Clan Oliphant

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Clan Oliphant
Motto A tout pouvoir (From Fre. Provide for all)[1]
Chief
Richard Oliphant of that Ilk[1]
Chief of the Name and Arms of Oliphant
Seat Ardblair Castle[2]
Historic seat Kellie Castle

Clan Oliphant is a Highland Scottish clan.[2]

History

Origins of the clan

The earliest traceable member of this house is considered to be Roger Olifard, who witnessed a foundation charter to the Clunic priory of St. Andrew's, Northampton, by Earl Simon.[3] The Charter was dated between 1093 and 1100 and Roger himself made a grant of 3 shillings yearly to this priory.[4]

The Oliphants were a family of Norman origin who first held lands around Northamptonshire in England.[2] In Domesday, Northamptonshire, there is a mention of "In Lilleford, Willelmus Olyfart", which land was held of the Countess Judith.[5] Also in the Pipe Roll, 31 Hen. I is mention of a William Olifard of Northamptonshire as well as a Hugh Olifard of Huntingdonshire.[5] William held five hides in Lilford (Lilleford) of the fee of the King of Scotland while Hugh Olifard of Stokes was a knight in the service of the Abbot of Petersborough before 1120; both appear in the pipe roll of 1130.[6]

The progenitor of the Olifard family was "David Holyfard", godson of King David I of Scotland and in 1141 his protector; who was also in possession of Lilford (Lilleford) in Northamptonshire, showing the Northamptonshire family connection to Scotland.[5] David was a son of William Olifard, mentioned in the pipe rolls of Cambridgeshire (1158), Northamptonshire (1163) and Huntingdonshire (1168 and 1169). He saved his godfather, David I of Scotland, from capture during the Battle of Winchester in 1141.[7][2] David held the lands of Crailing and Smailholm, both in Roxburghshire, and served as the Justiciar of Lothian.[2] He is not mentioned in records after 1170 and is supposed to have died shortly thereafter.[8] One of David's sons was sent as a hostage for William the Lion.[2]

David Olifard's son Sir Walter Olifard, the second Justiciar, in 1173 married Christian, the daughter of Ferchar, Earl of Strathearn; her dowry was the lands of Strageath.[9]

Wars of Scottish Independence

The Oliphant name appears on the Ragman Rolls of 1296 submitting to Edward I of England.[2] However, like most of the Scots forced to swear fealty to the English king, the Olphants soon took up the cause of Scottish independence.[2]

During the Wars of Scottish Independence Sir William Oliphant fought at the Battle of Dunbar (1296) and was captured and imprisoned at Devizes in England.[10] He was released and appointed Constable of Stirling Castle. In 1304 Stirling was the final stronghold remaining in Scots hands. King Edward I of England laid siege to the castle for three months before they surrendered.[11] Sir William was again captured and sent to the Tower of London.[12][2] He was later released and appointed Governor of Perth by King Edward II of England.[10] Perth was subsequently captured by King Robert the Bruce and Sir William was sent in chains to the Western Isles where it is presumed he died.[10] There is no further mention of him in any records.[10]

His cousin, whom he is sometimes confused with, William Oliphant, Lord of Aberdalgie also fought at the battle of Dunbar and was also captured and was sent to Rochester Castle where he was held, being released only after agreeing to serve King Edward I of England overseas.[13] He returned to Scotland where he was second in command of Stirling Castle under his cousin, Sir William Oliphant.[14] He was captured once again, this time being imprisoned at Wallingford Castle. Sir William was released at least by 1313 and served the Bruce in the continued struggle to defeat the English. He was one of the signatories to the Declaration of Arbroath on 6 April 1320 and his seal is still visible.[15] He was subsequently rewarded with land at Gallery, Angus in Angus, Gask in Perthshire and Newtyle both in Perthshire. He was also given the lands of Muirhouse near Edinburgh in compensation for lands taken by King John de Balliol in Kincardineshire.[16]

Sir William's son, Sir Walter Oliphant, Lord of Aberdalgie, married Princess Elizabeth, the youngest daughter of King Robert the Bruce.[17]

Their resting place may be in the family vault in Aberdalgie Churchyard (formerly inside the church before that moved) which is better known as the tomb of Sir William Oliphant Lord of Aberdalgie and Dupplin. The tomb was covered by an effigy which is the finest example of Tournai stone work in Scotland. From the design of the armour of the recumbent figure of the effigy, it has been dated to around 1365, which was some long time after Sir William died but fits most closely with the dates of Sir Walter and his Royal bride. The tomb is now the registered lair of the Chief of Clan Oliphant.

15th century and clan conflicts

Olyfavnt tartan, as published in 1842 in Vestiarium Scoticum.

