the successive attempts which were made to retrieve their fortunes,
different clans occupied the extensive territories which had once
acknowledged the sway of those insular princes. Of these some were
clans, which, although dependent upon the Macdonalds, were not of
the same origin as the race of Conn; and, with the exception of
the Macleods, Macleans, and a few others, they strenuously opposed
all the attempts which were made to effect the restoration of the
family of the Isles, rightly calculating that the success of such
opposition would tend to promote their own aggrandisement. Another
class, again, were of the same origin as the family of the Isles; but
having branched off from the principal stem before the succession
of the elder branches reverted to the clan, in the person of John
of the Isles, during the reign of David II., they now appeared as
separate clans. Amongst these were the Macalisters, the MacIans, and
some others. The Macalisters, who are traced to Alister, a son of
Angus Mor, inhabited the south of Knapdale and the north of Kintyre.
After the forfeiture of the Isles they became independent; but being
exposed to the encroachments of the Campbells, their principal
possessions were ere long absorbed by different branches of that
powerful clan. The MacIans of Ardnamurchan were descended from John,
a son of Angus Mor, to whom his father conveyed the property which
he had obtained from the crown. The Macdonalds of Glencoe are also
MacIans, being descended from John Fraoch, a son of Angus Og, Lord
of the Isles; and hence their history is in no degree different
from that of the other branches of the Macdonalds. A third class
consisted of the descendants of the different Lords of the Isles,
who still professed to form one clan, although the subject of the
representation of the race soon introduced great dissensions, and all
adopted the generic name of Macdonald in preference to secondary or
collateral patronymics.
We shall now endeavour to give a short account of the different
branches of the Macdonalds, from the time of the annexation of the
Lordship of the Isles to the crown in 1540.
Since the extinction of the direct line of the family of the Isles,
in the middle of the 16th century, Macdonald of Sleat, now Lord
Macdonald, has always been styled in Gaelic _Mac Dhonuill nan
Eilean_, or Macdonald of the Isles.[149]
As the claim of Lord Macdonald, however, to this distinction has been
keenly disputed, we shall here lay before the reader, as clearly as
possible, the pretensions of the different claimants to the honour
of the chiefship of the clan Donald, as these have been very fairly
stated by Mr Skene.
That the family of Sleat are the undoubted representatives of
John, Earl of Ross, and the last Lord of the Isles, appears to be
admitted on all sides; but, on the other hand, if the descendants
of Donald, from whom the clan received its name, or even of John
of the Isles, who flourished in the reign of David II., are to be
held as constituting one clan, then, according to the Highland
principles of clanship, the _jus sanguinis_, or right of blood to
the chiefship, rested in the male representative of John, whose own
right was undoubted. By Amy, daughter of Roderick of the Isles, John
had three sons,--John, Godfrey, and Ranald; but the last of these
only left descendants; and it is from him that the Clan Ranald derive
their origin. Again, by the daughter of Robert II. John had four
sons--Donald, Lord of the Isles, the ancestor of the Macdonalds of
Sleat; John Mor, from whom proceeded the Macconnells of Kintyre;
Alister, the progenitor of Keppoch; and Angus, who does not appear
to have left any descendants. That Amy, the daughter of Roderick,
was John’s legitimate wife, is proved, first, by a dispensation
which the supreme Pontiff granted to John in the year 1337; and
secondly, by a treaty concluded between John and David II. in
1369, when the hostages given to the king were a son of the second
marriage, a grandson of the first, and a _natural_ son. Besides, it
is certain that the children of the first marriage were considered as
John’s feudal heirs; a circumstance which clearly establishes their
legitimacy. It is true that Robert II., in pursuance of the policy he
had adopted, persuaded John to make the children of these respective
marriages feudally independent of each other; and that the effect of
this was to divide the possessions of his powerful vassals into two
distinct and independent lordships. These were, first, the lordship
of Garmoran and Lochaber, which was held by the eldest son of the
first marriage,--and secondly, that of the Isles, which passed to
the eldest son of the second marriage; and matters appear to have
remained in this state until 1427, when, as formerly mentioned, the
Lord of Garmoran was beheaded, and his estates were forfeited to the
crown. James I., however, reversing the policy which had been pursued
by his predecessor, concentrated the possessions of the Macdonalds
in the person of the Lord of the Isles, and thus sought to restore
to him all the power and consequence which had originally belonged
to his house; “but this arbitrary proceeding,” says Mr Skene, “could
not deprive the descendants of the first marriage of the feudal
representation of the chiefs of the clan Donald, which now, on the
failure of the issue of Godfrey in the person of his son Alexander,
devolved on the feudal representative of Reginald, the youngest son
of that marriage.”
The clan Ranald are believed to have derived their origin from this
Reginald or Ranald, who was a son of John of the Isles, by Amy
MacRory, and obtained from his father the lordship of Garmoran,
which he held as vassal of his brother Godfrey. That this lordship
continued in possession of the clan appears evident from the
Parliamentary Records, in which, under the date of 1587, mention is
made of the clan Ranald of Knoydart, Moydart, and Glengarry. But
considerable doubt has arisen, and there has been a good deal of
controversy, as to the right of chiefship; whilst of the various
families descended from Ranald each has put forward its claim to
this distinction. On this knotty and ticklish point we shall content
ourselves with stating the conclusions at which Mr Skene arrived
‘after,’ as he informs us, ‘a rigid examination’ of the whole subject
in dispute. According to him, the present family of Clanranald
have no valid title or pretension whatever, being descended from
an illegitimate son of a second son of the old family of Moydart,
who, in 1531, assumed the title of Captain of Clanranald; and,
consequently, as long as the descendants of the eldest son of that
family remain, they can have no claim by right of blood to the
chiefship. He then proceeds to examine the question,--Who was the
chief previous to this assumption of the captaincy of Clanranald?
and, from a genealogical induction of particulars, he concludes
that Donald, the progenitor of the family of Glengarry, was the
eldest son of the Reginald or Ranald above-mentioned; that from
John, the eldest son of Donald, proceeded the senior branch of this
family, in which the chiefship was vested; that, in consequence of
the grant of Garmoran to the Lord of the Isles, and other adverse
circumstances, they became so much reduced that the oldest cadet
obtained the actual chiefship, under the ordinary title of captain;
and that, on the extinction of this branch in the beginning of the
seventeenth century, the family of Glengarry descended from Alister,
second son of Donald, became the legal representatives of Ranald,
the common ancestor of the clan, and consequently possessed that
_jus sanguinis_ of which no usurpation could deprive them. Such are
the results of Mr Skene’s researches upon this subject. Latterly,
the family of Glengarry have claimed not only the chiefship of clan
Ranald, but likewise that of the whole clan Donald, as being the
representative of Donald, the common ancestor of the clan; and it can
scarcely be denied that the same evidence which makes good the one
point must serve equally to establish the other. Nor does this appear
to be any new pretension. When the services rendered by this family
to the house of Stuart were rewarded by Charles II. with a peerage,
the Glengarry of the time indicated his claim by assuming the title
of Lord Macdonnell and Aros; and although, upon the failure of heirs
male of his body, this title did not descend to his successors, yet
his lands formed, in consequence, the barony of Macdonnell.
