HAROLD; a youth whose personal and mental accomplishments recommended him to the esteem and affection of his subjects. Soon after his accession he sailed to Norway, and paid homage to that Monarch for the diadem of the Isles. Having thus acknowledged his dependence on the Norwegian crown, he was solicitous to promote the security and happiness of his kingdom, by forming alliances with the neighbouring princes. By Henry III was invited into England; and so highly was he esteemed by that Monarch, that he conferred on him the honour of knighthood. Soon after, he received an invitation from Haakon, King of Norway; and in his court was entertained with splendid festivity, while to crown the honours thus conferred upon him, he married the lovely daughter of the Norwegian Monarch. Returning to the kingdom of Man, with his young and beautiful Princess, attended by a numerous train of Nobility, they perished by shipwreck on the coast of Ireland! This Prince was succeeded, in 1249, by his brother, who was soon after sacrificed to the revenge of the Knight Ivar, as more fully narrated in the historical account of Rushen-Abbey. Reginald's successor was his brother Magnus, who being raised to the throne by the voice of the nation, was confirmed thereon by the King of Norway.
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It is expressly stated that Harold was instigated to hostilities against the Scottish king by his second wife Hoarfiad (Gormiath), daughter of Malcolm MacHeth, Earl of Moray, alias Bishop Wimund. When, therefore, a rival to the earldorns of Orkney and Caithness appeared in the person of Harold the younger (grandson by a daughter of Earl Ragnvald), who had got the title of earl from the Norwegian king about 1175, King William embraced his interests, and gave him the half of Caithness, which of course he must have taken from Harold the elder.
Harold the elder being a staunch partizan of the Norwegian king Magnus, who was supplanted and at last killed in battle by the celebrated Sverrir (1184); Harold the younger must have looked for support to the latter. Harold the elder in 1193 permitted the enemies of Sverrir to collect troops and ships in his dominions, and even afforded them considerable support. This force made great mischief in Norway, but was at last totally vanquished by Sverrir in a bloody battle near Bergen (April 3, 1194). And now Earl Harold was severely punished. He was summoned to Norway, and there compelled to submit to the terms dictated by King Sverrir, who entirely detached Shetland from the earldom, annexing it to the crown, and moreover appropriated to himself a great part of the revenues of Orkney.
Sverrir, if not immediately, yet shortly afterwards, assigned to his rival the half of Orkney, due to him as the grandson and heir of Earl Ragnvald. Harold the elder, nevertheless, according to Hoveden, daied to occupy Moray, or perhaps rather to keep it in his possession, the occupation having probably taken place before 1195.
King William made an expedition to Moray, nor did Harold venture to resist him, but fled to his ships, while King William penetrated as far as Thurso in Caithness, where he destroyed the earl’s palace. Harold, prevented by storms from crossing over to Orkney, felt compelled to submit to King William as he had submitted to King Sverrir; but he obtained his forgiveness, and was even permitted to retain the half of Caithness by promising, upon oath, that next time, when the king came to Moray, he should deliver up to him all his enemies,—no doubt the MacWilliams, and give his own son Thorfinn as hostage. As soon, however, as the king had returned, the peace was broken by Harold himself or his men, who penetrated as far as Inverness, before they were routed by the royal forces. King William now went back to the north, and overran Sutherland, Caithness, and Moray, while Harold, as it would seem, frightened, and professing to be innocent of the doings of his son, met the king at Lochloy, near Nairn, bringing the enemies, as stipulated, but for hostages only his two young nephews, not Thorfinn. And even before seeing the king he suffered the enemies to escape, apologising afterwards to the king in a manner which only tended to exasperate him the more. No wonder Harold was severely punished; the king declared him a felon and breaker of the treaty, to have forfeited what he still held of Caithness, carried him away as prisoner, and had him confined in the castle of Roxburgh, until his son Thorfinn should be delivered up. This was accordingly done, and Harold being exchanged for his son, returned to Orkney, where, however, he was soon visited with new troubles, as his rival, Harold the younger, just coming from Norway with some forces collected there, requested him to give up the half of Orkney, and this being denied, attacked him so suddenly and fiercely that he fled to Man, there to seek for help.
Harold the younger, however, followed him. but did not find him at Man, as he had already returned to Scotland, with some auxiliary forces. Harold the younger now also returned to Scotland and waited for his rival at Wick. Nor was it long before Harold the elder appeared, but with a force much larger than expected a battle ensued, in which the younger earl and his men were killed, after having given proofs of the most heroical valour (1198). Harold the elder now recaptured Caithness, and as he could excuse himself as being this time the attacked party, he ventured even to repair to the court of King William, requesting to retain the possession of Caithness for a large sum of money. The king showed himself not indisposed to grant the request, but demanded farther, that Harold should dismiss his wife, the daughter of Malcolm MacHeth. With this condition, however, Harold could or would not comply, and the negotiations were broken off.
King William now addressed himself to King Reginald of Man, offering him the earldom of Caithness for a certain sum of money, and payment of the regular tribute a Reginald accepted the offer, and collected troops, being also supplied with auxiliary forces from Ireland by his brother-in-law, John of Courcy; with this army he went to Caithness, and conquered it without any resistance on the part of Harold. In the beginning of the winter, however, he returned home, leaving three lieutenants to defend theconquest; but Harold, profiting by his absence, caused one of the lieutenants to be put to death by an assassin, and shortly after landed himself at Thurso with a powerful fleet, with the intention to retake his ancestral patrimony. He began with attacking and storming the episcopal palace of Scrabustar (Skarabólstaflr where bishop John of Caithness just happened to be; and considering this prelate as the principal instigator of the hostilities which he had encountered from the Scotch king, he took a most barbarous revenge, ordering him to be blinded and his tongue to be cut out. This done, he made himself master of the whole of Caithness, severely punishing all adherents of King William, and seizing the possessions of those who fled to save themselves.
The King of the Isles now entirely gave up the idea of becoming Lord of Caithness, as the above mentioned lieutenants did not betake themselves to him, but to King William, who henceforth sought revenge and punished the wilful earl in his own name. In the spring of 1202, King William with a large force went to the North, and encamped at Esteyndale, which then formed the border between Sutherland and Caithness, preparing an expedition across the Pentland Firth to Orkney. The earl, seeing the superior strength of his suzerain, and despairing of success, again sued for peace, which he obtained, as well as the possession of Caithness, on the condition of paying every fourth penny found in the whole earldom, no doubt as an indemnification to King Reginald of Man, who had paid his money without getting the object. Harold, being unable to procure the money from his own means, induced the inhabitants of Caithness. Earl Harold retained Caithness at the cost of the inhabitants, and it does not appear that King Reginald afterwards aspired to the possession of this remote district.