Sir John Oliphant was knighted by Robert II of Scotland while his son, Sir Laurence Oliphant of Aberdalgy, was created a Lord of Parliament in 1458 by James II of Scotland.[2] He was later keeper of Edinburgh Castle.[2]

In 1455, Sir John Oliphant was killed at the Battle of Arbroath,[18] supporting the Clan Ogilvy in a clan battle against the Clan Lindsay.[19]

16th century and Anglo-Scottish wars

During the Anglo-Scottish Wars, Sir Laurence Oliphant's grandson was killed at the Battle of Flodden in 1513 and his great-grandson was captured at the Battle of Solway Moss in 1542.[2]

The fourth Lord Oliphant supported Mary, Queen of Scots and fought for her at the Battle of Langside in 1568.[2]

The chief's eldest son, another Laurence, was implicated in the conspiracy known as the Ruthven Raid led by the Clan Ruthven, to kidnap the young King James VI of Scotland and was therefore exiled in 1582.[2] The ship in which he and his co-conspirator, the Master of Morton sailed in was lost at sea.[2]

17th century and Civil War

When the direct male line died out Charles I of England bestowed the title on the nearest male cousin, Patrick Oliphant.[2] The Clan Oliphant were devoted to the Jacobite cause and Charles Oliphant, the ninth Lord Oliphant fought at the Battle of Killiecrankie in 1689 and was afterwards imprisoned.[2]

18th century and Jacobite risings

Patrick Oliphant's son, Charles Oliphant, the ninth Lord Oliphant strongly opposed the Treaty of Union in 1707 and joined his cousin, Oliphant of Gask in the Jacobite rising of 1715.[2] The tenth and last Lord Oliphant played an active role in the Jacobite rising of 1745.[2] After the defeat at the Battle of Culloden he escaped firstly to Sweden and then to France.[2] He was allowed to return to Scotland in 1763 but did not relent his opposition to the Hanoverians.[2]

Carolina Oliphant (Lady Nairne), daughter of the Oliphant Laird of Gask was a renowned Jacobite poet.[2]

Modern times

Clan Chief

Clan Chief: Richard Eric Laurence Oliphant of that Ilk, Chief of the Name and Arms of Oliphant,[20] and heir male to the dormant Oliphant Lords Oliphant, Aberdalgy and Duplin created before 1460, as well as to the Lords Oliphant emanating from the second creation of the Lordship of Oliphant on 2 June 1633 and, to the subsequent Jacobite peerage, created by Prince Charles Edward Stuart on 14 July 1760 in Rome for Laurence Oliphant.[lower-alpha 1]

The Chief is also Chieftain of the CONDIE branch. Scions of the latter include an Admiral; an Ambassador (author of "Ambassador in Bonds";) a Chairman of the Hon. East India Company who was also appointed by Queen Victoria as guardian to Maharajah Duleep Singh; a Chief Justice of Ceylon who first planted tea bushes commercially when the coffee rust hit the latter crop; two Generals; several knights, two Scottish MPs and Thomas Oliphant (musician and artist) (1799–1873) who wrote the chorale for the wedding of King Edward vii and Queen Alexandra[21][22] and also wrote his own interpretation as the first English words to the Christmas carol "Deck the Hall(s) with Boughs of Holly"[23][24][25][26] amateur composer, Chairman of the Madrigal Society and author inter alia of La Musa Madrigalesca (1837), whose work appears in the English Hymnal.

Three further Chieftains

  • OLIPHANT OF GASK: LAURENCE KINGTON BLAIR OLIPHANT OF ARDBLAIR AND GASK's is Chieftain of Gask in the female line. The Gask branch produced Scotland's greatest poetess, Carolina Nairne, Lady Nairne. Later descendants through the female line, going by the name of Kington-Blair-Oliphant or Blair-Oliphant, include an Air Vice-Marshal and two composers in film and television. Laurence lives at Ardblair Castle, a Clan Blair seat inherited by the Gask Oliphants by marriage to a Robertson of Struan. Ardblair contains not only the majority of the Gask Oliphant artifacts and portraits but also the Lords Oliphants' charters and known possessions, so remains hugely important to Clan Oliphant. With his surname including that of Blair, Laurence is also in the female line a Chieftain of that Clan, as BLAIR of ARDBLAIR and thereby is Chieftain of the nearby Blairgowrie Games;
  • OLIPHANT OF ROSSIE: PHILLIP OLIPHANT OF ROSSIE is Chieftain in the female line of a branch which produced a Postmaster General of Scotland who appeared in Charles Lee's renowned 1847 painting "The Golfers" and, more recently, the late Betty Oliphant, founder of the Canadian National Ballet School;
  • OLIPHANT OF BACHILTON: DAVID OLYPHANT OF BACHILTON is Chieftain in the male line, which is one of the earliest offshoot branches and is most closely linked to the Oliphants of Culteuchar, large landowners in Fife. From the Culteuchar Oliphants descend the largest number of American Oliphants.
  • OLIPHANT OF KELLIE: The Kellie Castle branch, currently without a chieftain, produced Margaret Oliphant, the author.

