Clan MacDonald

The Norse-Gaelic Macdonald clan has Scandinavian roots and is descended from Domnall the Mac Ragnall (died about 1250 ), who was the first leader of the clan, the king of Kintyre and the Hebrides ; his father is Ranald the King of the Isles and the king of Kintyre and the Hebrides ^[2] . Ranald’s father, Somerland, bore the title of “king of the Hebrides” and was killed during the war with Malcolm IV, the king of Scotland, in the battle of Renfrew in 1164 .

Clan MacDonald comes from Somerled - the founder of clan MacDougall , who received the name from the name of his son - Dougal . Clan MacDougall is descended from the eldest Dougall Mac Somayrle (Dugall mac Somhairle). These dynasties were then called the clan Somairle (Scottish Gaelic. - Clann Somhairle).

In addition, they are the descendants of the maternal line of the house of Hofrayd II of Kurovan and Earl of Orkney . The wife of Somerland was Ragnhild Olafsdottir (Norwegian - Ragnhildis Ólafsdóttir), the daughter of Olaf I (died 1153), King of Maine and the Islands (1112/1113 - 1153). Also, the first Macdonalds were relatives of Ingeborg Haakonsdottir (Ingeborg Haakonsdottir) - daughter of Hakon Palsson, Eagle of the Orkney Islands (died 1123 ).

Gaelic historical traditions and historical tales assert that the descendants of Somerland are of Celtic descent through the male line ^{[2] [3]} . The medieval Senahis (Gaelic. - Seanachies) trace Somerland’s origins to the ancient Irish kings - Coll Weiss and Conn Hundred Battles ^[4] . Thus, historical legends say that both the lines from which the MacDonald clan - the Hall clan and the Shool Hunn (Siol Chuinn) clan - descendants of Coll Ways and Conn One hundred Battles, respectively, are of royal origin.

Ancient poetic compositions have been preserved, where the ancestors of the clan MacDonald are glorified, in particular, the poetry of the cast of the genre (Gelsk. - brosnachadh) - “a call to battle”. The verse, which was compiled in 1411 before the Battle of Harlow , says: “A Chlanna Cuinn cuimhnichibh / Cruas an àm na h-iorghaile” - “Conn's descendants remember the bravery of their ancestors in battle. They have been indestructible at all times ”(Gel.).

Modern studies involving DNA technology show that Somerled’s descendants have Scandinavian roots in the male line ^[5] . Testing male clans MacDonald, McAllister and McDougall using the Y-chromosome study showed that these clans have the same ancestor in the male line. A peculiar Y-chromosome R1a1 , which is widespread in Scotland, was currently regarded as the chromosome brought by the Vikings . 22% of men from the clan MacDonald, living in the United States , have just such a Y-chromosome.

XIII — XIV centuries

Historically, the Macdonald clan has always supported Norway and the Viking dynasties on the islands. Traditionally, the MacDonald clan was a vassal of the king of Norway. But this dependence was eliminated after the defeat of the Norwegians in the battle of Larga in 1263 - Alexander III , the king of Scotland, defeated the Norwegian king Hakon IV the Old ^[6] . In this war, the MacDonald clan supported the Scottish king, not the Norse. Norwegian King Hakon was forced to retreat under pressure from the Scottish fleet, commanded by King Alexander III and the leaders of the clan MacDougal. Within three years, the Scots conquered the western islands (the Hebrides ), who had subjugated their power. In 1266 the Perth Peace Treaty between Scotland and Norway was concluded, under the terms of which the Scottish crown gained control of the Hebrides and the Isle of Man ^[6] . Clan MacDonald, who owned the Hebrides and the western coast of Scotland, recognized their vassal dependence on the Scottish crown.

The son of Angus Mora , the leader of the clan MacDonald, was Angus Og . He supported King Bruce of Scotland in his war for the independence of Scotland from England. The MacDonalds fought on the side of Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 ^[6] . For courage and dedication of the clan in this battle, the king announced that MacDonald’s forces would henceforth always take up positions on the right flank of the Scottish troops ^[7] .

