The Sutherlands of Forse were a minor

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

noble family. Kenneth Sutherland, 1st of Forse was the second son of William de Moravia, 5th Earl of Sutherland. They were a cadet branch of the

Clan Sutherland Clan Sutherland is a Highland Scottish clan whose traditional territory is the shire of Sutherland in the far north of Scotland. The chief of the clan was also the powerful Earl of Sutherland, however in the early 16th century this title passed t ...

. The Sutherland Lairds of Forse were seated at Forse Castle on the east coast of the county of

Caithness Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded b ...

. They lived there until about the year 1660. They later built a mansion house about a mile inland. This was demolished and replaced with a greater mansion house called "Forse House" which the Lairds of Forse occupied until 1905 and has since been used as a hotel and nursing home. In the early 16th century the Earldom of Sutherland passed through a female heiress to the Gordon family. Later, during the late 16th century the Sutherland Lairds of Forse supported the

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 ha ...

in a feud against the Gordon family who had taken over as

Earls of Sutherland Earl of Sutherland is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created circa 1230 for William de Moravia and is the premier earldom in the Peerage of Scotland. The earl or countess of Sutherland is also the chief of Clan Sutherland. The origi ...

, and Nicolas Sutherland, brother of the Laird of Forse was killed at the

Battle of Clynetradwell The Battle of Clynetradwell was a Scottish clan battle that took place in 1590 in the county of Sutherland between the forces of Alexander Gordon, 12th Earl of Sutherland (chief of Clan Sutherland) and George Sinclair, 5th Earl of Caithness (ch ...

in 1590. John Sutherland of Forse was a Captain in

Loudon's Highlanders Loudon's Highlanders, or the 64th Highlanders, or Earl of Loudon's Regiment of Foot, was an infantry regiment of the British Army. History Formation The great bravery of the 42nd Regiment of Foot, 43rd Highlanders (later renumbered the 42nd) an ...

regiment during the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took ...

. Upon the death of William Gordon, 18th Earl of Sutherland in 1766, George Sutherland of Forse made a claim for the Earldom, based on his descent from William, 5th Earl of Sutherland who died in 1370. However, the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster ...

found the case in favour of Elizabeth, only surviving daughter of the 18th Earl. The last Sutherland Laird of Forse in the direct line died in 1909, leaving two daughters but no son.

Lairds of Forse

*Kenneth Sutherland, 1st Laird of Forse (third son of William, 5th Earl of Sutherland d. 1370). *John Sutherland, 2nd of Forse. *Richard Sutherland, 3rd of Forse. *John Sutherland, 4th of Forse. *Robert Sutherland (died before his father but left three sons). *Richard Sutherland, 5th of Forse. *William Sutherland, 6th of Forse. (d. 1564) (younger brother of 5th Laird) *Alexander Sutherland 7th of Forse. (younger brother of 6th Laird) *Donald Sutherland, 8th of Forse. *Alexander Sutherland, 9th of Forse. (d. c. 1645) *James Sutherland, 10th of Forse. (d. c. 1655) *George Sutherland, 11th of Forse. *George Sutherland, 12th of Forse. *John Sutherland, 13th of Forse. (Second son the 12th Laird). *George Sutherland, 14th of Forse. (d. 1773) *John Campbell Sutherland, 15th of Forse. (d. 1828) (Younger brother of the 14th Laird). *John Sutherland, 16th of Forse. (d. 1846) *George Sutherland, 17th of Forse. (Younger brother of the 16th Laird). *John William Sutherland, 18th of Forse. (d. 1909)

References

{{reflist Sutherland of Forse Sutherland of Forse Sutherland of Forse Lairds People from Caithness

Lairds of Forse

See also

References