills. This day became known as "The Great Slaughter" and gave the Sutherlands the upper hand in dominating their local clan rivals.
- The Battle of Skibdo and Strathfleet around 1480; MacDonald of the Isles, accompanied by about five or six hundred of his clan came into Sutherland and encamped hard by the Castle of Skibo, whereupon Neil Murray (son or grandson to Angus Murray, slain at Druimnacoub) was sent by John, Earl of Sutherland, to resist them, in case they did harm the inhabitants. Neil Murray believing that the MacDonalds would go about spoiling the country attacked the MacDonalds by Skibo, and killed one of their chieftains, called Donald Dow MacDonald along with fifty others. Macdonald, with the rest of his company, escaped back into their own country. Shortly thereafter another company of Macdonald's came to Strathfleet in Sutherland, and spoiled that part of the country, in revenge for the death of their chieften. However Robert Sutherland (John, Earl of Sutherland's brother), assembled an army and attacked them upon the sands of Strathfleet. After a sharp and cruel skirmish, Macdonald's men were defeated.
[edit] 16th Century & Clan Conflicts
- 1517 - Battle of Torran Dubh; Clan Sutherland defeated Clan MacKay. The Clan Sutherland encountered John Mackay and his company at a place called Torran Dubh, beside Rogart, in Strathfleet, where there ensued a fierce and cruel conflict.
- 1542 - Chief Donald MacKay of Strathnaver decided to invade and molest the lands of Clan Sutherland. He burned the village of Knockartoll and stole many goods from Strathbrora. The Clan Sutherland and Clan Murray, led by Hutcheon Murray of Abirscors with Gilbert Gordon of Garty, decided to attack the MacKays. They attacked the MacKays at a place called Ailtan-Beath. After the battle the MacKays fled and much of the stolen booty was recoverd. Donald MacKay was captured and imprisoned in Foulis Castle, Ross-shire by commandment of the Queen Regent.
- "The Battle of Allt Camhna", 1586; During this battle the Clan Gunn did not do badly considering they were fighting the Clan Sutherland, Clan MacKay and Clan Sinclair, three of the most powerful clans in Scotland. The Earls of Sutherland and Caithness including the MacKays decided to attack Clan Gunn. The Earl of Sutherland's company from Clan Sutherland was commanded by John Gordon of Backies and James MacRorie. The Earl of Caithness's company from Clan Sinclair was conducted by his cousin, Henry Sinclair. The Clan Gunn prepared for the fight and although inferior in numbers had the advantage of being on a hill. The first flight of arrows from the Caithness company fell short. The Gunns' did not and the clan used their position to full advantage. There ensued a sharp conflict, at a place called Allt-gamhna, where Henry Sinclair was slain with 120 of his company, and the rest chased away into the darkness. John Gordon, James MacRorie and Neil MacIan-MacWilliam, who heard what happened to the Earl of Caithness's men, then pursued the Clan Gunn, and followed them to Lochbroom, in the height of Ross, to where they had escaped. Meeting with them, they invaded them at a place called Leckmelm. After a sharp skirmish, the Clan Gunn were overthrown, and chased, many of them slain, and their Captain, George, wounded and taken prisoner. They carried him along with them unto Dunrobin, where they delivered him unto Alexander, Earl of Sutherland. This happened in the year 1586. The Gunns had again proved themselves ferocious warriors even when faced with overwhelming odds against them.
- Battle near Wick 1588; Earl of Sutherland Alexander Gordon divorced his obnoxious Sinclair wife in 1573. He waged all-out war with her father and Clan Sinclair before gaining a decisive victory outside Wick in 1588, when more than a hundred Sinclair clansmen were killed in a pitched battle on the seashore. Earl Alexander later married the divorced wife of the Earl of Bothwell, third husband to Mary Queen of Scots. The Sinclair's Sinclair & Girnigoe Castle withstood a siege by the Earl of Sutherland and his forces of the Clan Sutherland in 1588. In 1589 George Sinclair 4th Earl invadeed and ravished the lands of the Clan Sutherland.
[edit] 17th Century & Civil War
In Sir Robert Gordon's time during the 17th century the Clan Sutherland began to acquire the reputation for enthusiastic and pious Protestantism. This is probably what made the Earls begin to distance themselves from their Clan Gordon cousins who were Catholics and later Jacobites. Sir Robert's nephew, for example, was known as the Covenanting Earl and the clan was involved with the troubles through the 17th and 18th centuries but was supportive of the British Crown.
Battle of Carbisdale; During the Civil War Clan Sutherland along with Clan Munro and Clan Ross joined forces with the Scottish Argyll Government to fight against the Marquess of Montrose and his Royalist Army of forieners. The Royalist Army led by Scotsman James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose was mainly made up of soldiers from Denmark and Germany. The Royalists were defeated by the Scottish Argyll Government forces. The Marquess of Montrose escaped the battle but due to wounds and ill health gave himself in to Macleod of Assynt who in turn handed him in to the government. He was brought a prisoner to Edinburgh, and on 20 May sentenced to death by the parliament. He was hanged on the 21st, with Wishart's laudatory biography of him put round his neck. Shortly after Montroses death the Scottish Argyll Government switched sides and became Royalists too.
