Skip to main content

Full text of "The Macleods: a short sketch of their clan, history, folk-lore, tales, and biographical notices of some eminent clansmen"

See other formats


929.2 

M2247mao 

1816334 


REYNOLD!^;   HISTORICAL 
GENEALOGY  COLLECTIOfcl 


ALLEN  COUNTY  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 


3  1833  01411  0792 


Glan  MacLeod  Publications. 


No.  1. 


THE  MacLeods 

A  SHORT  SKETCH  OF  THEIR  CLAN, 
HISTORY.  FOLK-LORE,  TALES,  AND 
BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTICES  OF  -  -  - 
SOME    EMINENT   CLANSMEN.    -    -    - 

BY   THE 

REV.    R.    C,    MACLEOD 
OF    MACLEOD. 


Published  by  THE   CLAN   MACLEOD  SOCIETY, 
EDINBURGH. 


1906. 


•  Land  of  the  beautiful  and  brave — 
The  freeman's  home — the  martyr's  grave — 
The  nursery  of  giant  men, 
Whose  deeds  have  linked  with  every  glen, 
And  every  hill,  and  every  stream, 
The  romance  of  some  warrior  dream  ! 
Oh,  never  may  a  son  of  thine, 
Where'er  his  vi^andering  steps  incline. 
Forget  the  sky  which  bent  above 
Ilis  childhood  like  a  dream  of  love." 


J.  G.   Whittier. 


ERRATA. 


Page    13,   line  10  for  "fifth"  read   "second." 

,,      30,     ,,     21    ,,     "prescribed"  read   "proscribed." 
,,      30,     ,,     29    ,,     "Sir  Walter  Scott's  Visit  to  Dunvecjan 
was  made  in  1815,   in   the   time   of  the   XXI. 
Chief,  not  of  the  XX.   as  stated  here." 
Page    81,   line  1  for   "  Oubost  "  read    "  Orhost." 


181G.334 

PREFACE. 


Tills  short  sketch  of  the  History  and  Traditions  of 
the  Clan  MacLeod,  for  which  we  are  indebted  to  the 
Eev,  R.  C.  MacLeod  of  MacLeod,  is  the  initial  effort 
of  the  Society  to  give  effect  to  one  of  the  most 
important  objects  of  its  constitution,  viz.: — "The 
collection  and  preservation  of  Records  and  Traditions," 
and  "the  publication  of  such  Literature  as  may  promote 
the  interests  of  the  Clan."  The  Rev.  R.  C.  MacLeod 
probably  knows  more  about  the  Clan  history  than 
any  other  man  living.  He  has  spent  many  years  in  a 
study  of  the  subject  and  of  the  old  manuscripts  in 
which  Dunvegan  Castle  is  so  rich.  He  has,  at  the 
present  moment,  a  most  voluminous  typewritten  volume 
compiled  (which  we  hope  he  may  see  his  way  to 
publish  at  no  very  distant  date)  and  from  that  volume 
the  present  sketch  has  been  principally  drawn ;  its 
immediate  production  is  mainly  due  to  a  suggestion 
made  by  Vice-Admiral  Angus  MacLeod,  C.V.O.,  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  members  of  our  Clan.  It 
is  intended  to  be  followed  by  a  series  of  publications 
dealing  with  subjects  of  interest  to  the  MacLeods, 
and  we  hope  the  work,  now  so  well  begun,  will  meet 
with  the  cordial  approval  and  support  of  the  clan. 

The   survival   of   Clan  feeling   and  the  founding  of 
Clan  Societies  may  seem  strange  in  these  prosaic  and 


utilitarian  times,  but  it  is  really  no  very  remai'lvable 
phenomenon,  when  we  remember  that  a  Highlander 
never  forgets  his  origin  nor  the  ancient  and  honourable 
name  which  he  bears.  To  those  connected  with  the 
Clan,  we  feel  sure  this  little  book  will  appeal — we 
believe  it  will  be  welcomed  by  Clansmen  in  all  parts 
of  the  world  and,  we  hope,  it  may  also  do  something 
to  maintain  and  strengthen  that  mystic  bond  which 
binds  Clansmen  to  one  another. 

As  the  volume  is  published  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Clan  Society  and  the  superintendence  of  the 
Secretary,  who  has  devoted  much  time  to  its  pro- 
duction and  contributed  to  the  matter,  it  is  hoped  a 
perusal  of  its  pages  will  induce  some,  who  are  not 
already  members,  to  join  the  Society,  the  objects  of 
which  are  to  further  the  interests  of  the  Clan  in 
every  way  possible. 

No  pretension  is  made  to  literary  style ;  the  writers 
have  simply  aimed  at  putting  together  a  brief  historical 
and  traditional  sketch. 

The  promoters  solicit  communications  from  Clansmen, 
at  home  and  abroad.  "With  a  view  to  future  publica- 
tions, they  will  gratefully  acknowledge  such  information 
as  any  one  may  be  able  to  give  on  history  and  traditions 
of   the  Clan,   eminent  Clansmen,  etc. 

Supicd  in  name  of  the  Society. 

1\.  C.  MacLeod, 

II 071.  Secy. 
Edinburgh,  1006. 


THE     MACLEODS. 


'HE  Origin _  of  Leod,  the  undoubted 
progenitor  of  botli  branches  of  the 
MacLeod  family,  has  been  much  dis- 
puted, some  claiming  for  him  a  Nor- 
wegian descent,  others  a  Celtic.  Tliis,  however,  is 
hardly  the  place  to  go  into  the  details  of  a  knotty 
point  of  genealogy,  and  it  may  suffice,  tlierefore, 
if  I  express  my  own  opinion,  that  the  Norwegian 
origin  is  the  correct  one — that  Leod  w'as  a  son  of 
Olave  the  Black,  King  of  Man  and  the  Isles,  and 
that  he  was  born  towards  the  end  of  the  twelfth 
century.  Leod  married  the  daughter  of  McCrailt 
Armuinn,  who  brought  Dun  vegan  as  her  dowry, 
and  it  has  remained  in  the  possession  of  his 
descendants  ever  since.  By  her  Leod  had  two 
sons — Tormod,  the  ancestor  of  the  Harris  MacLeods, 
and  Torquil,  the  ancestor  of  the  Lewes  MacLeods — 
called  the  Siol  (or  race  of)  Tormod  and  the  Siol 
Torquil  respectively. 

For  something  like  200  years  very  little  is 
known  of  the  history  of  either  branch.  Each  of 
them  about  13-iO  got  grants   of   mainland  estates 


6  THE   MACLEODS. 

from  the  Crown — the  Harris  MacLeods  in  Glenelg, 
and  the  Lewes  MacLeods  in  Assynt,  but  both  were 
Island  Chieftains  and  held  their  lands  in  Skye, 
Harris,  and  the  Lewes  under  the  Lords  of  the 
Isles,  so  that  their  history  is  merged  in  that  of 
those  powerful  potentates  ;  they  were  present  at 
the  Battle  of  Harlaw,  1411,  where  they  occupied 
the  post  of  honour  (tlie  right  wing)  of  the  Islander's 
army ;  they  were  present  at  the  Battle  of  the 
Bloody  Bay  in  1480 ;  and  we  find  their  names 
occasionally,  as  witnesses  to  Charters,  but,  as 
already  stated,  little  is  known  of  them,  and  that 
little  not  of  very  great  interest.  After  the  final 
forfeiture  of  the  Lords  of  the  Isles,  however,  in 
1493,  the  public  records  have  much  more  to 
relate.  Then  both  families  received  grants  of 
their  Island  Estates  from  the  Crown  and,  thus, 
became  tenants  in  cajyite  having  direct  dealings 
with  the  King  of  Scotland  and  his  Council.  But 
at  this  time,  it  was  clearly  seen  that  the  High- 
landers, if  united,  were  most  dangerous  neighbours, 
and  the  Scottish  Kings  adopted  the  subtle  policy 
of  sowing  dissention  amongst  the  clans.  No  effort 
was  spared  to  set  them  at  loggerheads.  The 
method  commonly  employed  was  to  give  grants 
of  the  lands  belonging  to  one  family  to  anotlier. 
For  example  tlie  Bailliary  of  Trotternish  was 
in  1498,  granted  to  hotli  branches  of  the  MacLeods 
— the   estates   lield  by   the   Macdonalds   of    Sleat 


THE  MACLEODS.  7 

were  in  1542  given  to  MacLeod  of  Harris  and 
many  other  instances  might  be  cited.  This  policy 
was  eminently  successful  in  its  object;  feuds 
between  the  clans  were  continual,  and  effectively 
destroyed  any  power  they  might  have  possessed  of 
injuring  the  rest  of  the  kingdom. 

During  the  sixteenth  century  the  most  im- 
portant events  affecting  the  MacLeods  were — 

(1.)  The  ruin  of  the  Lewes  branch  of  the  family. 
(2.)  The  succession  nf   Marie  MacLeod  to  the   estates 

of  the  Dun  vegan  MacLeods. 
(3.)  The  usurpation  of  Ian  Dubh. 
(4.)  The  Eigg  Massacre. 

The  story  of  the  extinction  of  the  Lewes 
MacLeods  is  a  very  long  and  complicated  one, 
of  which  the  main  points  are  as  follows : — 

Rory  MacLeod  of  the  Lewes,  Chief  during  the 
latter  half  of  the  sixteenth  century,  married  a 
daughter  of  Mackenzie  of  Kintail,  but  believed, 
rightly  or  wrongly,  that  Torquil  (his  heir  by  her) 
was  not  really  his  son.  (There  is  a  notarial 
instrument  in  the  Dunvegan  charter  chest,  which 
contains  an  account  of  a  confession  made  by 
Hutcheon,  the  judge  of  the  Lewes,  on  his  death- 
bed, and  which  bears  out  Rorie's  contention  that 
Hutcheon,  and  not  Korie,  was  Torquil's  father). 
Acting  in  this  belief,  Rorie  disinherited  Torquil, 
(who  was  known  as  Torquil  Conanach)  and  named 


S  THE   MACLEODS. 

as  his  lieir  a  son  by  his  third  wife,  a  daughter  of 
MacLean  of  Diiart.  This  son  was  also  called 
Torquil,  but  distinguished  by  the  appellation 
"  Dubh."  A  great  dispute  arose  in  consequence 
and  was  carried  on  with  extraordinary  fury  and 
cruelty  for  many  years,  during  which  the  Lewes 
was  reduced  to  a  condition  of  extreme  misery 
and  wretchedness.  In  the  year  1568,  the  old 
Chief  of  tlie  Lewes  was  seized  by  his  alleged  son, 
Torquil  Conanach,  who  detained  him  four  years 
in  captivity.  In  a  deed  of  revocation,  the  old 
Chief  gives  a  pitiable  account  of  his  sufferings. 
His  son,  he  says,  "  held  him  in  miserable  captivitie 
in  montanis  and  cavenus  of  craigis,  far  distant 
from  ye  societie  of  men,  pereist  thro'  cauld  and 
famine."  This  unnatural  son  brought  his  father 
before  the  Council,  and  extracted  from  him  an 
appointment  in  his  own  favour  as  heir,  and  it 
is  this  appointment  that  Rorie  revoked  on  the 
ground  that  he  had  been  compelled  to  make  it 
"  by  evill  handilling,  captivitie,  fear  of  my  lyfe, 
perell  of  hunger  and  cauld,  and  manifest  cora- 
pulsionne." 

If  ever  house  was  divided  against  itself  this 
unhappy  family    of    the   Lewes   was   so   divided. 

Rory  MacLeod  had  five  illegitimate  sons,  three  of 
whom  sided  with  their  father  and  two  with  their 
half-brother,  Torquil  Conanach.  The  ablest  of 
these   sons    was    Neil   MacLeod   who   sided   with 


THE   MACLEODS.  9 

the  father  and  afterwards  with  his  half-brother, 
Torquil  Dubh,  and  it  was  mainly  through  the 
talents  and  address  of  Neil  that  Torquil  Dubh 
maintained  himself  in  the  Lewes.  Torquil  Con- 
anach  however,  established  himself  in  Coigeach, 
the  mainland  estates  of  the  family,  and  was  sup- 
ported in  his  claim  to  the  Chieftainship  by  the 
Mackenzies.  About  the  year  1595,  Torquil  Dubh 
attacked  his  brother  (Conanach)  in  Strath  Coigeach, 
and  the  Mackenzies  in  Loch  Broom  "  in  such  bar- 
barous and  cruel  manner  that  neither  man,  wife, 
bairn,  house,  cover  nor  bigging  had  been  spared 
but  all  barbarously  slain,  burnt  and  destroyed." 
For  this  Torquil  Dubh  was  denounced  as  a  rebel, 
and  later,  having  been  betrayed  into  the  hands  of 
Conanach,  he,  and  many  of  his  adherents,  were 
put  to  death,  1597.  His  son  Torquil,  however, 
with  the  assistance  of  Neil,  remained  in  possession 
of  the  Levv'es. 

Now,  by  this  time,  the  two  sons  of  Torquil 
Conanach  were  dead. — John,  the  eldest,  having 
been  murdered  by  his  uncles,  Rory  Og  and 
Donald,  the  latter  of  whom  was,  in  turn,  slain  by 
Conanach.  The  daughter  of  Conanach  thus 
became  heiress  to  her  father;  she  had  married  a 
brother  of  Lord  Mackenzie  of  Kintail,  and  to 
Kintail,  Conanach  conveyed  all  his  rights  as  far  as 
writings  could.  In  this  way  the  ancient  inheritance 
of  the  MacLeods  of  Lewes,  ultimately  passed  to  the 


10  THE   MACLEODS. 

Mackenzies,    though    they    did    not    succeed    in 
establishing  their  claims  till  some  years  later. 

In  1596,  all  the  Highland  Chiefs  were  ordered 
to  show  their  title  deeds  on  pain  of  forfeiture ; 
among  those  who  failed  to  do  so,  were  the  heads 
of  both  branches  of  the  MacLeods.  The  Lewes 
was,  in  consequence,  granted  to  a  number  of 
persons  who  were  called  the  Fife  adventurers. 
The  new  owners  duly  invaded  the  Island  and  for 
some  years  a  civil  war,  accompanied  by  every 
barbarity  the  mind  of  man  can  conceive,  raged  in 
this  unhappy  part  of  the  King's  dominions.  Neil 
MacLeod  opposed  them  on  the  spot  with  the 
utmost  energy ;  and  Lord  Mackenzie,  for  his  own 
purposes  intrigued  against  them  in  every  way 
possible.  Mackenzie  even  set  at  liberty  Tormod, 
the  surviving  son  of  Torquil  Dubh,  whom  he 
Lad  made  prisoner  some  time  previously,  and 
sent  him  to  the  Lewes  to  assist  Neil  in  his  efforts 
to  defeat  the  Fife  men.  The  result  was  that 
the  Fife  adventurers  retired  from  the  contest  in 
disgust,  and  the  estates  were,  in  1608,  granted 
to  three  other  persons,  viz. : — Lord  Balmerino, 
Sir  Patrick  Spens  of  Wormistoun,  and  Sir  George 
Hay  of  Nethercliffe.  (The  same  persons  also 
obtained  a  grant  of  the  estate  belonging  to  the 
MacLeods  of  Harris.)  In  1609,  Lord  Balmerino 
was  convicted  of  high  treason,  but  his  partners 
invaded   the   island    and   endeavoured   to   enforce 


THE   MACLEODS.  11 

their  rights.  However,  they  succeeded  no  better 
than  their  predecessors  and  were  eventually  glad 
to  sell  their  rights  to  Lord  Mackenzie,  who  all 
along  had  been  intriguing,  so  that  he  might 
eventually  obtain  possession  of  the  Lewes,  and 
in  the  year  1610,  Sir  Roderick  Mackenzie, 
brother  of  Lord  Mackenzie,  went  with  a  strong 
force  to  the  Lewes.  The  MacLeods,  greatly  re- 
duced and  wearied  by  the  many  recent  conflicts 
they  had  been  engaged  in,  were  badly  conditioned 
to  meet  this  new  and  great  danger,  but  the  in- 
domitable Neil  held  out,  and  when  all  else  failed 
entrenched  himself  on  the  island  of  Berneray,  where 
he  had  accumulated  large  quantities  of  supplies ; 
here,  for  three  years,  he  set  all  the  eflbrts  of  Sir 
Roderick  at  defiance.  At  last  Sir  Roderick  kid- 
napped a  large  number  of  the  wives  and  children 
of  the  Berneray  garrison  and  placing  them  at 
low  tide  on  a  rock  in  sight  of  the  island,  declared 
that  he  would  leave  them  there  to  be  drowned, 
unless  Neil  and  his  adherents  surrendered.  To 
save  the  lives  of  the  women  and  children  Neil 
agreed  to  do  so,  and  thus  was  stamped  out  the 
last  efforts  of  the  MacLeods  to  maintain  their 
rights  in  the  Lewes. 

Neil  MacLeod  was  given  his  liberty  and  sought 
refuge  with  Sir  Rory  MacLeod  of  Dunvegan.  Sir 
Rory  is  here  charged  with  having  been  guilty  of 
an  act  of  the  blackest  treachery.     Neil,  it  is  said, 


12  THE   MACLEODS. 

Wcis  in  possession  of  a  large  sutn  of  money,  stolen 
from  the  captain  of  a  pirate  ship,  which  had  put 
in  to  the  Lewes  some  time  previously,  and  Sir 
Rory,  tempted  by  a  desire  to  possess  himself 
of  this  money,  basely  betrayed  Neil  to  the 
government.  I  believe  this  story  to  be  utterly 
false.  It  is  true  that  Neil  came  to  Sir  Rory,  that 
the  latter  undertook  to  arrange  for  his  escape  into 
England,  and  that  Neil  was  arrested  at'  Glasgow 
when  in  Sir  Rory's  company,  but  there  is  no  evi- 
dence whatever,  that  the  Dunvegan  Chief  betrayed 
him  and  the  high  character  of  Rory  Mor  forbids 
us  to  accept  any  story  of  treachery  on  his  part, 
unless  it  is  based  on  irresistible  evidence.  It  was 
the  intention  of  Sir  Rory  to  embark  with  his 
protege  at  Glasgow  for  England,  but  "  he  was 
charged,  vnder  pain  of  treason,  to  delyver  Neill 
Macloyd  to  the  privie  councell." 

Neil  MacLeod  was  executed  at  Edinburgh,  in 
April  1613,  and  is  said  to  have  died  "  very 
christianlie  " — liis  son  was  banished. 

So  terrible  were  the  results  of  these  fifty  years 
of  fratricidal  strife  that  when  the  Mackenzies 
ultimately  obtained  possession  of  the  Lewes  in 
1610,  they  found  Christianity  had  practically  died 
out  and  Lord  Mackenzie,  to  his  honour  be  it 
said,  sent  over  a  missionary  to  the  island,  the 
Rev.  Farquhar  Macrae,  a  clergyman  who  appears 
to  have  been  a  man  of  very  high  character,  and 


THE   MACLEODS.  "  13 

by    him    the    islanders    were    again    taught    the 
rudiments  of  Christianity. 

Of  all  Rory  MacLeod's  numerous  children, 
legitimate  and  illegitimate,  not  one  in  the  main 
line  remained,  and  the  MacLeods  of  Raasay  became 
the  representatives  of  the  Lewes  family.  They 
in  their  turn  also  died  out,  early  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  and  MacLeod  of  Cadboll,  (Invergordon 
Castle),  as  oldest  cadet,  (descended  from  the  second 
son  of  Torquil  fifth  of  Lewes,)  is  now  head  of 
that  brancli  of  the  family. 

The  story  of  Marie  MacLeod  throws  some  light 
on  the  conditions  prevailing  in  the  Highlands  in 
the  sixteenth  century.  She  was  the  daughter  of 
William,  the  ninth  Chief  of  Dunvegan,  by  his  mar- 
riage with  Agnes,  daughter  of  Lord  Lovat. 

A  dispute  had  been  going  on  for  a  long  time, 
between  Lord  Lovat  and  MacLeod  as  to  the 
ownership  of  a  portion  of  Glenelg.  It  appears 
that,  betw^een  the  years  1533  and  1536,  the  lands  of 
Glenelg  which  belonged  by  possession  to  Alexander 
MacLeod  of  Dunvegan,  were  on  two  occasions  given 
by  the  Ci'own  to  Lord  Lovat,  and  his  Lordship  got 
a  title  to  these  lands  in  virtue  of  a  Crown  Charter 
under  the  Great  Seal,  yet  Lord  Lovat  utterly  failed 
in  his  efforts  to  enforce  his  rights  by  legal  process, 
because,  as  one  old  paper  naively  remarks,  "  Mac- 
Leod lives  in  ye  Highlands,  where  ye  officers  of  ye 


14  THE  MACLEODS. 

law  dar  not  pas  for  fear  of  their  lyvis.' 
Ultimately  Lord  Lovat,  probably  despairing  of 
obtaining  possession  of  the  land,  negotiated  a 
marriage  between  his  daughter  and  William  Mac- 
Leod then  heir  to  his  father,  Alexander,  and  by 
the  union  of  the  two  families  the  dispute  over 
Glenelg  was  happily  settled  for  a  time. 

Alexander  died  in  1547,  and  was  succeeded  by 
William,  who  died  in  1553,  leaving  an  only 
child,  Marie,  who  became  the  heiress  of  the 
estates.  Huntly,  Argyll,  James  MacDonald,  Lord 
Kintail,  all  in  turn  became  guardians  of  the 
young  heiress,  and  each  formed  projects  of 
marrying  her  to  some  clansman  of  his  own.  For 
two  years  she  was  attached  to  the  Court  of  Mary, 
Queen  of  Scots.  This  is  proved  by  entries  in  the 
books  of  the  Lord  High  Treasurer  as — "A.D., 
1562,  the  14  day  of  December  be  the  Queen's 
precept  to  Marie  McCloyd  ane  elne  1  quarter  of 
black  velvot  to  be  hude  mufell  and  turet"  .  .  .  . 
"  1564,  the  16  day  of  March  to  Marie  McCloyd  in 
her  graces  chalmer  to  be  ane  cloke  and  dewanter 
of  scarlet  staining  111  elnes." 

Though,  legally  speaking,  the  owner  of  all  the 
MacLeod  estates,  Marie  never  succeeded  in  obtain- 
ing possession;  her  uncles  successively  seized  the 
property  and  they  were  supported  by  the  clan, 
so  that  Marie,  who  had  meantime  married  Duncan 
Campbell  of  Castle  Swinney,  heir  to  Auchenbrech, 


THE   MACLEODS.  15 

found  it  advisable  to  resign  all  her  claims  in 
consideration  of  receiving  a  dowry  of  £1000  Scots, 
no  very  large  sum  even  in  those  days,  for  the 
heii-ess  of  such  a  property  to  receive.  Her  uncles, 
however,  did  not  find  the  position  they  held  a 
bed  of  roses,  for  it  was  at  this  time  the  usui-pation 
of  Ian  Dubh  took  place. 

Ian  Dubh  was  the  second  surviving  son  of 
Tormod  MacLeod  of  Minginish,  who  claimed  the 
chieftainship,  maintaining  that  liis  ancestor  Tormod, 
son  of  John  Borb  MacLeod,  sixth  Cliief,  and  not 
William,  who  had  succeeded,  was  the  elder  brother 
of  two  twins,  and  in  any  case  failing  the  issue 
of  Alastair  Crottach,  he  was  the  male  heir. 

Ian  Dubh,  who  aimed  at  becoming  chief  himself, 
had,  in  order  to  attain  his  object,  to  clear  out 
of  the  way  the  two  surviving  sons  of  Alastair 
Crottach  (Donald  and  Tormod),  his  own  elder 
brother,  Donald,  and  to  reckon  with  the  Campbells 
who  had  claims  in  right  of  Mary,  William  Mac- 
Leod's only  child  and  heir.  He  succeeded  in 
murdering  Donald,  (Alastair  Crottach's  son)  and 
six  of  his  adherents  at  Kingsburgh,  1557;  treacher- 
ously slew  a  number  of  Campbells  at  a  banquet 
to  which  he  had  invited  them  at  Dunvegan,  and 
his  own  brother  and  nephews  he  killed  at  the 
same  place  later.  He  held  the  Castle  for  two 
years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  Tormod,  Alastair 
Crottach's  third  and  only  surviving  son,  returned 


16  THE   MACLEODS. 

home,  and  claimed  the  chieftainship  as  rightful 
heir.  Ian  Dubh,  wlio,  as  we  have  seen,  was  a 
man  of  evil  deeds,  dreaded  and  hated  by  all  who 
knew  him,  and  could  hope  for  no  assistance  from 
the  clan,  shut  himself  up  in  the  Castle,  but  Torquil 
McSween,  the  warder,  agreed  to  admit  Tormod. 
The  noise  made  by  Tormod's  followers  in  entering, 
however,  gave  the  alarm  and  Ian  with  the  assist- 
ance of  his  four  foster-brothers,  who  alone  were 
faithful  to  him,  succeeded  in  escaping  to  Ireland. 
Here  he  lived  for  some  time  but  at  length  was 
seized  and  put  to  death  by  one  of  the  O'Donell 
chiefs. 

