Re: Orkney Sinclair's

[Niven Sinclair <niven@niven.co.uk>]

At 23:55 10/08/99 +0200, you wrote:
> Does any one of you have any records of Claus
> Fredrik Sinclair b. 3 nov
> 1717 on Orkney? I need to know who his parents was.
>
> Regards Lena


Dear Lena,

From the material which I sent you yesterday, it would seem that this
branch of the
Sinclairs, who settled in Sweden, were of the Saba Branch of our family
which ended
in 1708 when the lands of Saba passed to David Traill under reversion
through an
uncle Edward Sinclair of Campston.

From the St Clairs of the Isles, we read:

        

        

"The
family of the Sinclairs of Saba was one of the most ancient in
Orkney

        

        

having descent through the Knights of Warsetter from the first of the
Sinclair

        

        

earls and Sir William Sinclair, founder of the Roslins.

        

        

The heirs of this family (if any) are senior representatives of the House
of

        

        

Sinclair.  It may be that the noble Swedish Sinclairs are scions of
the Saba
                       
stock, as in their "Genealogical Descendance" they cite as an
ancestor a

        

        

William Sinclair, master of Seba and Brabster, who married Barbe,
daughter

        

        

of Sir Hugh Halcro.  The connection of the Saba family with King
would suggest

   

        

that the noble Swedes were cadets of Saba who passed to Sweden with
John

        

        

King, Baron of Sanshult".

From my copy of  "The Scots in Sweden" this John King is
referred to as James King who was
raised to the (Swedish) nobility in 1639 and, on his death in 1652, was
given a State funeral.
However, his eldest brother was a John King of Warbester who was also in
the Swedish service.  
John had two son, James and Henry who likewise were officers in the
Swedish
army.                                                                
James became the principal heir of his uncle, General James King, Baron
of
Sanshult.                                                                 
It also appears from the General's Will that he had a half-brother,
William Sinclair of
Seaby,                                                         
whose son, David Sinclair was a Lt.Colonel in Swedish service.

The information which I posted to you yesterday concerned  Charles
Gideon Sinclair, Baron Sinclair
of Finnekumla and Charles Ferdinand Sinclair, Knight of the Legion of
Honour, who had an extraordinary
military career and who is said to have been a son of Charles Gideon but,
from the dates given is more
likely to have been a grandson.

All in all the Sinclairs seemed to have been greatly valued for their
military prowess in Sweden
which is some consolation for their defeat by the Norwegians at Kringelen
in 1612 when a Colonel George
Sinclair of Stirkoke was ambushed with his men whilst on his way to help
the army of King Gustav Adolphus
of Sweden.

Strangely, the Earl of Caithness and I will be visiting the site of this
massacre when we visit Norway
next week as the guests of honour of the Sel Kommune who are
'celebrating' the occasion although
they are the first to realise that it was doubly tragic because the
Sinclairs have their own origins in
this very part of Norway.  Again kin was fighting against kin which
seems to be a recurring factor in our 
illustrious, if chequered, history.

Niven Sinclair

 
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