PANEL 27    Haakon at Kyleakin

In the summer of 1263, King Haakon of Norway mustered a huge fleet. Alexander II and his son, Alexander III, were actively attempting to incorporate the Atlantic coastlands and islands into their kingdom of Scotland. The gathering of the vast Norwegian fleet after it had crossed the North Sea must have been a memorable sight for it is remembered in a well-known place name. Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye is from the Kyles or Narrows of Haakon, the place where the king’s fleet dropped anchor, gathered intelligence and made plans. By October, the fleet had moved south to occupy the Firth of Clyde, using the shelter of the Cumbraes as an anchorage and a source of water and supplies. Negotiations opened but soon failed and, on a stormy night, several Norwegian ships were driven onshore at Largs. A Scottish force arrived and fierce fighting followed on the beach. It was inconclusive but nevertheless the season and the weather were against Haakon, October being late in the year for a large fleet to be at sea, and they set sail for Norway. Three years later, the Treaty of Perth was agreed and the ancient dispute over the sovereignty of the Hebrides, the Atlantic shore and the Isle of Man was settled in Scotland’s favour. But Orkney and Shetland were to remain outside the realm of the MacMalcolm kings and their heirs for another two centuries.

 

Panel stitched by:

South Skye Stitchers

Margaret Scott

Margaret Govier

Laila Hall

Ann Hickey

Julie Mace

Emma Morrison

Flora Struthers

Stitched in:

Isle of Skye