Re: Scots in Sweden

[Niven Sinclair <niven@niven.co.uk>]

At 23:03 18/05/99 -0500, you wrote:
>Niven,
>
>I've put your Swedish writeup on the web pages in
> http://www.mids.org/sinclair/se.html
>
>Is this OK?
>
>Thanks,
>John
>

Great, but it was just meant as a follow-up to the information which I have
been passing to Lena to allow her to trace her own family genealogy and to
reinforce the European dimension
of the Sinclair family.  We came from Continental Europe (like many other
Norse/Norman families) but we maintained our links.  Indeed, Richelde St
Clair (the first Sinclair lady to be
born in Scotland) returned to Normandy to marry her cousin, Robert of
Chaumont.

Prince Henry made frequent trips to Norway, Denmark and Sweden.  His
brother, John,
married Princess Eugene of Denmark whilst his son, John, married Ingeborg,
the 'natural' daughter of King Waldemar of Sweden by Tova Little who was
the daughter of the Commissioner of Rugen.  Prince Henry had also been
betrothed to Princess Florentia but, as she died before reaching puberty,
they were never 'bedded' which left him free to marry his  childhood
sweetheart, Janet Halyburton by whom he had 13 children who, in turn,
married into the major Scottish families - thus strengthening his own power
base on both
sides of the North Sea.  He was the premier 'jarl' of Norway by dint of his
descent from the
House of  Moere.  His grandson, William Sinclair, was a contender for the
throne of Norway on the break-up of the Kalmar Union which had united the
three Scandinavian countries for the first time in 1397.  This was all part
of the (Sinclair) strategy to build up a Norse Commonwealth which would
have included, Scandinavia, Scotland, Henry's own 200 islands in the North
Atlantic, Iceland, Greenland, Markland, Helluland and Vinland in order to
combat the growing power of the Hanseatic League of German merchants.

I must stop  otherwise I will go on forever.

In haste,

Niven


>
>>There is a book called "Scots in Sweden" by Jonas Berg and Bo Lagercrantz
>>and published
>>by the Swedish Institure in Stockholm in 1962 (The Nordiska Museet) which
>>may be of some interest to you even although it will not add much to your
>>specific research it will give you some indication of the depth and the
>>extent of Scottish penetration into the military affairs of Sweden.
>>
>>The Scots exported  more than whisky.  They exported soldiers - the most
>>famous of them
>>forming the Garde Ecossaise* to protect the French Kings and those who went
>>to help King
>>Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden who had 34 Scottish Colonels and 60 Lieutenant
>>Colonels in his service - including a whole list of Sinclairs whowere
>>elevated to the Swedish aristocracy by becoming the Counts of Lambahof and
>>the Barons of Finnekumla of that country.
>>
>>* The Garde Ecossaise was invariably commanded by a Sinclair or by a
>>Montgomery.  In
>>this connection it is interesting to note that Field Marshall Viscount
>>Montogomery and
>>Field Marshall Lord Alexander, who were the two outstanding British
>>Generals during the
>>last war,  have a Sinclair lineage.  Coincidence?
>>

>>Niven Sinclair
> 


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