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Clan Stirling (Tartans, Crest) and The Story Behind

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Stirling

Clan Crest: Issuing out of an antique coronet Or a hart’s head couped Azure.

Clan Motto: Gang Forward

Origin of Name: Place name, Scotland

Lands: Stirlingshire

Clan Chief: Francis Stirling of Cadder

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Stirling Clan History

Clan Stirling is thought to have been founded by Thoraldus de Strivelyn. David I granted him lands in Cadder in 1147, and his descendant, Sir Alexander de Strivelyn, fifth Laird of Cadder, died in 1304. Alexander's son, John de Strivelyn, was the chief of the Stirling clan and led his men into battle against the English at Halidon Hill in 1333, where he was killed.

Sir William de Strivelyn, John de Strivelyn's grandson, had two sons through whom the chieftainship passed. For four generations, the line was passed down through Sir William's eldest son, also named William, and then to the grandson of Sir William's youngest son, John, due to the lack of a male heir. John de Strivelyn was the sheriff of Dunbartonshire and the governor of the royal Dumbarton Castle for James I. The king also made John Armour Bearer and Comptroller of the Royal Household, and he was knighted in 1430. The lands of Glovat, which had been held by the Earl of Lennox, were given to John's son William.

The Stirling family purchased the lands of Keir in Perthshire in the mid-1400s.

After his father died sometime in the first half of the 16th century, George, William's son, became chief of the clan and also held Dumbarton Castle. However, George fell out of favor with the King's regent in 1526 after fighting on the losing side of the Earl of Lennox in a battle at Linlithgow Bridge as part of a power struggle for control over the young James V. George's lands were forfeited but later restored. George led his clansmen into battle against the English in the disastrous Battle of Pinkie Cleugh in 1547. He died as a result of the wounds he received during the fight.

The Stirling clan and Clan Kincaid had a feud that came to a head in 1563 when the two families fought. Malcolm, the chief of the Stirlings, lost an arm in the fight, but this did not stop him from fighting again the next time the two met in 1581. A Stirling of Glovat assassinated the Kincaid chief this time.

During the Civil War, Sir Mungo Stirling, George's great-grandson, was a Royalist and staunch supporter of Charles I (who had knighted him). Clan Stirling fought at the Battle of Philiphaugh in 1645 under the command of James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose. Sir David Leslie's Covenanter army won a decisive victory in the battle.

Sir Mungo Stirling's son, George Stirling, was made a Baronet of Nova Scotia by Charles II in 1666.

Throughout the Jacobite Uprisings, the Stirlings remained loyal to the House of Stuart and supported the Jacobite cause. Because of this support, the time's chief, James Stirling, was imprisoned and his lands forfeited, but he was later released and his estates returned.

Sir David Stirling is perhaps the most well-known Stirling. Sir David founded the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS), a British Special Forces unit. During the Second World War, Stirling commanded the unit, whose actions behind enemy lines severely hampered General Rommel's army's operations. The current chief of the Clan Stirling is Francis John Stirling of Cadder.

Stirling Places & People

Clan Stirling Locations

Cadder Castle, near Kirkintilloch. Stirlings have held it since the 12th century. Cadder House (above) was built in place of the castle.

People of the Stirring Clan

Colonel Sir Archibald David Stirling, DSO, OBE (15 November 1915 – 4 November 1990) was a British officer who served in World War I.

Sir David Stirling was a Scottish laird, mountaineer, British Army officer during WWII, and the founder of the Special Air Service (SAS).

Stirling Tartans

Stirling and Bannockburn are the names of two tartans.

Wilsons of Bannockburn were the designers.

Date: 1847

Stirling Crest & Coats of Arms

Clan Stirling Crest

Crest Description: A hart's head couped Azure issuing from an antique coronet.

Coats of Arms of Stirling:

A word about Coats of Arms:

A coat of arms is granted to an individual under Scottish heraldic law (with the exception of civic or corporate arms). A 'family coat of arms' does not exist. With the exceptions noted above, the arms depicted below are personal arms. Only the person who has been granted these weapons has the right to use them.