Tormod  who  now  became  the  head  of  the 
clan,  was  the  Chief  who  entered  into  the  agree- 
ment with  Argyll  by  which  he  succeeded  in 
compromising  the  claims  of  his  niece,  Marie,  to 
the  family  estates.  He  is,  probably,  also  respon- 
sible for  the  Eigg  massacre. 

This  terrible  event  took  place  in  the  year  1577. 
Tradition  says  that  a  party  of  MacLeods,  in- 
cluding the  Chief's  son,  had  landed  on  Eigg  and 
insulted  some  of  the  women  of  the  island;  in 
consequence  of  this  they  were  seized,  bound  hand 
and  foot,  and  turned  adrift  in  a  boat,  which 
however,  the  wind  and  waves  brought  to  Dun- 
vegan.  The  Chief  enraged  at  this  treatment 
resolved  on  revenge,  and  sailed  with  an  over- 
whelming force  for  Eigg.     The  Islanders  retreated 


THE   MACLEODS.  17 

to  a  secret  cavern  where  they  remained  in  safety, 
until  MacLeod,  having  ravaged  the  island,  was 
sailing  away.  Unfortunately,  however,  they  sent 
a  man  to  reconnoitre  just  too  soon,  for  he  was 
seen  from  the  galleys  of  the  retiring  MacLeods, 
who  at  once  returned,  and  through  footprints  in 
the  snow,  which  covered  the  ground,  were  able 
to  track  him  to  the  hiding  place.  The  Islanders 
refused  to  surrender,  so  MacLeod  had  a  stream 
which  formed  a  natural  waterfall  over  the  entrance 
to  the  cavern,  diverted  from  its  course,  and  lit 
fires  at  the  mouth  of  the  cave,  the  smoke  from 
which  suffocated  the  miserable  fugitives.  It  is 
said  that  MacLeod  set  his  fires  alight  while  the 
wind  was  blowing  away  from  the  mouth  of  the 
cave  and  that  he  left  the  matter  by  express 
invocation  to  the  judgment  of  heaven.  If  the 
wind  remained  steadfast  it  was  heaven's  will, 
that  tlie  inhabitants  of  Eigg  were  to  be  spared 
and  spared  they  should  be ;  if  it  changed  the 
guilt  was  obvious  and  the  judgment  supernatural. 

There  are  other  traditionary  details  which  might 
serve  to  palliate  the  barbarity  of  such  a  massacre, 
while  the  age  was  both  barbarous  and  superstitious, 
but  it  is  unnecessary  to  enlarge  on  the  story  in 
this  sketch. 

The  bones  of  the  unfortunate  Islanders  still 
remain  to  attest  the  truth  of  this  terrible  story. 

Tormod  died  about  IS^S,  and  was  succeeded 
B 


18  THE  MACLEODS. 

by  his  son  William,  on  whose  death  in  1590 
Tormod's  second  son,  Rory  Mor  MacLeod,  became 
tutor,  and  afterwards,  on  the  death  of  his  nephew, 
William,  about  1596,  Chief  of  the  Clan. 

Rory  Mor  was  an  extremely  able  man  and 
succeeded  in  extricating  himself  and  his  clan 
from  difficulties  of  a  very  serious  nature.  As  we 
have  already  seen  his  estates  were  forfeited  in 
1597,  and  he  was  not  admitted  to  the  King's 
favour  till  1611  at  which  date  however,  his 
lands  were  erected  into  a  free  Barony.  He  seems 
to  have  become  a  Royal  favourite  and  had  a 
standing  invitation  to  visit  the  King  at  any  time. 
In  1613  he  went  to  England  and  was  received  into 
the  good  graces  of  the  King  who  conferred  upon 
him  the  honour  of  knighthood. 

For  several  years  he  was  engaged  in  a  violent 
dispute  with  Donald  Gorm  Macdonald  of  Sleat, 
a  dispute  which  was  not  finally  healed  until  the 
Island  Chiefs  all  agreed  to  become  friends  under 
the  Statute  of  Zona,  subscribed  by  all  of  them  in 
1603. 

Sir  Rory  Mor  was  the  first  of  his  family  who 
could  write,  the  earlier  Chiefs  all  signed  their 
names  "  with  my  hand  led  at  ye  pene  of  the 
notar,"  and  he  is  said  to  have  been  the  last 
Highland  Chief  who  continued  to  write  in  the 
language  of  his  fathers.  He  left  a  numerous 
family  of  both   sons   and   daughters.      From   the 


THE   MACLEODS.  19 

sons  descend  the  MacLeods  of  Talisker,  Bernera, 
Muiravonside,  Hamer  and  Greshornish,  while  the 
daughters  became  wives  of  the  most  powerful 
chiefs  in  the  islands.  One  married  Clan  Ranald 
receiving  a  dowry  of  "  ane  galley  with  26  airis 
and  sailing  geir  complete  and  nyne  scair  quick 
ky ; "  another  married  MacLean  of  Duart ;  a  third 
MacLean  of  Coll,  and  a  fourth  MacLeod  of 
Raasay. 

Sir  Rory  died  at  Fortrose  in  1626,  comparatively 
speaking,  a  young  man. 

It  was  in  the  time  of  Sir  Rory  Mors  son, 
John,  that  what  is  perhaps  the  most  interesting 
chapter  in  Highland  history  begins,  that  is — the 
relations  between  the  Kings  of  the  House  of 
Stuart  and  the  Highlanders. 

It  has  often  been  remarked  as  strange  that 
the  Highlanders  should  have  been  such  troublesome 
subjects  up  to  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century  and  such  devoted  loyalists  afterwards. 

The  reason  is  a  simple  one.  Where  they  seem 
inconsistent  the  Highlanders  were  really  extremely 
consistent.  They  were  steadily  opposed  to  the 
central  Government,  and  as  long  as  the  Kings  of 
Scotland  represented  that  central  Government 
the  Highlanders  opposed  them  as  vigorously  as 
possible ;  but  as  soon  as  the  Princes  of  the  House 
of  Stuart,  themselves,  became  its  opponents,  they 
found  no   more    ardent    backers    than   the    clans 


20  THE   MACLEODS. 

which  had  been  so  ill  affected  in  the  past.  Two 
other  factors  may  have  had  something  to  do 
with  their  change  of  front.  One  was  the  religious 
question. — Large  portions  of  the  Highlanders  were 
still  Roman  Catholic.  (The  MacLeods  only  became 
Protestants  about  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  I  believe  "Lin  Breac"  sixteenth  Chief 
(died  1693)  was  the  first  Protestant  Chief.)  The 
Stuarts  were  either  Prelatists  or  Papists,  therefore 
the  sympathies  of  the  Highlanders  would,  naturally, 
be  with  them  against  the  Covenanters  and  Presby- 
terians. The  other  motive  was — hatred  of  the 
House  of  Argyll.  The  Argylls  supported  the 
Kings  in  the  earlier  times,  were  Whigs,  and 
supporters  of  William  IIL,  and  of  the  Georges  in 
later  times,  therefore,  whatever  the  Earl  of 
Argyll  did,  the  instinct  of  the  clansmen  was  to 
take  the  opposite  side. 

John  MacLeod  of  Dunvegan,  was  an  ardent 
supporter  of  Charles  I.,  and  in  1639  received  a 
letter  of  thanks  from  that  monarch,  dated  at 
Durham,  2nd  May  1639,  which  unfortunately  is 
lost. 

The  clan  did  not  join  Montrose's  forces  in  the 
brilliant  campaign  which  shed  so  much  lustre  on 
the  valour  of  the  Highlanders,  and  a  clansman, 
MacLeod  of  Assynt,  has  no  doubt  been  for 
centuries  credited  with  an  act  of  the  blackest 
treachery  in  betraying  the  great  Marquis  to  his 


THE   MACLEODS.  21 

enemies.  A  full  discussion  of  that  regrettable 
episode  in  the  annals  of  the  elan  would  take  far 
too  much  space  here,  but,  I  may  say,  there  is 
good  reason  for  stating  that  the  charge  of 
treachery  is  an  unfounded  one  and  that  at  all 
events  Assynt's  conduct  was  not  nearly  so  black 
as  it  is  painted. 

Assynt  had  not  taken  part  with  Montrose.  He 
even  sent  out  people  to  capture  him,  and  when 
he  succeeded,  Graham  we  are  told  offered  Assynt 
great  rewards  to  send  him  to  Orkney,  which 
Assynt  refused.  The  deed  may  have  been  un- 
popular, but  it  was  not  treachery. 

After  John  MacLeod's  death,  his  brothers,  Sir 
Rory  of  Talisker  and  Sir  Norman  of  Bernera, 
acting  as  guardians  to  the  youthful  Chief,  continued 
to  espouse  the  cause  of  Charles.  Sir  Norman 
commanded  a  battalion  of  700  MacLeods  in  the 
campaign  which  culminated  in  the  disaster  at 
Worcester. 

The  King  himself  fought  at  the  head  of  the 
Highlanders  with  great  bravery,  and  so  animated 
the  clansmen,  that  they  became  irresistable,  drove 
back  Cromwell's  vanguard — captured  their  cannon, 
and  had  Leslie  come  up  with  liis  cavalry  then,  the 
defeat  of  Cromwell  was  inevitable.  Leslie,  how- 
ever, did  not  come — Cromwell  was  able  to  bring 
up  a  large  reserve  of  veterans  he  had  kept  in 
hand — the  Highlanders  weakened  and  unsupported 


22  THE   MACLEODS. 

were  driven  back  with  great  slaughter,  and 
Charles's  chance  was  gone. 

No  clan  suffered  so  severely  at  Worcester  as 
the  MacLeods.  Indeed  so  heavy  were  their  losses, 
it  was  agreed  by  the  other  clans  that  the  Mac- 
Leods should  not  be  asked  to  take  part  in  any 
further  conflicts  until  they  had  had  time  to 
recover. 

When  all  seemed  lost  after  Worcester,  (1651) 
and  Loch  Garry  (1653)  General  Middleton  found 
a  refuge  at  Dunvegan.  There  also  went  Lochiel 
and  many  other  Chiefs,  and  there  was  held  the 
Council  which  decided  that  the  Royalist  clans 
should  make  such  terms  as  they  could  with  the 
usurper.  Li  1665,  MacLeod  submitted  to  the 
Government  paying  a  fine  of  £2,500  sterling, — a 
large  sum  in  those  days — and  also  finding  a  surety 
for  a  further  sum  of  £6000  as  a  pledge  of  good 
behaviour. 

Sir  Norman's  sword,  which  led  the  clan  to 
gloiy,  if  not  to  victory  on  that  fatal  day,  is  now 
at  Dunvegan.  It  was  given  to  the  late  Chief  by 
Captain  MacLeod  of  Orbost,  a  descendant  of  Sir 
Norman. 

After  the  Restoration  the  Chief  went  to 
London,  spending,  as  the  tailors'  bills  at  Dunvegan 
show,  for  his  outfit  to  go  to  Court,  something 
like  £300  sterling.  "The  exquisite  urbanity" 
(as   Macaulay   calls   it)  of   Charles   was   for  once 


THE   MACLEODS.  .        23 

at  fault ;  he  never  even  referred  to  the  services 
of  the  clan  or  to  the  losses  they  had  sustained 
in  his  cause,  and  the  Chief  v^^ent  home  swearing 
that  no  clansman  of  his  should  ever  again  draw 
sword  for  the  ungrateful  Stuarts. 

The  vow  was  well  kept.  Thirty  years  after- 
wards, James  II.,  then  in  dire  need,  wrote  from 
Dublin  imploring  MacLeod  to  join  Dundee,  and 
that  great  leader  himself  wrote  more  than  once 
to  the  same  effect,  but  MacLeod  turned  a  deaf 
ear  to  their  appeals.  Yet,  although  the  MacLeods 
had  no  share  in  the  Earl  of  Mar's  unfortunate 
campaign  in  1715,  the  King  conferred  a  peerage 
on  the  Chief  1716 ;  an  honour  which  he  shared 
with  many  other  Highland  Chiefs.  Perhaps  this 
may  have  induced  Norman,  nineteenth  Chief, 
known  as  "The  Wicked  Man,"  to  engage  freely 
in  all  the  Jacobite  plots  by  which  Scotland  was 
riddled  in  the  early  years  of  his  Chieftainship. 
Certainly  he  was  concerned  in  the  abduction  of 
Lady  Grange,  as  the  following  story  shows  : — 

This  unfortunate  lady  was  wife  of  one  of  the 
Scots  Lords  of  Session  but,  while  her  husband 
was   a   Jacobite   she    was    a   strong    Hanoverian. 

At  a  Jacobite  meeting  held  in  Edinburgh,  about 
the  year  1725  she  concealed  herself  under  a  sofa 
and  overheard  all  that  was  said  ;  being  unable 
to  suppress  a  sneeze  she  was  discovered  and  the 
conspirators,   fearing   she   would  reveal  what  she 


24  THE   MACLEODS. 

had  heard,  placed  her  in  confinement,  gave  out 
that  she  was  dead,  and  buried  a  coffin  full  of 
stones.  She  herself  was  conveyed  by  night  out  of 
Edinburgh  and  confined  for  a  time  at  Heisker, 
an  island  belonging  to  MacDonald  of  Sleat;  but, 
this  not  being  considered  sufficiently  remote,  she 
was  taken  to  St.  Kilda  where  she  remained  for 
eight  years.  She  then  succeeded  in  concealing  a 
letter  in  a  ball  of  wool  which,  with  more,  was 
being  sent  to  Inverness  for  sale.  The  purchaser 
of  the  wool  sent  the  letter  to  its  address  and  on 
being  opened  it  revealed  the  amazing  fact  that 
Lady  Grange  was  still  alive. 

A  ship  of  war  was  sent  to  effect  her  release, 
but  MacLeod  learning  what  had  happened,  brought 
her  over  to  Skye,  where  she  was  confined  in  a 
cave  near  the  Maidens,  for  eighteen  months — or 
until  the  hue  and  cry  had  blown  over.  She 
remained  a  prisoner  in  Skye  until  her  death, 
which  took  place  at  Trumpan  in  1745,  as  is 
shewn  by  a  bill  preserved  at  Dunvegan. 

MacLeod  paid  for  her  keep  and  defrayed  her 
funeral  expenses,  and  it  is  curious  to  note  that 
her  keep  for  a  year  and  her  funeral  expenses 
cost  the  same  sum — £30. 

The  same  Chief  was  one  of  those  who  invited 
Charles  Edward  to  come  to  Scotland  but  he 
attached  to  the  invitation  the  conditions  that 
the  young  Prince  should  bring  with  him  French 


THE   MACLEODS.  25 

troops  and  supplies  of  arms,  ammunition  and 
money.  When  Charles  landed  almost  alone  and 
threw  himself  upon  the  unaided  support  of  the 
clans  he,  in  common  with  many  others — notably 
Sir  Alexander  MacDonald  —  considered  himself 
released  from  the  promises  he  had  made  and 
eventually  joined  the  Hanoverian  forces  under 
Lord  Loudon.  But  the  sympathies  of  himself 
and  his  clansmen  were,  probably,  enlisted  far 
more  on  the  side  of  their  enemies  than  on  that 
of  their  friends.  I  have  always  thought  that 
the  failure  of  these  Highlanders  to  do  anything 
to  advance  the  interests  of  King  George  was  due 
to  their  half-heartedness  in  his  cause. 

It  was  when  the  MacLeods  were  leaving  Dun- 
vegan  to  join  Lord  Loudon  that  M'Crimmon 
composed  the  exquisite  lament  which  Scott  has 
put  into  English  verse. 

For  centuries  the  M'Crimmons  had  been  the 
hereditary  pipers  of  the  Clan.  Boreraig,  their 
dwelling  place  in  Skye,  was  famous  over  all  the 
Highlands  of  Scotland  as  a  school  for  pipers,  I 
have  heard  it  said,  but  cannot  learn  on  what 
authority,  that  the  first  piper  of  the  name  came 
from  Cremona,  in  Italy,  and  that  his  name  was 
derived  from  his  birthplace. 

So  famous  were  the  M'Crimmons  that  tradi- 
tionary tales  exist  of  fairy  assistance  having 
been  bestowed  upon  them. 


26  THE   MACLEODS. 

Maccrimmon's  lament. 

MacLeod's  wizard  flag  from  the  gray  castle  sallies, 
The  rowers  are  seated,  unmoor'd  are  the  galleys  ; 
Gleam  war-axe  and  broadsword,  clang  target  and  quiver, 
As   Mackrimmon  sings,    "Farewell   to   Dunvegan   for 

ever  ! 
Farewell  to  each  cliff,  on  which  breakers  are  foaming  ; 
Farewell  each  dark  glen,  in  which  red-deer  are  roaming  ; 
Farewell,  lonely  Skye,  to  lake,  mountain,  and  river  ; 
MacLeod  may  return,  but  Mackrimmon  shall  never  ! 

"Farewell  the  bright  clouds  that  on  Quillan  are  sleep- 

Farewell  the  bright  eyes  in  the  Dun  that  are  weeping  ; 

To  each  minstrel  delusion,  farewell  ! — and  for  ever — 

Mackrimmon  departs,  to  return  to  you  never  ! 

The  Banshee's  wild  voice  sings  the  death-dirge  before  me. 

The  pall  of  the  dead  for  a  mantle  hangs  o'er  me  ; 

But  my  heart  shall  not  flag,  and  my  nerves  shall  not 

shiver. 
Though  devoted  I  go — to  return  again  never  ! 

"Too  oft  shall  the  notes  of  Mackrimmon's  bewailing 
Be  heard  when  the  Gael  on  their  exile  are  sailing  ; 
Dear  land  !  to  the  shores,  whence  unwilling  we  sever, 
Return— return— return  shall  we  never  ! 

Cha  till,  cha  till,  cha  till  sinn  tuille  ! 

Cha  till,  cha  till,  cha  till  sinn  tuille, 

Cha  till,  cha  till,  cha  till  sinn  tuille, 

Ged  thilleas  Macleod,  cha  till  Mackrimmon  !  " 

M'Crimnioii's  premonition  of  death  contained  in 
the  lament  proved  only  too  true ;  he  lost,  and  I 
believe  was  the  only  clansman  who  lost  his  life  in 
this  campaign.  This  happened  at  what  is  known 
as  the  "  Rout  of  Moy."     Lord  Loudon,  who  had 


THE   MACLEODS.  27 

received  information  that  Prince  Charles,  with  bub 
a  small  attendance,  had  put  up  at  Moy  Castle,  re- 
solved to  attempt  his  capture,  and  marched  during 
the  night,  with  some  1500  men  for  that  purpose. 
MacLeod  with  about  70  of  his  Clan  formed  the 
vanguard.  At  a  part  of  the  road  they  were  fired 
on  by  a  party  of  about  a  dozen  men  commanded 
by  the  Moy  Smith,  who,  running  about  shouting- 
orders  to  imaginary  bodies  of  men,  deceived 
the  MacLeods  into  the  belief  that  they  had  fallen 
into  the  midst  of  the  whole  Jacobite  army — 
or  the  MacLeods  disliking  the  work  before  them 
pretended  such — at  any  rate  they  fell  back  on  the 
main  body  appareutlj^  in  such  panic  that  the 
latter  fled  in  wild  disorder.  M'Crimmon  was 
killed  by  the  first  shot  tired.  This  evident  half- 
heartedness  is  in  itself  enough  to  show  that  the 
MacLeod's  (who,  whatever  their  faults,  were  no 
cowards)  were  not  very  keen  about  the  cause 
they  had  nominally  adopted.  It  is  well  known, 
too,  that  though  the  Chief  and  the  bulk  of  the 
clan  did  not  join  Prince  Charlie,  many  MacLeods 
had  a  large  share  in  his  glorious  if  uniortunate 
enterprise.  Donald  MacLeod  of  Galtrigil  was 
one  of  his  most  devoted  companions,  and  the 
account  of  that  clansman's  exertions  to  secure 
the  escape  of  the  Koyal  fugitive  is  full  of  interest ; 
while  the  story  of  their  parting  is  singularly 
pathetic    and    touching.     And    in    Kaasay,   where 


28  THE   MACLEODS. 

the  wanderer  found  a  refuge  for  some  days, 
the  loyalty  displayed  to  him  by  the  Raasay 
MacLeods  fills  one  with  admiration  for  their 
devotion  and  self-sacrifice. 

"  Donald  MacLeod  was  taken  prisoner  a  few  days 
after  parting  with  the  Prince.  He  was  put  on  board 
the  "  Furnace,"  and  brought  down  to  the  cabin 
before  General  Campbell,  who  examined  him  most 
minutely.  The  General  asked  him  if  he  had  been 
along  with  the  Pretender  ?  "  Yes,"  said  Donald, 
"  I  was  along  with  that  J^oung  gentleman,  and  I 
winna  deny  it."  "  Do  you  know,"  said  the  General, 
"  what  was  upon  that  gentleman's  head  ? — No  less 
a  sum  than  thirty  thousand  pounds  sterling,  which 
would  have  made  you  and  your  family  happy  for 
ever."  "What  then?"  replied  Donald,  "what 
though  I  had  gotten  it  ?  I  could  not  have  enjoyed 
it  for  two  days.  Conscience  would  have  gotten 
the  better  of  me  ;  ami  although  I  could  have  gotten 
all  England  and  Scotland  for  my  pains,  I  would 
not  have  allowed  a  hair  of  his  body  to  be  touched 
if  I  could  hinder  it,  since  he  threw  himself  upon 
my  care."  Campbell  observed  that  he  could  not 
much  blame  him. 

Donald  was  sent  to  London,  but  released  on 
the  10th  of  June  1747.  When  he  arrived  in 
Leith  from  London,  on  his  return  to  Skye,  he 
had  no  money  to  carry  him  thither ;  but  his 
wants  were  supplied   by  the  Rev.  Robert  (after- 


THE   MACLEODS.  29 

wards  bishop)  Forbes,  an  episcopal  clergyman  in 
Leith,  who  set  a  subscription  on  foot  in  that  town, 
and  in  Edinburgh,  "to  make  out,"  as  the  bishop 
says,  "  for  honeist  Palinurus,  if  possible,  a  pound 
sterling,  for  every  week  he  had  served  the  prince 
in  distress ;  and,"  continues  the  bishop,  "  I  thank 
God  I  was  so  happy  as  to  accomplish  my  design 
directly."  In  acknowledgment  of  his  fidelity, 
Donald  was  presented  by  Mr.  John  Walkinshaw,  of 
London,  with  a  large  silver  snuff-box,  handsomely 
chased  and  doubly  gilt  in  the  inside.  Upon  the  lid 
of  this  box  there  was  the  representation  of  an 
eight-oared  boat,  with  Donald  at  the  helm,  and  the 
eight  rowers  making  their  way  through  a  very 
rough  and  tempestuous  sea.  The  Long  island  is 
seen  in  the  distance  upon  one  of  the  extremities  of 
the  lid,  and  the  boat  appears  to  be  just  steering 
into  Rossinish,  the  point  of  Benbecula  where 
Charles  landed  after  leaving  Lochnanuagh.  On 
the  other  end  of  the  lid  there  was  a  landscape  of 
the  end  of  the  isle  of  Skye,  as  it  appears  opposite 
to  the  Long  island,  on  which  the  sites  of  Dunvegau 
and  Gualtergill  are  marked.  The  clouds  were 
represented  as  heavy  and  lowering,  and  the  rain 
descending ;  and  above  the  clouds,  i.  e.,  near  the 
hinge,  the  following  motto  was  engraved  : — "  Olim 
ha3C  meminisse  juvabit,  Aprilis,  26to,  1746."  Upon 
the  bottom,  and  near  the  edge  of  the  lid,  was  this 
inscription  • — "  Quid  Neptune,  paras  ?     Fatis  agita- 


30  THE   MACLEODS. 

mur  iniquis."  The  following  words  were  engraved 
on  the  bottom  of  the  box : — "  Donald  MacLeod  of 
Gualtergill,  in  the  Isle  of  Skye,  the  faithful 
Palinurus,  set.  68,  1746."  Below  which  there  was  a 
representation  of  a  dove  with  an  olive  branch  in  its 
bill.  Donald  never  put  any  snuff  into  this  box, 
and  when  asked  the  cause  by  Mr.  Forbes,  he 
exclaimed,  "  Sneeshin  in  that  box  !  Na,  the  deil  a 
pickle  sneeshin  shall  ever  get  into  it  till  the  King 
be  restored ;  and  then,  I  trust  in  God,  I'll  go  to 
London,  and  then  I  will  put  sneeshin  in  the  box, 
and  go  to  the  Prince,  and  say,  '  Sir,  will  you  take  a 
sneeshin  out  o'  my  box  ? '"  * 

And  now  we  approach  the  end.  To  the  disastrous 
Field  of  Culloden  may  be  ascribed  the  termination 
of  the  Clan  system  in  Scotland.  The  government, 
thoroughly  alarmed  by  the  very  great  dangers 
they  had  just  escaped,  enacted  the  most  severe 
measures  against  the  Highlanders.  The  disarming 
act  of  1715  was  rigidly  inforced ;  the  national 
garb  prescribed ;  the  heritable  jurisdiction  of  the 
Chiefs  abolished — everything  was  done  to  destroy 
the  organisation  and  power  of  the  Clans,  so  that 
history  now,  practically  becomes  that  of  individ- 
uals. Many  clansmen  rather  than  suffer  under 
these  galling  acts  left  the  country  altogether  and 
entered  the  service  of  continental  powers — parti- 
cularly the  Netherlands.  Many  of  them  rose  to 
important  positions  and  their  descendants  of  to-day 

*  Jacobite  Memorials. 


