Dingwall owes its place-name to Norwegian Vikings who ruled northern Scotland from about the end of the ninth century AD.
Dingwall, at the sheltered head of the Cromarty Firth and a place from which the west coast could be reached by way of easy overland routes along the river valleys, became a significant place of Viking administration and decision making, akin to Tynwald. In Norse the name Dingwall means meeting place. Positioned on the frontier between Norse held northern Scotland and the kingdom of the Scots, Dingwall was fought over by both sides. It is believed that during one of the periods it was in the hands of the Scots Dingwall was where Macbeth was born in 1005. It is thought that the town of Dingwall was first created by the Norse Earl Thorfinn the Mighty round about 1050.
Control of the area by the Scottish Kings was not finally achieved until about 1200. In 1226 King Alexander II erected Dingwall into a royal burgh with trading rights throughout Scotland and overseas. The layout of the old town centre is recognisably medieval. There are still buildings gable-ended to the High Street with narrow lanes (locally termed closes or courts) running between them. The fortress at Dingwall, probably first established by the Norse, became one of the thirty royal castles of the Scottish kingdom. During the War of Independence the Castle was garrisoned by the forces of Edward I of England. It was captured for Robert Bruce by William, Earl of Ross. From the Castle in 1314 the Earl led the men of Ross to play their part in the Battle of Bannockburn. In reward King Robert in 1321 granted the Castle with the town and lands of Dingwall to the Earl of Ross. The Castle became the main residence of the Earl of Ross, who met with the lords of his council on the moothill of Dingwall, just as earlier the Viking Earl and his chieftains had done.
In 1411 Angus, Lord of the Isles, unsuccessfully sought to win his claim to the earldom by seizing Dingwall Castle. Eventually in 1438 Alexander, Lord of the Isles, was recognised as Earl of Ross. Alexander settled in Dingwall where he lived as a great prince. From there, as one of the two Justiciars of Scotland, he ruled the whole of Scotland north of the Tay. His son John was not as successful. He unwisely made a secret treaty with Edward IV of England to share Scotland between them. When James III, King of Scots, discovered the existence of that treaty, he had the earldom confiscated in 1475. Ever since, the second son of the monarch has held the title of Earl of Ross. The Castle and the burgh again became royal possessions. Favoured by the Crown, the power of Clan Mackenzie spread throughout Ross. No longer needed for control of Ross, the Castle of Dingwall was abandoned by the Crown about 1600. The Castle slowly fell into ruin and was used as a quarry until it was finally levelled in 1817, leaving visible, but few, fragments.
With administration of Ross no longer centred on Dingwall Castle the town after 1600 slipped into a state of poverty, but clung on to its status as a royal burgh. Events in the eighteenth century brought the beginnings of a revival in the town’s fortunes. The 1707 Treaty of Union ended a Parliament in Edinburgh, but maintained Dingwall’s right to play a part in the sending of a member to the United Kingdom Parliament at Westminster. Each of the northern Scottish royal burghs – Dingwall, Tain, Dornoch, Wick, Thurso and Kirkwall – had one vote in the election of an MP to represent all five of them. Dingwall town council became notorious for accepting bribes in return for its vote. In 1730 money for that vote was used to build Dingwall’s Town House. By the same means in 1774 Dingwall built its first town clock on the central tower of the Town House. It stood there until 1906.
Brehon Law, in honor of those who served as law-givers. The Brehon Law covered all relationships between individuals, social and moral. So balanced and just was the ancient law that it was adopted by the majority of the Norman conquerors and held sway among the populace until ruthlessly put down by the Cromwellian forces in the 17th century; a reflection of a once proud culture through the distorted window of forcefully imposed foreign law. Even in their coming, the invaders, first the Christian armies, then Viking and Norman, found the ancient Irish Law system to the point of emulation and, to an extent, assimilation. Though our only available resources are manuscripts compiled primarily by Christian monks, analysis proves enlightening. The earliest Irish law texts date to the early 7th century. These seem to give us the least distorted view of Law prior to the inexorable erosion that coincided with the increasing influence of first the Catholic Church and finally the Norman conquerors of the 12th century.
One primary reason is that there was no such thing as a truly national government or national law until well into the 9th century. Thus, early-recorded law was a local product for local consumption.The much-noted Book of Aicill, written in the 7th century by the monk Ceannfalad, is reputedly the recording of the Laws of Cormac, a Munster king of the 3rd century. Another, the famed Senchus Mor, claims to be the Laws as set down by the venerable "Saint Patrick" himself.
