The Sutherland

  Motto: "Sans Peur" (Without fear) Plant Badge: Butchers Broom, Cotton Sedge Lands The seat of the Chief of Sutherland is Dunrobin Castle. However, they also owned Duffus Castle in Moray, Scotland, from the 1350s to 1705.   The name Sutherland originates for the Norse "Sudrland" which referred to the land that is south of the Norse earldom of Orkney and Caithness. The origins of the Sutherlands can be traced back to a Flemish man named Freskin de Moravia. Freskin owned a large amount of land in Sudrland and Duffus during the 12th Century. The Sutherland Clan, under Chief William de Moravia, fought at Bannockburn in 1314. The Sutherlands had a strong connection to royalty, as William was married to the daughter of Robert the Bruce.   During the Jacobite uprisings of 1745, the Sutherlands fought with the Jacobites. After their defeat, members of the Sutherland Clan emigrated to Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States of America where Sutherland Clan societies have grown in honour of their heritage. The current chief of Clan Sutherland is Elizabeth Sutherland, 24th Countess of Sutherland.   The Modern Sutherland tartan is distinguished by its dark green and blue bands, as well as by its red and white stripes. The tartan seen on this postcard however, is an example of the Sutherland Hunting tartan, as it is only green and blue, and does not have the red and white stripes of the Modern tartan. There are at least seven tartans belonging to the Clan Sutherland, all of which are available for use by anyone from the Chiene, Cheyne, Duffus, Grey, Keith, Mowatt, Murray and Oliphant families.