Donald Gorme, the claimant of the lordship of the Isles mentioned
above as having been slain in 1539, left a grandson, a minor, known
as Donald Macdonald Gormeson of Sleat. His title to the family
estates was disputed by the Macleods of Harris. He ranged himself on
the side of Queen Mary when the disputes about her marriage began in
1565. He died in 1585, and was succeeded by Donald Gorme Mor, fifth
in descent from Hugh of Sleat. This Donald Gorme proved himself to be
a man of superior abilities, and was favoured highly by James VI., to
whom he did important service in maintaining the peace of the Isles.
“From this period, it may be observed, the family were loyal to the
crown, and firm supporters of the national constitution and laws; and
it is also worthy of notice that nearly all the clans attached to the
old Lords of the Isles, on the failure of the more direct line in the
person of John, transferred their warmest affections to those royal
Stuarts, whose throne they had before so often and so alarmingly
shaken. This circumstance, as all men know, became strikingly
apparent when misfortune fell heavily in turn on the Stuarts.”[150]
Donald Gorme Mor, soon after succeeding his father, found himself
involved in a deadly feud with the Macleans of Dowart, which raged
to such an extent as to lead to the interference of government, and
to the passing in 1587 of an act of parliament, commonly called “The
general Bond” or Band for maintaining good order both on the borders
and in the Highlands and Isles. By this act, it was made imperative
on all landlords, bailies, and chiefs of clans, to find sureties
for the peaceable behaviour of those under them. The contentions,
however, between the Macdonalds and the Macleans continued, and in
1589, with the view of putting an end to them, the king and council
adopted the following plan. After remissions under the privy seal
had been granted to Donald Gorme of Sleat, his kinsman, Macdonald
of Islay, the principal in the feud, and Maclean of Dowart, for all
crimes committed by them, they were induced to proceed to Edinburgh,
under pretence of consulting with the king and council for the good
rule of the country, but immediately on their arrival they were
seized and imprisoned in the castle. In the summer of 1591, they
were set at liberty, on paying each a fine to the king, that imposed
on Sleat being £4,000, under the name of arrears of feu-duties and
crown-rents in the Isles, and finding security for their future
obedience and the performance of certain prescribed conditions. They
also bound themselves to return to their confinement in the castle of
Edinburgh, whenever they should be summoned, on twenty days’ warning.
In consequence of their not fulfilling the conditions imposed upon
them, and their continuing in opposition to the government, their
pardons were recalled, and the three island chiefs were cited before
the privy council on the 14th July 1593, when, failing to appear,
summonses of treason were executed against them and certain of their
associates.
In 1601, the chief of Sleat again brought upon himself and his clan
the interference of government by a feud with Macleod of Dunvegan,
which led to much bloodshed and great misery and distress among
their followers and their families. He had married a sister of
Macleod; but, from jealousy or some other cause, he put her away, and
refused at her brother’s request to take her back. Having procured
a divorce, he soon after married a sister of Kenneth Mackenzie of
Kintail. Macleod immediately assembled his clan, and carried fire and
sword through Macdonald’s district of Trotternish. The latter, in
revenge, invaded Harris, and laid waste that island, killing many of
the inhabitants, and carrying off their cattle. “These spoliations
and incursions were carried on with so much inveteracy, that both
clans were brought to the brink of ruin; and many of the natives of
the districts thus devastated were forced to sustain themselves by
killing and eating their horses, dogs, and cats.” The Macdonalds
having invaded Macleod’s lands in Skye, a battle took place on the
mountain Benquillin between them and the Macleods, when the latter,
under Alexander, the brother of their chief, were defeated with great
loss, and their leader, with thirty of their clan, taken captive. A
reconciliation was at length effected between them by the mediation
of Macdonald of Islay, Maclean of Coll, and other friends; when the
prisoners taken at Benquillin were released.[151]
In 1608, we find Donald Gorme of Sleat one of the Island chiefs who
attended the court of Lord Ochiltree, the king’s lieutenant, at
Aros in Mull, when he was sent there for the settlement of order
in the Isles, and who afterwards accepted his invitation to dinner
on board the king’s ship, called the Moon. When dinner was ended,
Ochiltree told the astonished chiefs that they were his prisoners
by the king’s order; and weighing anchor he sailed direct to Ayr,
whence he proceeded with his prisoners to Edinburgh and presented
them before the privy council, by whose order they were placed
in the castles of Dumbarton, Blackness, and Stirling. Petitions
were immediately presented by the imprisoned chiefs to the council
submitting themselves to the king’s pleasure, and making many offers
in order to procure their liberation. In the following year the
bishop of the Isles was deputed as sole commissioner to visit and
survey the Isles, and all the chiefs in prison were set at liberty,
on finding security to a large amount, not only for their return to
Edinburgh by a certain fixed day, but for their active concurrence,
in the meantime, with the bishop in making the proposed survey.
Donald Gorme of Sleat was one of the twelve chiefs and gentlemen of
the Isles, who met the bishop at Iona, in July 1609, and submitted
themselves to him, as the king’s representative. At a court then held
by the bishop, the nine celebrated statutes called the “Statutes of
Icolmkill,” for the improvement and order of the Isles, were enacted,
with the consent of the assembled chiefs, and their bonds and oaths
given for the obedience thereto of their clansmen.[152]
In 1616, after the suppression of the rebellion of the Clanranald
in the South Isles, certain very stringent conditions were imposed
by the privy council on the different Island chiefs. Among these
were, that they were to take home-farms into their own hands, which
they were to cultivate, “to the effect that they might be thereby
exercised and eschew idleness,” and that they were not to use in
their houses more than a certain quantity of wine respectively.
Donald Gorme of Sleat, having been prevented by sickness from
attending the council with the other chiefs, ratified all their
proceedings, and found the required sureties, by a bond dated in
the month of August. He named Duntulm, a castle of his family in
Trotternish, Skye, as his residence, when six household gentlemen,
and an annual consumption of four tun of wine, were allowed to
him; and he was once-a-year to exhibit to the council three of his
principal kinsmen. He died the same year, without issue, and was
succeeded by his nephew, Donald Gorme Macdonald of Sleat.
On July 14th 1625, after having concluded, in an amicable manner, all
his disputes with the Macleods of Harris, and another controversy in
which he was engaged with the captain of Clanranald, he was created
a baronet of Nova Scotia by Charles I., with a special clause of
precedency placing him second of that order in Scotland. He adhered
to the cause of that monarch, but died in 1643. He had married Janet,
commonly called “fair Janet,” second daughter of Kenneth, first
Lord Mackenzie of Kintail, by whom he had several children. His
eldest son, Sir James Macdonald, second baronet of Sleat, joined
the Marquis of Montrose in 1645, and when Charles II. marched into
England in 1651, he sent a number of his clan to his assistance. He
died 8th December 1678.