The Brehon Law, as it came to be known, seems to have been brought into Ireland by the Tuatha de Danann in the 18th century BC. Even then, there seems to have been some similarity between the de Danann and their immediate predecessors, the Firbolg. For, if you recall, at the First Battle of Magh Tuired, the Firbolg requested first a delay, then a final battle of equal numbers. The Tuatha de Danann, under the Laws of Battle to which they both adhered, reluctantly agreed. So at least in part, the two peoples had similar laws. Another clue to the antiquity of the Law in Ireland are the golden torques dated 18th to 15th century BC, a date prior to the arrival of the Milesians, who arrived in the 13th century BC. As the old myths tell us, the torque was not just a piece of jewelry. It was a badge and symbol of its wearer. The torque was a device to insure absolute accuracy by the reciter of the Law, the Brehon. The belief was that if its wearer spoke falsely, the torque would tighten and choke the wearer. Thus it appears the Brehon Law (or at least its foundation) existed in Ireland during the time of the Tuatha de Danann and possibly before.
The Brehon Law was dynamic from earliest times. The first major changes seem to have occurred after the arrival of the Milesians in Ireland. The Milesians appear to have been more war-like and leave considerable evidence of having been a warrior society. Thus the old Law had to adjust to this new mind-set. The next major changes were brought about by a growing Christian influence from about the 7th and 8th centuries. When the Christian clerics first began to arrive in Ireland, they found the Brehon Law superior to the Roman law they followed in many ways. Further, being strangers in a distant land, it was expedient to adapt to the ways of the culture among whom they now lived. Even when the monasteries began to be established, the Brehon Law had advantages. Under Brehon Law, the higher authority was local authority. Each tribe or clan had its own variations particular to their own needs. Since, under Brehon Law, the individual monastery was considered to be independent as if they were a tribe or clan in their own right. Consequently, the Bishop of the monastery was accorded the same rights and privileges of a local Rí (ruler). This gave them an initial autonomy not only from local authority, but also, in a sense, from Roman hierarchy.
The change of the old Law might best be seen if we consider the final authority of dispute, as delineated in available manuscripts. Up to the beginning of the 7th century, disputes between Rí (King or Queen) and the Bishop were generally settled by a decision of the Rí. Later, as Monastery influence grew, power shifted to that of equal status between Pagan ruler and Bishop. Finally, in those areas where the Church and its monasterial armies gained dominance, the Bishop settled disputes between Clan and Monastery.
Though the Brehon Law was finally crushed during the British Cromwellian onslaught in the 17th century. Rare indeed is a modern Law University library that doesn't have its collected works on the ancient Laws of Ireland. The two most intriguing features of Brehon Law are the emphasis on Honor and Retribution. The primary plank of Brehon Law was its emphasis on Honor. If a person gave his word, he kept it. His word was his bond. An oath before witnesses was absolutely binding. Written contracts were unknown and unnecessary. With that honor was respect. Respect for self, family, clan, tribe, the Gods, the earth and the elements that nourished.
The Law of Retribution, simply stated, means that the injured party is recompensed for loss. Not only was the lost item replaced, the Law of Honor dictated an honor price. That is, a person who violated the code of honor by bringing loss to another was required to forfeit a part or all of his or her honor price. Further, the higher the social stature of the perpetrator, the higher the price of wrongful acts. In addition, if an individual was unable to make proper restitution and pay the honor price, the responsibility for payment lay first on the immediate family, then the Clan. Thus, it behooved family members to ensure lawfulness not only from a personal standpoint, but also from the standpoint of association. If you saw your brother preparing to do something wrong according to the Law, it was in your own best interests to take preventive measures. There were no non-involved bystanders.
Where the Church attempted to modify the Brehon Law to satisfy the Canons of the church, the English Norman invaders from the 12th century onward exerted all effort to eradicate it. Initial impact was small as the invaders could only impose their own law on such land as they held by force. Despite continued pressure, including the attempt at English colonization in the 16th century, most of the Normans gradually adapted to Irish ways, including dress, use of the language, and of course, the Brehon Law. The ancient law was not long to survive however. The final blow came with the defeat of Hugh Ó Neill and his forces who had waged a bitter campaign against seemingly overwhelming odds during the "Nine Years War" (1592-1602).
Absolute ownership of land had always been alien to the Irish, but that mattered little now, for it was held by foreign hands. The Cromwellian era and English and Scottish colonization of the 17th century proscripted the ancient Bardic Schools and Universities. The ensuing century saw Irish society torn apart and ground into dust as the surviving Irish became enslaved strangers in their own land. The laws of the land were now dictated by a foreign Parliament.
The Brehon Law, though sadly fractured, lives on in the "Triads," mixed sometimes with Christian thought. But, they do survive. Other elements of ancient teaching were protected and have trickled down through time in the tradition of the "Seanachie" and "Anam Ciarra," passed from father to son and mother to daughter in family traditions. What we have found we have expressed in what we call the Primary Laws. These 13 edicts capture for us the essence of the morality and spirituality of our ancestors.