Pawning the Northern Isles: Orkney and Shetland

[@richarddelasota1812]

What a fascinating episode. The Norse history of Shetland is celebrated in Lerwick every winter in a festival called Up Helly Aa.

[@RetiredSailor60]

Good Labor Day morning from Ft Worth TX to everyone watching. Spent 2 weeks in Norway in 1995 while stationed on USS Whidbey Island LSD 41.

[@annetteconant7210]

and good labour day to you from western Canada!

[@morrismorrison6965]

From a Shetlander! Thank you for this fantastic piece of History, certainly History worth remembering 🙂

[@thomasrinschler6783]

If you think pawning these islands is bad, a previous king of Denmark, Christopher II, literally pawned the entire kingdom away in pieces. By the time he died, Denmark for all intents and purposes had ceased to exist. It took his son Valdemar IV over a decade to slowly raise the funds to pay off the debts to the various mortgage holders and bring the kingdom back under his control.

[@carywest9256]

What was the reason for pawning? Did Chris the 11th find some killer smoke?

[@robertburden7033]

​@@carywest9256i😊gb

[@thomasrinschler6783]

@@carywest9256 A combination of expensive wars and living extravagantly.

[@LymanPhillips]

I was watching thr mystery show Shetland, and decided to look up Shetland on a map. Whooo-weee! Those islands are remote! The sheer remoteness of the islands gives so much context to the history. Excellent. Plus - pirates!

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Good show.

[@goodun2974]

​@@TheHistoryGuyChannelyeah, we recently watched all 5 or so seasons of Shetland as well.

[@goodun2974]

"Trapped", which takes place in Iceland, is pretty good as well. The second season is called "Entrapped"; both feature a BIG guy named Olaffur Olaffson, who some might recognize from "Nos4a2"; he was born in Iceland but raised in New England. For that matter, my wife and I are still waiting to watch the second season of "Fortitude", a creepy, supernatural spooker that took place on an island in the Arctic Circle; it has been *years* since filming, and we watched season 1 a long time ago but the British company that owns the rights has yet to license season 2 for streaming in the US market. I hate when they do that!

[@chrisworthen1538]

That is a great show! I am currently revisiting the series.

[@erroneous6947]

History is far more complex than we give it credit for.

[@Space_Debris]

Too many never bother with history. For them, history is hard; it takes too long.

[@bepbep7418]

History is just what has been recorded. There's lots of things that have happened that have been lost to time. Simply because it wasn't recorded and remembered by teaching about it.

[@stevenjohnson9918]

Thank you for the video, from a Shetlander.

[@flashwashington2735]

Thank you. It all unfolded day by day. Fog of mind, fog of years obfuscated the way. Thanks for pushing back some mist allowing us a clearer glimpse. Yours is not to reason why rather discern with a clear eye. So we thank you History Guy. God bless.

[@mikenixon2401]

Amazing lesson. Thank you.

[@randalllewis4485]

After another historian (Simon Schama) first told me about Skara Brae on Orkney I was determined to visit it. This is an amazingly intact settlement of early Orkadians largely preserved because it became quickly covered with sand and grasses once abandoned and the Vikings never found it.

[@PJRye]

Also, being buried under sand, it did not suffer the fate of similar settlements which were robbed of their stonework for other buildings.

[@kathyastrom1315]

I had the same reaction to Simon Schama’s series!! On my first trip abroad, to Britain in 2012 when I was 46, I made sure to end the trip in Orkney. We stayed on the main island (aka Mainland) for three days and saw a lot. Skara Brae was just incredible-I made sure to run my hand over the top course of the house wall, I was so blown away that I was touching something laid down 5000 years ago. My mom, who accompanied me, had never even heard of Orkney before, but she was just as impressed with it as I was.

[@michaelmeadows3920]

You know that there’s evidence the skara brae houses were built into a midden from an earlier settlement, right?

[@garywagner2466]

I thank Jimmy Perez for my interest in Shetland. I’d love to visit Iceland, the Faroes, Shetland and Orkney but my wife is not so keen. Thanks for posting.

[@maxshea1829]

The Orkneys felt more like Scandinavia to me. Been to Kirkwall. Wanted to take the ferry to the Shetlands but didn't have the cash or the time.

[@miketackabery7521]

As usual, another terrific story well researched and presented. What a gem this channel is!

[@dankauffmanmusic]

I found an official Shetland island cookbook in the thrift a few years ago. It is one of the most unique group of dishes and one of my favorites. I would like to visit there someday.

