Sir Andrew Sinclair of Ravenscraig, in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

known as Anders Sincklar (Sinklar, Sinclar), til Ravenscraig og Sincklarsholm, born 1555, died 1625, was a Scotsman of noble birth, who became a Danish privy counsellor, envoy to England, colonel, and holder of extensive fiefs.

Early life

Sinclair was the third son of Henry Sinclair, 6th Lord Sinclair, and Janet Lindsay, in his fathers first marriage. "Anders Sinclair, (Andrew)." ''Skeel & Kannegaard Genealogy''.
Retrieved 2016-12-11. For a period he was brought up at the court of Henry I, Duke of Guise. In September 1589 James VI of Scotland was waiting for the arrival of his bride

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...

. On the 10 October 1589 the Danish envoy Steen Bille and Andrew Sinclair arrived in

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

with her letters. She had decided to stay over-winter in Norway. In October 1589 Sinclair sailed back to Norway with James VI to meet Anne of Denmark. He went ahead from

Flekkerøy Flekkerøy or Flekkerøya is an island and residential district in Kristiansand municipality in Agder county, Norway. The district is located within the borough of Vågsbygd, and it consists of 4 main neighborhoods: Berge/Andås, Kjære, Lindeb� ...

with Steen Bille to Anna at Oslo with news of their arrival. A Danish source mentions he was a tall young man. Sinclair stayed with the king in Denmark and handed out rewards to shipbuilders in Copenhagen. Sinclar stayed at the Danish royal court and became '' hofjunker'' to

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mon ...

in 1591, and in 1597 ''

kammerjunker ''Valet de chambre'' (), or ''varlet de chambre'', was a court appointment introduced in the late Middle Ages, common from the 14th century onwards. Royal households had many persons appointed at any time. While some valets simply waited on t ...

'' to the queen,

Anne Catherine of Brandenburg Anne Catherine of Brandenburg (26 June 1575 – 8 April 1612) was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1597 to 1612 as the first spouse of King Christian IV of Denmark. Life Anne Catherine was born in Halle (Saale) and raised in Wolmirstedt. Her pa ...

. Sinclair attended the baptism of Prince Henry at Stirling Castle in 1594 and James VI gave him a "target" or hat badge worth 80 French crowns. Christian IV made a voyage in the North Sea towards Norway in June 1597. Sinclair told a Scottish merchant that Christian IV would visit Scotland and Anne of Denmark should prepare a lodging for him in Kinloch's house near the gates of Holyrood Palace. Christian IV did not visit Scotland. In December 1597 Sinclair sent a letter to James VI. The English courtier Roger Aston read it and sent a summary to

Sir Robert Cecil Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, (1 June 156324 May 1612), was an English statesman noted for his direction of the government during the Union of the Crowns, as Tudor England gave way to Stuart rule (1603). Lord Salisbury served as the ...

. Sinclair informed James VI that Christian IV of Denmark and other German princes would visit Scotland in the spring, and the queen's brother, the

Duke of Holstein The Duchy of Holstein (german: Herzogtum Holstein, da, Hertugdømmet Holsten) was the northernmost state of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the present German state of Schleswig-Holstein. It originated when King Christian I of Denmark had hi ...

would come through and France and England and meet up. In the event, only Ulrik, Duke of Holstein turned up in Scotland. From Frederiksborg Sinclair sent James VI notice of the coronation of Christian IV in 1596 in advance of a formal invitation by the diplomat Steen Bille, suggesting that if he could not come in person, the

Duke of Lennox The title Duke of Lennox has been created several times in the peerage of Scotland, for Clan Stewart of Darnley. The dukedom, named for the district of Lennox in Dumbarton, was first created in 1581, and had formerly been the Earldom of Lenno ...

and two other noblemen would be suitable. The English ambassador Robert Bowes sent a copy of Sinclair's letter to William Cecil, suggesting the

Earl of Crawford Earl of Crawford is one of the most ancient extant titles in Great Britain, having been created in the Peerage of Scotland for Sir David Lindsay in 1398. It is the premier earldom recorded on the Union Roll. Early history Sir David Lindsay, who ...

or Lord Sanquhar might go with the duke. In the event, James VI sent Lord Ogilvy and Peter Young. After his marriage 1600, Sinclair left the court, and became a fief-holder in Skåne. Sinclair fought in the Kalmar war as captain of a company of the King's regiment of foot, and participated in the Danish capture of

Öland Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...

. After the Danish capture of

Kalmar Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 36,392 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...

he became military governor of the city.Christensen, Christian Villads (1901). "Sinclair, Andrew". ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon''. Kjøbenhavn, Gyldendalske Boghandels Forlag, vol. 15, pp. 611–612
Retrieved 2016-12-11.Grosjean, Alexia (2003). "A century of Scottish governorship", in: MacKillop, Andrew & Murdoch, Steve (eds). ''Military Governors and Imperial Frontiers c. 1600–1800: A Study of Scotland and Empires.'' Leiden: Brill, pp. 9–10.

