This report by CSAC President W.E. "Bill" Sinclair was published in the
Autumn 1997 issue (Vol 3 No 9) of Roslin O Roslin.
Some 40 academics, historians and others who are members of various Sinclair
Clan Associations in Canada and the U.S.A. travelled to Kirkwall to attend the 3
day Sinclair Symposium (September 5-7 inclusive). In all, about 200 Orcadians
joined us in this event which was presented as an integral part of the 7th
Orkney Science Festival.
The purpose of the Symposium was to inspire further research into the saga of
Prince Henry's voyage to he new world and to evaluate evidence both old and new
that support the existence of this historic voyage.
The papers presented at the Symposium consisted of the following particulars:
- Councillor James Sinclair, J.P., Vice
Convenor, Orkney Island Council gave an opening address challenging us to
explore, research and identify the many signposts in the Prince Henry saga that
might lead us to a fuller appreciation of the one of the most historic
achievements in the Scottish tradition.
- Dr. Peter Waddell of Strathclyde University,
Glasgow, presented a paper entitled "Rivalries, Royalty, Secrets and Pirates".
His address characterized the historic setting for the saga from the days of the
Hanseatic League with offices in Orkney and the particular relationship of
Orkney and Norway in the 14th century.
Events during this period were viewed against a backdrop of Piracy in the North
Sea, Venetians in the Baltic, and Church problems with the Bishop of Orkney. Dr.
Waddell also reviewed the earliest maps of the era all of which contain Templar
symbols.
- Dr. Peter Anderson, Keeper of the Records,
Orkney. Dr. Anderson's paper entitled "Earldom and the Castle" reviewed the
extent to which records exist of the Orkney Earldom and Prince Henry's castle at
Kirkwall.
- Dr. Tim Wallace-Murphy, author of "The Templar
Legacy and Masonic Inheritance of Rosslyn Chapel", gave a lecture titled "The
Knights Templar: Myth and Reality". This was an excellent presentation covering
the Templar influence on European thinking for 1000 years, rivalling the
ideology of the church and ultimately leading to its own downfall.
- Dr. Andrew Sinclair, author of "The Sword and
the Grail" spoke on the Byzantine and Zen connection. He brought new evidence
recently uncovered in Venice, particularly in support of Prince Henry's
association with the Zeno brothers.
- Dr. Brian Moffat, botanist, gave a
presentation entitled "Plants with Purpose - Carved Stone Vegetation" in which
he challenged existing statements that the maize and aloe vera carvings were
inspired by North American specimens.
- Dr. Jonathan Wills, journalist with The
Orcadian and The Orphir Journal spoke on the topic "Points of
Departure" in which he established the rationale for the location of Prince
Henry's historic voyage as having departed from the Orkneys.
- Mark Finnan, author of "Oak Island Secrets",
gave a presentation entitled "The Voyage and the Vision". Mark traced the
evidence for various Viking visitations in Nova Scotia and of Masonic and
Rosicrucian Symbols found at Oak Island, all of which have linkages that prove
the plausibility of why Prince Henry could well have come to Nova Scotia in
1398.
- William F. Mann, author of the "The Labyrinth
of the Grail", spoke from his paper "In the Footsteps of Prince Henry" and on
his personal discovery of what could be a pre-Columbian settlement at Green
Oaks, N.S.
- Dr. Peter Christmas of the Mi'kmaq Association
for Cultural Studies in Sydney, N.S., Donald Julien, Executive
Director of the Confederation of Mainland Mi'kmaq, Truro N.S., and Chief
Kerry Prosper, Afton N.S. respectively spoke to us on the history of
their people and identified a number of plausible linkages to the visit of early
European visitors including Prince Henry.
- James P. Whittall, Archeologist, Boston Mass.
gave a compelling presentation on the evidence of Prince Henry's voyage through
the technical revelations of the Westford Knight and the Newport Tower.
- Brian Smith, Archivist, Shetland Islands gave
a presentation, "Why Prince Henry Didn't Do It". He based his case on the fact
that none of Prince Henry's contemporaries said that the voyage existed, coupled
with the fact that the Zeno narrative never mentions Orkney.
- Niven Sinclair, who has dedicated so much of
his energy and resources in pursuit of proof for the Prince Henry voyage, gave
an excellent and well supported presentation "Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt". This
included new evidence of flaws in the arguments of other historians who have
disputed the Prince Henry Voyage.
Summary
Each of the speakers gave excellent presentations in support of their respective
theses. No doubt was left in the minds of the majority attending this Symposium,
that a most plausible case had been made for Prince Henry's voyage to the New
World.
To say that the case was proven beyond any doubt would be a mis-statement. All
would agree however, that there is still a requirement for continued research
and study, despite the fact that all were greatly enlightened in the evidence
presented in support of the entire saga including its Templar connections. The
contribution to this and future study by Messrs. Christmas, Julien, and Prosper
added greatly to our understanding of the Mi'kmaq culture and the possible
linkages of their history to the saga.
Brian Smith, the dissenter among the special speakers, maintained his position
on the basis that archival evidence did not exist that would support the voyage.
Those who favoured the existence of the voyage replied that the absence of
recorded evidence outside the Zeno narrative is no reason to summarily dismiss
the voyage. They argued that the story of human history is built on much more
than archival materials. Niven Sinclair made the case that Mr. Smith's research
had not included visits to the pertinent sites involved - Nova Scotia, New
England and Venice - and therefore had missed the important evidence that such
visits would have provided.
Pete Cummings gave a summary of plans expected for the 1998 Celebrations in the
U.S and then I reported the Clan Sinclair (Canada) plans for next summer in Nova
Scotia.
The whole Symposium was recorded by video tape and copies will be made available
in due course.
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