Sir James’ eldest son, Sir Donald Macdonald, third baronet of Sleat,
died in 1695. His son, also named Sir Donald, fourth baronet, was one
of those summoned by the Lord Advocate, on the breaking out of the
rebellion of 1715, to appear at Edinburgh, under pain of a year’s
imprisonment and other penalties, to give bail for their allegiance
to the government. Joining in the insurrection, his two brothers
commanded the battalion of his clan, on the Pretender’s side, at
Sheriffmuir; and, being sent out with the Earl Marischal’s horse to
drive away a reconnoitring party, under the Duke of Argyll, from
the heights, may be said to have commenced the battle. Sir Donald
himself had joined the Earl of Seaforth at his camp at Alness with
700 Macdonalds. After the suppression of the rebellion, Sir Donald
proceeded to the Isle of Skye with about 1000 men; but although
he made no resistance, having no assurance of protection from the
government in case of a surrender, he retired into one of the Uists,
where he remained till he obtained a ship which carried him to
France. He was forfeited for his share in the insurrection, but the
forfeiture was soon removed. He died in 1718, leaving one son and
four daughters.
His son, Sir Alexander Macdonald, seventh baronet, was one of the
first persons asked by Prince Charles to join him, on his arrival off
the Western Islands, in July 1745, but refused, as he had brought no
foreign force with him. After the battle of Preston, the prince sent
Mr Alexander Macleod, advocate, to the Isle of Skye, to endeavour
to prevail upon Sir Alexander Macdonald and the laird of Macleod
to join the insurgents; but instead of doing so, these and other
well-affected chiefs enrolled each an independent company for the
service of government, out of their respective clans. The Macdonalds
of Skye served under Lord Loudon in Ross-shire.
After the battle of Culloden, when Prince Charles, in his wanderings,
took refuge in Skye, with Flora Macdonald, they landed near
Moydhstat, or Mugstot, the seat of Sir Alexander Macdonald, near the
northern extremity of that island. Sir Alexander was at that time
with the Duke of Cumberland at Fort Augustus, and as his wife, Lady
Margaret Montgomerie, a daughter of the ninth Earl of Eglinton, was
known to be a warm friend of the prince. Miss Macdonald proceeded to
announce to her his arrival. Through Lady Margaret the prince was
consigned to the care of Mr Macdonald of Kingsburgh, Sir Alexander’s
factor, at whose house he spent the night, and afterwards departed
to the island of Rasay. Sir Alexander died in November 1746, leaving
three sons.
His eldest son, Sir James, eighth baronet, styled “The Scottish
Marcellus,” was born in 1741. At his own earnest solicitation he was
sent to Eton, on leaving which he set out on his travels, and was
everywhere received by the learned with the distinction due to his
unrivalled talents. At Rome, in particular, the most marked attention
was paid to him by several of the cardinals. He died in that city
on 26th July 1766, when only 25 years old. In extent of learning,
and in genius, he resembled the admirable Crichton. On his death the
title devolved on his next brother, Alexander, ninth baronet, who
was created a peer of Ireland, July 17, 1776, as Baron Macdonald
of Sleat, county Antrim. He married the eldest daughter of Godfrey
Bosville, Esq. of Gunthwaite, Yorkshire, and had seven sons and three
daughters. Diana, the eldest daughter, married in 1788 the Right Hon.
Sir John Sinclair of Ulbster. His lordship died Sept. 12, 1795.
His eldest son, Alexander Wentworth, second Lord Macdonald, died
unmarried, June 9, 1824, when his brother, Godfrey, became third Lord
Macdonald. He assumed the additional name of Bosville. He married
Louise Maria, daughter of Farley Edsir, Esq.; issue, three sons and
seven daughters. He died Oct. 13, 1832.
The eldest son, Godfrey William Wentworth, fourth Lord Macdonald,
born in 1809, married in 1845, daughter of G. T. Wyndham, Esq. of
Cromer Hall, Norfolk; issue, Somerled James Brudenell, born in 1849,
two other sons and four daughters.
The MACDONALDS of ISLA and KINTYRE, called the Clan IAN VOR, whose
chiefs were usually styled lords of Dunyveg (from their castle in
Isla) and the Glens, were descended from John Mor, second son of “the
good John of Isla,” and of Lady Margaret Stewart, daughter of King
Robert II. From his brother Donald, Lord of the Isles, he received
large grants of land in Isla and Kintyre, and by his marriage with
Marjory Bisset, heiress of the district of the Glens in Antrim, he
acquired possessions in Ulster. He was murdered before 1427 by an
individual named James Campbell, who is said to have received a
commission from King James I. to apprehend him, but that he exceeded
his powers by putting him to death. His eldest son was the famous
Donald Balloch. From Ranald Bane, a younger brother of Donald
Balloch, sprang the Clanranaldbane of Largie in Kintyre.
Donald Balloch’s grandson, John, surnamed _Cathanach_, or warlike,
was at the head of the clan Ian Vor, when the lordship of the Isles
was finally forfeited by James IV. in 1493. In that year he was among
the chiefs, formerly vassals of the Lord of the Isles, who made their
submission to the king, when he proceeded in person to the West
Highlands. On this occasion he and the other chiefs were knighted.
Alexander of Isla was with Sir Donald of Lochalsh when, in 1518,
he proceeded against the father-in-law of the former, MacIan of
Ardnamurchan, who was defeated and slain, with two of his sons, at
a place called Craiganairgid, or the Silver Craig in Morvern. The
death of Sir Donald soon after brought the rebellion to a close. In
1529 Alexander of Isla and his followers were again in insurrection,
and being joined by the Macleans, they made descents upon Roseneath,
Craignish, and other lands of the Campbells, which they ravaged with
fire and sword. Alexander of Isla being considered the prime mover
of the rebellion, the king resolved in 1531 to proceed against him
in person, on which, hastening to Stirling, under a safeguard and
protection, he submitted, and received a new grant, during the king’s
pleasure, of certain lands in the South Isles and Kintyre, and a
remission to himself and his followers for all crimes committed by
them during the late rebellion.
In 1543, on the second escape of Donald Dubh, grandson of John, last
lord of the Isles, and the regent Arran’s opposing the views of
the English faction, James Macdonald of Isla, son and successor to
Alexander, was the only insular chief who supported the regent. In
the following year his lands of Kintyre were ravaged by the Earl of
Lennox, the head of the English party.
After the death of Donald Dubh, the islanders chose for their leader
James Macdonald of Isla, who married Lady Agnes Campbell, the Earl of
Argyll’s sister, and though the most powerful of the Island chiefs,
he relinquished his pretensions to the lordship of the Isles, being
the last that assumed that title.