XV century

The territory of Ross county at first completely belonged to the leaders of the clan Ross . The grandson of Angus Og, Donald MacDonald, 2nd Lord of the Islands (d. 1423), married Marie (Mariote) Leslie (d. 1429/1440), daughters of Sir Walter Leslie and Aethyme, Countess of Ross, who was the heir to the possessions of the clan Ross. The county was assigned to the MacDonald clan as a result of the victory at the Battle of Harlow in 1411 , where most of the Highland clans supported the MacDonald clan. Before the battle of Harlow, the battle of Dingwall (1411) took place , where the MacDonald clan defeated the strong MacKay clan, which was supported by a confederation of clans led by the Stewart clan. The following events took place in Ross County in 1415 : Murdoch Stewart, Duke of Albany , attempted to seize Dingwall Castle and subjugate the county to his power. Donald MacDonald launched a war against the Stuarts and proclaimed himself Lord of Ross. Murdoch Stewart was executed in 1425 , but he managed to appoint his son John Stewart, 2nd Earl of Buchan , to be the new Earl of Ross. However, it was the leaders of Clan MacDonald who became the Counts of Ross - Alexander MacDonald, 3rd Lord of the Isles , and then his son John II Macdonald, the last (4th) Lord of the Isles .

In 1429, a battle took place on the border between Lochäber and Badenoh . The army of Alexander Macdonald, 3rd Lord of the Isles and Count Ross, was defeated by the royal army under the command of Jacob I Stewart, because of the betrayal of the Hattan and Cameron clans who had gone over to the king. The defeated Alexander MacDonald retreated to the Hebrides. The king organized a campaign on the Hebrides to finally crush and capture MacDonald. In August 1429 at Holyrood Abbey, Alexander MacDonald surrendered to the king. By order of the king, the Lord of the Islands was arrested and imprisoned. After the imprisonment of Alexander, the MacDonald clan was led by his nephew , Donald Bullock MacDonald , the 2nd leader of the MacDonald clan from Dannweg.

In September 1431, the royal troops under the command of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mara , were defeated at the Battle of Inverloha by the Lords of the Isle units under the leadership of Donald Bullock MacDonald. In the same year, the ruler of the Islands, Alexander MacDonald, after spending two years in captivity, was released by the king from prison.

In May 1449, after the death of Alexander MacDonald, John MacDonald inherited the titles of Lord of the Isles, Count Ross and leader of the Macdonald clan. In 1452, John MacDonald, Lord of the Isles, revolted against royal authority and captured the castles of Inverness , Arkart and Ruthven.

In 1480, on the coast of the Isle of Mull, to the north-west of the modern city of Tobermory, the so-called “Battle in Bloody Bay” took place. The opponents were John II Macdonald (Gaelic. - Eoin Mac Dòmhnuill), the 4th Lord of the Isles and the leader of the clan MacDonald, and his illegitimate son, Angus Og Macdonald (Gaelic. - Aonghas Òg Mac Dòmhnuill). John MacDonald was supported by the MacLean, MacLeod and MacKele clans (short - Clan MacLean, Clan MacLeod, Clan MacNeil). Angus Og MacDonald was supported by Allan Macruari, the leader of the Clan Ronald, the lines of the clan MacDonald and Donald Mac Angus (Gael. - Dòmhnall Mac Aonghais) - the leader of the clan MacDonald from Keppoch . In the same 1480, John MacDonald made an unsuccessful campaign against Sutherland , where he was defeated by the Sutherland clans and Murray from Aberscross in the Battle of Skibo.