Political role

Andrew Sinclair came to London with Christian IV in June 1606, and King James gave him a gold chain. Sinclair became involved in correspondence with

Arbella Stuart Lady Arbella Stuart (also Arabella, or Stewart; 1575 – 25 September 1615) was an English noblewoman who was considered a possible successor to Queen Elizabeth I of England. During the reign of King James VI and I (her first cousin), she marri ...

and

Margaret Howard, Countess of Nottingham Margaret Stuart (or Stewart) ( – 4 August 1639), Scottish aristocrat and courtier in England. She served as lady-in-waiting to the queen consort of England, Anne of Denmark. She was the daughter of James Stewart, 2nd Earl of Moray, and Elizabe ...

when the Countess accused Christian IV of insulting her. Sinclair wrote to Arbella that Christian hoped she might defend his honour. In April 1608 Sinclair sent two Danish hounds to Prince Henry. On 20 April he wrote to the

Earl of Salisbury Earl of Salisbury is a title that has been created several times in English and British history. It has a complex history, and is now a subsidiary title to the marquessate of Salisbury. Background The title was first created for Patrick de S ...

thanking him for sending some money for him from King James, and asked for an annual pension with a patent letter written in Latin. Sinclair was sent to London in February 1614 to discuss disputes in

Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...

and alliances. He spoke to the Venetian ambassador

Antonio Foscarini Antonio Foscarini (c. 1570 in Venice – April 22, 1622) belonged to the Venetian nobility and was Venetian ambassador to Paris and later to London. He was the third son of Nicolò di Alvise of the family branch of San Polo and Maria Barbarigo di ...

about Denmark's ratification of an agreement between Brandenburg and Saxony. King James gave a diamond, which he had bought from

George Heriot George Heriot (15 June 1563 – 12 February 1624) was a Scottish goldsmith and philanthropist. He is chiefly remembered today as the founder of George Heriot's School, a large independent school in Edinburgh; his name has also been given to H ...

for £320. Christian IV visited England again in August 1614, coming incognito to surprise his sister at Denmark House, accompanied only by Sinclair and a page. Christian IV aggressive policy towards Sweden was met with reluctance and skepticism in Skåne, since the province would be the first to feel the impact of war in case of hostilities. The King needed faithful supporters in the province, and hence Sinclair was made colonel of the Scanian Regiment in 1615, and became recipient of a number of land donations. The following year he was made one of a very limited number of knights of the Order of the Armed Arm. In 1617 Sinclair became a member of the privy council of the Danish realm; the King needed loyal followers in that august body, as its resistance towards his foreign policy was mounting. He was the King's confidential adviser in matters concerning

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

, utilizing his many friends and connections to Danish advantage, especially James VI, with whom he was in great favour. Sinclair was the Danish King's envoy in Britain a number of times between 1606 and 1621, managing to influence James VI into adopting a more pro-Danish, and less pro-Swedish, stance. Tandrup, Leo. "Andrew Sinclair". ''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon'', 3. ed., Gyldendal 1979–84.
Retrieved 2016-12-08. At the same time Sinclair acted as the British King's emissary at the Danish court. Sinclair was hosted in London by the German born goldsmith

John Spilman Sir John Spilman (also spelt Spielman) (died 1626) was a Lindau, German-born entrepreneur who founded the first commercially successful paper-mill in England, establishing a factory on the River Darenth in Dartford, Kent in 1588.Dartford: Cradle of ...

Personal life

In 1600, Sinclair married Kirsten Eriksdatter Kaas, in a ceremony at the Royal Palace. She was a

maid of honour A maid of honour is a junior attendant of a queen in royal households. The position was and is junior to the lady-in-waiting. The equivalent title and office has historically been used in most European royal courts. Role Traditionally, a queen ...

to the Queen, and of the Danish noble family af Sparre. Some sources name her as Sophie Eriksdatter Kaas, a daughter of Erik Kaas of Gjelskov and Anna Emmiksen, who was a maid of honour to Anne of Denmark, and assisted at her coronation in Edinburgh on 17 May 1590. Sophie Kaas intended to marry a Scottish courtier but he died before the wedding. They had three sons, and one daughter; Jakob (James) Sinclair (who also served James VI), Johanne Andersdatter Sinclair, Erik Sinclair, and Christian Sinclair. Sinclair had Gladsaxehus as a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...

, 1600–1620; Gislöv from 1613;

Landskrona Landskrona (old da, Landskrone) is a town in Scania, Sweden. Located on the shores of the Öresund, it occupies a natural port, which has lent the town at first military and subsequent commercial significance. Ferries operate from Landskrona t ...

1619–1621, then exchanged against

Hammershus Hammershus is a medieval era fortification at Hammeren on the northern tip of the Danish island of Bornholm. The fortress was partially demolished around 1750 and is now a ruin. It was partially restored around 1900. History Hammershus was Sca ...

. The King gave him Sandby in Göinge as

allodial Allodial title constitutes ownership of real property (land, buildings, and fixtures) that is independent of any superior landlord. Allodial title is related to the concept of land held "in allodium", or land ownership by occupancy and defens ...

possession; in the vicinity he began to build Sinclairsholm, which, however, was not completed until after his death. He also held Kronovall until his death.''Kronovall, Sverige''
Retrieved 2016-12-11.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sinclair, Andrew 1555 births 1625 deaths Emigrants from the Kingdom of Scotland to Denmark Younger sons of barons