A dispute between the Macleans and the clan Ian Vor, relative to the
right of occupancy of certain crown lands in Isla, led to a long and
bloody feud between these tribes, in which both suffered severely.
In 1562 the matter was brought before the privy council, when it was
decided that James Macdonald of Isla was really the crown tenant, and
as Maclean refused to become his vassal, in 1565 the rival chiefs
were compelled to find sureties, each to the amount of £10,000, that
they would abstain from mutual hostilities.
James having been killed while helping to defend his family estates
in Ulster, Ireland, his eldest son, Angus Macdonald, succeeded to
Isla and Kintyre, and in his time the feud with the Macleans was
renewed, details of which will be found in the former part of this
work. In 1579, upon information of mutual hostilities committed by
their followers, the king and council commanded Lauchlan Maclean
of Dowart and Angus Macdonald of Dunyveg or Isla, to subscribe
assurances of indemnity to each other, under the pain of treason,
and the quarrel was, for the time, patched up by the marriage of
Macdonald with Maclean’s sister. In 1585, however, the feud came to
a height, and after involving nearly the whole of the island clans
on one side or the other, and causing its disastrous consequences
to be felt throughout the whole extent of the Hebrides, by the
mutual ravages of the contending parties, government interfered,
and measures were at last adopted for reducing to obedience the
turbulent chiefs, who had caused so much bloodshed and distress in
the Isles.
James Macdonald, son of Angus Macdonald of Dunyveg, had remained in
Edinburgh for four years as a hostage for his father, and early in
1596 he received a license to visit him, in the hope that he might
be prevailed upon to submit to the laws, that the peace of the Isles
might be secured. He sent his son, who was soon afterwards knighted,
back to court to make known to the privy council, in his father’s
name and his own, that they would fulfil whatever conditions should
be prescribed to them by his majesty. At this time Angus made over
to his son all his estates, reserving only a proper maintenance for
himself and his wife during their lives. When Sir William Stewart
arrived at Kintyre, and held a court there, the chief of Isla and his
followers hastened to make their personal submission to the king’s
representative, and early in the following year he went to Edinburgh,
when he undertook to find security for the arrears of his crown
rents, to remove his clan and dependers from Kintyre and the Rinns of
Isla, and to deliver his castle of Dunyveg to any person sent by the
king to receive it.
Angus Macdonald having failed to fulfil these conditions, his son,
Sir James, was in 1598 sent to him from court, to induce him to
comply with them. His resignation of his estates in favour of his
son was not recognised by the privy council, as they had already
been forfeited to the crown; but Sir James, on his arrival, took
possession of them, and even attempted to burn his father and mother
in their house of Askomull in Kintyre. Angus Macdonald, after having
been taken prisoner, severely scorched, was carried to Smerbie in
Kintyre, and confined there in irons for several months. Sir James,
now in command of his clan, conducted himself with such violence,
that in June 1598 a proclamation for another royal expedition to
Kintyre was issued. He, however, contrived to procure from the king
a letter approving of his proceedings in Kintyre, and particularly
of his apprehension of his father; and the expedition, after being
delayed for some time, was finally abandoned.
In August of the following year, with the view of being reconciled to
government, Sir James appeared in presence of the king’s comptroller
at Falkland, and made certain proposals for establishing the royal
authority in Kintyre and Isla; but the influence of Argyll, who took
the part of Angus Macdonald, Sir James’s father, and the Campbells,
having been used against their being carried into effect, the
arrangement came to nothing, and Sir James and his clan were driven
into irremediable opposition to the government, which ended in their
ruin.
Sir James, finding that it was the object of Argyll to obtain for
himself the king’s lands in Kintyre, made an attempt in 1606 to
escape from the castle of Edinburgh, where he was imprisoned; but
being unsuccessful, was put in irons. In the following year a charter
was granted to Argyll of the lands in North and South Kintyre, and in
the Isle of Jura, which had been forfeited by Angus Macdonald, and
thus did the legal right to the lands of Kintyre pass from a tribe
which had held them for many hundred years.[153]
Angus Macdonald and his clan immediately took up arms, and his son,
Sir James, after many fruitless applications to the privy council,
to be set at liberty, and writing both to the king and the Duke of
Lennox, made another attempt to escape from the castle of Edinburgh,
but having hurt his ancle by leaping from the wall whilst encumbered
with his fetters, he was retaken near the West Port of that city,
and consigned to his former dungeon. Details of the subsequent
transactions in this rebellion will be found in the former part of
this work.[154]
After the fall of Argyll, who had turned Roman Catholic, and had
also fled to Spain, where he is said to have entered into some
very suspicious dealings with his former antagonist, Sir James
Macdonald, who was living there in exile, the latter was, in 1620,
with MacRanald of Keppoch, recalled from exile by King James. On
their arrival in London, Sir James received a pension of 1000 merks
sterling, while Keppoch got one of 200 merks. His majesty also wrote
to the Scottish privy council in their favour, and granted them
remissions for all their offences. Sir James, however, never again
visited Scotland, and died at London in 1626, without issue. The clan
Ian Vor from this period may be said to have been totally suppressed.
Their lands were taken possession of by the Campbells, and the
most valuable portion of the property of the ducal house of Argyll
consists of what had formerly belonged to the Macdonalds of Isla and
Kintyre.
The MACDONALDS of GARRAGACH and KEPPOCH, called the CLANRANALD of
LOCHABER, were descended from Alexander, or Allaster Carrach, third
son of John, Lord of the Isles, and Lady Margaret Stewart. He was
forfeited for joining the insurrection of the Islanders, under Donald
Balloch, in 1431, and the greater part of his lands were bestowed
upon Duncan Mackintosh, captain of the clan Chattan, which proved the
cause of a fierce and lasting feud between the Mackintoshes and the
Macdonalds. It was from Ranald, the fourth in descent from Allaster
Carrach, that the tribe received the name of the Clanranald of
Lochaber.
In 1498, the then chief of the tribe, Donald, elder brother of
Allaster MacAngus, grandson of Allaster Carrach, was killed in
a battle with Dougal Stewart, first of Appin. His son John, who
succeeded him, having delivered up to Mackintosh, chief of the clan
Chattan, as steward of Lochaber, one of the tribe who had committed
some crime, and had fled to him for protection, rendered himself
unpopular among his clan, and was deposed from the chiefship. His
cousin and heir-male presumptive, Donald Glas MacAllaster, was
elected chief in his place. During the reign of James IV., says Mr
Gregory, this tribe continued to hold their lands in Lochaber, as
occupants merely, and without a legal claim to the heritage.[155]
In 1546 Ranald Macdonald Glas, who appears to have been the son of
Donald Glas MacAllaster, and the captain of the clan Cameron, being
present at the slaughter of Lord Lovat and the Frasers at the battle
of Kinloch-lochy, and having also supported all the rebellions of
the Earl of Lennox, concealed themselves in Lochaber, when the Earl
of Huntly entered that district with a considerable force and laid
it waste, taking many of the inhabitants prisoners. Having been
apprehended by William Mackintosh, captain of the clan Chattan,
the two chiefs were delivered over to Huntly, who conveyed them to
Perth, where they were detained in prison for some time. They were
afterwards tried at Elgin for high treason, and being found guilty,
were beheaded in 1547.