XVI century

In July 1476, John II Macdonald, 4th Lord of the Isles , was forced to yield to the king of Scotland, Jacob III Stuart, the county of Ross and recognize the sovereignty of the king. Also, John MacDonald was supposed to transfer the island of Skye , Napdale and Kintyre to the crown, but retained control of the Hebrides. The MacDonalds, refusing to claim the county of Ross, were forced to agree that the title of Lord of the Islands would now be confirmed by the king, and not transferred, as before, independently in the Macdonald family.

In 1493, King Jacob IV of Scotland IV Stewart signed a decree confiscating the possessions of John II Macdonald , Lord of the Isles, who resigned and ceded his possessions on the Hebrides to the crown. John MacDonald spent the rest of his life, receiving cash from the Scottish crown. The royal expansion into the western lands was led by the Campbells , earls of Argyll , the enemies of clan MacDonald. The final date for the abolition of the lordship of the Islands can be considered the year 1540 , when the title of Lord of the Islands was assigned to the heirs of the Scottish throne.

But the clan MacDonald remained one of the strongest clans of Scotland and retained almost all of their lands. At the beginning of the XVI century, the leader of the clan MacDonald, Donald Dubh, Donald the Dark rebelled against the King of Scotland Jacob IV in order to regain the supreme power over the Islands. He had an ally in this uprising — King Edward VI Tudor of England . The king of Scotland was able to win over various gifts and concessions to different branches of the clan MacDonald and their leaders. Thus, the MacDonald clan became divided, its power and strength diminished, and the royal power on the islands increased. In 1545, died Donald Dubh (Domhnall Dubh), grandson of John (II) Macdonald and the last contender for lordship.

XVII century

In the 17th century, Scotland fell under the authority of the English king because of “personal union” - the Scottish king Jacob VI Stewart occupied the English throne by the name of Jacob I. In Ireland, which was seized by England, endless rebellions against English power continued. To suppress these uprisings, the Scottish clans were recruited. The situation was complicated by the fact that the Irish were Catholics, while the British were Protestants. Part of the Scottish and Irish clans also adopted Protestantism . Some of the Scottish clans remained Catholics , which increased the hostility and massacre between the clans - now on religious grounds. In 1642, during the suppression of another Irish uprising, on the island of Ratlin, soldiers from the clan Campbell from the so-called “Argyll detachments” commanded by Sir Duncan Campbell massacred Catholics from the Clan MacDonald. The massacre was ruthless - women, children, old men were thrown from the rocks into the sea. The number of victims of this massacre exceeded 3000 people.

In 1644 - 1647 in Scotland there was a Civil War, which went down in history as the “ War of the Three Kingdoms ”. The war between the Republicans and the royalists was intensified by the fact that at the same time there was a war between the Catholics and the Protestants, between the various clans, which were shared by an old enmity. Yesterday's covenanters could become royalists; Protestants could support the Catholic king — there was a war of all about everyone. In the highlands of Scotland, war was mainly between the MacDonald and Campbell clans. The Campbells were supporters of Republicans, covenanters, and Protestants, while the Macdonalds supported royalists and Catholics. In 1644, troops from the Irish clan MacDonald, led by Alasder McCall, landed in Scotland to support Scottish Catholics and royalists. After a year of fighting and clashes on the lands of the Campbell clan, the parties came together in the battle of Inverloha (Schott. - Inverlochy). The Republicans (covenanters) were led by Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquis of Argyle , and royalist was commanded by James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose . The royalist troops consisted of the people of the MacDonald clans, the MacLaine and the Irish under the leadership of Alasder McCall . Royalists were half as many as Republicans, but they managed to win. In 1645, Kinlokhalin Castle, which belonged to the MacInns clan, was attacked and burned by the people of the MacDonald clan under the direction of James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose.

In 1692 there was a massacre in Glencoe - unarmed people from the MacDonald clan were killed by people from the Campbell clan during the suppression of the next Jacobite uprising. The outrage of this event in Scotland was due to the fact that it was a peaceful meeting and the law of hospitality was violated - one of the basic laws of the Highland .