[@rockystonewolf]

The Lewis chess pieces and the WW2 efforts! A mention of these two subjects would lift this episode even further.

[@davea6314]

Q: What is the difference between Mick Jagger and a Scotsman? A: Jagger sings: "Hey, you get off of my cloud." While a Scotsman sings: "Hey MacLeod get off of my ewe!"

[@frankgulla2335]

You do find fascinating subjects, sir. What a great tale of diplomacy and warfare and struggle for what appear to be a few specks in the North Sea and Atlantic, but clearly are important to the people who live there.

[@JohnDavies-cn3ro]

Thank you - a fascinating piece of history, beautifully presented. I did wonder if you would mention the recent moves by the Shetland council - and you did. Then of course there's the 'Shetland Bus' as it was known - a regular clandestine fishing boat service, running refugees one way, spies and munitions for the Norwegian resistance the other, during WW2; there is a memorial to them on Shetland.

[@glenmartin2437]

Thank you. An interesting tale.

[@JeremiahsFiles]

I recently got a new computer game from the UK, it’s called Become A British Isles Explorer. I had fun learning about the British Isles, including the Orkney Islands & Shetland Islands.

[@nigeldepledge3790]

I once visited John O'Groats with the intention of taking a day-trip to Orkney. This would have been a package deal including the boat across the Pentland Firth (the stretch of water between mainland Scotland and the Orkneys) and a tour of some of the highlights of Orkney by minibus. Unfortunately, the weather was against us. The ferry operator said he could definitely get us there, but could make no guarantee to get us back at the end of the day. So we ended up with a day to kill in Caithness. Unless you *really* like Caithness Glass, there's not a great deal to do in Caithness at short notice.

[@davidcarter540]

In actual fact there is more archaeology to see in Caithness than there is in Orkney it’s just not as commercialised. We in Caithness can learn a lot from the Orcadians in that respect!

[@nigeldepledge3790]

@davidcarter540 - while that may be true, it's not very accessible for the public. Or, at least, it wasn't accessible about 23 years ago when this happened.

[@BasicDrumming]

I appreciate you and thank you for making content.

[@lisapop5219]

Glad you explained. I was wondering how they could paw the land

[@larryjohnson1966]

Now that was some fascinating stuff. Thank You for the history lesson.

[@edl617]

Loved my visit there. Stayed at nice hotel, found a couple who were more than happier to show us around. They didn’t want any money but I did need to help with petrol costs and I pay for the beer.

[@MarshOakDojoTimPruitt]

thanks

[@SIC647]

Since all the remaining Atlantic islands ended up in Danish hands, and Faroe Islands and Greenland still are, it has been suggested that Denmark could lay claim to the islands. Some 20 years ago a national Danish newpaper actually officially asked the British foreign office what they would do, if Denmark wanted to redeem the pawn. They answered that in that case they "would have to take the necessary measures".................

[@unclenogbad1509]

Yes, that absolutely sounds like British civil service/ministerial speak. You can freely translate it as: "We wouldn't have a clue."

[@robertmcgovern8850]

First, yer gonna have to bring in the original pawn ticket. Second, there's the matter of 560 years cumulative interest at 25% *per month.* 🤑😄 It was a really nice deal for Scotland. Pity James III was such a dummy. Margaret wasn't, tho. She kept herself and her children (two of whom, confusingly, were also called James) at Stirling & away from the hot mess that was Edinburgh.

[@5roundsrapid263]

Denmark won’t have Greenland much longer. It asked the Danish for independence starting next year, and they accepted.

[@annetteconant7210]

visiting Orkney in late 2008 while on my dream trip to scotland is time I have relived over and over. Of Norse/Scot descent I absorbed the history of this ancient place every second I was there. I'm blown away by what discoveries have been made since. Thank You!

[@josephnason8770]

Starkly beautiful is how to describe the Orkney Islands. My sister was married in the Stromness Hotel at 2:20 in the video. She owns a flat there. Been to this time capsule several times. Enjoyed a local strong ale named after a viking that figures in their history, Thornfin Skullspliter. When you are there at the pub have one....only one. By the way this a good video.

[@russwoodward8251]

The best. Thank you.

[@yakacm]

They can say they are different to Scotland, but Stromness looks exactly the same as every other small Scottish town. We seriously considered moving to the Shetlands, just because it was so remote, but still has decent sized towns.