Allaster MacRanald of Keppoch and his eldest son assisted Sir James
Macdonald in his escape from Edinburgh Castle in 1615, and was with
him at the head of his clan during his subsequent rebellion. On its
suppression, he fled towards Kintyre, and narrowly escaped being
taken with the loss of his vessels and some of his men.
In the great civil war the Clanranald of Lochaber were very active
on the king’s side. Soon after the Restoration, Alexander Macdonald
Glas, the young chief of Keppoch, and his brother were murdered by
some of their own discontented followers. Coll Macdonald was the
next chief. Previous to the Revolution of 1688, the feud between
his clan and the Mackintoshes, regarding the lands he occupied, led
to the last clan battle that was ever fought in the Highlands. The
Mackintoshes having invaded Lochaber, were defeated on a height
called Mulroy. So violent had been Keppoch’s armed proceedings before
this event that the government had issued a commission of fire and
sword against him. After the defeat of the Mackintoshes, he advanced
to Inverness, to wreak his vengeance on the inhabitants of that town
for supporting the former against him, if they did not purchase his
forbearance by paying a large sum as a fine. Dundee, however, anxious
to secure the friendship of the people of Inverness, granted Keppoch
his own bond in behalf of the town, obliging himself to see Keppoch
paid 2000 dollars, as a compensation for the losses and injuries
he alleged he had sustained from the Mackintoshes. Keppoch brought
to the aid of Dundee 1000 Highlanders, and as Mackintosh refused
to attend a friendly interview solicited by Dundee, Keppoch, at
the desire of the latter, drove away his cattle. We are told that
Dundee “used to call him Coll of the cowes, because he found them
out when they were driven to the hills out of the way.” He fought
at the battle of Killiecrankie, and, on the breaking out of the
rebellion of 1715, he joined the Earl of Mar, with whom he fought at
Sheriffmuir. His son, Alexander Macdonald of Keppoch, on the arrival
of Prince Charles in Scotland in 1745, at once declared for him, and
at a meeting of the chiefs to consult as to the course they should
pursue, he gave it as his opinion that as the prince had risked his
person, and generously thrown himself into the hands of his friends,
they were bound, in duty at least, to raise men instantly for the
protection of his person, whatever might be the consequences.
At the battle of Culloden, on the three Macdonald regiments giving
way, Keppoch, seeing himself abandoned by his clan, advanced with
his drawn sword in one hand and his pistol in the other, but was
brought to the ground by a musket shot. Donald Roy Macdonald, a
captain in Clanranald’s regiment, followed him, and entreated him not
to throw away his life, assuring him that his wound was not mortal,
and that he might easily rejoin his regiment in the retreat, but
Keppoch, after recommending him to take care of himself, received
another shot, which killed him on the spot. There are still numerous
cadets of this family in Lochaber, but the principal house, says Mr
Gregory,[156] if not yet extinct, has lost all influence in that
district. Latterly they changed their name to Macdonnell.
CLANRANALD.
[Illustration: BADGE.--Heath.]
The CLANRANALD MACDONALDS of GARMORAN are descended from Ranald,
younger son of John, first Lord of the Isles, by his first wife,
Amy, heiress of the MacRorys or Macruaries of Garmoran. In 1373 he
received a grant of the North Isles, Garmoran, and other lands, to
be held of John, Lord of the Isles, and his heirs. His descendants
comprehended the families of Moydart, Morar, Knoydart, and Glengarry,
and came in time to form the most numerous tribe of the Clandonald.
Alexander Macruari of Moydart, chief of the Clanranald, was one
of the principal chiefs seized by James I. at Inverness in 1427,
and soon after beheaded. The great-grandson of Ranald, named Allan
Macruari, who became chief of the Clanranald in 1481, was one of the
principal supporters of Angus, the young Lord of the Isles, at the
battle of Bloody Bay, and he likewise followed Alexander of Lochalsh,
nephew of the Lord of the Isles, in his invasion of Ross and Cromarty
in 1491, when he received a large portion of the booty taken on the
occasion.[157] In 1495, on the second expedition of James IV. to the
Isles, Allan Macruari was one of the chiefs who made their submission.
During the whole of the 15th century the Clanranald had been engaged
in feuds regarding the lands of Garmoran and Uist; first, with
the Siol Gorrie, or race of Godfrey, eldest brother of Ranald,
the founder of the tribe, and afterwards with the Macdonalds or
Clanhuistein of Sleat, and it was not till 1506, that they succeeded
in acquiring a legal title to the disputed lands. John, eldest son
of Hugh of Sleat, having no issue, made over all his estates to
the Clanranald, including the lands occupied by them. Archibald,
or Gillespock, Dubh, natural brother of John, having slain Donald
Gallach and another of John’s brothers, endeavoured to seize the
lands of Sleat, but was expelled from the North Isles by Ranald Bane
Allanson of Moydart, eldest son of the chief of Clanranald. The
latter married Florence, daughter of MacIan of Ardnamurchan, and had
four sons--1. Ranald Bane; 2. Alexander, who had three sons, John,
Farquhar, and Angus, and a daughter; 3. Ranald Oig; and 4. Angus
Reochson. Angus Reoch, the youngest son, had a son named Dowle or
Coull, who had a son named Allan, whose son, Alexander, was the
ancestor of the Macdonells of Morar.
In 1509 Allan Macruari was tried, convicted, and executed, in
presence of the king at Blair-Athol, but for what crime is not
known. His eldest son, Ranald Bane, obtained a charter of the lands
of Moydart and Arisaig, Dec. 14, 1540, and died in 1541. He married
a daughter of Lord Lovat, and had one son, Ranald Galda, or the
stranger, from his being fostered by his mother’s relations, the
Frasers.
