Challenge for clan chief title

There is a new Pretender to the Oliphant throne

A clan chief and a London banker are preparing to do battle over the title of a historic Scottish family.

City banker Richard Oliphant is challenging the current head of the clan of Oliphant in the hope that he will be able to use the title "the Oliphant of that Ilk and of Condie".

He has lodged a petition to claim the title with the Court of the Lord Lyon in Edinburgh, who decides on such hereditary matters.

The current, honorary clan chief is Laurence Blair Oliphant of Ardblair and Gask, who lives in Ardblair Castle in Perthshire.

Noble history

The clan of Oliphant has a colourful history, reaching back to the Norman period.

One ancestor defended Stirling Castle from Edward I's assault, another took part in the Jacobite rebellion of 1745 and another was Carolina Oliphant who wrote the famous lyrics about Bonnie Prince Charlie, Will Ye No Come Back Again?

Richard Oliphant employed Hugh Peskett, a genealogy expert, who has researched his claim on and off over the past 16 years.

The chief represents the clan at important events...he's like their father

Hugh Peskett

Mr Peskett explained that the Oliphant family split in two in the 1500s. The Condie line died out in 1748 while the Gask line continued to flourish.

The two sides of the family even took on separate mottoes and emblems.

Mr Peskett said: "This is a clan where the title of chief is always passed through the male line. Mr Laurence Blair Oliphant is not actually from the male line."

Mr Peskett believes Richard Oliphant is the most senior member of the male bloodline.

Advertisements have also placed in local newspapers to unearth any further usurpers to the title.

"The chief represents the clan at important events," explained Mr Peskett.

"He's the chief of the Oliphants and he's like their father."