ORKNEY and NORWAY

[Mo Docherty]

Orkney considering becoming part of norway again

[Bob Williams (2)]

I visited Orkney last month and at the time was unaware that they were considering becoming part of Norway. I noticed that the flag of Orkney was remarkably similar to the Norwegian Flag. A Norwegian bible was open on the alter of St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall. I should have guessed.

[Bill Morrison]

Post#2. Well Bob to try and understand the Orkney- Norway connection you have to go back to the 12th & 13th centuries.
The Norsemen were in control of much of Northern Scotland, the Western Ilses and the Isle of Man. After much warfare the Norwegians under king Haakon were defeated at the battle of Largs in 1263. Haakon's son Magnus tried in vain for peace, but the Scots took control of the Western Ilses and the Isle of Man. By the treaty of Perth 1266 Norway ceded to Scotland all of its possessions save Orkney and Shetland for cash payment.
The treaty of 1266 was honourable. The Norse inhabitants of the Northern territory were given the option of staying or departing with all their goods. Those that remained kept to their way of life. The inhabitants of Thurso to this day will disclaim any connection with the Clans and the catherdral of St Magnus is a monument to Norse architecture.
Over time the Norse people were absorbed into Scotland but to this day still think they are Norsemen.
Bill.

[j.sabourn]

That ceremony they have every year in Shetland is proof of that Bill . When in SML and Working out of Lerwick bumped into an old ex crew member who had emigrated from the Falklands and after doing a couple of terms on a supply boat went to live there.when I asked why ? He said it was the nearest thing to the Falkland Islands and he thought he had never left. He was that popular with the community he was the head man in their ceremony of the burning of the Viking ship the year I remet him . However there were no politics in his make up. Apart of course from his anti Argentine ones. JS

[Bob Williams (2)]

Thank you Bill and j. I found your contributions most interesting. I visited the Orkney Island twice before. The first time was about 25 years ago on a diving holiday in Scapa Flow, and dived on and learnt about the interest WW1 wrecks still laying there. In more recent times I visited Scara Brae and the Standing Stones of Stennes, thousands of year old, and are relics of the Neolithic Folk. I am not sure what happened to them, but eventually the Orkney Island were subject to many raids from the Norsemen, who eventually became the majority. If I recall. recent testing of DNA of a sample population shows the majority of the population has Norse Blood.

[Rodney Mills]

Bob Williams (2)

25 years ago my late wife and I crossed from John O'Groats to the isle with the intention of diving Scapa flow and the wrecks. We both have Master Scuba Divers' qualification and specialty qualification in P.D.I.A. Wreck diving, plus six other specialties and have logged over 200 dives. We were vacationing touring GB. backpacking and obviously were not traveling with our own scuba gear, in any case our wet suits etc. were for 7mm and 9mm would have been necessary, so we had planned on renting at the dive shop in...forgot the name of the town...we passed through Scarpa flow and could see parts of ships above the surface and we understood you could dive the scuttled German Fleet but not the Brit wrecks as they were classified as monuments to the entrapped bodies of the Royal Navy officers and men. And the German vessels were scuttled without loss of life thus approved. We went to the Dive shop and asked to rent gear and were told they didn't rent gear. I asked where was the nearest place we could rent gear and was told LONDON. (smart ass).

So we made do with a tour of the Island

Lucky you, to make the dive.

Cheers, Rodney