[edit] 18th Century & Jacobite Uprisings
In 1719 the Clan Sutherland fought for the British government at the Battle of Glenshiel where they helped defeat the Jacobites.
The Clan Sutherland supported the British government during the Jacobite uprisings in 1745-1746. The Chief of Clan Sutherland was of course now a Gordon and the Clan Gordon were themselves divided with half supporting the Jacobites and half supporting the government.
There were Gordons on both sides. The 2nd Duke of Gordon had followed the Jacobites in 1715, but the 3rd Duke of Gordon supported the British government by the time of the 1745 uprising. However his brother raised two regiments against him to fight as Jacobites at the Battle of Falkirk (1746) and the Battle of Culloden (1746).
Unfortunately when the Jacobite Uprisings began in 1745 the Jacobites stormed Clan Sutherland's Dunrobin Castle without warning. The Earl of Sutherland who had changed his surname from Gordon to Sutherland; William Sutherland the 17th Earl, narrowly escaped them through a back door. He sailed for Aberdeen where he joined the Duke of Cumberland's army.
The redeeming parts of the Jacobite Uprising came for Clan Sutherland when they defeated a Jacobite force under the Earl of Cromartie, Chief of Clan MacKenzie as it made its way to join Prince Charlie at Culloden. Then there was the final victory over the Jacobites at the Battle of Culloden itself in 1746.
In 1746 as the Earl of Cromartie and his forces were travelling to meet Charles Edward Stuart they were attacked by the Clan Sutherland near Bonar Bridge which is in Munro country. The Earl of Sutherland himself had already escaped south to join the Duke of Cumberland's army after his lands had been wasted. However many of his clan still remained in the hills, commanded by a man from Golspie who attacked the MacKenzies. Most of the Jacobite officers were captured, many of the men were killed and the rest were driven onto the shore where several were drowned trying to swim the Bonar Firth. Thus the Clan MacKenzie were prevented from joining the Jacobite army at the Battle of Culloden.
However despite all these efforts by the Earl of Sutherland to defeat the Jacobites, including his victory at Bonar Bridge, he struggled to prove to the parliament in London that he had not had Jacobite sympathies. Many in London accused him of being a Jacobite.
[edit] Clan Chiefs & Joining with Clan Gordon
The Chief of Clan Sutherland was whoever held the title Earl of Sutherland and was not necessarily someone by the name of Sutherland. The family who are first known to have been in possession of this title was a line from the Clan Murray. This line of Murrays who held the title Earl of Sutherland were known by the surname "de Moravia". When the "de Moravia" line died out the Earldom passed by right of marriage to a younger son of the Chief of Clan Gordon early in the 16th century. This line of Gordons who were Earls of Sutherland changed their surname from Gordon to Sutherland in the 18th century during the Jacobite Uprisings. However, later on during the 18th century, the Earldom which was promoted to the rank of "Duke" passed to various people from different family lines within the Clan Sutherland.
The current Chief of Clan Sutherland is Elizabeth Millicent, Countess of Sutherland
[edit] Clan Castles
- Dunrobin Castle is the seat of the chief of the Clan Sutherland.
- Duffus Castle has been owned by the Clan Sutherland since the 1350's until 1705.
[edit] Clan Profile
- Gailic Names: Suithearlarach (Singular) & Na Suithearlaraichean (Collective)
- Motto: "Sans Peur" (French for "Without Fear")
- Slogan: "Ceann na Drochaide Bige!" (Gaelic for "The Head of the Little Bridge!")
- Pipe Music: "The Earl of Sutherland's March"
- Crest: A cat-a-mountain saliant Proper
- Supporters: Two savages wreathed head and middle with laurel, holding batons in their hands proper.
- Plant Badge: Butcher's Broom, Cotton Sedge
- Animal Symbol: Cat.
- Arms (Earl of Sutherland as recorded for the fifteenth Earl, 1719):
- Shield: Gules, three mullets Or, on a bordure of the second a double tressure flory counterflory of the first.
[edit] Clan Tartans
- Old Sutherland (Ancient)
- Old Sutherland (Dress)
- Old Sutherland (Modern)
- Old Sutherland (Muted)
- Old Sutherland (Weathered)
- Sutherland (Modern)
[edit] Septs of Clan Sutherland
- Cheyne
- Chiene
- Clyne
- Duffes
- Duffus
- Federith
- Gray
- Grey
- Keith
- Mouat
- Mowat(t)
- Murray
- Norman
- Oliphant
- O'May