[@magnushutchison4920]

They are different, this is common sense

[@lyedavide]

Amazing history of the Orkney Islands

[@mattgeorge90]

Excellent episode! ❤

[@joegordon5117]

Kudos for including the very recent debate about some in the islands suggesting them leaving Scotland and returning to Norwegian domain, that's pretty up to date!!

[@stephangow4101]

Guys amazing historian

[@-jeff-]

This makes me wonder how people on the islands feel about being in hock! 🏝 🏝?

[@Morningdovecamp]

Very interesting. Ty🤔😄🇺🇸

[@Helge891]

As a Norwegian, I can clearly can see evidence of Scandinavian influence just by looking at the place names on the map. For example, the name 'Stromness' appears to be composed of the two words 'straum' and 'nes.' In Norwegian, 'straum' means 'water current,' and 'nes' refers to a narrow and pointed piece of land that extends into the sea.

[@yootooooooob]

Well that was odd seeing the ferry I work on appear in a history guy episode 😊

[@muttman325]

Nice friendly ferry it is to. Not like those miserable barstewards on Irish ferries or Stena ferries to Ireland. Orkadians and shetlanders are nice as well. Can be a bit aloof unlike ulster folk who mabe full on friendly but after ten minutes know everything about you from collar size to lottery numbers. Seriously the peripheries of the British isles are wonderful.

[@yootooooooob]

​​@@muttman325in my experience with working two on and two off. The nicer you are to passengers the better your shift goes. The passengers make or break your time at work, while we have had bad spells like the petrofac years it's usually been fun to meet so many great people. From people just heading home to a doctor from Iraq visiting his bro who I had a great time with, everyday is fresh and new. If I can go out of my way to help a passenger I will l, from walking a visually impaired man to the train station and was travelling the whole of Scotland to a woman who really wanted digestive biscuits (which we don't sell so grabbed a few from the mess room) we are all in the same boat (pardon the pun) may as well make it more enjoyable. Yet to see myself in a KZbin vid but heard me doing an announcement on the tannoy so that's close enough.

[@goodun2974]

​@@yootooooooob, I wonder how many people watching this even know what a "tannoy" is? ( It is both slang for a public address loudspeaker and the name of a company that once built speakers in the UK; which is kind of like the way we Americans call all facial tissue for blowing/wiping your nose "Kleenex". I only know about tannoy because I worked for a hi fi stereo shop that sold a lot of British equipment).

[@yootooooooob]

​@@goodun2974Alan Partridge would be proud

[@goodun2974]

@@yootooooooob , there was a company called Partridge that manufactured transformers for tube hifi amplifiers; same man perhaps?

[@zzopit]

Watching with my Shetland Sheepdog right now, how cool is that?

[@buckodonnghaile4309]

Brilliant dogs.

[@Sveinn7]

Great video.

[@bforman1300]

Oh. Pawning. I was wondering what would be the point of 'pawing' the Orkneys.

[@a.mathis9454]

👍

[@dugroz]

Are the Isles still technically pawned? I could imagine a large group of investors and history buffs pooling money together to redeem the debt and return the Isles to Norway!!!

[@nedludd7622]

I read recently that some of the islanders are pushing to leave Britain and join Norway.

[@ukrulesall1]

One of my favorite creators.

[@skiptoacceptancemdarlin]

very informative. For example: I thought you were Rick Steves.

[@elcastorgrande]

Orkney whiskey is great! Try Highland Park.

[@jeplica7011]

So orcas, they are clearly pissed, and transcending space time and dimensions, and hunting back through time and its about time someone dug up the voids. As an underdog, i think its long overdue

[@mathewfullerton8577]

Funny how some modern historians discount early historical accounts as being too distant from when they occurred, i.e., the part about Harald the Fair-Haired (one of the variations of his name), yet they then impart their own histories, even farther distant in time from their occurrence.

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

There is specific reason that some historians question the Orkneyinga Saga based on historical context. The question is a matter of discussion, but certainly not agreement. But your argument wouldn’t allow for historiography- of course we should question historical consensus.

[@giselematthews7949]

This show was funny 😂

[@R3tr0V3rt1g0]

Need to normalize the audio for the separate clips before you normalize for the whole project. Otherwise you get sections that are louder than others, remember the audio levels should be going up to the red but not into the red, if sections are much louder or quieter you can fix them in something like audacity. KZbin needs a normalization algorithm.

[@denismedwick8634]

Highland Park 15; enough said!

[@stevenvillines6771]

Droppin' that Rick Steves on em.

