The Highlanders of Scotland - Clan Strachan Society

AND NOTES] OF SCOTLAND 411
was ancestor of Glengarry. It is a great blunder. Donald Balloch lived to
a good old age in Ireland and the Isles. His betrayal was a ruse ; another
man's head was sent to the king.
Page 235, line lo. Macdonalds of Keppoch. These were descended
from Angus, illegitimate son of Alaster Carrach. They had no right to any
lands ; they simply squatted on lands granted by Alexander of Isles to
Mackintosh.
Page 237, line 9. Alexander Macreury of Garmoran cannot be transmogrified
into Alexander MacGorrie. Phonetics are against it. MacReury,
no doubt, was a descendant of the old M'Rorys of Garmoran, the last
legitimate heir being Amy M'Rorie, wife of John of Isles and mother of
Reginald of Garmoran, ancestor of Clanranald. Alexander M'Reury was a
claimant to the lordship and ; he, with another claimant (?) John MacArthur,
got hanged for their conduct.
Page 239. Clanranald and Glengarry. In this earlier work, Skene
allowed his connection with the Glengarry family to warp his judgment o\er
undoubted facts. Reginald's eldest son was Allan ; Donald was a younger
son. From Allan are descended Clanranald, who, to prove the truth of this,
had the lands of Garmoran. The early history of the Glengarry branch is
very obscure— -an obscurity out of which the family emerged by the heir,
about 1
5 10, marrying Sir Donald of Lochalsh's sister, who was co-heiress of
Sir Donald. As regards the right of chiefship between Clanranald and
Glengarry, it has to be borne in mind that, according to purists, a Highland
clan chief cannot be a bastard, e\-en though legitimated, nor can he claim
chiefship through the females. Unfortunately for Clanranald, their most
famous chief and ancestor was John Moydartach, a bastard legitimated
(1531)-
Page 242. Clan Dug.\ll. Skene has here been led into a most
unfortunate blunder by MS. 1450. Skene holds that King Ewen of Argyle
died without male issue, because the 1450 MS. happens to drop him in the
genealogy. The second blunder is to say that the MacDougalls are
descended of Dugall, son of Reginald. The M.S. of 1450 and the Rook of
Ballimote both make this blunder ; but the Book of Lecan gives the true
genealogy under the heading of " Clan Somairli," for Dugall was really
Somerled's eldest son and therefore head of the house of Somerled. John of
Lorn and his father, Alexander de Argadia, were the heads of Somerled's
house in Bruce's time. Alexander was son of King Ewen, son of Duncan,
son of Dugall, son of Somerled. This is the genealogy given in Celtic
Scotland^ vol. iii. p. 294. It also agrees with the facts, for it would be
otherwise difficult to account for Alexander de Ergadia or Lorn. The
reference to Cupar Abbey Chartulary is also unfortunate, for Duncan de
name
Lornyn here adduced was Duncan of Lornie, near Perth ! The
Dugall is for Dubh-ghall, "Black Foreigner," that is, Dane. It is on a par
with Norman, Frank, the Norman French Allan (Alemann) and others,
formed from national names.
Page 247. SlOL GiLLEVRAY. Gillebride rig eilan is a further reading of
MS. 1450, in the lona Club Transactions, p. 358. In Celtic Scotland, vol. iii,
p. 473, his place under the guidance of the Irish genealogist Mac Firbis is