THE   MACLEODS.  31 

occupy  distinguished  places  in  the  countries  of 
their  adoption. 

The  Chief  who  had  been  elected  M.P.  for  Inver- 
ness-shire 1741,  continued  to  represent  that  con- 
stituency for  some  years ;  he  mixed  with  the 
leading  men  of  the  time,  contracted  extravagant 
habits  unfortunately,  and  involved  himself  in  a 
considerable  amount  of  debt.     He  died  about  1772. 

Of  his  son  John,  not  much  is  known.  His  name 
appears  in  the  list  of  officers,  as  Commander  of  a 
Company  in  Loudon's  Highlanders,  the  second  regi- 
ment raised  in  the  Highlands  for  Government 
Service  (1743),  and  again  as  commanding  one  of 
the  seven  Companies  of  MacLeods  which  were 
under  the  command  of  the  Chief  in  the  '45.  He 
died  about  1765,  thus  predeceasing  his  father. 

Not  very  long  after  the  '45  William  Pitt, 
afterwards  Lord  Chatham,  with  rare  sagacity 
conceived  the  plan  of  enlisting  the  Highlanders, 
who  had  shown  themselves  to  be  such  formidable 
foes  to  the  Government,  to  fight  the  battles  of 
the  nation  generally.  Later,  in  1766,  while 
addressing  the  House  of  Commons  he  said — "I 
have  sought  for  merit  where  it  could  be  found. 
It  is  my  boast  that  I  was  the  first  Minister  who 
looked  for  it  and  found  it  in  the  mountains  of 
the  North.  I  called  it  forth  and  drew  into 
your  service  a  hardy  and  intrepid  race  of  men  ; 
who    had    irone    nidi    to   have    over-turned    the 


32  THE   MACLEODS. 

State  in  the  war  before  last.     These  men  in   the 
last  war   were   brought   to   combat   on   our   side ; 
they   served  with   fidelity   as   they   fought    with 
valour  and  conquered  for   you    in   every    quarter 
of  the  world."     Many  regiments  were  raised  but  \ 
none    have    been    more    distinguished    than    the  ; 
42nd   or   Black    Watch,   the   second    battalion   of  | 
which  was  raised  by  General  MacLeod,  twentieth  \ 
Chief.      This    regiment   has    covered   itself    with  . 
glory  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 

The  second  battalion  was  embodied  at  Perth 
21st  March  1780.  In  December  it  embarked  at 
Queensferry  for  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  but 
ultimately  landed  in  India;  was  there  engaged 
in  the  wars  against  the  famous  Tippoo  Sahib 
where  it  earned  its  first  laurels,  the  conduct  of 
the  men  being  reported  on  as  follows : — "  The 
intrepidity  with  which  the  Highlanders  repeatedly 
charged  the  enemy  was  most  honourable  to  their 
character."  MacLeod  led  them  in  this  wearisome 
and  trying  war  until  promoted  General  in  charge 
of  the  whole  operations. 

On  the  conclusion  of  the  war  it  was  decided 
to  disband  the  battalion  and  draft  the  men  into 
other  regiments.  MacLeod  opposed  this  vehe- 
mently ;  in  a  letter  to  the  Commander-in-Chief  of 
India  he  says  ..."  My  own  compan}^  are  all 
of  my  own  name  and  clan  and  if  I  return  to 
Europe    without     them    I     shall     be     effectually 


THE   MACLEODS,  33 

banished  from  my  own  home  after  having  seduced 
them  into  a  situation  from  which  they  thought 
themselves  spared  when  they  enlisted  into  the 
service  ...  I  must  entreat  your  Excellency 
to  allow  me  to  carry  them  home  with  me,  that 
I  may  not  forfeit  my  honour,  credit  and  influence 
in  the  Highlands  which  have  ever  been  exerted 
for  His  Majesty's  Service.  My  connections  and 
mode  of  entering  into  the  army  are  not  unknown 
to  the  King,  and  I  ani  certain  the  favour  I 
solicit  for  myself  and  Clan  from  your  Excellency 
will  meet  with  his  Royal  approbation." 

This  spirited  communication  saved  the  situation ; 
the  battalion  afterwards  became  the  73rd  regiment, 
only  however  to  revert  to  its  original  position 
as  second  battalion  of  the  Black  Watch  on  the 
introduction  of  the  linked  battalions  system. 
The  original  colours  of  the  battalion  are  preserved 
at  Dunvegan  among  the  Castles  choicest  treasures. 

Norman,  XXth  Chief  succeeded  his  grandfather, 
the  Wicked  Man,  and  appears  to  have  been  a  man 
of  much  character  and  ability.  For  some  years 
previous  to  the  death  of  his  grandfather,  he  had 
devoted  himself  to  an  effort  to  retrieve  the  fortunes 
of  his  clan  and  house  which  his  late  grandfather 
had  so  seriously  endangered. 

He  took  up  his  residence  at  Dunvegan  and  it 
was  in  his  time  that  the  Castle  was  visited  by 
Pennant,  Dr.  Johnson,  and  Sir  Walter  Scott,  all 

c 


34  THE   MACLEODS. 

of  whom  seem  to  have  been  highly  gratified  by  the 
excellence  o£  their  entertainment.  Dr.  Johnson, 
we  are  told,  found  that  he  "  had  tasted  lotus  and 
was  in  danger  of  forgetting  that  he  was  ever  to 
depart."  ..."  Boswell,"  he  said,  "  we  came  in 
at  the  wrong  end  of  the  island,"  and  referring 
to  the  difficulties  MacLeod  had  to  contend  with, 
Johnson  said,  "  If  he  gets  the  better  of  all  this  he 
will  be  a  hero  ;  and  I  hope  he  will." 

On  the  outbreak  of  the  War  of  Independence  in 
America,  MacLeod  raised  a  Company  of  his  Clans- 
men for  "  Fraser's  Highlanders  "  in  which  regiment 
six  Chiefs,  besides  himself  served.  On  the  voyage 
to  America  the  ship  in  which  he  sailed  was  captured 
by  the  enemy  and  he  was  detained  a  prisoner  in 
that  country  for  a  time.  He  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  General  Washington,  for  whom  he  seems 
to  have  formed  a  very  considerable  regard,  and 
afterwards  always  spoke  of  him  with  great  respect. 
About  1780  he  returned  to  this  country  and  was 
commissioned  to  raise  the  second  battalion  of  the 
42nd  Highlanders  or  Black  Watch,  mentioned 
above,  which  he  speedily  succeeded  in  doing.  He 
accompanied  the  battalion  to  India  and  was  so 
successful  in  his  operations  there,  that  later,  on 
the  removal  of  General  Mathews,  he  was  appointed 
General  and  Commander-in-Chief.  He  returned 
home  in  1789,  and  shortly  after  was  elected  to 
represent  his  county  in  Parliament,  a  seat  which 


lS3f;334 

THE   MACLEODS.  85 

he  held  until  1796.  At  the  General  Election  of 
1796,  he  contested  Sudbury  with  a  member  of  the 
Paget  family,  but  was  defeated.  His  son  Norman, 
was  a  victim  of  the  Queen  Charlotte  disaster,  and 
his  death  is  particularly  notable  on  account  of 
the  Braham  Seers  prophecy  (noticed  later).  The 
General  died  in  1801,  and  was  succeeded  by  his 
second  son,  John  Norman. 

John  Norman,  21st  Chief,  was  born  in  1788. 
He  represented  Parliament  for  Sudbury,  from  1828 
to  1832.  After  the  passing  of  the  Reform  Bill  in 
1832,  he  contested  the  County  of  Inverness,  but 
was  unsuccessful  by  a  few  votes  ;  he  died  in  1835 
and  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Norman. 

Norman  XXII.  of  MacLeod,  was  born  in  1812. 
After  the  death  of  his  father  he  resided  for  several 
years  at  Dunvegan.  During  the  famine  of  1847-48 
he  remained  constantly  at  home  and  made  every 
effort  to  alleviate  the  distress  of  his  tenants.  The 
result  of  the  famine  was  disastrous  to  them  and 
to  him.  They  were  impoverished,  and  he  was 
reduced  to  the  verge  of  financial  ruin.  He  was 
obliged  to  leave  home  and  go  to  live  where  he 
could  obtain  employment.  With  a  manliness  much 
to  be  admired  in  a  gentleman  occupying  his  posi- 
tion, he  resolved  to  work  out  a  career  for  himself, 
and  began  life  again  in  1849,  in  the  public  service 
of  his  country,  at  the  age  of  37  years,  as  a  junior 
clerk  in  the  Prison  Department  of  the  Home  Ofiice. 


86  THE   MACLEODS. 

Here  he  remained  working  bard  for  a  mere  pittance, 
until  in  1852,  he  was  appointed  Registrar  or  Assis- 
tant Secretary  in  the  Science  and  Art  Department, 
under  Mr.  (afterwards  Sir)  Henry  Cole,  on  whose 
retirement  in  1874  MacLeod  succeeded  to  his  posi- 
tion and  remained  in  charge  at  the  head  of  the 
Department  until  1881. 

In  1854  he  was  appointed  by  the  Queen, 
Sergeant-at-Arms  in  Her  Majesty's  household. 

In  1860  he  was  appointed  to  Command  a 
Volunteer  Engineer  Corps — the  fii-st  formed  in  the 
United  Kingdom.  He  held  this  appointment  for 
some  years  and  until  press  of  other  duties  forced 
him  to  resign  when  he  became  its  Honorary 
Colonel.  He  died  in  Paris  in  1895,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  son  Norman  Magnus,  the  present 
Chief. 

Norman  Magnus  XXIII.  of  MacLeod — See  'page 
76. 

R,  C.  M. 


FOLKLORE  AND  TRADITIONARY 
TALES. 


now  turn  from  Histoiy  to  Tradition. 
Stories  of  great  interest  have  been 
handed  down  from  generation  to 
generation,  but  I  have  refrained  from 
inckiding  any  of  these  in  the  historical  sketch, 
because  tradition  knows  nothing  of  chronology. 
"Once  upon  a  time,"  or  "Hundreds  of  years"  ago,  is 
considered  quite  near  enough  for  tradition,  there- 
fore I  have  thought  it  better  not  to  interrupt 
the  thread  of  the  history  with  traditional  tales,  the 
dates  of  which  can  never  be  fixed ;  but  I  have 
put  a  few  of  these  together  to  form  part,  and 
perhaps  not  the  least  interesting  part,  of  this 
sketch. 

Probably  there  is  nothing,  at  least  in  traditional 
lore,  which  appeals  more  to  the  Clansmen  than 
the  stories  which  surround  the  famous  relics  of 
Dunvegan,  notably  the  Fairy  Flag,  the  Horn  of 
Sir  Rory  Mor,  the  Cup  or  Chalice,  &c.  These  are 
tangible  and  visible  evidence  of  things  past — 
long,  long  past — of  things  unknown  to  us  save 
in  a  few  obscure  traditional  tales,  indeed  so  obscure 
they  do  not  even  give  themselves  birth. 


38  THE   MACLEODS, 


THE  FAIRY  FLAG. 

Who  can  say  what  our  forebears  thought  of 
their  Fairy  Flag  or  what  mighty  influence  it 
may  have  held  in  the  minds  of  those  primitive,  if 
warlike,  men,  for  what  a  power  is  faith,  and  the 
clansmen  had  faith,  full  and  strong  in  their  wonder- 
ful banner  as  witness  the  confidence  with  which 
it  was  displayed  at  the  battle  of  Waternish. 
"  MacLeod  thought  the  time  had  come  to  wave 
his  magic  banner  and,  feeling  certain  of  victory 
detached  a  small  party  to  take  possession  of  the 
enemy's  galleys." 

Did  the  flag,  in  its  fairy  might,  actually  magnify 
the  numbers  of  the  MacLeods  or  did  the  Mac- 
Donalds  themselves  know  the  legend,  believe  in 
it,  and,  in  the  superstitious  spirit  of  the  time, 
take  fright  at  the  very  appearance  of  the  flag  ? 
Who  shall  say  ?  I  fear  in  these  rather  degenerate 
times  we  can  but  poorly  appreciate  the  feelings 
of  our  ancestors  on  such  subjects. 

In  my  boyhood  I  heard  two  quite  distinct 
legends  as  to  how  the  MacLeods  got  the  Fairy 
Flag.  One  relates  that  one  of  the  Chiefs  married  a 
fairy  who  was  only  allowed  to  remain  for  twenty 
years  with  her  mortal  husband.  Her  summons  to 
leave  him  came  to  her  near  "  Fairy  Bridge,"  which 
is   about   three   miles   from   Dunveean   and   that. 


THE    FAIRY   FLAG.  39 

as  she  flew  away,  the  flag,  which  formed  part  of 
her  attire,  was  dropped  by  her,  either  accidentally 
or  intentionally,  and  found  and  preserved  by 
the  bereaved  Chieftain.  The  other  tells  how  on 
the  birth  of  an  heir  to  one  of  the  Chiefs,  great 
rejoicings  were  held  at  Dunvegan,  to  celebrate 
the  event;  that,  as  the  child  was  slumbering 
peacefully,  the  nurse,  who  was  anxious  to  join 
the  festivities,  slipped  away  and  left  him  alone, 
but  being  restless  in  his  sleep  the  clothes  in 
which  he  had  been  wrapped  fell  off  and  he  lay 
exposed  to  the  cold  ;  the  fairies,  however,  were 
watching  over  him  and  wrapped  him  up  in  a 
flag.  Meanwhile  the  clansmen  had  been  clammer- 
ing  to  see  the  young  heir  and  the  nurse  being 
sent  for  her  charge,  found  him  thus  arrayed  and 
brought  him  so  into  the  hall.  As  she  entered,  a 
chorus  of  fairy  voices  was  heard  singing  the 
magic  powers  of  the  flag,  and  thus  the  fact  that 
it  would  have  virtue  to  save  the  Clan  three 
times,  when  in  dire  need,  was  communicated. 

The  flag  it  is  said,  has  been  twice  waved.  On 
the  first  occasion  the  MacDonalds  of  Clan  Ranald, 
during  one  of  the  awful  feuds  which  raged 
between  them  and  the  MacLeods,  landed  in  very 
great  force  at  Trumpan,  in  Waternish.  The  Mac- 
Leods were  surprised  while  at  Divine  Service,  their 
enemies  surrounding  the  church  and  setting  it 
on  tire.     The  whole  congregation  perished,  either 


40  THE   MACLEODS. 

by  the  sword  or  the  flames,  except  one  woman 
Avho,  grievously  wounded,  effected  her  escape  and 
brought  the  news  to  Dunvegan.  MacLeod,  witli 
such  forces  as  he  could  collect  in  a  short  time, 
sallied  forth  and  found  that  the  MacDonalds, 
having  finished  their  work  of  destruction  at 
Trumpan,  had  re-embarked,  sailed  up  to  the  head 
of  Loch  Bay,  landed  there,  and  were  marching  on 
Dunvegan.  MacLeod  thought  that  the  time  had 
come  to  wave  his  magic  banner,  and  feeling  certain 
of  victory,  detached  a  small  party  to  take  posses- 
sion of  the  enemy's  boats  which  they  had  left  lying 
on  the  shore.  Fighting  desperately  to  check  the 
enemy's  advance  MacLeod  sent  a  messenger  for  the 
Flag,  and  when  it  arrived  he  at  once  waved  it. 

On  the  moment  the  MacDonalds  imagined  that 
they  saw  large  reinforcements  coming  up  to 
join  MacLeod  and  were  seized  by  such  a  panic 
that  they  broke  and  fled  to  their  boats  but 
these  they  found  had  been  removed  by  MacLeod's 
party  and  anchored  out  in  the  Loch.  A  handful 
of  men  swam  out  to  a  boat  and  succeeded  in 
escaping,  but  the  rest  were  cut  to  pieces ;  their 
bodies  were  gathered  in  a  long  row  under  a 
wall,  the  wall  was  then  thrown  down  upon 
them,  and  thus  they  were  buried.  The  place  has 
in  consequence  always  been  called  "Milleadh 
(iaraidh" — the  destruction  of  the  wall. 

On  the  second  occasion  on  which  it  was  waved 


THE   FAIRY   FLAG.  41 

the  magic  power  of  the  flag  is  said  to  have 
arrested  a  cattle  plague  which  was  devastating 
the  island. 

It  was  brought  to  light  for  the  third  time 
under  circumstances  so  remarkable  that  I  give 
in  full  a  letter  written  by  Dr.  Norman  MacLeod 
the  famous  father  of  a  still  more  famous  son, 
describing  what  then  happened. 

"  In  the  summer  1799,  tlie  late  General  Norman 
MacLeod  (grandfather  to  the  present  Chief), 
came  to  the  manse  of  Morven  on  his  way  to 
the  Isle  of  Skye.  My  father  (the  Rev.  Norman 
MacLeod  then  Minister  of  Morven)  had  at  one 
time  been  tutor  to  this  brave  and  talented  man, 
who  had  been  a  distinguished  soldier  in  the 
American  war  and  had  afterwards  obtained 
great  renown  in  India  during  the  conflicts  with 
Tippoo  Sahib  and  other  rebellious  chiefs.  Mac- 
Leod insisted  that  my  father  should  allow  me 
to  go  along  with  him  to  Dun  vegan,  and  I  was 
delighted  at  the  prospect  of  visiting  the  place 
of  which  I  had  heard  so  many  traditionary 
legends.  There  were  no  steamers  at  that  time 
and  we  took  passage  in  a  small  wherry  from 
Oban. 

MacLeod  was  accompanied  by  Mr.  Hector 
MacDonald  Buchanan,  his  man  of  business,  and 
Mr.  Campbell  of  Gombie,  his  commissioner.  We 
arrived     at     Loch      Bracadale     next     day     after. 


42  THE  MACLEODS. 

leaving  Morveii  where  we  found  horses  and  carts 
and  crowds  of  people  waiting  us.  On  reaching 
the  old  Castle  of  Dunvegan  we  were  met  by 
many  of  the  gentlemen,  tacksmen  of  the  Mac- 
Leod estates,  and  MacLeod  was  welcomed  to  the 
home  of  his  fathers  by  Captain  Donald  Mac- 
Crimmon,  (the  representative  of  the  celebrated 
MacCrimmon  pipers  who  had  for  ages  been 
connected  with  the  family)  who  had  gained  his 
commission  and  no  small  share  of  renown  with 
his  Chief  during  the  American  war. 

I  can  never  forget  the  impression  which  the 
whole  scene  made  on  my  youthful  mind,  as 
MacCrimmon  struck  up  "  Failte  Ruari  Mor,"  the 
famous  tune  of  the  clan. 

Dinner  was  served  in  the  great  dining-room, 
the  keys  of  the  cellar  were  produced  and  a 
pipe  of  claret  was  broached  also  some  Madeira, 
said  to  be  of  choice  quality  and  brought  by 
MacLeod  from  India — the  wine  was  carried  up 
to  the  dining-room  in   flaggons. 

I  was  put  to  sleep  in  a  small  closet  off  MacLeod's 
own  bedroom,  and  I  never  shall  forget  the 
affectionate  kindness  which  my  beloved  Chief 
showed  me  during  the  three  months  I  was  with 
him  in  his  Castle. 

The  number  of  visitors  who  came  there  was 
great.  Among  others  I  remember  MacLean  of 
Coll,     Grant     of     Corriemoney,    Mr.     Grant     the 


THE   FAIRY    FLAG.  43 

father  of  Lord  Glenelg,  Principal  MacLeod  of 
Aberdeen,  Colonel  Donald  MacLeod,  father  of  the 
present  MacLeod  of  St.  Kilda.  I  had  a  special 
regard  for  Major  MacLeod  of  Ballymeanach,  who 
had  been  a  distinguished  officer  in  the  Dutch 
wars,  and  who  kindly  entertained  me  with  many 
interesting  anecdotes  regarding  the  warfare  in 
which  he  had  been  engaged. 

A  circumstance  took  place  at  Dunvegan  Castle 
at  that  time,  which  I  think  it  worth  recording, 
especially  as  I  am  the  only  person  living  who 
can  attest  the  truth  of  it.  There  had  been  a 
traditionary  prophecy  written  in  Gaelic  verse 
regarding  the  family  of  MacLeod  which  on  this 
occasion  received  a  most  extraordinary  fulfilment. 
This  prophecy  I  have  heard  repeated  by  several 
persons  and  I  now  very  much  regret  that  I  did 
not  take  a  copy  of  it  when  I  could  easily  have 
got  it.  My  father  had  a  very  beautiful  version 
of  it,  so  had  Mr.  Campbell  of  Knock  in  Mull, 
and  also,  I  think,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Campbell  of 
Kilinver.  There  are  few  old  families  in  the 
Highlands  of  whom  such  prophecies  are  not 
current.  The  family  of  Argyle  are  of  the 
number,  and  there  is  a  prophecy  yet  unfulfilled 
regarding  the  Breadalbane  family  which  I  hope 
may  remain  so.  The  present  Marquis  of  Breadal- 
bane is  full}^  aware  of  it,  as  are  also  many  of  the 
connections  of  the  family. 


44  THE   MACLEODS. 

Of  the  MacLeod  family  it  was  prophesied  at 
least  a  hundred  years  prior  to  the  circumstances 
I  am  about  to  relate.  That  when  Norman — the 
third  Norman  (Tormaid  n'an  tri  Tormaidean),  the 
son  of  the  hard-boned  English  woman  (Mac  na 
maighdean  caol  Sassanaich)  would  perish  by  an 
accidental  death — when  the  'MacLeod  Maidens' 
(certain  well  known  rocks  on  the  coast  of  the 
MacLeod  country)  would  become  the  property  of 
a  Campbell,  when  a  fox  had  her  young  ones  in 
one  of  the  turrets  of  the  Castle,  and  particularly 
when  the  Fairy  enchanted  banner  should  be  ex- 
hibited for  the  last  time,  that  then  the  glory 
of  the  MacLeod's  family  should  depart,  a  great 
part  of  the  estate  would  be  sold  to  others,  so 
that  a  small  Curach  (a  wicker  boat)  would  be 
sufficient  to  carry  all  the  gentlemen  of  the  name 
of  MacLeod  across  Loch  Dunvegan,  but  in  times 
far  distant  another  John  MacLeod  should  arise 
who  would  redeem  those  estates,  and  raise  the 
power  and  honour  of  the  name  of  MacLeod  to  a 
higher  pitch  than  ever.  Such,  in  general  terms, 
was  the  propliecy. 

And  now  as  to  the  curious  coincidence  of  its 
fulfilment. 

There  was  at  this  time,  an  English  smith  at 
Dunvegan,  with  whom  I  became  a  favourite,  and 
who  told  me  in  solemn  secrecy  that  the  iron 
chest  which  contained  the  Fairy  Flag  was  to  be 


THE   FAIRY   FLAG.  45 

forced  open  next  morning,  and  that  it  was 
arranged  by  Sir  Hector  MacDonald  Buchanan 
that  he  (the  smith)  was  to  be  at  the  Castle  with 
his  tools  for  that  purpose.  I  was  most  anxious 
to  be  present  and  asked  permission  of  Mr. 
Buchanan,  who  granted  me  leave  on  condition 
that  I  should  not  inform  anyone  of  the  name 
of  MacLeod  that  such  a  thing  was  to  be  done, 
and  especially  to  keep  it  a  profound  secret  from 
the  Chief,  this  I  promised  to  do  and  most  faith- 
fully acted  on. 