[@paulcunningham2859]

Nice

[@angieallen4884]

Fascinating! While my family history research shows that my ancestors come from Scotland, my DNA testing shows a significant amount of Norwegian DNA but there is no paper trail of Norwegian ancestors. It was explained to me that this very well could be because of Norse invasions of Scotland and the Northern Isles. As always, great content!

[@barbaraborgia3289]

Same here. I can trace my ancestry to the first Scottish King, but my DNA testing says I have Norwegian DNA. I think many Scottish people are more Norse than they think

[@qarljohnson4971]

Surprised to not see the flags of either Orkney or Shetland Isles?

[@ernesttravers829]

The Isle of Man too is Viking and independent with its own parliament

[@bold810]

Pawing England sounds appropriate. Less quid to go around. #Prince Edwin

[@M.J.MacraeTheBlack]

Fairisle may be administered from Shetland but my mother's people consider themselves niether part of the Shetland islands or Orkney. So please consider it separate 🙂

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

Fairisle has an interesting history itself. As it is almost literally exactly between Shetland and Orkney, and often described as "the most geographically remote inhabited island in the United Kingdom," I can see why the inhabitants might see it as neither Shetland nor Orkney. The current ownership by the National Trust for Scotland really does set the island apart administratively as well. The isle does seem, however, to have been included when Christian I pawned Shetland.

[@corey57255]

Ah ha. PawN. Well the title will have to be updated cuz I was wondering what pawing was hahaha

[@yoinkhaha]

Aly Bain, one of the best fiddle players in the world, is from Shetland.

[@Trollberg60north]

*Groan*, I live in Shetland and we are NOT the so-called "Northern Isles". This is a media-concocted name to subsume us into Scotland(aka Western Isles). I live in Lerwick on the mainland, it's not "mainland", it's THE Mainland. Scotland is 100+ miles south of Shetland. The text of the treaty reads "Our lands of the lands of Shetland and Orkney". Under Udal Law the King did not own all the land. As a private citizen you owned what you owned so it was not the King's to pawn. King Christian pawned the land that he owned here. If I could vote to go back to Norway I would. And yes, it is Norway because although it was King Christian of Denmark who pawned his lands, Shetland was part of the Kingdom of Norway at that time. Indeed, there's a fjord north of Bergen called "Hjeltefjorden" which means "the Shetland fjord". My first ancestor in Shetland was a man called Hendrich Hendrichsson so we are still here.

[@annetteconant7210]

thank you for your insight!

[@poonoi1968]

As a Norwegian I would very much welcome a reunion with Shetland.

[@morrismorrison6965]

As a Shetlander I'm more than happy with the Northern Isles!

[@LarS1963]

Hjeltefjorden would mean either The Fjord of Hilts or The Fjord of Heroes.

[@Trollberg60north]

@@LarS1963 No, I've spoken to Norwegian professors and they told me it was the fjord to Shetland or the Shetland fjord. Shetland is shaped like a hilt, hence the name Hjaltland/Hjeltefjorden.

[@highpath4776]

technically I guess a fair amount of UK debt is effectively "secured" on North Sea Oil Licence and Tax revenues

[@Guangrui]

Is this in anyway related to Scapa Flow ?

[@danzirvine]

Yes, scapa flow is in Orkney

[@joshuabessire9169]

I don't know the worth of Orkney or Shetland, but the Outer Hebrides can be had for 14 shillings and sixpence, if you earn the fee dueling for a spineless goon AND evade the baliffs.

[@Zorglub1966]

Qwghlm islands have an interesting history too

[@Pygar2]

I'd like to buy a vowel...

[@DeconvertedMan]

Pawn is the thing in chess as well ;)

[@TheSirrandal]

I was wondering what Pawing something was when I saw the notification, OIC.

[@jeffbangkok]

Good night

[@fredemny3304]

Sleep tight.

[@terryturman8495]

Hello friend Well done again. You seem to have slowed your rate of speech which makes it easier to follow thanks again

[@poonoi1968]

played at 0,5 speed he sound a bit tipsy.🥂🥳

[@francislarv3012]

Pawns in an international game of checkers

[@janlindtner305]

👍👍👍

[@TWOCOWS1]

Ok, for real. When I worked as help for student registration at the school (me being one myself), a fellow showed up at my desk, asking to register. I asked him where he was coming from: he said Shetland. I heard "shitland", so I laughted, thiinking he was protesting my asking. He--a total blond deity, if there were any--assured me there is a place called Shetland. Silly me.

