George Sinclair (died 1676) was a Scottish nobleman, 6th

Earl of Caithness Earl of Caithness is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland, and it has a very complex history. Its first grant, in the modern sense as to have been counted in strict lists of peerages, is now generally held to hav ...

, and chief of the

Clan Sinclair Clan Sinclair ( ) is a Highland Scottish clan which holds the lands of Caithness, the Orkney Islands, and the Lothians. The chiefs of the clan were the Barons of Roslin and later the Earls of Orkney and Earls of Caithness. The Sinclairs are be ...

, a

Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Scottish Gaelic , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred') is a kinship group among the Scottish people. Clans give a sense of shared heritage and descent to members, and in modern times have an official structure r ...

of the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

Early life

George Sinclair, 6th Earl of Caithness was the son of John Sinclair, Master of Berriedale and his wife Jean, daughter of Colin Mackenzie, 1st Earl of Seaforth. His paternal grandparents were William Sinclair, Lord Berriedale and Mary, daughter of Henry Sinclair, Lord Sinclair. William Sinclair, Lord Berriedale was in turn a son of George Sinclair, 5th Earl of Caithness. George Sinclair, 6th Earl of Caithness succeeded his great-grandfather and was served heir to John, Master of Berridale, his father in the earldom of Caithness on 21 March 1644.

Earl of Caithness

Civil War

After the

Stuart Restoration The Stuart Restoration was the reinstatement in May 1660 of the Stuart monarchy in Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland. It replaced the Commonwealth of England, established in January 164 ...

the Earl of Caithness had become a royalist and was active in suppressing the

Covenanters Covenanters were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. It originated in disputes with James VI and his son ...

. He was a member of the

Privy Council of Scotland The Privy Council of Scotland ( — 1 May 1708) was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. During its existence, the Privy Council of Scotland was essentially considered as the government of the Kingdom of Scotland, and was seen as the most ...

and Lord Lieutenant of the county of

Caithness Caithness (; ; ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Scotland. There are two towns, being Wick, Caithness, Wick, which was the county town, and Thurso. The count ...

. A Sinclair clansmen, John Sinclair of

Dunbeath Castle Dunbeath Castle is located on the east coast of Caithness, south of Dunbeath, in northern Scotland. Although a castle has stood here since the 15th century, the present building is of mainly 17th-century origin, with 19th-century extensions. ...

, joined the royalist

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose (1612 – 21 May 1650) was a Scottish nobleman, poet, soldier and later viceroy and captain general of Scotland. Montrose initially joined the Covenanters in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, but subsequ ...

and was with him at the

Battle of Carbisdale The Battle of Carbisdale (also known as Invercarron) took place close to the village of Culrain, Sutherland, Scotland on 27 April 1650 and was part of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It was fought by the Royalist leader James Graham, 1st Marque ...

in 1650. George Sinclair, 6th Earl of Caithness was present with

Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll (March 160727 May 1661) was a Scottish nobleman, politician, and peer. The ''de facto'' head of Scotland's government during most of the conflict of the 1640s and 1650s known as the Wars of the Three K ...

when

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

was proclaimed "Chiefe Magistrate of thir thrie nations, ouer the Crose of Elb".

Death and dispute to the Earldom of Caithness

George Sinclair, 6th Earl of Caithness married Mary, daughter of Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll, but had no children. He died at

Thurso Castle is a ruined 19th-century castle, located in Thurso, Caithness, in the Scottish Highlands. Situated in Thurso East,east of the River Thurso, the site can be seen from across the river. The current castle ruins date to 1872; A large part was demol ...

in 1676. At the time of his death he was also an elder in the church of

Thurso Thurso (pronounced ; , ) is a town and former burgh on the north coast of the Highland council area of Scotland. Situated in the historical County of Caithness, it is the northernmost town on the island of Great Britain. From a latitudinal s ...

. It was recorded on 3 May 1676 that "''Mr Andrew Munro, minister of Thurso, did represent that the Earl of Caithness, being visited with heavie sickness, did earnestlie desire that all the Brethen of the Presbie should remember him in the publick and private prayers to God, which desire was cordially entertained''". The Earldom of Caithness being much in debt, he had transferred the estates and the title to his principal creditor, John Campbell of Glenorchy, who upon Sinclair's death was created

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

. This however was challenged by George Sinclair of

Keiss Keiss () is a fishing village at the northern end of Sinclair's Bay on the east coast of Caithness in Scotland's Highland Council area. Keiss castle Keiss Castle, which is now partially ruined, is located less than 1 mile north of the village ...

, son of Francis Sinclair of Northfield, who in turn was a younger son of George Sinclair, 5th Earl of Caithness. On 13 July 1680, Campbell of Glenorchy took a force of 800 men north to evict Sinclair of Keiss, who was waiting for him with 500 men near

Wick Wick most often refers to: * Capillary action ("wicking") ** Candle wick, the cord used in a candle or oil lamp ** Solder wick, a copper-braided wire used to desolder electronic contacts Wick or WICK may also refer to: Places and placenames ...

. Inflamed with drink, the Sinclairs attacked the force of Campbells and were routed in what is known as the

Battle of Altimarlach The Battle of Altimarlach was a Scottish clan battle that took place on 13 July 1680, near Wick, Caithness, Scotland. It was fought in a dispute between Sir John Campbell of Glenorchy and George Sinclair of Keiss over who had the right to the ...

. Legend has it that so many Sinclairs were killed that the Campbells were able to cross the river without getting their feet wet. However, in 1681 the

made a

proclamation A proclamation (Lat. ''proclamare'', to make public by announcement) is an official declaration issued by a person of authority to make certain announcements known. Proclamations are currently used within the governing framework of some nations ...

in favor of Sinclair of Keiss who became the 7th Earl of Caithness and Campbell of Glenorchy was created Earl of Breadalbane and Holland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caithness, George Sinclair, 6th Earl of

Nobility from Highland (council area) Earls of Caithness

Early life

Earl of Caithness

Civil War

Death and dispute to the Earldom of Caithness

See also

References