Next  morning  we  proceeded  to  the  chamber 
in  the  east  turret  where  the  iron  chest  containing 
the  '  Fairy  Flag '  was  kept.  The  smith  tore  up 
the  lid  with  great  violence,  but  in  doing  so  a 
key  was  found  under  part  of  the  covering  of 
the  chest,  which  would  have  opened  it,  had  it 
been  discovered  in  time.  There  was  an  inner 
case  in  which  the  flag  was  found  enclosed  in  a 
box  of  strongly  scented  wood.  The  flag  consisted 
of  a  square  piece  of  very  rich  silk  with  crosses 
wrought  on  it  with  gold  thread,  and  several  elf 
spots  stitched  with  great  care  on  different  parts 
of  it.  After  it  was  closely  examined  it  was 
returned  to  its  old  case  as  before  where  for 
many  years  it  had  .  been  neglected,  and  when 
brought  to  light  it  soon  went  to  tatters,  pieces 
of  it  being  carried  away  time  after  time,  so 
that  I  fancy  there  is  not  a  remnant  left.     (In  this 


46  THE   MACLEODS. 

the  writer  is  mistaken).  At  this  time  the  news 
of  the  death  of  the  young  and  promising  heir 
of  MacLeod  reached  the  castle,  this  Norman  'the 
third  Norman '  was  a  lieutenant  on  board  of  H.M. 
Ship  the  '  Queen  Charlotte '  which  was  blown 
up  at  sea  and  he  along  with  all  the  rest  perished ; 
at  the  same  time  the  rocks  called  '  The  MacLeod 
Maidens'  were,  in  the  course  of  that  week,  sold 
to  Campbell  of  Ensay,  and  are  still  in  the 
possession  of  his  grandson ;  a  fox  in  the  possession 
of  a  Lieutenant  MacLean  residing  in  the  west 
turret  of  the  Castle,  had  cubs  there  which  I  saw 
and  handled,  and  thus  it  happened  that  all  that 
was  said  in  the  prophecy  was  literally  fulfilled. 

I  merely  state  the  facts  us  they  occurred 
without  expressing  any  opinion  whatever  as  to 
the  nature  of  these  traditionary  legends  with 
which  they  were  connected. 

My  father  is  known  by  his  well  deserved  title 
of  '  Caraid  nan  Caidheal '  for  truly  he  was  such." 

THE    HORN. 

The  Horn  of  vSir  Rory  Mor  is  a  great  ox 
horn  tipped  with  silver,  and  holds  about  two 
English  pints.  The  custom  is  that  each  Chief 
on  attaining  the  age  of  manhood  should  drain 
at  one  draught,  this  horn,  filled  to  the  brim. 
What  memories  must  cling  around  this  old  horn ! 


THE   HORN.  47 

When  was  its  test  of  manhood  first  instituted  ? 
Was  Sir  Rory  himself  the  first  ?  How  many 
Chiefs  have  proved  their  metal  in  this  deep, 
long  mighty  draught?  What  men  of  strength, 
deep  of  chest  and  power  of  lung,  to  drain  that 
terrible  Horn  in  one  long  breath.  None  such 
now;  the  greater  part  of  the  Horn  is  filled  up 
and  it  is  but  a  moderate  drink  the  present  day 
Chiefs  have  to  quafi*.  With  what  contempt,  what 
mighty  scorn  would  these  stern  warriors  of  the 
past  look  upon  the  puny  performances  of  their 
descendants.  Traditionary  tales  associated  with 
the  Horn  are  noticed  in  the  account  of  the 
MacLeod  Crest. 

THE    DUNVEGAN    CUP. 

The  Cup  or  Chalice  is  made  out  of  a  solid  block 
of  oak.  It  stands  about  ten  inches  high  and 
rests  upon  four  short  legs  of  silver.  All  over, 
the  Cup  is  curiously  wrought  and  embossed 
with  silver,  once  studded  with  precious  stones 
and  still  retaining  bits  of  coral. 

It  has  the  following  inscription,  engraved  on 
a  rim  of  silver,  in  very  superior  style : — 

"  Katerina  the  daughter  of  King  Neil, 
Wife  of  John  M'Guiger,  Prince  of  Fermanagh, 
Had  me  made  in  the  year  of  God  1493,* 
The  eyes  of  all  hope  in  Thee,  Oh  Lord  ! 
And  Thou  givest  them  their  meat  in  due  season." 

*  See  note  page  119. 


48  THE   MACLEODS. 

The  following  legends  relate  to  the  history  of 
the  Gup : — 

In  the  time  of  Malcolm,  the  third  Chief,  the 
lands  of  Luskintyre  were  possessed  by  two  brothers 
who  were  at  mortal  feud  with  one  another.  Their 
cattle  were  herded  in  common,  in  charge  of  a  man 
named  Lurran  Casinreach  or  swift-footed.  This 
man's  mother  had  nursed  one  of  the  brothers — she 
was  considered  a  witch,  and  lived  with  her  son  in 
a  small  cottage  near  her  foster-son's  house.  Lurran 
folded  the  cows  every  night  in  Buaille  Rossinish, 
where  during  the  harvest  season  it  was  customary 
to  have  them  watched.  On  the  first  night  of  the 
season  it  was  Lurran's  turn  to  watch,  and  as  the 
place  was  considered  to  be  a  resort  of  fairies, 
Lurran's  mother  took  the  precaution  to  charm  all 
her  foster-son's  cows,  as  well  as  her  son  Lurran 
on  whom  she  uttered  a  spell,  proof  against  the 
devil  himself.  About  midnight  Lurran  saw  the 
Bruthach  (or  mound)  open,  and  an  immense  con- 
course of  people  issue  from  it.  They  proceeded 
towards  the  fold  where  they  began  to  converse  and 
examine  the  cattle.  They  found  the  cows  of  one 
brother  all  charmed,  but  those  of  the  other  not  so 
fortunate.  Of  the  latter  they  immediately  killed 
two  of  the  best  and  fattest  and  carried  away  the 
carcases,  leaving  the  hides  filled  with  froth  and 
slime,  resembling  bad  carrion.  In  the  morning 
the  two  cows  were  found  dead,  and  conjectured  to 


THE   DUNVEQAN   CUP.  49 

have  been  killed  by  lightning.  The  same  thing 
however  occurred  for  several  nights — the  cows  of 
the  same  brother  always  being  selected.  Watch 
was  set  but  none  possessed  the  power  of  seeing  the 
fairies,  while  Lurran  kept  what  he  had  seen  a 
secret  from  all  but  his  mother.  When  it  again 
came  to  Lurran's  turn  to  watch  he  saw  the  same 
thing  happen,  but  this  time  he  joined  the  crowd 
and  entered  the  Bruthach  unobserved,  and  found 
himself  in  a  spacious  hall  where  was  prepared  a 
feast  of  which  all  partook.  Lurran  took  care  to 
get  a  place  next  the  door.  After  the  feast  wine 
was  handed  round  in  a  beautiful  cup,  out  of 
which  each  one  drank  and  then  handed  it  to  his 
neighbour.  At  last  it  came  to  Lurran's  turn, 
who,  pitching  out  the  contents,  made  a  dash  for 
the  door  and  escaped,  carrying  the  cup  with 
him,  before  the  company  were  aware  of  what 
he  was  about.  He  was  hotly  pursued  but  suc- 
ceeded in  reaching  his  mother's  hut,  which  she 
immediately  charmed  so  as  to  prevent  the  ingress 
of  any  spirits,  good  or  bad.  Lurran,  however, 
was  eventually  killed  by  the  fairies  for  stealing 
their  cup,  which  his  mother  then  gave  to  her 
foster-son,  Neil  Glundubh.  Neil  was  soon  after 
murdered  by  his  brother,  who  seized  the  cup 
with  other   property. 

When  the  Chief  heard  of  this  outrage  he  had 
the  murderer  arrested  and  put  to  death  at  Rowdell. 

D 


50  THE  MACLEODS. 

The  cup  was  then  taken  to  Dunvegan,  and  there 
it  has  ever  since  remained. 

It  may  be  mentioned  that  the  cup  is  always 
called  the  cup  of  Neil  Glundubh,  and  in  the  Dean 
of  Lismore's  book  this  Neil  is  said  to  have  been 
the  progenitor  of  the  O'Neil  family  in  Ireland  who 
flourished  in  the  tenth  century. 

Another  legend  says  that  the  son  of  one  of  these 
same  brothers  having  been  insulted  at  a  feast  by 
Magnus,  (the  Chief's  fifth  son)  rose  from  the 
table  to  leave  the  room,  muttering  threats  of 
vengeance.  Magnus  spi-ang  up  and  opposed  his 
exit,  on  which  the  offended  vassal  drew  his  dirk 
and  stabbed  Magnus  to  tlie  heart.  A  rush  was 
made  by  the  assembled  vassals  to  seize  the 
murderer,  who  succeeded  in  escaping  to  the  top 
of  a  rock,  which  is  still  shown,  where  he  was 
brought  to  bay.  He  had  twelve  arrows  in  his 
quiver  and  with  each  of  these  he  killed  one  of 
the  Chief's  followers.  He  was  then  captured  and 
flayed  alive;  his  kindred  were  outlawed  or  put 
to  death  and  all  their  property  con ti seated  to 
the  Chief  who  in  this  way  became  possessed  of 
the  cup. 

THE   MACLEOD   CREST. 

The  following  legend  concerning  the  origin  of 
the  MacLeod  Crest  and  Motto  was  given  to  me 
by  a  friend  not  very  long  ago : — 


THE   MACLEOD   CHEST.  51 

Tormod,  second  Chief  of  MacLeod,  was  a 
great  soldier.  He  married  Marjory,  daughter  of 
John  Bisset  of  Glenelg,  by  whom  he  had  three 
sons  —  Malcohn,  his  heir,  Leod  and  Godfrey. 
Malcolm  the  third  Chief,  although  said  by  some 
to  have  married  the  daughter  of  Fraser,  Lord 
Lovat,  is  believed  to  have  married  Christian  the 
divorced  wife  of  Hugh  Fraser  of  Lovat,  and  a 
daughter  of  Sir  Neil  Campbell  of  Lochow,  ancestor 
of  the  Duke  of  Argyll.  He  was  a  man  of  great 
courage  and  physical  strength,  and  the  story 
goes  that  while  returning  from  a  stolen  interview 
with  the  young  and  beautiful  wife  of  the  Chief 
of  the  Frasers,  who  held  the  half  of  Glenelg, 
he  encountered  and  killed  a  wild  bull  which 
infested  the  w^oods  of  Glenelg  and  was  a  terror 
to  the  inhabitants  around.  Malcolm,  when  he 
engaged  the  animal,  was  armed  with  his  dirk 
only,  but,  seizing  the  bull  by  the  horns,  he,  by 
sheer  strength,  threw  it  and  then  despatched  it 
with  his  dirk.  From  this  encounter  the  bull's 
head  is  said  to  have  become  the  crest  of  the 
MacLeods  with  the  motto  "  Hold  Fast "  added. 
The  story  adds  that  the  horns  were  removed  from 
the  bull's  head,  one  of  them  was  mounted  with 
silver  and  preserved  as  a  trophy,  and  that  the  horn 
which  every  Chief  has  to  drain  when  he  comes  of 
age,  is  the  identical  horn  which  adorned  the  head 
of  the  bull  slain  by  Malcolm  MacLeod. 


52  THE  MACLEODS. 

Another  story  about  a  bull  tells  how  MacLeod 
once  went  on  a  visit  to  Argyll  at  Inveraray,  and 
when  he  got  there  he  learned  that  a  clansman  of 
his  host  had,  for  some  oftencc,  been  condemned  to 
be  gored  to  death  by  a  bull.  An  arena  was  pre- 
pared and  the  criminal  placed  therein  with  a  bull 
of  singular  strength  and  ferocity.  MacLeod,  much 
struck  with  the  appearance  of  the  man,  interceded 
for  him  with  Argyll ;  but  Argyll  declared  it  was 
now  too  late,  that  the  man  and  the  infuriated 
animal  were  in  the  ring,  and  no  human  power 
could  save  him.  MacLeod  was  only  armed  with 
his  dirk,  but,  on  hearing  this,  sprang  at  once  into 
the  ring,  attacked  and  killed  the  bull.  He  thus 
saved  the  man's  life,  and  when  he  went  back  to 
Skye  he  took  the  man  with  him,  and  there  is  a 
family  living  at  Dunvegan  now  who  claim  descent 
from  the  man  whom  MacLeod  saved  from  such  a 
terrible  death. 

TALES. 

Of  the  simple  tales,  one  of  tlie  most  picturesque 
relates  how  a  daughter  of  Dunvegan  was  engaged 
to  be  married  to  a  young  Harris  man  who  was 
drowned  on  his  way  to  Dunvegan. 

I  wrote  some  verses  on  this  story  some  years 
ago,  and  I  venture  to  give  it  here  in  my  own  poor 
rhymes : — 


TALES.  53 

A    TALE    OF    THE    MINCH. 

There  is  joy  at  Dunvegan — the  glad  bridal  morn 
Of  its  daughter  has  come  ;  on  the  breezes  are  borne 
The  sounds  of  rejoicing,  of  music  and  song, 
As  troops  of  glad  clansmen  come  singing  along. 
The  feast  is  all  ready,  all  spread  is  the  board, 
And  the  maid,  ready  decked,  is  awaiting  her  lord, 
Who  is  sailing  from  Harris  to  claim  his  fair  bride, 
And  to  stand  at  the  altar  with  her  by  his  side. 

The  glad  sounds  are  hushed  ;  for  a  wild  sudden  gale 

Has  risen,  and  faces  are  anxious  and  pale. 

'Gainst  hope  the  maid  hopes  ;  one  so  gallant  and  true, 

Who  sails  such  a  boat,  with  so  gallant  a  crew, 

Can  never  have  perished — he  must  come — he  will — 

His  promise  to  her  he  will  surely  fulfil. 

Alas  !   for  her  love — she  awaits  him  in  vain. 

For  he's  lost  in  the  Minch  with  the  whole  of  his  train. 

There  is  woe  at  Dunvegan  ;   for  since  that  sad  day 
Its  daughter  has  slowly  been  pining  away ; 
All  shrunk  is  her  form  and  all  hollow  her  cheek. 
As  she  tells  her  last  wishes  in  tones  low  and  weak. 
"  Oh  grant  that  my  body  may  rest  in  the  deep, 
That  I  in  the  grave  of  my  true  love  may  sleep." 
They  promised,  with  weeping,  and  soon  all  is  o'er, 
Her  voice  on  earth  they  may  never  hear  more. 

Forgetting  their  promise,  her  body  they  lay 
In  the  galley  to  bear  her  to  Eodell's  calm  bay, 
Where  stands  the  old  abbey,  the  last  resting-place, 
In  which  lie  the  dead  of  her  proud  ancient  race. 
They  start  in  a  calm,   but  soon  springs  up  a  gale. 
At  which  e'en  the  soul  of  the  bravest  may  quail ; 
They  know  its  a  message  that  charges  them  keep 
The  promise  they  gave  e'er  the  maid  fell  asleep. 


54  THE   MACLEODS. 

"Heaven  wills,"   said   the   Chief,    "that   my  daughter   be 
laid, 
As  she  wished — in  the  sea,  and  she  shall  be  obeyed." 
He  tenderly  takes  in  his  strong  arms  her  form, 
Casts  her  on  the  waves  ;  and  amid  the  wild  storm 
There  rises  a  figure,  majestic  and   grand, 
Clasps  her  to  his  heart  and,  with  hand  pressed  in  hand, 
Those   two,    whose   fair  lives   had   by   stern   death   been 

blighted, 
Beneath  the  waves  sink  now  in  death  re-united. 

E'en  Nature  herself  will  preserve  such  a  tale. 
And  men,  to  this  day,  who  upon  the  Minch  sail. 
Find,  'mid  all  the  tumult  of  mountainous  waves — 
To  mark  of  this  couple  who  loved  well, — the  graves 
One  spot  of  still  calm,  which  no  winds  can  disturb  ; 
Some  mightier  force  on  their  strength  jjuts  a  curb. 
And  here  sleep  those  lovers  on  great  ocean's  bed, 
Till  the  trumpet  shall  sound  and  the  sea  yield  her  dead. 


THE    SPIRIT    ARMIES. 

A  curious  story  is  that  which  relates  how  a  man, 
at  some  unknown  pei'iod,  happened  one  night  to  be 
near  the  church-yard  at  Eynort.  At  midnight  the 
ghosts  of  all  who  had  been  buried  there  arose, 
seized  the  man,  and  taking  him  with  them  visited 
in  turn  all  the  burying  places  in  the  MacLeod 
country,  being  joined  at  each  by  a  large  number  of 
spirits.  They  llew  across  the  Minch  to  North  Uist. 
Here  they  met  all  the  MacDonald  ghosts,  also 
having  a  living  man  with  them.  The  two  spirit 
armies   formed  a   rintj,  and   the   two   livine:   men 


THE  SPIRIT   ARMIES.  55 

fought  in  the  middle.  Neither,  however,  was 
victorious,  and  when  the  first  sign  of  dawn 
appeared,  each  party  of  spirits  took  off  their  man 
and  returned  to  their  respective  resting  places. 
The  man  taken  from  Eynort  was  left  exactly 
where  he  had  been  found. 


THE    ONE-EYED    WIFE. 

One  of  the  Chiefs  (Alaster  Crottach  probably), 
must  have  had  a  somewhat  grim  sense  of  humour. 
He  had,  rather  rashly  engaged  himself  to  marry  a 
daughter,  whom  he  had  never  seen,  of  MacDonald 
of  Sleat.  I  suppose  the  bride  must  have  been 
thickly  veiled  during  the  ceremony,  any  how 
MacLeod  did  not  discover,  until  he  got  her  home 
to  Dunvegan,  that  she  had  only  one  eye.  Availing 
himself  of  the  rights  which,  under  the  system  of 
hand-fasting  then  in  vogue,  he  considered  he  pos- 
sessed, he  indignantly  sent  the  lady  back ;  and,  by 
way  of  making  the  insult  a  more  cutting  one,  she 
was  made  to  ride  a  one-eyed  horse,  was  attended 
by  a  one-eyed  man,  and  followed  by  a  one-eyed 
dog.  (This  story,  I  believe,  is  sometimes  told  the 
other  way  about  when  the  one-eyed  lady  becomes 
a  MacLeod.) 

But,  which  ever  is  correct,  this  incident  led  to  the 
great  battle  of  Corry  na  Craich  in  the  Cuchullins, 
where  a  great  number  of  clansmen  lost  their  lives. 


56  THE   MACLEODS. 

CORRY   NA  CRAICH. 

"  In  this  battle  of  Corry  na  Craicli  fought 
between  the  MacLeods  and  the  MacDonalds,  there 
were  nine  MacLeods  of  the  name  of  Norman  killed, 
one  of  them  was  an  exceptionally  big  man — very 
clumsy  and  awkward  in  every  way.  When  the 
battlefield  was  being  cleared  of  the  dead  bodies, 
one  of  the  MacDonalds  came  across  the  body  of 
big  Norman,  and,  in  trying  to  lift  it  found  he  had 
a  somewhat  heavy  and  difficult  task.  At  length, 
with  a  great  effort  he  succeeded  and  heaving  the 
body  over  a  rock,  exclaimed  '  Bu  Ghlagach  beo's 
marbh  thu  '  (clumsy  alive  and  clumsy  dead.)  " 

A  good  many  traditions  are  preserved  in  the 
names  of  places — 

CNOC  AN   H'IP. 

Cnoc  an  H'ip. — The  following  singular  occurrence 
is  related  by  some  old  people  in  Skye.  One  of  the 
Chiefs  of  the  Clan  Nicol,  called  MacNicol  Mor  from 
his  great  size  was  one  time  engaged  in  a  warm 
discussion  with  MacLeod  of  Raasay.  MacLeod's 
servant  entering  the  room  and  not  understanding 
English,  in  which  language  the  argument  was 
being  carried  on,  imagined  the  pair  were  quarrel- 
ling and  drawing  his  sword  struck  MacNicol  a 
deadly  blow. 


CNOC  AN  h'ip.  57 

A  council  of  Chiefs  and  comhairlichean,  or  elders, 
was  forthwith  called  to  determine  in  what  manner 
so  unhappy  a  deed  could  be  satisfactorily  arranged, 
and  the  shedding  of  blood  avoided  ;  when  it  was 
agreed,  upon  some  old  precedent,  that  the  meanest 
person  in  the  Clan  Nicol  should  behead  the  Laird 
of  Raasay. 

It  speaks  highly  for  the  respectability  of  the 
MacNicols  at  that  time  that  the  individual  of  least 
note  who  could  be  found  among  them  was  one 
Lomach,  a  maker  of  keisans,  which  are  a  sort  of 
woven  baskets  that  are  slung  on  each  side  of  a 
horse's  back  and  are  used  for  the  conveyance  of 
grain  and  like  commodities.  Raasay  was  accord- 
ingly executed  at  Snisort,  and  by  this  judicial 
decree  a  fued  was  prevented.  The  tradition  informs 
us  that  so  cleanly  did  Lonach  sever  the  head  from 
the  body  of  the  unfortunate  Chief,  who  was  at  the 
moment  in  the  act  of  speaking,  as  it  rolled  down 
the  hill  the  half  articulated  sounds,  "  ip,  ip  "  were 
said  to  have  been  distinctly  heard,  and  hence  the 
little  eminence  on  which  the  execution  took  place 
has  since  been  distinguished  as  "  Cnoc  an  h'ip." 

BALLA  NA   CROICHE. 

Balla  na  Croiche  is  the  place  of  the  gallows, 
because  here  executions  were  carried  out.  It  is 
said  that  the  last  man  who  was  put  to  death  here 


58  THE   MACLEODS. 

was  not  hanged  but  stripped,  tied  up,  and  left  to 
perish  slowly  from  attacks  of  midges,  etc.  This 
was  in  1728. 


CNOC  A  CHROCHADH. 

Not  far  from  Trumpan  there  is  a  strip  of  land 
called  Aird  Mor,  the  highest  point  of  which  is 
known  as  "  Cnoc  a  Chrochadh  "  (The  Hanging  Hill) 
because  the  son  of  Judge  Morrison  was  hanged 
there  on  three  of  his  own  oai's.  Morrison  had  been 
staying  at  Dunvegan  Castle,  but  on  his  way  re- 
turning home  he  started  murdering  the  MacLeods 
of  Isle  Isay.  He  was  caught  near  the  top  of  this 
hill  and  sentenced  to  be  hanged.  He  asked  that  he 
might  be  allowed  to  pray,  and  on  receiving  per- 
mission retired  behind  a  rock  for  that  purpose. 
Many  years  afterwards  a  large  quantity  of  silver 
coins  was  found  behind  the  very  rock  where 
Morrison  had  prayed,  and  which  was  supposed 
to  have  belone-ed  to  him. 


ARD-NAN-ATHAN. 

A  point  just  below  the  castle,  at  Dunvegan,  was 
called  "  Ard-nan-athan  "  (The  point  of  the  kilns). 
In  these  kilns  a  fermented  liquor  was  made  from 
barley — the  barley  was  grown  on  the  ground  now 


ARD-NAN-ATHAN.  59 

occupied  as  a  kitchen  garden — and  it  is  said  Alaster 
Crottach  used  this  liquor  to  slake  the  lime  for 
mortar  when  building  the  Fairy  Tower,  about  the 
end  of  the  fifteenth  century. 

On  this  point  also,  was  the  arena  where  all  sorts 
of  games  and  sports  were  held.  On  one  occasion 
there  was  "A  Great  Athletic  Meeting,"  Argyll, 
Glengarry,  Raasay  and  many  other  Chiefs  came  to 
Dunvegan ;  each  of  them  bringing  his  strongest 
and  best  men  to  compete  in  the  games. 

Raasay's  man  proved  to  be  the  best  wrestler, 
while  Argyll's  man  putted  the  stone  further  than 
any  other.  MacLeod  had  at  that  time,  in  his 
Clan  a  man  named  Paul  Crupach,  who,  though 
deformed,  possessed  extraordinary  strength.  This 
man,  MacLeod  had  dressed  in  very  rough  and 
ragged  clothes,  and  when  all  the  athletes  had 
done  their  best,  he  laughed,  and  said  "  Is  that 
all  your  men  can  do  ?  Why,  the  meanest  of 
my  clan  can  do  better  than  that."  He  then 
called  Paul  and  told  him  to  show  the  gentlemen 
what  the  MacLeods  could  do.  Paul  knelt  down 
on  his  knees,  and  from  that  position  putted 
the  stone  much  further  than  Argyll's  man  had 
done.  He  then  wrestled  with  Raasay's  man 
and  threw  him  with  such  force  that  the  poor 
man's  back  was  broken.  In  regard  to  such 
feats  I  give  a  few  more  instances  of  remarkable 
performances. 


60  THE   MACLEODS, 


BEINN    A    GHOBHA. 