[@hwizell7478]

Shetland ponies up Wagers weds restoration Pawned Scots Norway kin #haiku #laborday #thankyouforyourservice

[@wingmanhoy3999]

Very much enjoyed, this is my heritage and culture, Hoy, Hoy Island HAEY Norse, O hEochaidh Dal Fiatach Dynasty, Clanna Dedad, first high kings of Ireland, amazing looking back and now today going into 2024, we have all come along way, thank you for this video, all the very best, health and happiness.

[@Space_Debris]

Too many never bother with history. For them, history is hard; it takes too long. It's important that it lasts only as long as a TikTok video.

[@samhianblackmoon]

🔥👍🏽

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Back in the Saddle Again Naturally

[@guyh.4553]

HG, there is no "might be" in the immigration of the old Norse (aka Vikings) into all of the islands including Britain/ Scotland. They DID migrate out of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark for new land due to all the good farmable land was already bought up. And modern Icelandic is from the old Norse language. That has already been proven. Either way, great video as usual!

[@anthonyC214]

If oil is discovered off shore, Norway would find the funds to redeem the islands, in a NY minute

[@malcolmyoung7866]

That was done 40 years plus ago. Sullom Voe Oil and gas facility is the major hub for North Sea oil in the U.K. It’s not only Norway that produces oil and gas en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sullom_Voe

[@bigsarge2085]

✌️✌️

[@jozz2248]

Orkney means seal islands?? Ork Ork orkney 😂

[@northlandrider5396]

This bloody town's a bloody cuss No bloody trains, no bloody bus, And no one cares for bloody us In bloody Orkney. The bloody roads are bloody bad, The bloody folks are bloody mad, They'd make the brightest bloody sad, In bloody Orkney. All bloody clouds, and bloody rains, No bloody kerbs, no bloody drains, The Council's got no bloody brains, In bloody Orkney. Everything's so bloody dear, A bloody bob, for bloody beer, And is it good? - no bloody fear, In bloody Orkney. The bloody 'flicks' are bloody old, The bloody seats are bloody cold, You can't get in for bloody gold In bloody Orkney. The bloody dances make you smile, The bloody band is bloody vile, It only cramps your bloody style, In bloody Orkney. No bloody sport, no bloody games, No bloody fun, the bloody dames Won't even give their bloody names In bloody Orkney. Best bloody place is bloody bed, With bloody ice on bloody head, You might as well be bloody dead, In bloody Orkney

[@poonoi1968]

😂 nice

[@johnwaddell3882]

Doggerland ?😊

[@danieltaylor5231]

Shoot low boys, they're riding Shetland ponies!

[@JTA1961]

They did Shetland cuz they knew eventually someone would... pony up.

[@merlinwizard1000]

26th, 4 September 2023

[@rosezingleman5007]

I thought this was going to be about 🐈

[@ScottMyersOfTheEarth]

Doesn't every great story involve ... Vikings!

[@poonoi1968]

Good one

[@kenfox22]

What University did you get your history degree at

[@TheHistoryGuyChannel]

The University of Colorado at Boulder

[@Twolegger]

Pawing?

[@Pygar2]

Pawning.

[@jeplica7011]

Lol,. The narwhals 🤣🤣🤣. Humans are in deep trouble 😊

[@skiptoacceptancemdarlin]

pawning? more like PWNing

[@georgeperkins4171]

Pirates you say?

[@hughsonj]

My several times great grandfather was Sir Robert Stewart, The 1st Earl of Orkney and Lord of Zetland (the Shetlands). He was the son of James V of Scotland and a mistress. James V was, of course, a direct descendant of the royal union you describe in the video, which means I am too. All told, I have a quantum of royal blood that probably wouldn't even get me put in the line of succession if they went to 10,000.

[@waynemurphy4542]

How could Edward III pawn the crown jewels in 1388, when he died in 1377?

[@poonoi1968]

Magic😂

[@OGKenG]

I thought the title was supposed to be "Pwning the Northern Isles..."

[@cephasmartin8593]

Always interested in my Scottish and Viking heritage. I wonder if I can claim one of the islands as a family heritage site. My hair is no longer fair, actually it's grey. I could be King Edward the Grey Haired. I keep telling the kids that I want a horny Viking helmet for Christmas, but no one ever gets me one. If I was king, I could demand one and they would have to deliver.

[@uingaeoc3905]

When the Norsemen arrived in the northern isles there was no such place as Scotland.

[@danielodonoghue7809]

Fiefs, not 'fifes'.