 The Earldom of Caithness was granted to Magnus, second son of the Earl of Angus, whom Haakon IV of Norway confirmed as Earl of Orkney in 1236.In 1379 the earldom passed to the Sinclair family, who were also barons of Roslin near Edinburgh although Orkney and Shetland remained part of Norway for a century more.The situation in the Suðreyar was more complex.