Some  years  after  the  light  of  "Millaedh  Garaidh, 
the  MacDonalds  sought  revenge  for  their  defeat. 
They,  as  was  the  custom,  made  a  raid  on  the 
country  of  the  MacLeods,  and  carried  off  a  number 
of  cattle.  The  MacLeods  soon  discovered  their  loss 
and  started  in  pursuit  of  the  thieving  MacDonalds 
whom  they  overtook  near  Trumpan ;  there  a  bloody 
fight  took  place  and  the  MacDonalds  were  killed 
almost  to  a  man.  On  each  side  a  smith,  in  full 
armour,  remained  fighting.  The  MacLeod  smith 
was  feeling  weak  through  loss  of  blood  when 
his  wife  arrived  on  the  scene  of  the  conflict — 
striking  the  enemy  with  her  distaff,  she  cried, 
"Turn  to  me."  He  turned  his  head  involuntarily, 
and  that  moment  was  his  last,  as  the  MacLeod 
smith  seized  the  opportunity  and  promptly  run 
him    through. 

The  place  is  still  called  "  Beinn  a  Ghobha,"  or 
the  Blacksmith's  Hill. 


CNOC    MHIC    IAIN. 

At  this  same  tight  Roderick,  son  of  Ian  MacLeod 
of  Unish,  did  great  execution  with  his  sword.  At 
last  a  MacDonald  rushed  upon  him  and  cut  off 
his   legs    at    the   knees,   but   the    doughty   clans- 


CNOC   MHIC   IAIN.  61 

man  continued  to  stand  on  his  stumps  cutting 
down  all  comers.  At  last  he  fell — on  the  knoll 
named  after  him,  Cnoc  Mhic  Iain  ;  "  The  knoll 
of  the  son  of  '  Ian '  and  '  Crois  Bhan,'  the  white 
cross  from  a  wooden  cross  placed  there  to  his 
memory." 

TOBAR-NAN-CEANN. 

There  is  a  well  not  very  far  from  the  Castle 
called  "  tobar-nan-ceann  "  (the  well  of  the  heads) 
because  here  a  clansman,  who  had  killed  three 
foreigners,  and  wished  to  take  their  heads  to  the 
Castle,  as  proof  of  his  prowess,  washed  the  heads 
after  he  had  decapitated  the  men. 


PAUL'S  ROCK. 

.  There  is  a  rock  on  the  Uighinish  side  of  Skye 
called  to  this  day  "  Paul's  Rock,"  because  Paul 
while  fishing  was  caught  on  the  rock  by  the  tide, 
and  saved  himself  by  leaping  ashore,  a  bound  of 
extraordinary  agility. 

FINLAY   MACLEOD   OF  GALTRIGAL. 

Some  years  after  the  Eigg  massacre,  the  clan 
Ranald  and  other  MacDonalds  decided  to  punish 
the  MacLeods  ;  so  one  very  foggy  night  they  sailed 


62  THE   MACLEODS, 

for  Skye.  As  they  drew  near  Dunvegan  Head 
they  discovered  Finlay  MacLeod  of  Galtrigal  and 
four  others  fishing,  To  prevent  these  men  giving 
the  alarm,  the  MacDonalds  sent  a  sixteen  oar  boat 
to  capture  them.  Finlay  and  his  companions  saw 
them  coming  and  made  for  the  shore.  Finlay 
filone  succeeded  in  escaping,  the  others  being  cut 
off  and  caught  in  a  cave,  where  they  had  taken 
refuge,  and  cut  to  pieces.  Finlay  ran  to  the  top 
of  a  hill  and  gave  three  mighty  shouts  which 
the  watchman  at  Dunvegan  heard — a  distance  of 
three  miles.  MacLeod  at  once  sent  out  the  Crann- 
tara  with  one  end  burned  and  dipped  in  blood,  to 
inform  the  clansmen  that  an  enemy  was  coming. 
No  one  seems  to  know  the  end  of  this  story  or 
which  side  was  victorious. 

Finlay  MacLeod  of  Galtrigal  was  celebrated  for 
his  great  strength.  He  was  named  "  Fionalaidh 
na  Plaide  Baine,"  meaning  Finlay  of  the  white 
blanket,  because  he  was  always  dressed  in  white 
homespun.  In  his  time  MacLeod  kept  twelve 
powerful  men  called  "  Buannaichean,"  or  con- 
querors. These  men  oppressed  the  tenants  greatly, 
and  no  one  dared  to  question  them  except  Finlay, 
who  reported  their  doings  to  the  Chief.  These 
men,  it  is  proper  to  say,  were  chosen  by  tests  of 
strength,  such  as  tossing  the  caber,  putting  the 
stone,  etc. ;  then  a  large  bull  was  killed,  and  they 
had   with  one  hand  to  twist  off  its  four  legs  at 


FINLAY  MACLEOD   OF   GALTRIGAL.  63 

the  knees  before  they  were  successful  in  being 
engaged  as  Buannaichean.  On  one  occasion,  after 
being  reported  to  the  Chief,  these  men  came  to 
Finlay's  house  while  he  was  out,  ordered  the  wife 
to  prepare  their  dinner,  and  to  pnnish  Finlay  for 
reporting  them  they  killed  his  best  cow. 

When  Finlay  returned  he  asked  what  they  meant 
by  killing  his  cow.  They  replied  it  was  to  please 
themselves,  and  that  they  would  kill  him  too  if  he 
did  not  mind  what  he  was  about.  Finlay  then 
went  to  his  byre  and  returned  with  a  heavy  cow- 
tail  with  which  he  attacked  the  Buannaichean, 
making  their  skin  and  hair  fly  all  over  the  room. 
Those  who  were  not  killed  were  so  terrified  that 
they  offered  to  pay  the  price  of  the  cow  and  more 
if  Finlay  asked  it ;  but  their  offer  was  sternly 
refused.  Next  morning  Finlay  took  them  over  to 
Dunvegan  in  a  boat,  (he  had  bound  them  with 
fishing  lines).  When  MacLeod  saw  his  twelve 
strong  men  so  severely  punished  and  bound  by 
one  man,  he  dismissed  them  and  never  more  kept 
any  Buannaichean  at  Dunvegan. 

SWORDSMANSHIP. 

It  is  related  of  one  Donald  MacLeod,  a  man  of 
magnificent  physique  and  longevity,  who  entered 
the  service  of  King  William  and  enjoyed  for  many 
3'('ars  a  pension  from  George  III. ;  that  he  fought 


64  THE   MACLEODS. 

various  single  combats  both  at  home  and  abroad. 
On  one  occasion  he  cut  off  part  of  the  calf  of  a 
German's  leg,  and  wounded  him  in  the  sword  arm, 
to  show  he  had  it  in  his  power  to  take  his  life.  In 
the  rebellion  of  1715,  he  accepted  a  challenge  from 
a  Captain  MacDonald,  a  celebrated  fencer  in  the 
Earl  of  Mar's  service,  who  had  openly  defied  the 
whole  of  the  Royal  army.  In  this  trial  of  skill, 
MacLeod  cut  off  the  other's  purse  and  asked  him  if 
he  wanted  anything  else  taken  off,  on  which 
MacDonald  gave  up  the  contest,  acknowledging 
his  inferiority,  and  left  the  victor  his  purse  as  a 
trophy.  The  Earl  of  Mar,  himself  an  excellent 
swordsman,  also  acknowledged  MacLeod's  victory, 
as  did  his  own  General,  Argyle. 


ST.   KILDA. 

It  appears  that  at  some  early  period  there  was 
a  dispute  between  MacLeod  and  MacDonald,  as  to 
the  ownership  of  St.  Kilda,  and  it  was  decided  that 
two  boats  manned  by  men  of  the  respective  Clans 
should  race  for  the  island,  and  that  the  one  who 
first  touched  the  shore  should  win  its  possession 
for  his  Chief.  The  race  proved  a  very  close  one, 
but  as  the  boats  approached  the  island,  the  Mac- 
Donalds  drew  slightly  ahead,  whereupon  one  of  the 
MacLeods  seized  an  axe,  cut  off  his  hand  and  flung 
it  on  shore,  thus  touching  St.  Kilda  first. 


QUAINT  JUSTICE.  65 

QUAINT    JUSTICE. 

A  story  of  a  quaint  dispute  is  handed  down  by 
tradition.  A  cow  fell  over  a  cliff  into  a  boat. 
The  cow  was  killed  and  the  boat  destroyed.  The 
owner  of  the  boat  claimed  damages,  while  the 
owner  of  the  cow  made  a  counter-claim  on  the 
ground  that  if  the  boat  had  not  been  where  it 
was,  his  cow  would  have  fallen  into  deep  water 
and  probably  have  escaped  with  its  life.  MacLeod, 
to  whom  the  matter  was  referred,  found  some 
difficulty  in  coming  to  a  decision,  and  accompanied 
the  men  to  consult  a  "  wise  "  man  who  lived  near. 
The  sage  asked  who  was  the  owner  of  the  cow 
and  who  of  the  boat;  and  then  asked  who  was 
the  owner  of  the  rock  from  which  the  cow  had 
fallen — the  last  was  MacLeod.  Then  said  the  sage 
"  MacLeod  must  pay  for  both  the  cow  and  the 
boat.  For,  if  MacLeod's  rock  had  not  been  there 
the  cow  would  not  have  fallen  over  it,  and,  of 
course,  the  boat  would  not  have  been  injured." 
MacLeod  good  -  humouredly  assented  and  so  the 
dispute  was  settled. 

THE  WICKED  MAN  AND  ROB  ROY. 

An  interesting  and  amusing  story  is  told  of 
the  relations  between  the  "  Wicked  Man "  and 
the  famous  Rob  Roy. 

E 


66  THE   MACLEODS. 

MacLeod  sent  his  fool  (people  still  kept  fools 
in  those  days)  to  Inverness  to  fetch  a  sum  of 
money  which  he  required.  On  his  way  the  fool 
fell  in  with  a  gentleman  riding  a  line  horse.  This 
gentleman  made  himself  extremely  agreeable,  and 
to  him  the  fool  confided  the  mission  he  was 
engaged  on.  Naturally  enough  (seeing  the  gentle- 
man was  no  less  a  person  than  Rob  Roy)  on  his 
return  journey,  MacLeod's  messenger  met  his 
friend  again.  On  this  occasion  Rob  Roy  was 
not  quite  so  pleasant,  he  put  a  pistol  to  the  poor 
fellow's  head  and  demanded  the  money  of  which 
he  was  the  bearer.  Pretending  great  fear  the 
fool  threw  a  parcel  on  the  ground,  this  rolled 
down  a  steep  hill  and  Rob  Roy,  supposing  it 
contained  the  money,  sprang  from  his  horse  and 
rushed  after  it ;  leaving  the  fool,  who  like  most 
of  his  class  was  a  very  shrewd  fellow,  to  mount 
his  assailant's  horse,  a  very  superior  one  to  his 
own,  and  make  oiF  with  the  money  all  safe.  The 
parcel  he  had  thrown  away  contained  nothing 
of  value,  but  in  tlie  saddlebags  on  Rob  Roy's  horse 
however,  was  found  a  large  sum  of  money,  which 
the  fool  triumphantly  delivered  to  his  master  as 
well  as  that  which  his  ready  wit  had  preserved. 
MacLeod  having  some  elementary  notions  of 
honesty,  which  I  daresay  the  fool  thought  ex- 
tremely silly,  insisted  on  sending  him  back  to 
find   Rob  Roy  and   restore  to  him  his  horse  and 


THE  WICKED   MAN   AND   ROB   ROY.  67 

money,  sending  also  an  invitation  to  visit  Dun- 
vegan  ;  the  invitation  was  accepted  and  the 
famous  outlaw  and  MacLeod  became  great  friends. 
The  portrait  in  the  Castle,  of  this  Chief,  was 
painted  by  Allan  Ramsay  and  curiously  enough 
is  clothed  in  the  Rob  Roy  tartan.  A  tradition, 
however,  exists  that  MacLeod  was  actually  painted 
in  the  yellow  and  black  tartan,  and  that  for  some 
reason  he  had  altered  it  in  the  finished  picture. 


TRANSLATION  OF  BEANNACHADH  BARD. 

Written  by  Donald    MacLeod  of  Bernera,   and 

Presented  to  each  of  his  three  mves. 

Now  that  the  matron's  curch  proclaims  thee  mine, 
May  health,  without  alloy,  be  ever  thine, 
Long  be  thy  clays  and  undisturbed  thy  peace. 
Still  may  thy  virtues — still  thy  stores  increase. 

Oft  in  that  dress,  in  which  thou'rt  now  arrayed. 
Have  women's  highest  virtues  been  displayed. 
May  thine  be  so.     And,  as  thou  hast  begun, 
In  life  and  gay  spring — thy  wedded  course  be  run. 

To  Heaven's  High  King  do  thou  thy  prayers  address, 
And  hope  from  Him  all  that  thy  days  may  bless  ; 
Learn  to  be  hospitable,  not  profuse  ; 
True  spirit  show  and  yet  due  caution  use. 

Talk  not  too  much,  yet  be  not  always  mute, 
Thy  years  not  giddiness  nor  dullness  suit  ; 
From  sudden  friendship  guard  thyself  with  care. 
And  yet  of  coldness  and  reserve  beware. 


68  THE   MACLEODS. 

Speak  ill  of  none  ;  and  should  it  be  thy  lot 
To  be  reviled  by  others,  show  no  hate. 
When  fortune  frowns,  be  to  thy  state  resigned, 
And  when  she  smiles,  lift  not  too  high  thy  mind. 
Regard  not  vice — let  grace  thy  path  adorn. 
Thus,  thus  I  greet  thee  on  thy  bridal  morn. 

MACLEOD'S    MAIDENS. 

The  "  Maidens "  are  three  remarkable  basaltic 
pillars  rising  vertically  out  of  the  sea,  to  a  height 
of  some  200  feet.  Seen  looming  through  the  mists 
the  rocks  assume  forms  well  justifying  the  name 
bestowed  on  them  by  the  people,  of  "The  Mac- 
Leod's Maidens "  from  their  fanciful  resemblance 
to  gigantic  women  clad  in  cloaks  and  hoods. 

MACLEOD'S    NURSE. 

A  waterfall  close  to  the  Castle  is  known  as 
the  "  Nurse  of  Rory  Mor."  Sir  Rory  is  said  to 
have  had  a  wonderful — almost  affectionate — feel- 
ing for  this  waterfall  and  that  he  could  not  sleep 
well  when  away  from  tlie  sound  of  its  falling 
waters. 

"  I  would  old  Torquil  were  to  show 
His  maidens  with  their  breasts  of  snow, 
Or  that  my  noble  liege  Avere  nigh 
To  hear  his  Nurse  sing  lullaby. 
(The  maids — tall  cliffs  with  breakers  white. 
The  Nurse — a  torrents  roaring  might)." 

Scott. 


MACLEOD'S   TOMB.  69 

MACLEOD'S    TOMB. 

Rodel  Cathedral  in  Harris — "  the  last  resting 
place  of  her  proud  ancient  race  " — is  one  of  twenty- 
eight  monasteries  established  in  Scotland  by  the 
Canons  Regular  of  St.  Augustine,  and  seems  to 
have  been  the  Ecclesiastical  Superior  of  the  various 
religious  houses  scattered  over  the  Western  Isles. 
This  was  the  burial  place  of  the  MacLeods  of 
Harris ;  the  tomb  of  Alaster  Crottach  is  parti- 
cularly notable  with  its  elaborate  sculpturing, 
much  of  which,  however,  has  become  illegible 
but  many  interesting  bits  may  still  be  traced 
and   interpreted. 


MACLEOD'S    TABLES. 

Two  mountains  in  the  west  of  Duirinish  rising 
to  a  height  of  about  1700  feet;  they  are  remarkable 
for  the  verdure  of  their  slopes,  and  the  plateau-like 
form  of  their  summits.  A  tradition  exists  that  at 
one  time  MacLeod  held  his  Courts  and  administered 
justice  there. 

A  beautiful  view  of  them  is  obtained  from  the 
drawing-room  window  of  the  Castle ;  and  when 
covered  with  snow,  as  they  frequently  are  for 
months,  look  like  great  tables  covered  with  spotless 
napery. 


70  THE   MACLEODS. 

CAVE    IN    IDRIGAL. 

Just  opposite  the  "  Maidens  "  is  a  bold  headland 
called  Idrigal  Point,  in  which  is  a  deep  cave  chiefly 
remarkable  as  the  place  where  the  unfortunate 
Lady  Grange  was  for  a  time  confined. 

ARMORIAL    BEARINGS. 

The  Arms  of  the  Lewes  MacLeods  were — Or,  a 
mountain  azure,  inflamed  proper  ;  their  Crest — 
a  Rising  Sun.  The  Arms  of  the  Dunvegan  family, 
as  matriculated  in  1752,  are — Azure,  a  castle  triple 
towered  and  embattled,  masoned  sable,  windows 
and  porch  gules ;  supporters — two  lions  regardent, 
each  holding  a  dagger  proper.  Crest — a  Bull's 
Head,  cabossed  between  two  flags.  Motto — "  Murus 
ahenevs."  Device — "  Hold  Fast."  But  there  is 
abundant  evidence  that  in  early  times  the  family 
bore  on  their  "  coat "  a  galley — the  arms  of  the  Isle 
of  Man  during  the  Norse  occupation  of  that  island, 
and  later  they  have  borne  the  three  legs  of  Man. 

The  badge  of  Dunvegan  is  the  Juniper. 


DUNVEGAN    CASTLE. 

"That  mighty  stronghold  of  the  west 
In  lonely  grandeur  reigns  supreme  ; 
A  monument  of  feudal  power, 
And  fitting  haven  for  a  king." 

M.   G.  MacLeod. 

No  sketch  of  the  history  and  traditions  of  our 
clan  would  be  complete  without  some  reference  to 
the  ancient  Castle  which  for  seven  hundred  years 
has  been  the  home  of  our  Chiefs — modernized  as 
it  may  have  been.  The  old  Keep,  which  McCrailt 
Armian's  daughter  brought  to  Leod,  still  stands  in 
all  its  majesty  on  the  shores  of  Loch  Follart,  now 
known  as  Loch  Dunvegan.  In  the  thickness  of 
its  huge  walls  may  still  be  seen  the  dungeons  in 
which  prisoners  languished  and  died.  It  may  still 
be  approached  by  the  old  sea  gate  and  narrow 
passage,  which,  defended  by  portcullis  and  huge 
doors,  alone,  in  the  old  days,  gave  access  to  the 
Chief's  friends  or  kept  his  enemies  at  bay ;  and 
though  portcullis  and  doors  may  have  passed  away, 
two  sets  of  rusted  hinges  are  still  embedded  in  the 
solid  masonry,  and  attest  the  extreme  antiquity  of 
the  building.  The  tower  which  Alaster  Crottach 
built  in  the  latter  days  of  the  fifteenth  century 
still  shelters  his  descendants  ;  and  men  may  still 
climb  the  winding  stair  he  placed  in  the  thickness 
of  the  wall,  to  the  room  which  bears  his  name.  In 
this   chamber   is   still    preserved   the    Charter   he 


72  THE   MACLEODS. 

received  from  James  the  Fourth,  and  countless 
other  documents  bearing  on  the  history  of  himself 
and  his  descendants.  Within  the  Castle  are  still 
preserved  the  suits  of  chain-mail  in  which  bygone 
Chiefs  fought ;  the  huge  broadsword,  which  in 
Rory  Mors  hands  led  the  clan  in  many  a  stricken 
field  ;  the  claymore  which  Sir  Norman  of  Bernera 
weilded  at  Worcester,  and  many  other  ancient 
weapons.  Men  may  still  see  here  the  old  Drink- 
ing Cup,  the  Fairy  Flag  and  the  Horn,  round 
which,  as  we  have  seen,  cluster  so  many  legends. 

Mingled  with  the  old  is  much  that  is  new — parts 
of  the  building  are  comparatively  modern — the  walls 
of  the  rooms  are  graced  by  the  art  of  such  men  as 
Ramsay,  Raeburn,  Reynolds,  and  a  host  of  other 
painters.  Letters  from  such  men  as  Dr.  Johnson, 
Sir  Walter  Scott  and  others  are  preserved  side  by 
side  with  old  documents  in  the  Court  hand.  For  the 
Castle  is  not  a  ruin  but  a  home— not  merely  a  relic 
of  the  past,  but  a  dwelling-place  of  the  present,  and 
destined,  we  will  hope,  to  shelter  as  many  Chiefs  in 
the  future  as  have  dwelt  within  its  walls  in  the  past. 

The  "  Fairy  Room  " — a  room  in  the  old  Danish 
tower  from  which  a  view  of  marvellous  beauty  is 
obtained  of  open  sea  and  surrounding  country. 
Originally  a  bedroom,  in  it  Dr.  Johnson  and  Sir 
Walter  Scott  slept  when  they  visited  the  Castle, 
the  latter  of  whom,  enchanted  with  the  delightful 
pi-ospect,  at  once  dubbed  it  the  Fairy  Room. 


EMINENT    CLANSMEN. 


F  the  many  distinguished  men  who 
have  home  the  name  of  MacLeod 
there  is  but  little  space  to  speak, 
but  no  work  such  as  this  could  be 
complete  without  some  reference  to  those  who  have 
brought  us  honour — "  the  brave  and  true  of  our 
kith  and  kin,"  who  have  carried  the  name  into 
every  sphere  of  life  and  into  every  part  of  the 
world  with  credit  and  honour  to  themselves,  and 
clan  and  country.  Church,  Law,  Science,  Commerce, 
&c.,  &c.,  have  all  found  celebrated  exponents  from 
our  ranks,  but  the  military  profession  has  secured 
the  largest  share  of  all.  The  MacLeods,  like  all 
other  Highlanders,  have  from  the  earliest  times 
been  a  fighting  race,  and  have  been  engaged  in 
many  exploits  of  no  small  note.  They  took  their 
share  in  the  stirring  times  of  the  "  45," — in  con- 
nection with  which  the  story  of  the  gallant  Donald 
of  Galtrigal  and  his  devotion  to  the  unfortunate 
Prince  Charlie  must  ever  remain  a  cherished 
memory — and  the  country  generally,  certainly 
owes  much  to  our  clansmen.  Away  back  in  the 
Marlborough  campaigns  we  find  them  distin- 
guishing   themselves    as    we    are    told    "Colonel 


74  THE   MACLEODS, 

^neas  MacLeod  served  with  great  distinction  in 
the  campaigns  and  sieges  of  the  Duke  of  Marl- 
borough." ...  In  1780  the  Chief  raised  the 
2nd  battalion  of  the  Black  Watch,  and  accompanied 
it  to  India,  where,  subsequently,  as  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  Malabar  Army  he  rendered  considerable 
service  to  his  country,  in  successfully  contend- 
ing with  the  famous  Tippoo  Sahib.  ...  In  1799, 
The  MacLeod  or  Princess  Charlotte  of  Wales 
Fencibles  were  raised  by  Colonel  John  MacLeod 
of  Colbeck  .  .  .  Lieut. -General  Sir  John  MacLeod 
organised  the  British  Artillery,  formed  the  first 
horse  batteries  (R.H.A.),  and  afterwards  became 
(the  first)  Director- General  of  Artillery.  .  .  .  Major 
General  Norman  MacLeod  raised  the  third  battalion 
of  the  Rifle  Brigade,  1809.  .  .  .  General  Sir  Alex. 
MacLeod,  C.B.,  promoted  the  famous  Laboratory 
School  at  Dum  Dum,  which  is  now  associated  in 
the  public  mind  with  the  rifle  buUc'fc  of  that  name, 
while  one,  Lt.-Colonel  Alex.  MacLeod,  C.B.,  of  the 
59th  Regiment,  seems  to  have  rendered  signal 
service  in  India,  as  the  regimental  records  tell  us 
that  "  On  the  29th  of  March,  1821,  Colonel  Alex. 
MacLeod  died  at  Dinapore,  a  loss  to  the  King's 
Service  in  India  not  to  be  repaired,  and  an 
event  long  and  unfeignedly  lamented  by  the  59th 
Regiment,  at  the  head  of  which  he  liad  so  long 
served  with  distinction,  and  the  "  Calcutta  Journal  " 
expresses  itself  in  the  following  verses  : — 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  75 

Hark  !  the  deep  muffled  drum's  low  saddening  sound, 
The  soldiers'  heavy  footfall  wends  this  way, 

With  martial  pomp  they  seek  the  sacred  ground, 
Where  they  their  honoured  burden  soon  must  lay. 

Halt  !   Soldiers,  halt  !  Now   the  dull  earth  receives 
The  cold  remains  of  one  beloved  and  brave, 

With  tremulous  hand  and  heart  that  inly  grieves 
They  fire  the  volley  o'er  the  soldier's  grave. 

What  virtue  graced  not  thy  heroic  mind  ? 

In  duty,  just ;    in  friendship,  most  sincere  ; 
Thy  name  shall  leave  a  soothing  charm  behind 

To  check  the  tears  that  friends  shed  o'er  thy  bier. 

