Earldom of Orkney
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The Orkney Isles, along with the Shetland Isles to their immediate north, lie off the northernmost tip of Caithness Scotland. Picts came to the Orkneys during the Bronze Age and extant archaeological data shows that certainly, there were people living here prior to the Vikings who came to the Orkneys, probably by the latter part of the 8th century although this is up for dispute. Norwegian Vikings probably either came to the islands first as farmers who were seeking land or as warriors who were claiming territory and riches as was common with Viking conquests elsewhere. The Picts apparently were either killed of or otherwise displaced from the Orkneys, however, and aside from traces of their lives there, their culture did not endure in the early history or character of the Orkneys. By the 12th century, the Orkneys were under Norwegian control and by the 13th century, the Orkneyingasaga was written in Iceland, providing one of the earliest and most repeated versions of the history of Norse life on these isles. The Orkneyingasaga is largely fictional however and was not, being written in Iceland, any sort of primary source. Instead, it should be culled for historical details with great care and these data should be matched and compared against data from other sources.
Harald I Hårfagre, Harald I of Norway, claimed the Orkneys and Shetlands for his kingdom around 875 and due to political differences and problems had to take military action to secure these isles as realms friendly to his rule at home. Some of his enemies left the Orkneys for Iceland and perhaps the Faroes. Harald took control of the warrior leaders of the Orkneys at this point and appointed the jarls, or earls, who would be the highest-ranking nobility of the islands and would form the localized government in his stead. The martyrdom of Earl Magnus in 1117 resulted in the building of St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall. In 1231, the line of jarls which Harald established became extinct and in the same year, the Jarldom of Caitness was given over to Magnus, the son of the Earl of Angus, forming the basis for a new governing presence. In 1379 Haakon VI Magnusson granted the earldom to Henry Sinclair
In 1468, the Orkneys and Shetlands were ceded by Christian I of Denmark and Norway against the unpaid dowry of his daughter Princess Margaret who was betrothed to the Scottish prince James III. Christian I never paid the money owed to James' father and thus the two island groups became part of the Scottish kingdom. The jarldom, without a clear Norse line nor the political support or mechanism for that line to continue, were given over to Scottish lords. In 1471, James gave lands in Caithness Scotland to William, the Earl of Orkney in exchange for his lands and thus the Orkneys and Shetlands became part of the Kingdom of Scotland.
Scottish Earls of Orkney:
William Sinclair exchanged the title for that of Earl of Caithness, in 1470, moving the connection between these two earldoms back towards the mainland once again.
In 1567 James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, husband of Queen Mary I was created as the Duke of Orkney. When Mary lost her claim to the throne, her husband also lost his to the Orkneys and the title was considered extinct.
Robert Stewart was created as the Earl of Orkney and the title revived but his son, Patrick Stewart forfeited the title.
George Hamilton was created as the Earl of Orkney in the third creation of the title in 1696. It is through his family and those families his has married into that the title has survived today.
Life under the Scottish earls—especially after the creation of the second line of Earls of Orkney—over time incorporated aspects of Scottish culture while still keeping the Norn_language place and family names and other distinct aspects of Norse influence on the isles. Today, these influences are still found in the Orkneys and Shetlands, making their character somewhat novel and distinct from that of other parts of Scotland.
See also
(Contains further information on the line of earls after Orkney became part of Scotland.)Sources
- Morris, Christopher. "Viking Orkney: A Survey." In: The Prehistory of Orkney. Ed. Colin Renfrew. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. 1985.
- Magnusson, Magnus and Hermann Pálsson. Orkneyinga Saga. (English translation of the Orkneyingasaga) New York: Penguin. 1978
External links
- [Orkneyjar] detailing the history and culture of the Orkney Isles.
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