General Notes

Name Suffix:<NSFX> 6th Baron of Rosslyn
Battle of Largs-Oct 2, 1263
It was 25 miles north of Prestwick on Route A-78 along the coast,
Strathclyde, Scotland.  At the Battle of Largs in 1263 the Scots repelled
the last Norse invasion.  Sir William St. Clair, 6th Baron of Rosslyn
(about 1270-1270), led the soldiers of King Alexander III of Scotland to
a glorious victory.  A column marks the spot of the Battle, and the
annual Viking Festival in September celebrates the occasion. The Battle
of Largs was fought on 2nd October, 1263 when Alexander III was King of
Scotland and Magnus III was 'jarl' of Orkney.  He accompanied King Haakon
V of Norway on theill-fated expedition against Scotland which ended in
such disastrous circumstances at Largs.
Sir William St. Clair of Roslin,  commanded the men from Merse,
Teviotdale, Lothian, Fife, Berwick and Stirlingshire which formed part of
King  Alexander's force of 40,000 men. It is recorded that King Haakon
wasso bent on this particular expedition that he ignored the 'awful
warning' ofthe eclipse which occurred whilst he was in Orkney collecting
his forces on August 25th, 1363.
Haakon's fleet was largely destroyed by the weather which drove his ships
ashore at Largs where the locals fell upon the drowning sailorswith
great zeal.  Haakon's reinforcements were also defeated. King Haakon
returned to Orkney with the remnant of his fleet where he died.
The Battle ofLargs was a decisive one.  It marked the end of any
semblance of Norse rule
over the Western Isles of Scotland.
The loss of the Western Isles was one of the reasons why there was such
an undue delay in the appointment of Henry St.Clair to be 'jarl' of
Orkney.  Malise II died in 1345 (the year of Jarl Henry's birth) and,
yet, Henry was not granted the 'jarldom' of Orkney until 1379.In the
interim period the Norwegian kings tried a succession of incompetent
appointees until, finally, they  were obliged (through poverty and loss
ofcontrol) to appoint the one man who could bring any semblance of order
to theunruly Northern Isles even although it would be remembered that
his father had taken part in the Battle of Largs which brought about the
loss of Norse power in the West.  Would Henry bring about the loss of
Norse power in the North?  Was this why the terms of his installation
were so burdensome?  Was thiswhy he was forbidden to build a Castle  -a
condition which he immediately broke by building a castle of which it was
said:
"I protest to God that the house has never been biggit* without the
consent of the Devil, for it is one ofthe strongest holds in Britain
-without fellow"
* biggit = built.
Strangely, it was Jarl Henry's grandson, Earl William St. Clair's, who
saw the transfer of the Northern Isles from Norway to Scotland.  They
came as the dowry of Princess Margaret who married King James III of
Scotland
And, even more strangely, it was the Sinclairs who suffered most because
of this transfer of sovereignty. The Stewart Kings were determined to
break the Sinclair power.  EarlWilliam not only lost the 'jarldom' of
Orkney but the King required him to break up his vast Estates into three
separate entities.
Earl William (knowingthat he would lose the 'jarldom' lands) bought up
one third of all the  'udal'* lands in Orkney and Shetland, thereby
maintaining the Sinclair presence in the islands.  Seeing this, the
Stewart Kings set the Sinclairs of Caithnessagainst the Sinclairs of
Orkney.  This resulted in the bloody battle of Summerdale in 1528 when
Sinclair slaughtered Sinclair.
* freehold.
Battle Lewes- 1265
A certain Simon of Montfort was the Earl of Leicester, England.  He
gained great influence over other barons and bishops, and they drew up
the "Provisions of Oxford".  King Henry III objected, and a civil war
broke out.  Afierce battle was fought at Lewes in Sussex where the
rebellious barons werevictorious.  They captured the King.  Several