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1492


Brian
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In the ‘Timeline’ section of the excellent site Shetlopedia, we read as follows, under the heading ‘May 1492’:

 

‘18th. William Sinclair of Houss is respited along with Edward Sinclair of Strom, Magnus Sinclair of Wersetter, John Sinclair of Tollap, Oliver Sinclair of Havera and others by King James V, for the slaughter of John, third Earl of Caithness, at Summersdale in the parish of Stennes, on 18th May, 1492, when the Earl was defeated and slain by the men of Orkney and Zetland under Sir James Sinclair.’

 

This pardon or respite, issued to various Shetlanders and Orcadians, was issued on 19 September 1539 (Register of the Privy Seal of Scotland, ii, no. 3151). The battle of Summerdale, also referred to, took place in 1529, not 1492.

 

I know from experience that a few of the older contributors to Shetlopedia can get upset about corrections to the entries ;-) However, the well-known facts referred to above can easily be checked. I recommend some changes for the sake of accuracy.

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Information, especially historical, is only as good as the publication, and therefor by default the research of the individual(s) who originally compiled the publication. I don't know the original source of that entry, but it can and will be found out, and re-checked for accuracy. Unfortunately some of us do not have the advantage of having spent an entire life immersed in one specalist subject that others have, nor do we have the ability to access any and all available information on said subject as part of our paid day job, and take same home with us if we feel like it. We have to rely largely on what commercially produced publications and web opensource facilities on the subject are available as the only reasonably easily accessible sources. And they, as I'm sure you already know, all range from very good, to unfortunately the very bad and altogether wrong, regardless of whomever produced them.

 

As regards your closing shot, I'm going to refrain from direct comment as Shetlink is not an appropriate medium to discuss your allegation. Suffice to say, any Wiki is the sum total of all of its contributors and unless there is a free flow of information and opinions among all, and a full and open debate and discussion over contentious and disputed points of information. Which inevitably will necessitate give and take by all parties until a mutually acceptable compromise as to appropriate information, and the wording thereof is attained. It becomes a dictatorship and the "personal" site of whomever assumes the dictator's role, as it presents the present and past, only as seen through their eyes, which isn't necessarily unbiased, accurate, or complete.

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Guest Anonymous

As is usual with the writing of any article, errors can, and will occur.

I assume that is the reason that this topic about 1492, and has been titled 1429 :lol:

Anyway it should have been 1592. If Grant's County Families can be believed.

 

(*** Mod - Title updated from 1429 ;) ***)

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I've found out that that battle was in 1529....Grant's County Families has made a typo ;-)..I should ofcourse have checked it....

I'm one of the really old Shetlopedians, but I have no problem to accept the facts if I can get a link to a soruce that can be trusted !!!

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