XVIII century

Во время первого восстания якобитов в 1715 году Макдональды поддержали дом Стюартов . Много людей из разных ветвей клана Макдональд (Макдональды из Кеппоха, Кланраналда и Гленко) принимали участие в битве под Шерифмуре и погибли в этом сражении. Среди убитых был Аллан Макдональд, вождь клана Макдональд из Кланраналда.

В 1745 году клан Макдональд и его ветви поддержали второе восстание якобитов . Они участвовали в битвах при Престонпансе (21 сентября 1745), Фолкерке (17 января 1746) и Каллодене (16 апреля 1746). Очень много людей из клана Макдональд погибших в этих сражениях. В сражении при Каллодене был убит Александр Макдональд, водь клана Макдональд из Кеппоха. Но некоторые ветви клана, в частности, ветка клан Макдональд из Слита , поддержали английские правительственные войска, в результате чего их земли (в отличие от других земель клана Макдональд) не были конфискованы правительством.

В 1947 году Лорд Лайон, главный герольдмейстер Шотландии, признал Александра Годфри Макдональда, 7-го барона Макдональда (1909—1970), первым верховным вождем клана Макдональд. После его смерти в 1970 году ему наследовал его старший сын, Годфри Джеймс Макдональдл, 8-й лорд Макдональд ^[8] . В 1972 году поместья Макдональдов были проданы, чтобы заплатить долги покойного Александра Годфри Макдональда ^[9] . Лорд Макдональд живет в Кинлок-лодже на острове Скай с женой, писательницей Клэр Макдональд ^[10] .

Верховным вождём клана Макдональд в настоящее время является Годфри Джеймс Макдональд (род. 1947), из Макдональдов Слита , 8-й барон Макдональд (с 1970 года ).

1. Сомерлед (начало XII века — 1164), король Мэна и Островов, правитель Аргайла, сын аргайлского вождя Гиллибрайда

2. Ранальд (середина XII века — 1209), король Островов, лорд Аргайла и Кинтайра, один из сыновей Сомерленда

3. Дональд (конец XII века — 1250-е годы), правитель Королевства Островов, старший сын предыдущего

4. Ангус Мор (ум. 1295), лорд Кинтайра и Гебридских островов, правитель Королевства Островов, сын предыдущего

5. Александр Ог (ум. 1299), правитель Островов, лорд Кинтайра и Гебридских островов, старший сын предыдущего

6. Ангус Ог (ум. около 1318), правитель Островов, лорд Кинтайра и Гебридских островов, младший сын Ангуса Мора

6. Джон I Макдональд (ум. 1386), правитель Островов, лорд Островов, лорд Гламоргана и лорд Лохабера, единственный сын предыдущего

7. Дональд Макдональд (ум. 1423), 2-й лорд Островов, старший сын предыдущего от второго брака

8. Александр Макдональд (1390—1449), 3-й лорд Островов (1423—1449), а также граф Росс (1437—1449), старший сын предыдущего

9. Джон II Макдональд (1434—1503), 4-й (последний) лорд Островов (1449—1493), граф Росс (1449—1476), единственный сын предыдущего.

10. Ангус Ог Макдональд (ум. 1490), фактический правитель Островов (1481—1490), внебрачный сын предыдущего.

11. Дональд Дубх Макдональд (ум. 1545), единственный сын Ангуса Ога Макдональда и внук Джона II Макдональда.