On the death of Ranald Bane, the fifth chief, the clan, who had
resolved to defeat his son’s right to succeed, in consequence of his
relations, the Frasers, having joined the Earl of Huntly, lieutenant
of the north, against the Macdonalds, chose the next heir to the
estate as their chief. This was the young Ranald’s cousin-german,
John Moydartach, or John of Moydart, eldest son of Alexander
Allanson, second son of Allan Macruari, and John was, accordingly,
acknowledged by the clan captain of Clanranald. Lovat, apprised of
the intentions of the clan against his grandchild, before their
scheme was ripe for execution, marched to Castletirrim, and, by the
assistance of the Frasers, placed Ranald Galda in possession of the
lands. The Clanranald, assisted by the Macdonalds of Keppoch and
the Clan Cameron, having laid waste and plundered the districts of
Abertarf and Stratherrick, belonging to Lovat, and the lands of
Urquhart and Glenmoriston, the property of the Grants, the Earl
of Huntly, the king’s lieutenant in the north, to drive them back
and put an end to their ravages, was obliged to raise a numerous
force. He penetrated as far as Inverlochy in Lochaber, and then
returned to his own territories. The battle of Kinloch-lochy, called
Blar-nan-leine, “the field of shirts,” followed, as related in the
account of the clan Fraser. The Macdonalds being the victors, the
result was that John Moydartach was maintained in possession of the
chiefship and estates, and transmitted the same to his descendants.
On the return of Huntly with an army, into Lochaber, John Moydartach
fled to the Isles, where he remained for some time.
The Clanranald distinguished themselves under the Marquis of
Montrose in the civil wars of the 17th century. At the battle of
Killiecrankie, their chief, then only fourteen years of age, fought
under Dundee, with 500 of his men. They were also at Sheriffmuir. In
the rebellion of 1745, the Clanranald took an active part. Macdonald
of Boisdale, the brother of the chief, then from age and infirmities
unfit to be of any service, had an interview with Prince Charles,
on his arrival off the island of Eriska, and positively refused to
aid his enterprise. On the following day, however, young Clanranald,
accompanied by his kinsmen, Alexander Macdonald of Glenaladale and
Æneas Macdonald of Dalily, the author of a Journal and Memoirs of the
Expedition, went on board the prince’s vessel, and readily offered
him his services. He afterwards joined him with 200 of his clan, and
was with him throughout the rebellion.
At the battles of Preston and Falkirk, the Macdonalds were on the
right, which they claimed as their due, but at Culloden the three
Macdonald regiments of Clanranald, Keppoch, and Glengarry, formed
the left. It was probably their feeling of dissatisfaction at being
placed on the left of the line that caused the Macdonald regiments,
on observing that the right and centre had given way, to turn their
backs and fly from the fatal field without striking a blow.
At Glenboisdale, whither Charles retreated, after the defeat at
Culloden, he was joined by young Clanranald, and several other
adherents, who endeavoured to persuade him from embarking for the
Isles, but in vain. In the act of indemnity passed in June 1747,
young Clanranald was one of those who were specially excepted from
pardon.
The ancestor of the Macdonalds of Benbecula was Ranald, brother of
Donald Macallan, who was captain of the Clanranald in the latter
part of the reign of James VI. The Macdonalds of Boisdale are cadets
of Benbecula, and those of Staffa of Boisdale. On the failure of
Donald’s descendants, the family of Benbecula succeeded to the barony
of Castletirrim, and the captainship of the Clanranald, represented
by Reginald George Macdonald of Clanranald.
From John, another brother of Donald Macallan, came the family of
Kinlochmoidart, which terminated in an heiress. This lady married
Colonel Robertson, who, in her right, assumed the name of Macdonald.
From John Oig, uncle of Donald Macallan, descended the Macdonalds
of Glenaladale. “The head of this family,” says Mr Gregory, “John
Macdonald of Glenaladale, being obliged to quit Scotland about 1772,
in consequence of family misfortunes, sold his Scottish estates to
his cousin (also a Macdonald), and emigrating to Prince Edward’s
Island, with about 200 followers, purchased a tract of 40,000 acres
there, while the 200 Highlanders have increased to 3000.”
One of the attendants of Prince Charles, who, after Culloden,
embarked with him for France, was Neil MacEachan Macdonald, a
gentleman sprung from the branch of the Clanranald in Uist. He served
in France as a lieutenant in the Scottish regiment of Ogilvie, and
was father of Stephen James Joseph Macdonald, marshal of France, and
Duke of Tarentum, born Nov. 17, 1765; died Sept. 24, 1840.
The MACDONALDS of GLENCOE are descended from John Og, surnamed
_Fraoch_, natural son of Angus Og of Isla, and brother of John,
first Lord of the Isles. He settled in Glencoe, which is a wild and
gloomy vale in the district of Lorn, Argyleshire, as a vassal under
his brother, and some of his descendants still possess lands there.
This branch of the Macdonalds was known as the clan Ian Abrach, it is
supposed from one of the family being fostered in Lochaber. After the
Revolution, MacIan or Alexander Macdonald of Glencoe, was one of the
chiefs who supported the cause of King James, having joined Dundee in
Lochaber at the head of his clan, and a mournful interest attaches
to the history of this tribe from the dreadful massacre, by which it
was attempted to exterminate it in February 1692. The story has often
been told, but as full details have been given in the former part of
this work, it is unnecessary to repeat them here.
The Macdonalds of Glencoe joined Prince Charles on the breaking out
of the rebellion in 1745, and General Stewart, in his Sketches of the
Highlanders, relates that when the insurgent army lay at Kirkliston,
near the seat of the Earl of Stair, grandson of Secretary Dalrymple,
the prince, anxious to save his lordship’s house and property, and to
remove from his followers all excitement and revenge, proposed that
the Glencoe-men should be marched to a distance, lest the remembrance
of the share which his grandfather had in the order for the massacre
of the clan should rouse them to retaliate on his descendant.
Indignant at being supposed capable of wreaking their vengeance on an
innocent man, they declared their resolution of returning home, and
it was not without much explanation and great persuasion that they
were prevented from marching away the following morning.
MACDONNELL OF GLENGARRY.
[Illustration: BADGE.--Heath.]
The GLENGARRY branch of the Macdonalds spell their name MACDONNELL.
The word _Dhonuill_, whence the name Donald is derived, is said
to signify “brown eye.” The most proper way, says Mr Gregory, of
spelling the name, according to the pronunciation, was that formerly
employed by the Macdonalds of Dunyveg and the Glens, who used
_Macdonnell_. Sir James Macdonald, however, the last of this family
in the direct male line, signed _Makdonall_.[158]
The family of Glengarry are descended from Alister, second son of
Donald, who was eldest son of Reginald or Ranald (progenitor also of
the Clanranald), youngest son of John, lord of the Isles, by Amy,
heiress of MacRory. Alexander Macdonnell, who was chief of Glengarry
at the beginning of the 16th century, supported the claims of Sir
Donald Macdonald of Lochalsh to the lordship of the Isles, and in
November 1513 assisted him, with Chisholm of Comer, in expelling the
garrison and seizing the Castle of Urquhart in Loch Ness. In 1527
the Earl of Argyll, lieutenant of the Isles, received from Alexander
Macranald of Glengarry and North Morar, a bond of manrent or service;
and in 1545 he was among the lords and barons of the Isles who, at
Knockfergus in Ireland, took the oath of allegiance to the king of
England, “at the command of the Earl of Lennox.” He married Margaret,
eldest daughter of Celestine, brother of John Earl of Ross, and
one of the three sisters and coheiresses of Sir Donald Macdonald
of Lochalsh. His son, Angus or Æneas Macdonnell of Glengarry, the
representative, through his mother, of the house of Lochalsh, which
had become extinct in the male line on the death of Sir Donald in
1518, married Janet, only daughter of Sir Hector Maclean of Dowart,
and had a son, Donald Macdonnell of Glengarry, styled Donald MacAngus
MacAlister.
