DUNROBIN 



overtake a lord of this stately demesne, soil, aspect 

 and climate combine to assure him of an ample 

 reward. 



In the garden of Dunrobin one cannot but be 

 impressed, as in other historic Scottish houses, with 

 a sense of contrast between past and present. Where 

 everything seems so orderly and secure, it is good to 

 remember the system of anarchy and violence which 

 once over-rode all law. No part of Scotland was 

 more fiercely riven with blood-feuds than the counties 

 of Sutherland and Caithness. Administration of 

 justice was, of necessity, committed to the barons, 

 and, like all hereditary functions, was liable to gross 

 abuse when it passed into unworthy hands. 



The chronicle of crime and terrorism in these 

 counties is so confused, the actors in deeds of 

 violence changed sides so often, that it is difficult 

 to follow the intricate narrative. But in the six- 

 teenth century two implacable rivals stand out 

 among the ruck of minor marauders in the persons 

 of the Earl of Sutherland and the Earl of 

 Caithness. In 1514 the Earldom of Sutherland 

 devolved upon Elizabeth, sister of John, eleventh 

 earl. She married Adam Gordon, second son of the 

 Earl of Huntly, and her husband became titular 

 Earl of Sutherland. Adam, being a man of common 

 sense, determined to put an end to the wasteful 

 rivalry between the house of Dunrobin and the Earl 

 of Caithness. Each had a common enemy in the 

 clan Mackay, inveterate brigands, who raided the 

 2 A 193 