Other branches

Other branches of Clan Oliphant do exist but as of today they still await rightful claimants for their chieftainly arms and the right to wear one or two eagle's feathers. These have produced a US General, the renowned Australian scientist Sir Mark Oliphant who was involved in the Manhattan Project, his nephew the influential cartoonist, Pat Oliphant and the well-known author and journalist, Thomas Oliphant.

Castles and clan seat

  • Kellie Castle was built and owned by Oliphants from 1360 to 1613.
  • Old Wick Castle and Berriedale Castle, held by Clan Sutherland in the 15th century, came to Sir William Oliphant of Berriedale (the progenitor of the Oliphant's of Berriedale) second son of the second Lord Oliphant, by his marriage to Christian, the daughter and heiress of Alexander Sutherland of Duffus in 1497.
  • Hatton Castle was built in 1575 by Laurence, the 4th Lord Oliphant and replaced the previous nearby wooden fortalice of Balcraig Castle. Hatton Castle was restored in the 20th century.
  • Following the decline in the Oliphant fortunes and the loss of Aberdalgie by the main branch of the family, by the 19th century the estates of Gask in Perthshire, Condie, Rossie also in Perthshire and Kinneddar were those most associated with the Oliphant Clan. Although the land at Gask was held by Oliphants from the mid 14th century and although no Castle was ever built there, it is the site of 'The Auld Hoose' in Carolina Oliphant's song.
  • There is no Clan Seat currently but Ardblair Castle, near Blairgowrie in Perthshire is the seat of one of the Clan Chieftains, the Oliphant of Gask. Ardblair contains the largest collection of Oliphant heirlooms and portraits today.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Concerning Ruvigny's mis-stating of the destination see: Burke's Peerage, 2003, article heading "Jacobite Titles."

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Clan Oliphant Profile scotclans.com. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 Way, George and Squire, Romily. Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs). Published in 1994. Pages 442 - 443.
  3. ↑ J.H. Round, Feudal England (London: Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1895), p. 224
  4. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), p. 522
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 J.H. Round, Feudal England (London: Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1895), p. 223
  6. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), pp. 522-23
  7. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), p. 524
  8. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), p. 525
  9. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), pp. 526-27
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), p. 532
  11. ↑ Archibald Hamilton Dunbar, Scottish kings: a revised chronology of Scottish history, 1005-1625, Second Edition (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1906)p. 123
  12. ↑ John of Fordun's Chronicle of the Scottish Nation, Ed. William F. Skene (Edinburgh: Edmonston and Douglas, 1872), p. 329
  13. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), p. 533
  14. ↑ Alexander Hastie Millar, The historical castles and mansions of Scotland: Perthshire and Forfarshire (London: Alexander Gardner, 1890), p. 127
  15. ↑ Bruce A. McAndrew, Scotland's Historic Heraldry (Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 2006), p. 144
  16. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), pp. 533-4
  17. ↑ The Scots Peerage, Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland, Vol. VI, Ed. James Balfour Paul (Edinburgh: David Douglas, 1909), pp. 534, 536-7
  18. ↑ Wood, John Philip. (1794). Antient and Modern State of the Parish of Cramond: ... Biographical and Genealogical Collections, Respecting ... Families and Individuals Connected with that District, ... Sketch of the Life and Projects of John Law of Lauriston. pp. 25.
  19. ↑ Clan Oliphant History webarchive.org. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  20. ↑ burkespeerage.com
  21. ↑ Marriage ceremonial and chorale sheet 10 March 1863 Printed by Harrison and Sons. Chorale words by Thomas Oliphant
  22. ↑ All Ye Who Music Love (SATB), Wisconsin Music Educators Association.
  23. ↑ Franklin Square Song Collection, 1881
  24. ↑ "Welsh Melodies" Publisher: Addison, Hollier and Lucas; Lamborn Cock and Co.; J.B. Cramer & Co (London). Vols. 1&2 published in 1862. Vol 3 in 1870 and vol. 4 in 1874
  25. ↑ The Song Book by John Hallah
  26. ↑ Papers of the Manchester Literary Club; Manchester: H. Rawson & Co., 1890

External links

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