Lord Duffus

The title Lord Duffus was created by Charles II in the Peerage of Scotland on 8 December 1650 for Alexander Sutherland. He was a descendant of the 4th Earl of Sutherland, who fell in battle in 1333. The title is now extinct, although there may be male-line Sutherlands descended from earlier lairds of Duffus.

In 1734, the 3rd Lord was attainted and the lordship was forfeited. His son Eric tried but failed to get a reverse of the attainder. His son James Sutherland of Duffus got the attainder reversed, and was restored to the lordship as 4th (titular 5th) Lord Duffus on 25 May 1826. The last two Lords Duffus were also baronets, of Hempriggs in the County of Caithness (3rd and 4th). The lordship became extinct on the death of the 6th (titular 7th) Lord Duffus on 28 August 1875.

Lairds of Duffus
The Sutherland family of Duffus descended from Nicholas Sutherland, only brother of William de Moravia, 5th Earl of Sutherland (d. 1370), and younger son of Kenneth de Moravia, 4th Earl of Sutherland. The village of Duffus is outside of the county of Sutherland, but the Sutherlands of Duffus also held lands within Sutherland, most notably Skelbo. Some of the Sutherland of Duffus family may have assumed the surname Duffus, which was the family title instead of the surname Sutherland.

List of Lairds of Duffus
These are the early ancestors of the Lords Duffus.


 * Nicholas Sutherland, 1st of Duffus (younger son of Kenneth de Moravia, 4th Earl of Sutherland (Kenneth Sutherland).
 * John Sutherland, 2nd of Duffus.
 * Alexander Sutherland, 3rd of Duffus and Torboll (d. c.1484) (son of Henry Sutherland of Torboll, younger son of Nicholas, 1st of Duffus)
 * William Sutherland of Quarrywood, later 4th of Duffus (d. c.1513) (son of William Sutherland of Berriedale, son of Alexander, 3rd of Duffus)
 * William Sutherland, 5th of Duffus (d. c.1529)
 * William Sutherland, 6th of Duffus (d. c.1530)
 * William Sutherland, 7th of Duffus (d. 1543)
 * Alexander Sutherland, 8th of Duffus (1534 - 1579)
 * William Sutherland, 9th of Duffus (d. 1616)
 * William Sutherland, 10th of Duffus (d. 1626)

Lords Duffus (1650–1875)

 * Alexander Sutherland, 1st Lord Duffus (d. 1674) (son of William Sutherland, 10th of Duffus)
 * James Sutherland, 2nd Lord Duffus (d. 1705) who had issue four sons including Kenneth Sutherland, 3rd Lord Duffus, Sir James Dunbar, 1st Baronet of Hempriggs (who changed his surname from Sutherland to Dunbar), two others, and one daughter.
 * Kenneth Sutherland, 3rd Lord Duffus (d. 1734). His estates were forfeited for taking part in the Jacobite rising of 1715. He fled to Sweden, where he married a Swedish lady, Christina Sjöblad, by whom he had:
 * Eric Sutherland, 4th Lord Duffus (1710-1768) (not restored, but counted), he married his first cousin Elizabeth, third daughter of Sir James Dunbar, 1st Baronet of Hempriggs who was originally James Sutherland the second son of James Sutherland, 2nd Lord Duffus.
 * James Sutherland, 5th Lord Duffus (1747-1827). His title was restored by an Act of Parliament in 1826. He was succeeded by his 2nd cousin in the male line:
 * Benjamin Sutherland Dunbar, 6th Lord Duffus, 3rd Baronet of Hempriggs (1761-1843), the surname Sutherland having previously been changed to Dunbar.
 * George Sutherland Dunbar, 7th Lord Duffus (1799-1875) (extinct 1875) used the title of 7th Lord Duffus, but was also known as Sir George Dunbar of Hempriggs, 4th Baronet. One source, "Lost Lordship of Duffus", claims that due to the Rudd challenge, the 7th Lord never used the title, and chose to be known as a baronet.