In 1581 a serious feud broke out between the chief of Glengarry, who
had inherited one half of the districts of Lochalsh, Lochcarron,
and Lochbroom in Wester Ross, and Colin Mackenzie of Kintail, who
was in possession of the other half. The Mackenzies, having made
aggressions upon Glengarry’s portion, the latter, to maintain his
rights, took up his temporary residence in Lochcarron, and placed a
small garrison in the castle of Strone in that district. With some of
his followers he unfortunately fell into the hands of a party of the
Mackenzies, and after being detained in captivity for a considerable
time, only procured his release by yielding the castle of Lochcarron
to the Mackenzies. The other prisoners, including several of his near
kinsmen, were put to death. On complaining to the privy council, they
caused Mackenzie of Kintail to be detained for a time at Edinburgh,
and subsequently in the castle of Blackness. In 1602, Glengarry, from
his ignorance of the laws, was, by the craft of the clan Kenzie,
as Sir Robert Gordon says, “easalie intrapped within the compass
thereof,” on which they procured a warrant for citing him to appear
before the justiciary court at Edinburgh. Glengarry, however, paid
no attention to it, but went about revenging the slaughter of two of
his kinsmen, whom the Mackenzies had killed after the summons had
been issued. The consequence was that he and some of his followers
were outlawed, and Kenneth Mackenzie, who was now lord of Kintail,
procured a commission of fire and sword against Glengarry and his
men, in virtue of which he invaded and wasted the district of North
Morar, and carried off all the cattle. In retaliation the Macdonalds
plundered the district of Applecross, and, on a subsequent occasion,
they landed on the coast of Lochalsh, with the intention of burning
and destroying all Mackenzie’s lands, as far as Easter Ross, but
their leader, Allaster MacGorrie, having been killed, they returned
home. To revenge the death of his kinsman, Angus Macdonnell, the
young chief of Glengarry, at the head of his followers, proceeded
north to Lochcarron, where his tribe held the castle of Strone, now
in ruins. After burning many of the houses in the district, and
killing the inhabitants, he loaded his boats with the plunder, and
prepared to return. In the absence of their chief, the Mackenzies,
encouraged by the example of his lady, posted themselves at the
narrow strait or kyle which separates Skye from the mainland, for the
purpose of intercepting them. Night had fallen, however, before they
made their appearance, and taking advantage of the darkness, some
of the Mackenzies rowed out in two boats towards a large galley, on
board of which was young Glengarry, which was then passing the kyle.
This they suddenly attacked with a volley of musketry and arrows.
Those on board in their alarm crowding to one side, the galley
overset, and all on board were thrown into the water. Such of them
as were able to reach the shore were immediately despatched by the
Mackenzies, and among the slain was the young chief of Glengarry
himself. The rest of the Macdonnells, on reaching Strathaird in Skye,
left their boats, and proceeded on foot to Morar. Finding that the
chief of the Mackenzies had not returned from Mull, a large party
was sent to an island near which he must pass, which he did next
day in Maclean’s great galley, but he contrived to elude them, and
was soon out of reach of pursuit. He subsequently laid siege to the
castle of Strone, which surrendered to him, and was blown up.
In 1603, “the Clanranald of Glengarry, under Allan Macranald of
Lundie, made an irruption into Brae Ross, and plundered the lands of
Kilchrist, and others adjacent, belonging to the Mackenzies. This
foray was signalized by the merciless burning of a whole congregation
in the church of Kilchrist, while Glengarry’s piper marched round
the building, mocking the cries of the unfortunate inmates with
the well-known pibroch, which has been known, ever since, under
the name of Kilchrist, as the family tune of the Clanranald of
Glengarry.”[159] Eventually, Kenneth Mackenzie, afterwards Lord
Kintail, succeeded in obtaining a crown charter to the disputed
districts of Lochalsh, Lochcarron, and others, dated in 1607.
Donald MacAngus of Glengarry died in 1603. By his wife, Margaret,
daughter of Alexander Macdonald, Captain of Clanranald, he had,
besides Angus above mentioned, two other sons, Alexander, who died
soon after his father, and Donald Macdonnell of Scothouse.
Alexander, by his wife, Jean, daughter of Allan Cameron of Lochiel,
had a son, Æneas Macdonnell of Glengarry, who was one of the first
in 1644 to join the royalist army under Montrose, and never left
that great commander, “for which,” says Bishop Wishart, “he deserves
a singular commendation for his bravery and steady loyalty to the
king, and his peculiar attachment to Montrose.”[160] Glengarry also
adhered faithfully to the cause of Charles II., and was forfeited
by Cromwell in 1651. As a reward for his faithful services he was
at the Restoration created a peer by the title of Lord Macdonnell
and Aross, by patent dated at Whitehall, 20th December 1660, the
honours being limited to the heirs male of his body. This led him to
claim not only the chiefship of Clanranald, but likewise that of the
whole Clandonald, as being the representative of Donald, the common
ancestor of the clan: and on 18th July 1672, the privy council issued
an order, commanding him as chief to exhibit before the council
several persons of the name of Macdonald, to find caution to keep the
peace.
The three branches of the Clanranald engaged in all the attempts
which were made for the restoration of the Stuarts. On 27th August
1715, Glengarry was one of the chiefs who attended the pretended
grand hunting match at Braemar, appointed by the Earl of Mar,
previous to the breaking out of the rebellion of that year. After
the suppression of the rebellion, the chief of Glengarry made his
submission to General Cadogan at Inverness. He died in 1724. By his
wife, Lady Mary Mackenzie, daughter of the third Earl of Seaforth, he
had a son, John Macdonnell, who succeeded him.
In 1745, six hundred of the Macdonnells of Glengarry joined Prince
Charles, under the command of Macdonnell of Lochgarry, who afterwards
escaped to France with the prince, and were at the battles of
Preston, Falkirk, and Culloden. The chief himself seems not to have
engaged in the rebellion. He was however arrested, and sent to London.
General Sir James Macdonnell, G.C.B., who distinguished himself when
lieut.-col. in the guards, by the bravery with which he held the
buildings of Hougomont, at the battle of Waterloo, was third son of
Duncan Macdonnell, Esq. of Glengarry. He was born at the family seat,
Inverness-shire, and died May 15, 1857.
Colonel Alexander Ranaldson Macdonnell of Glengarry, who, in January
1822, married Rebecca, second daughter of Sir William Forbes of
Pitsligo, baronet, was the last genuine specimen of a Highland chief.
