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Dear list members and those concerned with clan
wars;
I glanced through my personal emails from the list this
afternoon and noted some confusion around the Campbell-Sinclair and castle side.
Perhaps a restatement would be helpful.
I am satisfied from most of the clan histories of Scotland
that the last clan war was between Campbell of Glenorchy (The Duke of Argyll
Line) and the Sinclairs of Caithness. But before everyone starts frowning let me
share the rest of the Story.
The Sinclair estate was (prior to any clan war), virtually
bankrupt. George borrowed from the Campbells among others to shore up the
estates. You must remember because of changing economic conditions many clans
were no longer surviving economically. In fact by the end of 1600 the country
was 6 years away from the Act of Union and 45 years from the legal abolishment
of the clan system. This all said the Campbells came to differences over
this amount of debt owed to them and marched to collect it from George. That was
quite a hike. There was a battle but if you are thinking along the Braveheart
lines you may be mislead. We have a handful on each side not every man available
at arms. The Sinclairs plainly lost according to every history. The Campbells
claimed Caithness and the Sinclair Estates as security and legal entitlement.
They were after the rents naturally.
Having no other recourse George approached the Court of
Scotland, I believe it was then the Privy Council equal to the House of Lords at
the time. It was the only court that could address the matter and the highest
court in the land. It turned out that the force of arms was dimly looked on by
the court (quite rightly just as they do today) and the Estate was awarded back
to Sinclair. (I have yet to find what happened to the debt.) This completed (it
took some 3 years) the old feudal system could revert back to Sinclair again,
but here too there was difficulty. The rent system was in disarray, the economy
around Scotland collapsing and many clansmen were leaving to seek their fortune
elsewhere. This was not limited to the Sinclairs, it occured commonly with many
Clan Chiefs actually paying their clansmen to leave to the cities and join the
cotton making rush. Others were simply told to leave. For that manner many clan
chiefs were not living in Scotland, but in London ready to educate their
children at the best schools and live in a civilized manner away from the drafty
castles of Scotland.
I wonder how the castle fell into ruins, it was not I believe
done primarily by the Campbells but after a slow decline over 200 years of
abandonment. There are sketches about 1800 of it and it was not nearly the ruin
it is today.
One further irony, there was a new need for jobs and able
workers to replace the many families now leaving for the Colonies and Australia.
This being the case there was a turn around of the more prosperous estates.
Workers, tacksmen, crofters and the tradespersons were sought from the cities
and elsewhere. One such individual advertising was indeed, none other than our
Duke of Argyll - John of Glenorchy.
And you might guess around 1700 who applied for the jobs of
working on the farms near Auchindrain located in Inveraray. But a hardy band of
Sinclairs. This was the forerunner of the Sinclair blood line in Argyll for the
next 300 years. Oh and don't bad mouth the Campbells, not only were they our
employers but they were also our lovers and many Sinclairs came to carry the
Campbell blood line as well. Feuds between the Lairds really did not
affect the more common folk, either then or now. That is the rest of the story.
Enough history for a Friday afternoon, keep up the reasearch
constructive dialogues and have fun;
Yours aye yours
Neil Sinclair Toronto-PEI-Argyll
PS If you missed it, this summary was provided by Karen
Matheson who has also studied the topic and popped this from the Tartan
site.
"The direct line came to an end with George, 6th Earl who
through debt granted the title and estates to Sir John Campbell of
Glenorchy. In 1676, after Sir John assumed the title, George Sinclair of
Keiss disputed the claim and seized the Caithness estates, only to be defeated
in 1680 by the Campbells near Wick. Although the claim was lost by the
sword, the Privy Council rendered his claim in 1681 and he became the 7th Earl
of Caithness." Note: The above is almost correct, but legally the grant of the lands was security for moneys, not a grant of title, but more along the lines of what many places consider a mortgage. I do not believe he moved away from the estate and hence the Campbells sought forceable possession. He resisted rather surprised I imagine that the Campbells were enforcing their claim. |