"  Son  of  the  Valiant,"  though  no  more  we  view 
Thy  manly  form,  yet  shall  thy  honoured  name 

Live  in  the  memory  of  the  brave  and  true. 
And  dark  Cornelis  Fight  record  Thy  fame. 

Glory  shall  bind  a  Avreath  in  days  to  come, 

And  "Brave  MacLeod"  be  sculptured  on  thy  tomb. 

This  short  epitomised  reference  to  the  military- 
annals  of  the  clan  may  well  be  concluded  with  the 
general  statement,  that  in  all  the  strenuous  con- 
flicts in  which  this  country  has  been  engaged,  the 
MacLeods  have  nobly  borne  their  part. 

Surgery  found  one  of  its  most  famous  exponents 
in  the  late  Sir  G.  H.  MacLeod,  who  was  senior 
surgeon  to  the  forces  before  Sebastopol,  and  after- 
wards Professor  of  Surgery  in  Glasgow  University, 
and  Surgeon-in-ordinary  to  the  Queen,  .  .  .  The 
Navy  has  a  distinguished  member  in  Vice-Admiral 
Angus    MacLeod,    C.V.O.    .    .    .     Law    found    an 


76  THE   MACLEODS. 

ornament  in  Sir  Bannatyne  William  Macleod,  a 
distinguished  advocate  and  Lord  of  Session.  .  .  . 
Henry  Dunning  MacLeod  is  a  noted  authority 
on  Banking,  his  publications  on  that  subject  being 
standard  works.  .  .  .  Professor  Roderick  MacLeod 
filled  the  chair  of  Philosophy  in  King's  College, 
Aberdeen,  and  we  have  another  Professor  MacLeod 
in  M'Gill's  College,  Canada,  now,  while  the  Church 
has  probably  found  its  most  celebrated  men  from 
our  clans — the  fame  of  the  Macleods  of  Morven 
being  world  wide.  .  .  .  Some  intrepid  and  enthusi- 
astic clansmen  have  planted  the  name  pretty  thickly 
in  the  far  west  of  Canada.  There  is  a  Fort 
MacLeod  in  British  Columbia  ;  another  in  Alberta ; 
a  MacLeod  Bay  west  of  Hudson  Bay  ;  a  Dunvegan 
in  Athabasca,  and  scattered  round  quite  a  number 
of  Lewis's.  In  India  there  is  a  MacLeodganj. 
There  is  a  distinguished  branch  of  the  family 
settled  in  the  Netherlands  who  have  risen  to  high 
positions  in  the  service  of  that  State.  There  are 
"  MacLeods  of  Manilla,"  and  in  Australia  and 
other  places  Clan  names  may  be  found  on  places 
of  residence. 

In  the  succeeding  pages  and  in  future  issues  of 
this  publication  we  hope  to  give  more  particular 
accounts  of  eminent  clansmen,  and  we  seek  the 
help  of  our  clan  people  everywhere  to  assist  us  in 
building  up,  preserving  and  recording  the  deeds  of 
the  great  of  our  kith  and  kin. 


r 


MACLEOD    OF    MACLKOD,    C.M.c; 
will.    riiiF.F. 


F,;,„i  a  iiainlinii  h>/  Sir  ^Vo.   Jteid,   P. U.S.A. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  77 

CAPTAIN  NORMAN  MAGNUS  MACLEOD 
OF  MACLEOD,  23rd  CHIEF. 

Norman  XXIII.  of  MacLeod  was  born  on  the 
27th  of  July  1839.  He  was  educated  at  Harrow, 
and,  adopting  the  army  as  a  profession,  obtained 
his  commission  in  the  74th  Highlanders  in  1858. 
In  1862  he  received  the  appointment  of  aid-de- 
camp to  General  Sir  Hope  Grant,  Commander-in- 
Chief  of  the  Presidency  of  Madras,  which  position 
he  held  for  three  years.  Returning  home  in  1865, 
he  rejoined  his  regiment,  accompanying  it  to 
Gibraltar  in  1869  and  to  Malta  in  1872,  where  he 
acted  sometime  as  Brigade  Major.  Later  in  the 
same  year,  he  sold  out  and  retired  from  the  army 
with  the  rank  of  Captain. 

It  is  related  that,  while  lying  at  Gibraltar, 
the  74th,  under  the  command  of  the  Chief,  was 
relieving  the  83rd  on  the  main  guard,  when  sud- 
denly the  83rd  sentry  fired  a  shot  into  the  crowd 
of  civilians.  There  was  a  market  going  on  and 
a  crowd  of  people,  who,  of  course  fled  in  every 
direction.  The  shot  killed  one  man  and  wounded 
another,  who  fled  down  the  street  pursued  by  the 
sentry  with  fixed  bayonet.  The  Chief  followed 
with  a  sergeant  and  two  men.  The  wounded  man 
had  got  into  a  house  and  shut  the  door,  and  when 
MacLeod  came  up  the  sentry  was  smashing  at  the 


78  THE   MACLEODS. 

door  with  his  bayonet.  The  sentry  who  had  gone 
off  his  head,  refused  to  give  up  his  rifle  and  bayonet, 
and  as  he  had  ten  rounds  of  ball  ammunition  in 
his  possession,  he  was  an  ugly  customer  to  tackle. 
MacLeod  walked  quietly  up  to  the  poor  fellow  and 
in  quite  careless  fashion  asked  him  for  his  rifle. 
The  man  handed  it  over  quietly  enough  and  was 
immediately  secured.  The  poor  fellow  died  be- 
fore he  could  be  tried. 

In  1873  MacLeod  went  out  to  Natal,  whence  he 
accompanied  the  British  expedition  sent  to  crown 
Cetewayo  King  of  the  Zulus.  In  the  following 
year  he  was  sent  by  the  Government  of  Natal  on 
a  special  mission  to  India  to  arrange  for  the  re- 
opening of  coolie  emigration  to  the  colony.  On 
his  return  he  was  appointed  Protector  of  Immi- 
grants with  a  seat  in  the  Legislative  and  Executive 
Council.  This  position  he  resigned  in  1875,  de- 
clining also  the  post  of  Acting  Colonial  Secretary, 
in  order  to  accompany  an  expedition  into  the 
interior  of  the  country ;  in  the  course  of  which  he 
visited  the  Victoria  Falls  and  spent  some  months 
among  the  Barotse  people.  This  expedition  oc- 
cupied some  fifteen  months,  and  a  short  time  after 
its  completion  he  made  another  visit  to  the  home 
country.  The  outbreak  of  the  Zulu  war,  however, 
found  him  once  more  en  route  for  Africa.  There 
he  was  appointed  by  Sir  Bartle  Frere  political 
asrent  on   the   Transvaal    border   attached   to   Sir 


EMINENT  CLANSMEN.  79 

Evelyn  Wood's  forces  and  with  a  special  mission  to 
the  Swazies  to  prevent  them  joining  the  Zulus,  in 
which  he  was  wholly  successful. 

On  the  completion  of  the  Zulu  war  it  was  found 
necessary  to  bring  the  Basuto  Chief,  Sekukuni, 
to  his  senses  and  a  force  commanded  by  Sir  Garnet 
Wolsey  was  despatched  against  him.  MacLeod 
raised  an  army  of  8000  of  his  Swazies  to  assist 
Sir  Garnet  and  led  them  in  the  attack  on 
Sekukuni's  stronghold  in  which  there  was  severe 
lighting,  the  Swazies  losing  some  800  men.  For 
his  services  MacLeod  received  the  Zulu  war  medal 
and  the  honour  of  C.M.G. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  in  1880,  he  resigned, 
having  spent  sixteen  months  of  hard  and  strenuous 
work  on  the  Trausvaal,  Swazie  and  Zulu  borders. 
He  returned  home  and  in  1881  married  Emily 
Caroline,  daughter  of  Sir  Charles  Islam,  Baronet 
of  Lamport  Hall,  Northampton.  He  has  two 
daughters. 

MacLeod  succeeded  to  the  Chieftainship  on  5th 
February  1895,  he  takes  a  great  interest  in  all 
that  concerns  the  Clan ;  he  frequently  presides  at 
the  Society  meetings,  and  no  meetings  are  happier 
or  a  greater  success  than  when  he  is  present. 
He  is  a  J.P.  and  D.L.  for  Inverness-shire,  and  a 
member  of  the  Congested  District  Board. 


80  THE  MACLEODS. 


SIR  REGINALD  MACLEOD,  K.C.B. 

Sir  Reginald  MacLeod  was  born  at  Dnnvegan  in 
1847,  being  the  only  member  of  the  late  MacLeod's 
family  who  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  first  seeing 
the  light  in  the  ancient  house  of  his  race.  The 
disastrous  famine  which  so  shortly  followed  his 
birth  compelled  his  father  to  leave  Dunvegan  and 
earn  a  livelihood  in  England,  and  Sir  Reginald's 
childhood  and  boyhood  were  passed  far  from  his 
Highland  home.  In  1863,  however,  MacLeod  was 
enabled  to  take  Dunvegan  into  his  own  hand3>^ 
and  from  that  time  forward,  the  young  man's 
holidays  and  vacations  were  largely  spent  at 
Dunvegan.  After  spending  some  time  at  a  pri- 
vate school  at  Blackheath  he  went  to  Harrow, 
which  school  he  left  early,  and  passed  a  couple 
of  years  between  a  private  tutor  at  home  and 
the  study  of  languages  abroad.  In  1866  he 
went  up  to  Trinity,  Cambridge,  where  he  spent 
three  happy  years :  at  this  period  he  made  a. 
rather  adventurous  voyage  in  a  Rob  Roy  canoe, 
accompanied  by  Mr.  Balfour,  the  late  Prime 
Minister,  and  the  present  Lord  Kinnaird.  The 
party  started  from  Dunvegan  and  sailed  or  paddled 
round  Dunvegan  Head  past  the  Maidens  and  Loch 
Bracadale  to  Scavaig  and  Cornisk,  then  across  to 
Rum,  where  they  enjoyed  the  hospitality  of  Captain 


Sir    REGINALD    MACLKOD   OF    MACLEOD,   K.C.B. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  81 

MacLeod  of  Oubost.  From  Rum  they  made  an 
expedition  to  Eigg,  and  slept  in  the  cave  where  the 
MacDonalds  of  Eigg  met  with  so  terrible  a  fate. 
On  the  way  back  they  encountered  a  violent  gale, 
and  reached  Eum  again  with  great  difficulty. 
Finally  they  returned  to  Skye,  and  rounding  the 
point  of  Sleat  they  made  their  way  up  the  Sound 
of  Skye  as  far  as  Portree.  These  canoes  were  the 
first  canoes  seen  in  Skye  and  caused  much  astonish- 
ment to  the  people. 

Sir  Reginald  was,  I  imagine,  the  first  man  to 
ride  a  bicycle  in  Skye.  He  was  in  Paris  in  1869, 
and  learnt  there  to  ride  the  newly  invented  "  bone 
shakers,"  one  of  which  he  brought  to  Dunvegan  in 
that  year. 

His  first  public  employment  was  as  one  of  H.M. 
Inspectors  of  Factories,  and  he  served  in  that 
capacity  for  eleven  years.  In  1883  he  became  the 
principal  agent  for  the  Conservative  Party  in 
Scotland  and  took  an  active  share  in  the  work 
of  organisation,  which  contributed  to  the  success 
of  the  Unionist  party  in  1886  and  subsequent 
elections. 

In  1885  he  contested  his  native  County  of 
Inverness-shire  against  Sir  Kenneth  MacKenzie 
of  Gairloch,  and  Mr.  Charles  Eraser  Macintosh. 
The  last  named  gained  the  seat.  Sir  Reginald 
being  second  at  the  poll. 

In  1889  he  became  Queen's  Remembrancer  for 


82  THE  MACLEODS. 

Scotland,  receiving  in  recognition  of  his  ser- 
vices the  Companionship  of  the  Bath,  not  from 
his  own  political  friends,  but  from  Lord  Rosebery. 
During  his  sojourn  in  Scotland  the  Clan  Society- 
was  formed  ;  he  became  its  first  president  and  took 
the  warmest  interest  in  all  its  proceedings.  He 
was  never  so  happy  as  when  attending  its  meetings 
or  extending  hospitality  to  its  members  in  his  home 
at  Granton,  and  his  interest  in  Clan  matters  was 
warmly  shared  by  his  wife  and  daughters. 

In  1900  Sir  Reginald  became  Registrar  General 
for  England,  which  involved  leaving  Edinburgh, 
and  taking  up  his  residence  in  London.  He  was 
there  responsible  for  the  direction  of  the  census 
of  190L  In  1902  he  became  Under  Secretary 
for  Scotland,  the  duties  of  which  post  once  again 
brought  him  in  intimate  touch  with  Scottish 
affairs,  and  w^ith  Scotsmen  in  all  parts  of  Scotland. 
— Long  may  he  continue  to  discharge  these  re- 
sponsible duties.  He  became  a  K.C.B.  in  1905 ; 
an  honour  which  all  who  have  worked  with  him 
felt  was  most  thoroughly  deserved. 

Meanwhile  in  1877  he  had  married  Lady  Agnes, 
daughter  of  the  first  Earl  of  Iddesleigh,  better 
known  as  Sir  Stafford  Northcote.  He  has  two 
daughters.  Flora  and  Olive  Miranda,  the  eldest  of 
whom  has  married  Mr.  Hubert  Walter,  one  of  the 
distinguished  family  which  made  the  "  Times  "  the 
first  newspaper  in  the  world. 


Captain    K.    \V.    MACLEoD   <)F   CADUOLL. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  83 


MACLEOD   OF  CADBOLL. 

The  representation  of  the  "  ancient  and  powerful 
family  of  MacLeod  of  the  Lewes,"  who,  as  Douglas 
tells  us  "  made  a  great  figure  in  Scotland  for  several 
centuries  and  were  possessed  of  an  immense  estate, 
viz. — The  Baronies  of  Lewes,  Assynt,  Coigach,  Castle 
Leod,  Strathpapher,  Rasay,  Edrachills,  Garloch, 
easter  side  of  Troterness,  Waterness,  Strathannan, 
&c.,  &c.,"  now  rests  in  Macleod  of  Cadboll. 

The  Macleods  of  Cadboll  have  registered  arms 
at  various  periods,  and  in  their  declaration  always 
claim  descent  from  a  second  son  of  Torquil  Mac- 
Leod, second  Baron  of  the  Lewes.  MacKenzie  in 
his  history  of  the  MacLeods  deduces  the  descent 
through  the  Assynt  branch  of  the  Lewes  family, 
and  remarks,  somewhat  strongly,  on  the  alleged 
betrayal  of  Montrose  by  a  member  of  that  branch. 
This  charge,  it  has  already  been  pointed  out,  (page 
20)  is  entirely  without  foundation.  The  following 
extract  from  Douglas'  Baronage  may  be  worthy  of 
note  here : — After  the  Restoration,  "  His  Majesty 
.sensible  of  the  service  of  Sir  Norman  MacLeod 
of  Bernera,  furnished  him  with  an  order  to  put 
him  in  possession  of  Assynt's  estate,  which,  'twas 
thought,  would  have  been  forfeited  for  his  having 
corresponded  with   the   King's   enemies,   betrayed 


84  THE   MACLEODS. 

Montrose,  &c.,  but  Assynt  compeared,  stood  his  trial, 
and  having  proved  his  innocence,  he  was  acquitted, 
so  that  Sir  Norman  reaped  no  benefit."  Be  that 
as  it  may,  however,  the  Macleods  of  Cadboll  are 
entirely  free  of  the  taint.  Neil  XL  of  Assynt,  the 
alleged  betrayer,  died  without  issue,  and  the  line, 
after  the  decease  of  a  brother  who  succeeded  Neil, 
went  back  to  Donald  Ban  Mor  VIII.  of  Assynt,  for 
a  fresh  start. — From  him  both  Neil  and  Cadboll 
were  descended,  but  by  different  mothers,  Donald 
Ban  having  been  twice  married.  The  descent  is  as 
follows. 

Donald  Ban  VIII.  of  Assynt,  married  : — 

First — Marion  Mackay,  daughter  of  Donald,  Lord 
Reay,  and  had  issue,  a  son,  Neil,  afte wards 
X.  of  Assynt.  Neil  X.  married  Florence,  a 
daughter  of  Torquil  Conanach  MacLeod,  of 
Lewes,  and  had  issue,  a  son,  Neil,  afterwards 
XL  of  Assynt  and  the  alleged  betrayer  of 
Montrose. 

Second — Christian,  daughter  of  Nicolas  Koss,  of 
Potcalnie,  by  her  he  had  issue,  (1)  Donald, 
(died  without  issue),  and  (2)  Hugh,  of  Cam- 
busbury,  the  progenitor  of  the  Macleods  of 
Cadboll.  As  has  been  already  shown,  on 
the  extinction  of  the  Assynt  family,  that  of 
Cadboll  succeeded  to  the  chieftainship  of  the 
Lewes  MacLeod. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  85 

^NEAS  MACLEOD,  tirst  of  Cadboll  and  Cambus- 
BURY,  early  in  life  went  to  Edinburgh,  where  he 
studied  law,  and  subsequently  became  Town  Clerk 
of  the  City — a  position  of  much  importance  at  that 
time.  He  purchased  from  the  Earl  of  Cromarty,  the 
estate  of  Cadboll,  and  founded  his  family  there.  For 
some  years  (1703-07)  he  represented  the  County  of 
Cromarty  in  the  Scottish  Parliament,  and  was  one 
of  those  who  signed  the  Treaty  of  Union  with 
England,  in  1707.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
Roderick  II.  of  Cadboll,  who  was  a  warm  sup- 
porter of  the  Stuart  cause  and  greatly  imperilled 
his  estates  by  taking  part  in  the  Rising  of  1745. 
Through  the  influence  of  the  Earl  of  Sutherland, 
however,  the  estates  were  preserved  to  him,  but 
only  on  condition  that  he  should  live  abroad  for 
some  time.  Being  of  a  literary  bent  of  mind,  he, 
while  abroad,  accumulated  a  large  number  of  valu- 
able books.  When  he  at  length  returned  home 
he  brought  these  books  to  Cadboll,  where  he  had 
four  rooms  constructed  of  solid  masonry  for  their 
reception.  He  registered  Arms  in  1730.  Died  in 
1770. 

Robert  III.  of  Cadboll,  was  a  minor  when  his 
father  died,  being  only  some  six  years  of  age,  the 
estate  therefor  was  vested  in  trustees,  who  about 
1780  acquired  Invergordon  Castle  as  a  family  seat 
for  the  Macleods  of  Cadboll.  The  famous  library 
was  removed  from  Cadboll  to  Invergordon,  unfor- 


86  THE    MACLEODS. 

tunately,  as  it  proved,  for,  in  1805,  the  Castle  took 
fire  and  was  burned  to  the  ground,  the  library  and 
many  other  priceless  relics,  including  a  large  collec- 
tion of  Indian  curiosities  and  a  valuable  collection 
of  silver-plate,  which  Roderick  had  inherited  from 
a  relative,  being  completely  destroyed. 

Robert  III.  of  Cadboll,  seems  to  have  been  a 
man  of  much  ability.  In  1826  he  obtained  an  Act 
of  Parliament  in  his  favour,  empowering  him  to 
"  make,  build  and  construct,  a  safe  and  commodious 
harbour  and  other  works  connected  therewith,"  at 
or  near  the  village  of  Invergordon.  A  work  he 
carried  out  at  his  own  expense,  and  which  has  since 
proved  of  immense  value  to  the  district.  He  con- 
tested the  County  of  Sutherland  in  1790,  sat  for 
Cromarty  from  1807-181 2,  and  was  Lord  Lieutenant 
of  the  latter  County  from  1794  to  1833.  On  his 
death  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son. 

Roderick  IV.  of  Cadboll,  who  practised  for 
some  years  as  an  Advocate  at  the  Scottish  Bar, 
was  M.P.  for  Cromarty  from  1818  to  1820,  for 
Sutherlandshire  from  1831-37,  and  for  Inverness 
Burghs,  until  1840,  when  he  resigned.  He  also 
held  the  appointments  of  Deputy  Lieutenant  of 
Ross-shire,  and  Lord  Lieutenant  of  his  County  of 
Cromarty,  from  1833  until  his  death. 

He  was  succeeded  by  his  eldest  son,  Robert  Bruce 

(A  second  son,  Henry  Dunning  Macleod,  M.A., 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  87 

Barrister-at-Law,  was  a  most  distinguished  member 
of  this  family,  he  devoted  himself  to  a  study  of 
the  science  of  political  economy,  particularly  in  its 
relation  to  Banking,  and  was  the  author  of  quite 
a  number  of  books  on  the  subject,  most  of  which 
have  become  standard  works.  In  1867,  after  a 
keen  competition  among  leading  members  of  the 
Bar,  he  had  the  honour  of  being  selected  by  a 
Royal  Commission  to  prepare  a  Digest  of  the  Law, 
as  to  Bills  of  Exchange.  His  works  have  obtained 
for  him  a  world  wide  reputation,  and  have  been 
translated  into  several  European  languages.) 

Robert  Bruce  ^neas  Macleod,  V.  of  Cadboll, 
succeeded  to  the  estates  in  March  1853,  on  the  death 
of  his  father,  Roderick  IV.  He  served  for  some 
years  in  the  Navy,  in  which  he  attained  the  rank 
of  Commander,  when  he  retired  and  settled  down 
to  a  quiet  country  life  on  his  estate.  He  took 
much  interest  in  local  affairs,  and  spent  a  large  sum 
of  money  in  improving  the  facilities  of  the  harbour 
— building  a  new  jetty  and  giving  it  deeper  water, 
&c.  He  was  appointed  Deputy  Lieutenant  of  Ross- 
shire  and  Vice-Lieutenant  of  Cromarty.  On  his 
death  in  1888,  he  was  succeeded  by  his  eldest  son, 
Roderick  Willoughby  VL  and  present  Macleod 
of  Cadboll,  was  educated  at  Eton  and  Cambridge, 
he  joined  the  Inverness  Militia  in  1879.  In  the  fol- 
lowing year  he  was  gazetted  to  the  79th  (Cameron) 
Highlanders,   and   served   with   that   regiment   in 


88  THE   MACLEODS. 

Egypt,  from  1882-87  ;  *  when  he  was  promoted 
Captain.  He  retired  from  the  army  in  November  of 
1892,  and  in  the  following  year  made  a  tour  round 
the  world,  —  a  trip  he  enjoyed  so  well,  that  he 
repeated  it  in  1894.  In  January  1897  he  married 
Alice  Olivia,  daughter  of  Mr.  Edward  Tierney 
Darell,  and  grand-daughter  of  the  late  Sir  Lionel 
Darell,  Bart.,  of  Fretherne  Court,  Gloucestershire. 

Since  his  marriage  Cadboll  has  devoted  himself 
to  estate  work  and  to  local  affairs ;  he  has  recently 
carried  through,  at  considerable  expense,  great  im- 
provements on  the  Harbour  of  Invergordon,  which, 
it  is  anticipated,  will  place  the  Harbour  in  a  posi- 
tion superior  to  anything  north  of  the  Forth.  Since 
1900  he  has  acted  as  Brigade  Major  to  the  High- 
land Volunteer  Brigade  (Seaforth  and  Cameron),  is 
an  enthusiastic  Freemason,  and  has  occupied  many 
high  offices  in  the  craft.  He  takes  a  good  deal  of 
interest  in  politics  and  is  President  of  the  Constitu- 
tional Association  of  the  County. 

He  has  four  children — (1)  Robert  Bruce  Darell, 
his  heir,  a  bright  little  fellow  who  is  just  entering 
on  his  first  school  course  at  Ardvreck,  Crieff";  (2) 
Torquil  Harry  Lionel ;  (3)  Hector  Roderick  ^neas, 
and  (4)  Beryl  May. 

*  Egyptian  Medal  and  Clasp — Tel-el-Kebir ;  and  Khedive  Star. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN. 


MACLEOD'S  OF  MORVEN. 

In  modern  times  many  of  the  most  distinguished 
members  of  our  Clan  have  belonged  to  the  family- 
known  as  the  Morven  MacLeods.  The  early  origin 
of  this  family,  whose  fame  is  world-wide,  is  not 
known.  The  first,  of  whom  any  clear  trace  can 
be  found,  was  Donald  MacLeod  of  Swordale  (or 
Sworldland),  Armourer  to  the  XlXth  Chief.  (A 
brother,  Neil,  was  Chaplain  to  MacLeod's  forces 
in  1745).  Donald's  son,  Norman,  was  the  first 
of  Morven,  having  been  presented  to  that  parish  by 
the  Duke  of  Argyll  in  1775.  He  was  succeeded  in 
Morven  by  his  second  son.  Dr.  John  MacLeod,  his 
eldest  son,  Dr.  Norman,  having  accepted  a  charge 
in  Campbeltown  in  1808  whence  he  was  translated 
in  1825  to  Campsie,  Stirlingshire,  while,  in  1836 
he  was  appointed  Minister  of  the  Gaelic  Church  of 
St.  Columba,  Glasgow,  where  he  laboured  until  his 
death.  1836  was  an  eventful  year  for  Dr.  Norman 
as,  in  addition  to  his  appointment  to  St.  Columba's 
he  had  the  honour  of  D.D.  conferred  upon  him  and 
was  chosen  Moderator  of  the  General  Assembly. 
Subsequent  honours  were  those  of  Dean  of  the 
Cliapel  Royal  and  Chaplain  to  Her  Majesty,  in 
which  capacity  he  preached  before  the  late  Queen 
and  the  Prince  Consort  in  1842. 