На протяжении веков Макдональд владели следующими замками:

Замки клана Макдональд

• Замок Финлагган , был расположен на острове Айлей, на озере Лох-Финлагган, Аргайлшир . Это была резиденция вождей клана Дональд, лордов Островов ^{[11] [12]}
• Замок Армадэйл , на острове Скай, Инвернессшир, с 1815 года дом Центра клана Дональд и Музей Островов, которые являются открытыми для общественности ^[11]
• Замок Нок , остров Скай , Инвернессшир, разрушенный замок Макдональдов ^[11]
• Замок Данталм , остров Скай, Инвернессшир, разрушенный замок клана ^[11]
• Замок Арос , разрушенный замок клана, расположенный на острове Малл, Аргайлшир ^[11]
• Замок Клейг , разрушенный замок Макдональдов, расположенный на острове Джура, Аргайлшир ^[11]
• Замок Килдонан , разрушенный замок, расположенный на острове Арран, Бьютшир
• Замок Ардторниш , разрушенный замок Макдональдов, расположенный на полуострове Морверн, Аргайлшир ^[11]
• Замок Данаверти , разрушенный замок Макдональдов, у берегов полуострова Кинтайр , известном как Блуд-Рок из-за инцидента, известного как «Резня в Данаверти».

Замки линий клана Макдональд

• Замок Tиорам , расположен в заливе Лох-Моирдат, Лохабер, бывшая резиденция клана Макдональд из Кланраналда
• Замок Борв , остров Бенбекьюла, разрушенный замок Макдональдов из Кланраналда ^[11]
• Замок Ормаклетт , остров Саут-Уист , еще один замок клана Макдональд из Кланраналда ^[11]
• Замок Инвергарри , построен на скале «Утес Ворона» на озере Лох-Ойк, резиденция вождей клана Макдональд из Гленгарри ^[11]
• Замок Стром на берегу озера Лох-Каррон, бывший замок Макдональдов из Гленгарри ^[11]
• Замок Данлюс в Ирландии, был резиденцией клана Макдоннелл из Антрима в графстве Антрим ^[11]
• Замок Гленарм , другой замок Макдональдов из Антрима
• Замой Данивейг , остров Айлей , резиденция вождей клана Макдональд из Даннивега ^[11]
• Замок Данскейт , остров Скай, был резиденцией клана Макдональд из Слита
• Замок Кеппох, находится около деревни Спин-Бридж в Лохабере , был резиденцией клана Макдональд из Кеппоха , с 1690 года передан клану Макинтош ^[11]
• Замок Мингарри , около деревни Килхоан в Лохабере, был резиденцией клана Макдональд из Арднамурхана ^[11]
• Замок Ларги , Аргайлшир , был резиденцией клана Макдональд из Ларги ^[11] .

• Список правителей королевства Островов
• Кланы Шотландии
• Клан Макдональд из Слита
• Клан Макдональд из Кланраналда
• Клан Макдонелл из Гленгарри
• Клан Макдональд из Кеппоха
• Клан Макалистер
• Клан Макдональд из Даннивега
• Клан Макдональд из Арднамурхана
• Клан Макдональд из Антрима
• Макдональд

• Armadale Castle Gardens & Museum of the Isles, Isle of Skye, Scotland
• Clan Donald — The Highland Connection
• Clan Donald USA
• Clan Donald DNA Project
• Clan Donald Heritage
• Clan Donald Canada
• Clan Macdonald (Scotclans.com)
• Клан Дональд (Scottishclans.ru)

• Gregory, Donald . History Of The Western Highlands And Isles Of Scotland, From AD 1493 To AD 1625 . Edinburgh: William Tait, 1836.
• MacDonald, Donald J. Clan Donald . 1978.
• Moncreiffe of that Ilk, Sir Ian . The Highland Clans . New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1982. ISBN 0-517-546580 .
• Sykes, Bryan . Saxons, Vikings, and Celts : the genetic roots of Britain and Ireland . New York : WW Norton & Company , 2006. ISBN 978-0-393-06268-7 .
• Way, George ; Squire, Romilly. Clans & Tartans. — Glasgow : HarperCollins, 2000. — ISBN 0-00-472501 8 .
• Thomson, Oliver , The Great Feud. The Campbells and the Macdonalds . Revisited edition 2005. Sutton Publishing Limited. ISBN 0-7509-4315-7 .