C. REPORT OF THE COMMISSION GIVEN BY HIS MAJESTY, UNDER THE GREAT SEAL,
29TH APRIL, 1695, FOR INQUIRING INTO THE SLAUGHTER OF THE MEN OF GLENCO,
13TH FEBRUARY, 1692 (_idem_, p. 99).
_At Holyrudhouse, 20th June, 1695._
... The things to be remark'd preceding the said slaughter were, that
it's certain that the Lairds of Glenco and Auchintriaten, and their
followers, were in the insurrection and rebellion made by some of the
Highland clans, under the command, first of the Viscount of Dundee, and
then of Major-Gen. Buchan, in the years 1689 and 1690. This is
acknowledg'd by all. But when the Earl of Breadalbane called the heads
of the clans, and met with them at Auchallader, in July 1691, in order
to a cessation, the deceas'd Alexander Macdonald of Glenco was there,
with Glengary, Sir John Maclene, and others, and agreed to the
cessation; as it is also acknowledg'd.... And here the Commissioners
cannot but take notice of what hath occurr'd to them in two letters from
Secretary Stair, to Lieutenant-Colonel Hamilton, one of the 1st, and
another of the 3d of December, 1691, wherein he expresses his
resentment from the marring of the bargain that should have been betwixt
the Earl of Breadalbane and the Highlanders, to a very great height; ...
--And, in effect, seems, even at that time, which was almost a month
before the expiring of the King's indemnity, to project, with
Lieutenant-Colonel Hamilton, that some of them should be rooted out and
destroyed. His Majesty's proclamation of indemnity was publish'd in Aug.
1691, offering a free indemnity and pardon to all the Highlanders who
had been in arms, upon their coming in, and taking the oath of
allegiance, betwixt then and the first of January thereafter: And, in
compliance with the proclamation, the deceas'd Glenco goes, about the
end of Decemb. 1691, to Col. Hill, Governor of Fort William at
Inverlochie, and desir'd the Colonel to minister to him the oath of
allegiance, that he might have the King's indemnity: But Col. Hill, in
his deposition, doth further depone, that he hasten'd him away all he
could, and gave him a letter to Ardkinlas to receive him as a lost
sheep; ... Sir Colin Campbell of Ardkinlas, Sherif-Deput of Argyle,
depones, that the deceas'd Glenco came to Inverary about the beginning
of January, 1692, with a letter from Colonel Hill, to the effect above
mentioned, and was three days there before Ardkinlas could get thither,
because of bad weather; and that Glenco said to him, that he had not
come sooner because he was hinder'd by the storm; and Ardkinlas farther
depones, that when he declin'd to give the oath of allegiance to Glenco,
because the last of December, the time appointed for the taking of it,
was past, Glenco begg'd, with tears, that he might be admitted to take
it, and promis'd to bring in all his people within a short time to do
the like, and, if any of them refused, they should be imprisoned, or
sent to Flanders: upon which, Ardkinlas says, he did administer to him
the oath of allegiance upon the 6th of January, 1692....
These things having preceded the slaughter, which happen'd not to be
committed until the 13th of February, 1692, six weeks after the deceas'd
Glenco had taken the oath of allegiance at Inverary. The slaughter of
the Glenco men was in this manner, viz., John and Alexander MacDonalds,
sons to the deceas'd Glenco, depone, that Glengary's house being
reduc'd, the forces were called back to the south, and Glenlyon, a
captain of the Earl of Argyle's regiment, with Lieutenant Lindsay, and
Ensign Lindsay, and six score soldiers, return'd to Glenco about the 1st
of February, 1692, where, at their entry, the elder brother, John, met
them, with about 20 men, and demanded the reason of their coming; and
Lieutenant Lindsay showed him his orders for quartering there, under
Colonel Hill's hand, and gave assurance that they were only come to
quarter; whereupon they were billeted in the country, and had free
quarters, and kind entertainment, living familiarly with the people
until the 13th day of Feb.; and Alexander farther depones, that
Glenlyon, being his wife's uncle, came almost every day, and took his
morning drink at his house, and that the very night before the
slaughter, Glenlyon did play at cards, in his own quarters, with both
the brothers; and John depones, that old Glenco, his father, had invited
Glenlyon, Lieutenant Lindsay, and Ensign Lindsay, to dine with him upon
the very day the slaughter happened. But, on the 13th day of February,
being Saturday, about four, or five, in the morning, Lieutenant Lindsay,
with a party of the foresaid soldiers, came to old Glenco's house,
where, having call'd, in a friendly manner, and got in, they shot his
father dead, with several shots, as he was rising out of his bed; and,
the mother having got up, and put on her clothes, the soldiers stripp'd
her naked, and drew the rings off her fingers with their teeth; as
likewise they killed one man more, and wounded another grievously, at
the same place.... And the said John, Alexander, and Archibald
MacDonalds, do all depone, that, the same morning, there was one
Sergeant Barber, and a party, at Auchnaion, and that Auchintriaten being
there, in his brother's house, with eight more, sitting about the fire,
the soldiers discharged upon them about 18 shot, which killed
Auchintriaten, and four more; ... And, at Innerriggin, where Glenlyon
was quartered, the soldiers took other nine men, and did bind them, hand
and foot, [and] kill'd them, one by one, with shot; and, when Glenlyon
inclin'd to save a young man, of about 20 years of age, one Captain
Drummond came, and ask'd how he came to be sav'd in respect of the
orders that were given, and shot him dead; and another young boy, of
about 13 years, ran to Glenlyon, to be sav'd. He was likewise shot
dead.... And all these five witnesses concur, that the aforesaid
slaughter was made by Glenlyon, and his soldiers, after they had been
quarter'd, and liv'd peaceably, and friendly, with the Glenco men about
13 days, and that the number of those whom they knew to be slain were
about 25, and that the soldiers, after the slaughter, did burn the
houses, barns, and goods, and carried away a great spoil of horse,
nolt,[8] and sheep, above a 1,000.
... And upon the whole matter, it is the opinion of the Commission,
First, that it was a great wrong that Glenco's case, and diligence as to
his taking the oath of allegiance, with Ardkinlas's certificate of his
taking the oath of allegiance on the 6th of January, 1692, and Col.
Hill's letter to Ardkinlas, and Ardkinlas's letter to Colin Campbell,
Sheriff-Clerk, for clearing Glenco's diligence and innocence, were not
presented to the Lords of his Majesty's Privy Council, when they were
sent into Edinburgh, in the said month of January, and that those who
advis'd the not presenting thereof were in the wrong, and seem to have
had a malicious design against Glenco; ... Secondly, that it appears to
have been known at London, and particularly to the Master of Stair, in
the month of January, 1692, that Glenco had taken the oath of
allegiance, tho' after the day prefix'd; for he saith, in his letter of
the 30th of January, to Sir Tho. Livingston, as is above remark'd, "I am
glad that Glenco came not in within the time prescrib'd." Thirdly, that
there was nothing in the King's instructions to warrant the committing
of the foresaid slaughter, even as to the thing it self, and far less as
to the manner of it, seeing all his instructions do plainly import, that
the most obstinate of the rebels might be received into mercy upon
taking the oath of allegiance, tho' the day was long before elaps'd, and
that he ordered nothing concerning Glenco and his tribe, but that "if"
they could "be well separated from the rest, it" would "be a proper
indication of the publick justice to extirpate that sept of thieves";
which plainly intimates, that it was his Majesty's mind that they could
not be separated from the rest of these rebels, unless they still
refused his mercy by continuing in arms and refusing the allegiance, and
that, even in that case, they were only to be proceeded against in the
way of publick justice, and no other way.