Possessing  a  fine  knowledge  of  Gaelic  he  devoted 


90  THE   MACLEODS. 

much  time  to  its  language  and  literature  and  was 
himself  the  author  of  a  number  of  important  works 
in  Gaelic.  He  was  joint  editor  of  "  MacLeod  & 
Dewar's  Gaelic  Dictionary  "  and  compiled  a  metri- 
cal version  of  the  Psalms  of  David  in  Irish  Gaelic, 
which  was,  by  special  permission,  dedicated  to  H.M. 
King  William  IV.  and  was  extensively  used  in  the 
Churches  of  Ireland. 

During  the  famines  of  1836-7  and  1847  he 
worked  both  hard  and  successfully  for  his  famish- 
ing country,  earning  the  heartfelt  thanks  of  all 
concerned.  His  zeal  for  the  Highlands,  people,  and 
language  won  for  him  the  title  of  Caraid  nan 
Gaidheal  (The  Highlanders'  friend),  "  and,"  as  his 
son  remarks,  "  truly  he  was  that."  It  is  this  Dr. 
MacLeod  who  tells  the  tale  of  the  strange  fulfil- 
ment of  the  prophecy  of  Coinneach  Odhar  which 
took  place  while  he  was  staying  at  Dun  vegan.  He 
died  in  1862  at  the  age  of  80,  and  was  succeeded  as 
head  of  the  family  by  his  son,  the  Eev.  Norman 
MacLeod,  D.D.,  of  the  Barony  Church,  Glasgow, 
who  became  even  more  famous  than  his  father ; 
the  following  account  of  his  life  is  taken  from 
Blackie's  Popular  Encyclopaedia  : — * 

"  MacLeod,  Norman,  a  minister  of  the  Church 
of  Scotland,  born  at  Campbeltown,  in  Argyllshire, 
3rd  June  1812 ;  died  at  Glasgow,  16th  June  1872. 

*  Kindly    revised  and  corrected  in  some  details  by  the    Rev. 
Dr.  Donald  MacLeod. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  91 

He  was  educated  partly  at  the  University  of 
Glasgow,  after  leaving  which  he  spent  some  time 
in  Germany,  and  finally  completed  his  course 
at  the  Universities  of  Edinburgh  and  Glasgow, 
In  Edinburgh  he  came  under  the  influence  of 
the  foremost  man  then  in  Scotland,  Dr.  Chalmers. 
Almost  immediately  after  being  licensed,  he  was 
presented  to  the  parish  of  Loudon,  where  he  was 
ordained  by  the  Presbytery  of  Irvine  in  1838. 
Here  he  continued  to  perform  the  duties  of  pastor 
for  about  five  years,  when  the  secession  of  the 
Free  Church  from  the  Establishment  took  place, 
and  in  the  many  changes  consequent  thereupon, 
Noi-man  MacLeod  was  presented  by  the  Duke 
of  Buccleuch  to  the  charge  of  Dalkeith.  In  1845 
he  was  intrusted  by  the  General  Assembly  with 
a  mission  to  Canada  on  the  affairs  of  the  Church, 
which  he  fulfilled  with  success.  In  1849  he 
became  editor  of  the  "  Edinburgh  Christian  Mag- 
azine," which  he  conducted  for  ten  years.  When 
the  Barony  parish,  Glasgow,  in  the  gift  of  the 
Crown,  became  vacant  in  1851,  he  was,  with  the 
unanimous  consent  of  the  people,  inducted  into 
that  charge,  one  of  the  most  influential  in  Scot- 
land. From  this  time  his  fame  as  a  preacher 
gradually  increased,  and  the  Barony  Church  was 
every  Sundaj''  filled  to  overflowing  by  crowds 
eager  to  hear  him  speak.  About  this  time  he 
made    his   first    adventure    in   literature    by    the 


92  THE   MACLEODS. 

publication  in  1854  of  Memorials  of  his  friend 
John  Macintosh,  under  the  title  of  "  The  Earnest 
Student."  In  October  of  the  same  year,  he 
preached  before  the  Queen  by  her  special  command 
in  the  Parish  Church  of  Crathie.  Further  marks 
of  royal  favour  soon  flowed  in  upon  him ;  he 
was  appointed  one  of  the  Deans  of  the  Chapel 
Royal,  Holyrood,  and  became  one  of  the  Queen's 
chaplains  for  Scotland,  and  Dean  of  the  Order 
of  the  Thistle.  In  1858  he  received  the  honor- 
ary degree  of  D.D.  Henceforth  his  life  seems 
to  have  been  one  continous  series  of  labours. 
Not  content  with  the  arduous  duties  of  his  large 
and  populous  parish,  which  he  performed  with  an 
efficiency  and  zeal  that  has  been  seldom  equalled, 
he  threw  his  whole  soul  also  into  the  general 
work  of  the  Church.  Not  that  he  took  any  lead- 
ing position  in  party  politics  in  the  Church ;  for  he 
was,  by  inclination,  altogether  unsuited  for  that. 
But  in  all  her  schemes  of  public  usefulness,  all 
her  efforts  to  elevate  and  Christianise  the  masses 
at  home  or  the  heathen  abroad,  he  ever  took  the 
warmest  interest.  Especially  as  convener  of  the 
Foreign  Mission  Scheme  he  showed  immense 
zeal  in  labouring  for  this  truly  noble  object. 
Year  after  year  he  travelled  through  the  country, 
everywhere  addressing  meetings,  and  seeking  to 
infuse  into  others  some  of  the  enthusiasm  that 
burned  within  himself.     On  all  matters  pertaining 


EMINENT  CLANSMEN.  93 

to  Christian  life,  every  scheme  that  aimed  at 
improving  the  social  or  moral  condition  of  the 
working  poor,  no  one  could  speak  with  more 
eloquence  than  he,  and  no  one  was  ever  listened 
to  with  more  rapt  attention.  Nor  all  this  time 
was  his  pen  idle,  as  is  shown  by  the  large  number 
of  works  piiblished  under  his  name,  including 
sermons,  lectures,  addresses,  devotional  works, 
treatises  on  practical  subjects,  tales,  travels,  chil- 
dren's songs  and  stories,  all  bearing  the  impress 
of  his  warm  heart  and  enthusiastic  nature.  In 
1860  "  Good  Words  "  was  began,  a  magazine  which 
he  continued  to  edit  till  his  death ;  and  every 
volume  of  it  was  enriched  with  many  articles 
from  his  own  pen.  But  it  is  to  his  tales  that  he 
chiefly  owes  his  position  in  literature :  "  The  Old 
Lieutenant  and  His  Son ; "  "  The  Starling,"  a 
Scotch  story ;  "  Wee  Davie,"  a  charming  little 
study  of  humble  life ;  and  the  "  Reminiscences  of 
a  Highland  Parish,"  in  which  he  gives  a  picture 
of  life  in  the  parish  of  Morven,  in  the  Presbytery  of 
Mull,  where  his  grandfather  was  minister.  These, 
which  appeared  originally  in  the  pages  of  "  Good 
Words,"  were  afterwards  printed  separately  in 
London.  In  1867  he  was  commissioned  by  the 
General  Assembly,  along  with  his  friend.  Rev. 
Dr.  Watson,  of  Dundee,  to  visit  the  mission-field 
of  the  Church  in  India.  His  "  Peeps  at  the  Far 
East "  are  a  memorial  of  this  visit ;  but  from  the 


94  THE   MACLEODS. 

shock  which  his  system  received  from  the  fatigues 
of  the  journey  and  the  climate  he  never  quite 
recovered.  In  May  1869,  was  conferred  upon 
him  by  acclamation  the  last  honour  which  he 
lived  to  receive,  that  of  being  elected  to  the 
Moderator's  chair   in   the   General  Assembly."  * 

He  died  in  1872,  and  it  is  safe  to  say  no  man 
was  ever  more  mourned  for  than  Dr.  Norman 
MacLeod  of  the  Barony  Church.  The  late  Queen  on 
hearing  of  his  death  sent  a  letter  to  his  brother, 
Dr.  Donald  MacLeod,  of  which  the  following  is  a 
part : — 

Balmoral,  June  17ih,  1872. 

"  The  Queen  hardly  knows  how  to  begin  a  letter 
to  Mr.  Donald  MacLeod,  so  deep  and  strong  are  her 
feelings  on  this  most  sad  and  most  painful  occasion 
— for  words  are  all  to  weak  to  say  what  she  feels, 
and  what  all  must  feel  who  ever  knew  his  beloved, 
excellent,  and  highly  gifted  brother,  Dr.  Norman 
MacLeod  ! 

First  of  all,  to  his  family — his  venerable,  loved, 
and  honoured  mother,  his  wife  and  large  family  of 
children — the  loss  of  this  good  man  is  irreparable 
and  overwhelming  !  But  it  is  an  irreparable  public 
loss,  and  the  Queen  feels  this  deeply.  To  herself 
personally,  the  loss  of  dear  Dr.  MacLeod  is  a  very 


*  A  memoir  of  Dr.  Norman  MacLeod,  was  published  in  1876,  by 
his  brother,  the  Rev.  Donald  MacLeod,  D.D. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN,  95 

great  one  ;  he  was  so  kind,  and  on  all  occasions 
showed  her  such  warm  sympathy,  and  in  the  early 
days  of  her  great  sorrow,  gave  the  Queen  so  much 
comfort  whenever  she  saw  him,  that  she  always 
looked  forward  eagerly  to  those  occasions  when 
she  saw  him  here ;  and  she  cannot  realise  the  idea 
that  in  this  world  she  is  never  to  see  his  kind  face, 
and  listen  to  those  admirable  discourses  which  did 
every  one  good,  and  to  his  charming  conversation 


96  THE   MACLEODS. 

ADMIRAL     MACLEOD 

OF    THE    NETHERLANDS* 

Admiral  MacLeod  of  the  Royal  Navy  of  the 
Netherlands,  whose  portrait  is  given  on  the  op- 
posite page,  is  the  head  of  a  notable  branch  of 
the  Harris  MacLeods,  one  of  whom  entered  the 
Dutch  service  some  200  years  ago. 

The  Netherland  MacLeods  trace  their  descent 
through  the  Gesto  MacLeods  to  Murdo  the  third 
son  of  Malcolm  III.,  Chief  of  Harris  and  Dunve- 
gan.  The  space  available  in  this  little  book 
prevents  the  family  history  being  traced  in  detail, 
but  the  first  member  to  cross  over  to  the  Nether- 
lands was  Norman,  son  of  Donald  MacLeod,  third 
son  of  John  VI.  of  Gesto.  He  was  appointed,  in 
1706,  an  ensign,  first  in  Hepburn's  regiment,  and 
afterwards  in  Douglas'  regiment,  in  the  Dutch 
Scots  Brigade,  and  served  with  his  regiment  until 
it  was  disbanded ;  subsequently  he  obtained  an 
appointment  in  England  and  died  in  London  in 
1729.  He  married  Gertrude  Schrassert,  and  had 
one  son  — 

John,  born  in  1727,  who  also  took  service  in 
the  Dutch  Scots  Brigade  (Colyer's  regiment)  and 
rose  to  the  rank  of  colonel.     In  1782,  the  Scottish 


*  A  more  detailed  account  of   this  distinguished   family  will  be 
found  in  the  "  Brave  Sons  of  Skye." 


AbMlkAL    MA(Li;()l 

'HE    ROYAL    NAVY    OF     lUK    NR 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  97 

regiments  lost  their  nationality  and  were  trans- 
formed into  Dutch  corps.  Colonel  MacLeod  ob- 
tained his  discharge  the  following  year  and  returned 
to  this  country,  where  he  lived  for  some  time. 
He  then  went  back  to  Holland  for  a  little,  but 
again  returned  to  England,  where  he  died,  at 
Chelsea,  in  1804.  He  had  married  Margaretha 
Arnolda  van  Brienen  and  had  one  son — 

Norman,  who  was  born  in  1755,  became  like 
his  ancestors  an  officer  in  the  Dutch  service  and 
rose  to  the  rank  of  colonel :  he  returned  to  this 
country  in  1795,  on  account  of  the  revolution 
in  Holland  and  the  exile  of  the  Prince  of  Orange ; 
and  in  December  of  1797  entered  the  British 
service,  having  been  presented  by  the  Duke  of 
York  with  a  commission  in  the  60th  regiment. 
The  following  year,  however,  he  transferred  back 
to  the  Dutch  service  as  Lieut.-Colonel  of  Bentink's 
regiment.  He  continued  in  the  Dutch  service 
for   some    years,    and    attained    to    the    rank    of 

Major-General General    MacLeod   took 

part  in  the  campaign  of  1794,  but  unfortunately 
his  work  was  of  short  duration,  as  he  was  taken 
prisoner  in  November  of  the  same  year  at  the 
siege  of  Nimeguen ;  on  the  occupation  of  that 
fortress  by  the  French  troops.  He  also  partici- 
pated in  the  blockade  of  the  Helder  in  1814. 
In  June,  1809,  he  married  a  Welsh  lady,  Sarah 
Evans,  by  whom  he  had  three  sons : — 

G 


98  THE    MACLEODS. 

1.  Norman,  born  in  Wales  in  1811,  became  an 
officer  in  the  Dutch  service,  in  which  he  served 
with  much  distinction.  He  was  actively  employed 
during  the  insurrection  in  Belgium,  1830-34 — in 
1830  with  the  mobilised  army,  in  1831  in  the 
Tiendaag  campaign,  and  in  1832-33-34  in  the 
fortress  Gorinchem.  He  was  appointed  A.D.C.  in 
extra  ordinary  service,  and  was  the  recipient  of  a 
large  number  of  honours  and  decorations.  In 
1878,  he  retired  with  the  rank  of  Lieut.-General, 
and  "  was  pensioned  with  thanks  for  the  good 
and  true  services  rendered  by  him  during  the 
period  of  his  long-continued  military  career."  He 
died  at  the  Hague  on  the  3rd  April,  1896. 

2.  Wiliam  Pasco,  also  born  in  Wales,  entered 
the  Dutch  service  and,  as  a  lieutenant,  served  with 
the  mobilised  army  during  the  Belgian  rising, 
1830-4,  receiving  for  services  the  honour  of  the 
"  Metal  Cross."  He  died  at  Kedong-Kebo  in  the 
Dutch  East  Indies  in  September,  1846 — unmarried. 

3.  John  van  Brienen,  who  was  born  at  Kampen, 
Overyssel,  in  1825.  He,  too,  entered  the  Dutch 
service,  and  had  attained  to  the  rank  of  captain 
when  he  died  in  camp  at  Milligen  in  1868.  In 
1860,  Captain  MacLeod  was  awarded  the  "  Honour 
Badge"  for  long  service. 

Admiral  Norman  MacLeod,  the  present  head  of 
the  family,  and  a  son  of  the  above-mentioned 
General.     Norman  MacLeod  was  born  at  Bergen- 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  99 

op-Zoom  on  the  18th  September.  1837,  and  has  had 
a  most  distinguished  career  in  the  navy  of  the 
Netherlands.  He  has  seen  much  service  and  held 
many  important  posts,  including  those  of  Chief 
of  the  Department  of  Material,  Superintendent 
of  Yards,  and  Director  and  Commandant  of  the 
IVIarine,  with  the  command  of  the  mouths  of  the 
Maas  and  other  rivers,  and  finally  Director  and 
Commandant  of  the  Marine  at  Amsterdam.  Like 
his  father,  the  General,  Admiral  MacLeod  is  the 
possessor  of  a  long  list  of  honours  and  decorations. 
He  retired  from  active  service  in  August,  1894, 
receiving  a  pension  and  the  thanks  of  the  State 
for  the  many  good  and  important  services  he  had 
rendered  it. 

It  is  gratifying  to  MacLeods  to  know  that 
though  settled  in  the  Netherlands  for  such  a  long 
time,  the  gallant  Admiral  and  his  family  have 
never  forgotten  their  origin,  and  are  as  keen 
clansmen  as  any  in  the  old  country.  Some  time 
ago,  in  reply  to  a  letter  the  Admiral  had  received 
from  a  distant  relative  in  Skye,  he  replied : — "  I 
cannot  tell  you  how  glad  I  am  with  this  kind 
token  of  interest  from  a  relative,  however  un- 
known, in  the  dear  little  island  which  I  have 
always  considered  as  my  fatherland,  although  it 
is  more  than  150  years  ago  that  my  great-great- 
grandfather left  it.  If  anything  can  prove  that 
'blood  is  thicker  than  water,'  I  think  this  does." 


100  THE   MACLEODS. 

And  again,  in  reply  to  a  letter  from  the  Secretary 
of  our  Clan  Society,  he  says : — "  I  was  much 
pleased  with  your  letter,  which  shows  again  how 
clanship  is  always  kept  up  by  Scots,  and  how 
they  are  never  tired  of  keeping  the  clan-people 
together."  The  Admiral  is  now  in  his  69th  year, 
but  we  trust  he  may  be  spared  for  very  many 
more  to  do  honour  to  our  name  and  race.  He 
married  Johanna  van  Voss,  with  whom  he  has  had 
four  daughters,  one  of  whom  i-ecently  married  her 
cousin,  Lieut.  Y.  A.  MacLeod  Manuel,  of  the  Neth, 
East  India  Lifantry. 

Major-General  Edward  Donald  Henry  MacLeod, 
second  son  of  General  Norman  MacLeod,  was  born 
September,  1842,  at  Maastricht,  Province  of  Lim- 
burg.  He  joined  an  instructional  battalion  at  the 
age  of  16  years,  and  for  over  40  years  has  been 
actively  employed  in  the  military  affairs  of  the 
State,  earning  credit  and  distinction  as  the  list  of 
honours  and  decorations  which  he  possesses  amply 
proves.  He  married  Anne  van  Bochove,  with 
issue : — Donald  John  Edward,  a  medical  officer  in 
the  army — he  volunteered,  and  was  accepted  for 
service  with  the  Red  Cross  in  the  late  S.A.  war. 


ViCE-AiiMiKAi.    ANGUS    MACLEOD.    C'.V.o. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  101 


VICE-ADMIRAL  ANGUS  MACLEOD,  C.V.O. 

Vice- Admiral  Angus  MacLeod,  C.V.O.,  who  lately 
relinquished  the  command  of  tlie  Irish  Coast,  on 
promotion,  has  seen  considerable  service  and  filled 
numerous  important  offices  at  home  and  abroad  ; 
sometimes  involved  in  dangerous  and  delicate 
situations,  but,  having  been  endowed  with  courage 
and  tact,  he  has  always  succeeded  in  emerging 
from  them  with  honour  to  his  country  and  credit 
to  himself. 

Born  in  1847,  some  of  the  first  thrilling  stories 
of  adventures  at  sea  were  gleaned  at  the  knees  of 
that  distinguished  old  Arctic  navigator.  Captain 
Sir  John  Ross,  and,  growing  up  in  a  nautical 
environment,  he  developed  such  an  evident  desire 
to  serve  his  country  in  the  Royal  Navy,  that  a 
nomination  was  obtained,  and,  in  due  course,  he 
was  entered  as  a  naval  cadet,  when  thirteen  and 
a-half  years  of  age. 

Upon  completion  of  his  training,  he  commenced 
his  career  in  1862  on  board  the  Magicienne,  under 
Captain  H.  S.  H.  Prince  Leiningen,  and  as  Mid- 
shipman, served  in  that  ship  for  nearly  four 
years  on  the  Mediterranean  station.  In  addition 
to  many  interesting  but  ordinary  duties,  the  Magi- 
cienne was  frequently  employed  in  conveying  or 
escorting  Royalties  and  diplomatic  officials,  includ- 


102  THE   MACLEODS. 

ing  His  Majesty  the  King — then  Prince  of  Wales — 
and  other  members  of  our  Royal  Family.  Among 
events  of  some  historic  importance  in  which  the 
officers  of  the  Magicienne  participated,  were  Sir 
Moses  Montefiore's  Mission  to  the  Sultan  of  Mo- 
rocco, on  behalf  of  persecuted  Jews ;  Garibaldian 
skirmishes  and  arrests  in  Naples  ;  the  salvage  of  a 
derelict  barque ;  watching  French  operations,  (in- 
cluding the  bombardment  of  Sfax)  on  the  coast  of 
Tunis;  our  cession  of  the  Ionian  Isles  after  de- 
molition of  the  Vido  fortifications  and  withdrawal 
of  all  our  troops  ;  the  liberation,  after  three  months' 
negotiations  with  a  notorious  Italian  brigand,  of 
Mr.  Moens,  an  English  captive,  taken  near  Salerno; 
and  the  accession  of  King  George  to  the  Greek 
throne. 

Returning  to  England,  young  MacLeod  next 
served  in  the  Pallas,  a  new  and  experimental 
armour-clad,  attached  to  the  Channel  Squadron,  in 
which  vessel,  towards  the  end  of  1866,  patrol  duty 
was  carried  out  on  the  West  Coast  of  Ireland,  on 
account  of  the  Fenian  disturbances  and  movements 
of  the  leaders. 

Having  passed  the  usual  examinations  he  joined 
the  Rodney  battleship,  early  in  1867,  as  Sub- 
Lieutenant,  and  proceeded  in  her  to  the  China 
station,  where  she  flew  the  flag  of  that  most 
gallant  and  beloved  officer,  the  late  Admiral  Sir 
Henry  Keppel.      In   1868  he  was  given  a  death 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  103 

vacancy  as  Lieutenant,  an  old  naval  privilege,  (im- 
proved away  some  years  since),  which  rendered 
service  on  unhealthy  stations  popular  ! 

Between  the  coming  and  going  of  our  Hong- 
Kong  gunboats  on  pirate  haunts,  usually  attended 
by  success  ;  the  hardly  veiled  desire  for  the  removal 
of  our  unwelcome  presence  from  among  the  Chinese  ; 
and  the  unmistakable  awakening  and  activity  of 
the  Japanese,  times  were  by  no  means  dull.  A 
good  deal  of  the  fighting  between  both  the  naval 
and  the  military  forces  of  the  Mikado  and  of  the 
Tycoon,  was  actually  witnessed  from  the  Rodney 
or  her  consorts,  and  the  opening  to  trade  of  Hiago 
and  Kobi  was  an  event  of  great  importance,  graced 
by  the  presence  of  the  ships. 

Owing  to  a  gross  attack  upon  missionaries, 
the  Rodney,  with  a  small  squadron,  went  up  the 
Yangtse  to  Nanking,  whence  a  strong  naval  brigade 
was  despatched  to  Yang-Chow,  and  three  weeks' 
residence  in  the  Temple  of  the  Ten  Thousand  Genii, 
(greatly  enjoyed  by  the  una  wed  blue  jackets  and 
marines)  brought  about  reparation  and  the  pay- 
ment of  a  solid  silver  indemnity,  with  a  prompt- 
ness which  suggested  discretion  having  proved 
stronger  than  Chinese  valour.  Another  occasion 
for  the  display  of  naval  brigade  force,  but  with 
the  result  of  considerable  loss  of  life  among  the 
Chinese,  was  the  attack  upon,  and  destruction  of 
three  pirate  villages  near  Swatow. 


104  THE   MACLEODS. 

Once  more  in  England,  Mr.  MacLeod  qualified  as 
a  Gunnery  Lieutenant,  and  was  immediately  after- 
wards, in  1872,  appointed  to  the  frigate  Aurora, 
a  sea-going  training  ship  for  young  seamen  and 
boys.  Early  in  1873  he  was  unexpectedly  called 
home  as  a  junior  staff  officer  of  the  principal 
gunnery  ship  Excellent,  at  Portsmouth  where  he 
remained  until  the  following  autumn,  when  an 
opening  came  for  more  active  service. 

He  volunteered  for,  and  was  accepted  as,  first 
lieutenant  of  the  Barracouta,  then  employed  in 
the  earlier  phase  of  the  Asliantee  war,  joined  her 
OJi  the  Gold  Coast  and  in  January  1874  was  sent 
up  country  with  a  detachment  for  the  Naval 
Brigade,  which  latter  had  instructions  to  co-operate 
with  the  land  forces  under  Sir  Garnet  Wolseley. 
A  little  later  in  command  of  a  company  of  Royal 
Marines,  he  took  part  in  the  fight  at  Amoaful, 
he  was  slightly  wounded,  but  continued  in  the 
advance  and  after  the  skirmish  for  possession  of 
the  crossing  of  the  river  Ardah  entered  Coomassie 
with  the  main  body. 

