The Orkney Isles, along with the Shetland Isles to their immediate north, lie off the northernmost tip of Caithness Scotland. Pictish peoples probably 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 Norse 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. The Orkney Islands form one of 32 unitary council regions in Scotland, and are a Lieutenancy Area. ... Caithness (Gallaibh in Gaelic) is a traditional county and former administrative county within the Highland area of Scotland. ... Timeline of Scottish history Caledonia List of not fully sovereign nations Subdivisions of Scotland National parks (Scotland) Traditional music of Scotland Flower of Scotland Wars of Scottish Independence National Trust for Scotland Historic houses in Scotland Castles in Scotland Museums in Scotland Abbeys and priories in Scotland Gardens in Scotland... The Picts inhabited Caledonia (Scotland), north of the River Forth. ... The name Viking is a loan from the native Scandinavian term for the Norse seafaring warriors who raided the coasts of Scandinavia, Europe and the British Isles from the late 8th century to the 11th century, the period of European history referred to as the Viking Age. ...

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. 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. Harald I (b. ... An Earl as a member of the British peerage ranks below a Marquess and above a Viscount. ...

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 exchanged lands in Caithness Scotland to the 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:

The first grant of the title of Earl of Orkney after James III took the lands under the Scottish Crown was to Henry Sinclair in 1379. William Sinclair exchanged the title for that of Earl of Caithness, however, moving the connection between these two earldoms back towards the mainland once again. Earl of Orkney - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

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. The title Earl of Bothwell has been created twice in the Peerage of Scotland. ... Jump to: navigation, search Mary I of Scotland (Mary Stuart or Mary Stewart) (December 8, 1542 – February 8, 1587), better known as Mary, Queen of Scots, was Queen of Scots, monarch of the Kingdom of Scotland, from December 14, 1542 – July 24, 1567; and Queen Consort of France from July...

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. Jump to: navigation, search Norn is an extinct North Germanic language that was spoken on the Shetland Islands and Orkney Islands, off the coast 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

[1] A good site detailing the history and culture of the Orkney Isles.