His character in its more favourable features was drawn by Sir Walter
Scott, in his romance of Waverley, as Fergus MacIvor. He always wore
the dress and adhered to the style of living of his ancestors, and
when away from home in any of the Highland towns, he was followed
by a body of retainers, who were regularly posted as sentinels at
his door. He revived the claims of his family to the chiefship of
the Macdonalds, styling himself also of Clanranald. In January 1828
he perished in endeavouring to escape from a steamer which had gone
ashore. As his estate was very much mortgaged and encumbered, his
son was compelled to dispose of it, and to emigrate to Australia,
with his family and clan. The estate was purchased by the Marquis of
Huntly from the chief, and in 1840 it was sold to Lord Ward (Earl of
Dudley, Feb. 13, 1860,) for £91,000. In 1860 his lordship sold it to
Edward Ellice, Esq. of Glenquoich, for £120,000.
The principal families descended from the house of Glengarry, were
the Macdonnells of Barrisdale, in Knoydart, Greenfield, and Lundie.
The strength of the Macdonalds has at all times been considerable. In
1427, the Macdonnells of Garmoran and Lochaber mustered 2000 men; in
1715, the whole clan furnished 2820; and in 1745, 2330. In a memorial
drawn up by President Forbes of Culloden, and transmitted to the
government soon after the insurrection in 1745, the force of every
clan is detailed, according to the best information which the author
of the report could procure at the time. This enumeration, which
proceeds upon the supposition that the chieftain calculated on the
military services of the youthful, the most hardy, and the bravest of
his followers, omitting those who, from advanced age, tender years,
or natural debility, were unable to carry arms, gives the following
statement of the respective forces of the different branches of the
Macdonalds:--
Men.
Macdonald of Sleat, 700
Macdonald of Clanranald, 700
Macdonell of Glengarry, 500
Macdonell of Keppoch, 300
Macdonald of Glencoe, 130
----
In all, 2330
Next to the Campbells, therefore, who could muster about 5000 men,
the Macdonalds were by far the most numerous and powerful clan in the
Highlands of Scotland.
“The clans or septs,” says Mr Smibert,[161] “sprung from the
Macdonalds, or adhering to and incorporated with that family,
though bearing subsidiary names, were very numerous. One point
peculiarly marks the Gael of the coasts, as this great connection
has already been called, and that is the device of a _Lymphad_ or
old-fashioned _Oared Galley_, assumed and borne in their arms.
It indicates strongly a common origin and site. The Macdonalds,
Maclachlans, Macdougals, Macneils, Macleans, and Campbells, as well
as the Macphersons, Mackintoshes, and others, carry, and have always
carried, such a galley in their armorial shields. Some families of
Macdonald descent do not bear it; and indeed, at most, it simply
proves a common coast origin, or an early location by the western
lochs and lakes.”
FOOTNOTES:
[136] Chalmers’ _Caledonia_, vol. i. p. 266.
[137] _Western Highlands_, p. 7.
[138] “Both Dugall and Reginald were called Kings of the Isles at
the same time that Reginald, the son of Godred the Black, was styled
King of Man and the Isles; and in the next generation we find mention
of these kings of the Isles of the race of Somerled existing at one
time.” The word _king_ with the Norwegians therefore corresponds to
Magnate.--Gregory, p. 17.
[139] “The seniority of Roderick, son of Reginald, has not been
universally admitted, some authors making Donald the elder by
birth. But the point is of little moment, seeing that the direct
and legitimate line of Roderick, who, with his immediate progeny,
held a large portion of the Isles, terminated in a female in the
third generation, when the succession of the house of Somerled
fell indisputably to the descendants of Donald, second grandson
of Somerled, and head of the entire and potent clan of the
Macdonalds.”--Smibert, p. 20.
[140] In the list of the Barons who assembled at Scone in 1284 to
declare Margaret, the Maid of Norway, heiress to the crown, he
appears under the name of _Allangus filius Roderici_.
[141] “The Lordship of Garmoran (also called Garbh-chrioch)
comprehends the districts of Moidart, Arisaig, Morar, and
Knoydart.”--Gregory, p. 27.
[142] The properties of Moidart, Arisaig, Morar, and Knoidart, on the
mainland, and the isles of Uist, Barra, Rum, Egg, and Harris, were
assigned and confirmed to him and his heirs by charter dated at Scone
March 9, 1371-2.
[143] For details, see vol. i., p. 69, _et seq._
[144] See vol. i. p. 73.
[145] “The authority of Mr Skene is usually to be received as of
no common weight, but the account given by him of this portion of
the Macdonald annals does not consist with unquestionable facts.
As such, the statements in the national collections of _Foedera_
(Treaties), and the _Records of Parliament_, ought certainly to be
regarded; and a preference must be given to their testimony over
the counter-assertions of ancient private annalists. Some of the
latter parties seem to assert that John II., who had no children
by Elizabeth Livingston (daughter of Lord Livingston), had yet ‘a
natural son begotten of Macduffie of Colonsay’s daughter, and Angus
Og, his legitimate son, by the Earl of Angus’s daughter.’ No mention
of this Angus’ marriage occurs in any one public document relating to
the Lords of the Isles, or to the Douglases, then Earls of Angus. On
the other hand, the acknowledged wife of John of the Isles, Elizabeth
Livingston, was certainly alive in 1475, at which date he, among
other charges, is accused of making ‘his bastard son’ a lieutenant to
him in ‘insurrectionary convocations of the lieges;’ and Angus could
therefore come of no second marriage. He indubitably is the same
party still more distinctly named in subsequent Parliamentary Records
as ‘Angus of the Isles, _bastard son_ to umquhile John of the Isles.’
The attribution of noble and legitimate birth to Angus took its
origin, without doubt, in the circumstance of John’s want of children
by marriage having raised his natural son to a high degree of power
in the clan, which the active character of Angus well fitted him to
use as he willed.”--Smibert’s _Clans_ pp. 23, 24.
[146] Gregory (p. 52) says this combat was fought in a bay in the
Isle of Mull, near Tobermory.
[147] See Gregory’s _Highlands_, p. 54.
[148] Gregory, p. 581.
[149] Gregory’s _Highlands_, p. 61.
[150] Smibert’s _Clans_, p. 25.
[151] Gregory’s _Highlands_, p. 297.
[152] Gregory’s _Highlands_, p. 330.
[153] Gregory’s _Highlands and Isles_, p. 312.
[154] Vol. i., chap. x.
[155] _Highlands and Isles_, p. 109.
[156] _Highlands and Isles_, p. 415.
[157] Gregory’s _Highlands and Isles_, page 66.
[158] _Highlands and Isles_, p. 417, Note.
[159] _Gregory’s Highlands_, pp. 301-303.
[160] _Memoirs_, p. 155.
[161] _Clans_, 29.