The  bivouac  of  the  Naval  Brigade  that  night 
was  unpleasantly  close  to  the  veritable  Golgotha 
which  contained  the  remains  of  countless  sacrifi^ced 
slaves,  and  a  further  element  of  interest  was 
furnished  by  the  palace  buildings  getting  on  fire, 
which  was  only  subdued  by  the  exertions  of  the 
blue  jackets  and  a  few  soldiers. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  105 

King  Coffee  had  escaped  to  the  royal  tombs,  so 
Sir  Garnet  decided  to  destroy  Coomassie  and 
return  to  the  coast  as,  if  they  continued,  the  heavy 
rains  threatened  to  decimate  the  force  by  fever 
and  dysentry.  Lieutenant  MacLeod  was  made 
prize  agent  for  the  navy,  and  associated  with 
two  military  officers  (one  of  whom  is  now  Sir 
Redvers  Buller)  looted  the  palace  during  the  night, 
and  in  the  morni])g  tlie  palace  was  blown  up,  the 
British  force  commenced  the  homeward  march,  and 
the  Ashantee  war  of  1873-4  was  over. 

On  the  way  to  Cape  Coast  Castle,  fever  claimed 
the  Naval  prize  agent  and  he  was  stranded  in  a 
somewhat  crude  field  hospital,  only  mentioned 
because  the  principal  medical  Officer  was  Sir 
William  Mackinnon,  whose  tender  care  and  natural 
kindliness  were  intensified  when  he  discovered  a 
MacLeod  and  a  distant  kinsman  in  tlie  ward. 
It  need  hardly  be  said  that  Skye  proved  the 
strongest  bond  that  could  be  produced  between 
these  two  Highlanders,  met  under  such  un- 
expected circumstances  in  the  equatorial  juiigle,* 

After  rejoining  the  Barracouta  that  vessel 
proceeded  to  England  to  be  refitted  for  a  tour 
on  the  Australian  station,  to  which,  in  due  time, 
she  was  despatched,  and  until  1877,  cruised  almost 
continuously,    and   included    nearly   a  year   spent 

*  For  this  little  campaign  he  was  mentioned  in  dispatches   and 
received  a  medal  with  clasp. 


106  THE   MACLEODS. 

among  the  Fijian  and  Samoan  Islands  at  that 
interesting  period  when  King  Thackamban  took 
British  protection  and  cannibalism  was  just  dying 
out. 

In  Samoa  the  Barracouta  became  involved  in 
troubles  through  the  course  of  island  political 
affairs  leading  to  a  civil  war,  and  when  escorting 
the  deposed  King,  Malietoa,  to  a  council  meeting 
one  day,  with  a  body-guard  of  blue  jackets  and 
marines.  Lieutenant  MacLeod's  little  force  had  a 
severe  conflict  with  the  natives  in  the  bush, 
resulting  in  loss  of  life  on  both  sides,  and  a  narrow 
escape  of  capture,  as  the  Samoans  got  in  between 
the  naval  party  and  the  distant  beach. 

Invalided  from  this  ship,  a  few  months  after- 
wards, MacLeod's  next  employment  was  on  the 
coast  guard,  in  Ireland,  follow^ed  by  three  years  as 
first  lieutenant  of  the  Channel  troop  ship.  Assist- 
ance, and  promotion  to  Commander,  in  October 
1881. 

The  Commander  was  not  long  left  idle.  Early 
in  1882  he  was  appointed  to  the  Bondicea,  flagship 
of  Rear- Admiral  No  well  Salmon,  on  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope  and  West  Coast  of  Africa  station. 
In  1844  he  was  temporarily  given  command  of  the 
Algerine,  gun  vessel,  and  as  senior  Naval  Officer 
watched  events  along  the  coast  from  the  Congo 
to  the  Gaboon,  where  matters  had  reached  an  acute 
stacfe  between  France  and  Portugal  owing  to  M.  de 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  107 

Brazza's  activity  in  that  region,  which  led  nearly 
to  a  breach  of  the  peace.  Upon  the  conclusion  of 
this  cruise  and  return  to  the  flagship,  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief commended  Commander  MacLeod 
"  for  the  very  able  and  judicious  manner  in  which 
the  orders  were  carried  out,  and  for  the  valuable 
reports  made." 

March  1885  witnessed  his  resumption  of  duty 
in  the  Excellent,  and  three  years  of  most  interesting 
gunnery  experimental  work,  as  Commander,  led 
to  his  promotion  to  Captain.  One  of  the  events 
in  which  he  was  closely  concerned,  was  the  burst- 
ing of  a  43  ton,  12  inch  B.L.  gun  in  one  of  the 
barbettes  of  the  Gollingwood,  at  Spithead,  when 
testing  the  armament  preparatory  to  commission- 
ing that  vessel ;  he  was  stationed  on  a  look-out 
place  almost  over  the  gun,  when  nine  feet  of  the 
muzzle  was  blown  off  and  went  hurtling  up  in 
tlie  air,  to  fall  in  the  water,  a  couple  of  hundred 
yards  away. 

After  the  Excellent  came  a  long  time  of  waiting 
for  employment,  as  there  were  fewer  appointments 
for  junior  captains  in  those  days  than  now,  but  in 
June  1891,  Captain  MacLeod  commissioned  the  new 
Pallas,  cruiser,  for  China,  and  served  three  years 
in  far  Eastern  waters.  Numerous  diplomatic 
missions  were  carried  out  by  him,  in  addition  to 
the  ordinary  routine  of  "  showing  the  flag,"  and  he 
was  senior  Officer  in  tlie  Gulf  of  Siam,  tlirouo-hout 


108  THE   MACLEODS. 

the  Franco-Siamese  difficulty  of  1873,  when,  owing 
to  the  forcing  of  the  entrance  to  the  Menain  River 
by  the  French,  our  own  relations  with  our  present 
great  friends  were  critical  in  the  extreme,  but, 
happily,  peace  was  preserved  and  when  everything 
ha<l  resumed  normal  conditions,  the  Lords  of  the 
Admiralty  were  pleased  to  inform  Captain  MacLeod 
that  "  recognising  the  extreme  difficulty  and  deli- 
cacy of  the  position,"  they  "  appreciated  the  efforts 
made  to  maintain  an  attitude  of  strict  impartiality 
under  very  trying  circumstances." 

Owing  to  the  part  Captain  MacLeod  (who  was 
entirely  left  by  our  Government  without  a  hint  to 
guide  him)  had  to  play,  and  the  steps  he  felt  it 
incumbent  upon  him  to  take,  he  encountered  con- 
siderable disapproval  and  resentment  from  the 
French  Officers.  This  made  it  all  the  more  plea- 
sant, when,  shortly  after  the  Siamese  trouble  was 
over,  he  had  the  good  fortune  to  get  the  chance  of 
"  heaping  coals  of  fire  "  upon  his  somewhat  belli- 
gerent friends.  Getting  information  of  the  strand- 
ing of  the  Messageries  Maritimes  steamer  Godavery, 
on  a  reef  in  Rhio  Straits,  near  Singapore,  he  at  once 
proceeded  to  the  scene  of  the  disaster  and  after 
two  days'  effort  successfully  floated  her.  For  this 
service  the  British  Admiralty  expressed  approval, 
and  the  French  Republic  presented  him  with  a 
handsome  silver  epergne,  as  a  token  of  gratitude. 

The  Pallas  returned  to  England  in  1894,  and 


EMINENT    CLANSMEN.  109 

was  paid  off,  but  her  Captain  was  quickly  again 
in  harness,  and  ordered  to  North  China,  in  the 
cruiser  Gibraltar,  to  strengthen  Sir  Edmund 
Fremantle's  squadron,  in  view  of  the  probable 
rupture  between  Japan  and  China,  which  might 
lead  to  wide  complications,  and  involve  other 
nations.  The  rupture  took  place  and  though  no 
other  combatants  were  drawn  in,  the  Gibraltar  was 
fully  occupied  in  watching  j)rogress  and  witnessed 
the  daily  lighting  iij  the  vicinity  of  Wei-hai-wei, 
at  sea  and  on  shore,  until  the  crowning  act,  a  very 
sad  one,  took  place,  in  the  surrender  of  that  fortress 
and  the  suicide  of  its  three  principal  officials,  the 
Admiral,  Commander  and  General.  Peace  was 
declared  almost  immediately,  the  Gibraltar's  bow 
was  turned  homewards,  and  in  June  1895  she  was 
paid  off. 

While  studying  at  Greenwich  College,  Captain 
MacLeod  was  directed  in  December  of  that  same 
year,  to  commission  tlie  battleship  Empress  of 
India,  for  service  in  the  Channel  squadron,  then 
commanded  by  the  Vice -Admiral,  Lord  Walter 
Kerr,  and  to  take  part  in  the  grand  Diamond 
Jubilee  Naval  Review :  turned  over  with  officers 
and  crew,  to  the  new  battleship  Jupiter,  in  June 

1897,  in  which   ship  he   remained   until    October 

1898,  when  he  was  given  command  of  the  Chatham 
Naval  Depdt  and  Fleet  Reserve,  with  his  pendant 
flying  on  board  the  Pembroke. 


110  THE   MACLEODS. 

In  the  Jupiter  he  was  selected  to  carry  out  some 
important  gunnery  experiment,  including  problems 
connected  with  night  attacks  upon  Gibraltar, — 
the  first  practical  test  of  firing  under  battle  condi- 
tions. While  in  the  Pembroke,  Captain  MacLeod 
enjoyed  the  honour  of  being  made  an  A.D.C.,  to 
Her  late  Gracious  Majesty  Queen  Victoria,  and  in 
that  capacity  accompanied  her  memorable  funeral 
cortege.  Upon  the  accession  of  the  King,  the  office 
was  confirmed  and  held,  until  promoted  to  flag 
rank. 

Before  completing  the  usual  term  in  the  Naval 
Depot,  Captain  MacLeod  was  appointed  Director  of 
Naval  Ordnance,  at  the  Admiralty,  as  adviser  to 
their  Lordships,  in  all  matters  concerning  the 
supply  of  guns,  small  arms  and  ammunition,  to  the 
Fleet,  a  highly  responsible  and  arduous  position. 
During  the  time  of  his  being  thus  employed,  he 
was  promoted  to  Rear-Admiral  in  July  1901.  , 

Having  served  at  the  Admiralty  for  nearly  three 
years,  his  flag  was  hoisted  at  Queenstown  in  Feb- 
ruary 1904,  as  senior  Officer,  Coast  of  Ireland,  and 
soon  after  succeeding  to  that  position.  His  Majesty 
visited  Ireland  and  was  so  pleased  with  the  Naval 
arrangements  —  that  upon  departure  he  conferred 
the  honour  of  Commander  of  the  Royal  Victorian 
Order  upon  Rear- Admiral  MacLeod. 

The  Admiral's  tenure  of  office  in  Ireland,  has 
just  been  prematurely  brought  to  a  close  by  an 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  Ill 

unexpectedly  rapid  run  of  vacancies,  chiefly  caused 
by  retirements,  which  led  to  his  being  advanced  to 
Vice- Admiral  in  December  last. 

In  wandering  often  over  pretty  well  all  the 
eastern  hemisphere,  Admiral  MacLeod  has  naturally 
met  with  many  strange  and  amusing  experiences, 
but  none  have  proved  of  more  interest  to  himself 
than  those  of  coming  unexpectedly  into  touch  with 
brother  clansmen — "  cousins,"  as  he  calls  them 
usually,  recognising  not  only  the  far-reaching 
nature  of  such  Highland  relationships,  but  (in  so 
many  cases)  the  great  convenience  of  it. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Clan  Society,  the 
Admiral  related  some  incidents  which  happened  to 
him  on  foreign  service,  exemplifying  very  practi- 
cally the  advantages  he  had  derived  from  having  a 
strong  clannish  spirit.  He  said,  that  in  Australia 
some  thirty  years  ago,  when  availing  himself  of 
the  hospitality  of  the  principal  club,  he  noticed 
that  the  steward  seemed  to  take  him  particularly 
on  the  matter  of  choice  viands  under  his  wing,  and 
put  it  down  to  mere  civility  to  a  strange  officer ; 
but  one  night,  leaning  confidentially  over  as  he 
removed  a  cover,  the  worthy  steward  said  proudly — 
"  Sir,  I  am  a  MacLeod,"  and  the  mystery  was 
solved.  Very  pleasant  were  the  remaining  days 
spent  at  the  club  under  the  guardian  angelship  of 
his  kindly  clansman,  and  the  best  of  everything 
was  at  his  disposal. 


112  THE    MACLEODS. 

Another  happy  reminiscence  carried  his  mind 
back  to  days  in  the  Phillipine  Islands,  some  years 
before  the  American-Spanish  wai",  when  upon 
arrival  of  the  Pallas  at  Manilla,  a  steam  launch 
called  the  Hold  Fast,  of  unmistakable  ownership 
dashed  alongside,  and  at  the  seldom  visited  island 
of  Ils-ils  a  few  days  were  spent,  and,  owing  to 
the  discovery  of  a  certain  genial  and  most  hos- 
pitable MacLeod  residing  there,  the  vessel's  stay 
was  made  a  round  of  festivity  and  enthusiasm, 
heartily  participated  in  by  the  British  and  Spanish 
alike.  The  population  soon  realised  what  it  meant 
when  two  MacLeods  met  in  their  midst. 

Again,  having  obtained  permission  to  go  to 
Blehleh  in  Northern  Sumatra  (where  none  of  our 
ships  had  been  for  nine  years)  to  see  anything  the 
Dutch  officials  might  allow,  of  the  progress  of  the 
interminable  war  between  the  Dutch  and  the 
Acheenese,  which  began  in  1872  (and  is  still  in 
progress)  the  Governor  gave  him  a  most  hearty 
reception  and  welcome,  and  made  elaborate  arrange- 
ments for  a  visit  round  the  stockade-outposts,  in 
the  armour-clad  train.  Two  aides-de-camp  were 
placed  at  his  disposal,  one  naval,  the  other  military, 
and  his  pleasure  may  be  imagined  when  the  latter 
proved  to  be  a  very  distinguished  Captain  Rudolph 
MacLeod  (the  Dutch  spelling  being  a  little  different 
but  the  pronunciation  very  nearly  the  same  as  our 
own)   of   the   Gesto    Netherland's    branch.     Some. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  118 

pleasant  days  were  spent  under  the  guidance  of 
this  fine  representative  clansman,  whose  ancestors 
have  supplied  so  many  naval  and  military  officers 
of  high  rank  to  the  Dutch  nation. 


yi\ 


114  THE   MACLEODS. 


Lieutenant-General 

SIR  ARTHUR  LYTTELTON-ANNESLEY, 

K.C.V.O.,  F.S.A.,  F.R.G.S.,  F.Z.S. 

Lieut.-General  Sir  Arthur  Lyttelton-Anneslej^', 
late  of  Camolin  Park  and  Airley  Castle,  Stafford- 
shire, eldest  son  of  Captain  Arthur  Lyttelton 
MacLeod  of  the  42nd  Highlanders,  and  grandson 
of  General  Norman  MacLeod,  C.B.,  of  Gillen, 
Waternish,  Skye,  was  born,  September  1837,  and 
bore  the  surname  of  MacLeod  till  1844,  when  his 
father  took  that  of  Annesley  (his  mother  being 
heiress  of  the  senior  branch  of  that  family). 

General  Lyttelton  Annesley  was  educated  at 
Harrow,  and  entered  the  army  in  July  1854. 
He  was  appointed  to  the  11th  Prince  Albert's 
Own  Hussars,  and  served  with  that  regiment 
during  the  Crimean  War,  including  the  siege  and 
fall  of  Sebastopol  and  the  battle  of  Tchernaya, 
for  which  he  received  the  British  medal  and 
clasp,  and  the  Turkish  medal. 

Returning  home  in  1856,  he  remained  with  his 
regiment  in  England  and  Ireland  till  1866,  when 
he  embarked  in  command  of  it,  and  arrived  in 
Bombay  on  the  25th  of  October  of  the  same 
year — the  last  regiment  that  went  to  India  by 
way  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  in  a  sailing 
vessel. 


Lieutexant-Gf.nkral 
Sir    ARTHUR    LVTTELTON    ANNESLKV.    K.C.N'.o. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  115 

Colonel  Lyttelfcon-Annesley  was  in  India  with 
his  regiment  for  over  ten  years,  only  returning 
home  on  leave  twice  during  that  period,  coming 
to  England  the  second  time  with  His  Majesty 
the  King  (then  Prince  of  Wales),  who  had  taken 
him  on  his  staff  after  the  Delhi  camps. 

In  1877,  Colonel  Lyttelton-Annesley  brought 
his  regiment  back  to  England  by  way  of  the 
Suez  Canal.  Soon  after  his  arrival  in  England, 
he  retired  from  the  command  of  the  11th 
Hussars,  under  the  new  rules,  and  was  appointed 
A.D.C.  to  H.R.H.  the  Duke  of  Cambridge,  whom 
he  accompanied  to  Malta  when  the  Duke  went 
to  inspect  the  Indian  contingent.  Not  long 
afterwards,  Colonel  Lyttelton-Annesley  was  ap- 
pointed Assistant- Adjutant-General  of  the  Horse 
Guards,  which  appointment  he  held  for  several 
years  and  then  went  to  Bombay  as  Adjutant- 
General  of  the  Bombay  army,  holding  that  im- 
portant post  for  over  five  years,  with  the  ap- 
probation of  the  three  Commanders  -  in  -  Chief 
under  whom  he  served. 

He  returned  to  England  in  1881,  and,  after  a 
short  time,  was  selected  to  command  the  North 
British  District  (which  embraces  the  whole  of 
Scotland)  for  a  period  of  five  years,  with  the 
rank  of  Major-General.  His  term  of  service  on 
the  Scottish  station  having  expired,  he  received 
the    rank    of    Lieut.-General.      In    the    following 


116  THE   MACLEODS. 

year,  he  was  offered  the  important  command  at 
Portsmouth,  which,  for  private  reasons,  he  was 
obhged  to  decline.  He  remained  unemployed 
from  that  time.  Under  the  new  regulations,  he 
was  compulsorily  retired  on  the  23rd  of  Febru- 
ary 1898.  At  the  time  of  his  retirement,  General 
Lyttelton-Annesley  was  in  the  enjoyment  of  the 
annuity  for  distinguished  and  meritorious  services. 

In  1903,  he  was  created  a  Knight  Commander  of 
the  Victorian  Order.  He  is  a  Knight  Commander 
of  the  Order  of  Christ,  of  Portugal ;  he  holds 
the  Kaiser-i-Hind  medal,  commemorating  the  late 
Queen  Victoria  becoming  Empress  of  India ;  he 
is  a  Fellow  of  the  Society  of  Arts,  the  Royal 
Geographical  Society,  and  of  the  Zoological 
Society. 

General  Lyttelton-Annesley  is  representative,  in 
the  female  line,  of  the  Annesleys,  Earls  of  Anglesey, 
Earls  of  Mount  Norris,  and  Viscounts  Valentia; 
and  of  George,  first  Lord  Lyttelton. 


EMINENT   CLANSMEN.  117 


Colonel  JOHN  MACLEOD  of  COLBECK, 

AND 

The  MacLeod  Loyal  Fencible  Highlanders. 

There  is,  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  M.  C.  MacLeod, 
Edinburgh,  a  Presentation  Sword,  bearing  the  fol- 
lowing inscription  : — 

"  Presented  to  Col.  John  MacLeod  of  Colbeck,  late  Col. 
Commandant  of  the  Princess  Charlotte  of  Wales 
Loyal  Fencible  Highlanders,— 7th  Jan.  1809." 

As  this  is  an  eloquent  appreciation  of  a  probably 
distinguished  clansman,  of  whom  not  much  is 
known  now,  it  may  be  well  to  give  here  such 
particulars  as  we  have  been  able  to  gather,  others 
perhaps  may  be  able  to  supplement  these. 

His  grandfather,  first  of  the  family  of  whom  any 
trace  can  be  found  is  described  as  one  of  the  "  Old 
MacLeods  of  the  Lewes,"  he  married  Janet,  daughter 
of  Malcolm  MacLeod  VIII.  of  Raasay,  and  had 
issue,  a  son  John,  afterwards  described  as  of  Col- 
beck, in  the  Island  of  Jamaica,  where  he  had  been 
an  eminent  planter.  Colbeck  registered  arms  in 
1762,  and  in  his  declaration  claimed  to  be  heir-at- 
law  of  Roderick,  last  Baron  of  the  Lewes.  He 
married  his  cousin  Jane,  daughter  of  John  IX.  of 
Raasay,  and  had  issue,  s  son,  also  described  as  of 
Colbeck,  the  raiser  of  the  MacLeod  Fencibles  and 
recipient  of  the  sword  mentioned. 


118  THE   MACLEODS. 

The  Princess  Charlotte  of  Wales  or  MacLeod 
Loyal  Fencible  Highlanders,  as  they  were  called, 
were  raised  by  John  MacLeod  of  Col  beck,  who  was 
appointed  Colonel,  in  1799.  Few  details  unfortun- 
ately, are  known  of  this  clan  regiment,  which  was 
the  last  Fencible  regiment  raised  in  the  Highlands, 
It  was  inspected  and  embodied  at  Elgin,  by  Major 
General  Leith  Hay,  in  June  1799,  and  was  sent  at 
once  to  Ireland  for  active  service  there.  After 
three  years  in  that  country  the  regiment  embarked 
for  England  and  was  reduced  at  Tynemouth  Bar- 
racks in  June  1802.  This  does  not  mean  that  the 
regiment  was  disbanded ;  it  probably  existed  for 
some  years  longer,  and  it  is  most  probable  that  the 
sword  was  presented  when  it  was  finally  disbanded. 
Such  is  all  we  know,  yet  the  sword  is  sufficient 
evidence  that  the  regiment  and  its  Commander  had 
borne  themselves  well. 

Colonel  MacLeod  married  and  had  issue,  one  son, 
Barlow,  and  five  daughters,  (Barlow  and  the  four 
elder  daughters  died  unmarried,  the  fifth,  Susan, 
married  Mr.  Andrews  and  had  two  sons,  Hastings 
(buried  at  Canterbury)  and  Greville).  He  died  in 
1823,  as  the  following  notice  from  Blackwood's 
Magazine  of  that  year  shows — "In  Bury  Street, 
St.  James',  London,  Colonel  John  MacLeod  of 
Colbeck.  With  him  expired  the  last  of  a  branch 
of  an  ancient  and  distinguished  clan." 


NOTES. 


Though  the  date  in  the  inscription  on  the  silver  rim 
is  1493,  experts  hold  that  the  Cup  itself  is  a  remarkably 
fine  specimen  of  early  Irish  work,  probably  of  the  IX. 
or  X.  Century.  Certainly  it  has  always  been  called  the 
Cup  of  Neil  Grluin  Dubh,  who  was  King  of  Ulster  about 
the  year  993  A.D.  {He  was  the  great  hero  of  his  race.) 
The  inscription  shews  that  the  Cup  belonged  in  1493 
to  a  lady  descendant  of  that  family,  and  it  may  very 
well  be  a  relic  actually  handed  down  from  Neil.  On 
the  top  of  the  Cup  is  a  silver  rim,  bearing  the  inscrip- 
tion given  on  page  47.  This  rim  may  have  been  added 
in  1493  and  the  inscription  of  that  date  may  refer  to 
the  rim  only.  The  engraving  is  in  the  Court  hand  of 
the  period  and  many  contractions  are  used.  Scott  gives 
a  version  of  it  in  the  notes  to  the  Lord  of  the  Isles, 
which  is  certainly  a  mistaken  one. 

It  seems  probable  that  this  Cup  passed  into  the 
possession  of  the  MacLeods  about  the  middle  of  the 
XVI.  Century,  when  a  large  force  of  Highlanders,  the 
MacLeods  among  them,  was  engaged  in  military  opera- 
tions in  the  North  of  Ireland. 


Nothing  has  been  said  of  the  tartans,  but  the  tartan 
of  the  Chief  is  that  known  as  MacLeod  and  MacKenzie, 
the  latter  wear  the  same  pattern  as  the  MacLeod  and 
there  is  a  dispute  between  the  two  clans  as  to  the 
rightful  ownership. 

The  clansmen  objecting  to  be  taken  for  MacKenzie's, 
have  appealed  to  the  Chief  to  introduce  some  distinguish- 
ing mark,  which  it  is  hoped  he  may  see  his  way  to  do. 

Macleod  of  Cadboll's  tartan  is  the  well-known  yellow 
and  black  Raasay  tartan,  sometimes,  but  wrongly,  called 
the  dress  tartan. 


6984    I