Clan mackray

The name of the Makre clan (and its variations) is the English version of the Gaelic name MakRayt (Gelsk. - Mac Raith) - in the translation "Son of Grace" ^[1] .

• Clan motto : Fortitudine - courageously (lat.)
• Clan's battle cry : Sgurr Uaran - Sgerr Foran (name of the mountain in the clan’s possessions).

According to the works of the Scottish historian of the 19th century, Alexander Mackenzie , and the priest Alexander Macrée, who lived at the beginning of the 20th century , the main source of the history of the Macrean clan is the manuscript of Rev. John Macrée ^{[2] [3]} .

According to historical tradition and tradition, the Macrean clan is of Irish descent, similar to the Mackenzie and Macklin clans . The clan became an independent clan in the lands of Cluns, which is not far from the southern shore of Boli Firth in Lovat. And this happened somewhere in the middle of the XIII century . Then a feud arose between Makre and the more powerful Fraser clan from Lovat . The three sons of the Makre chieftain were expelled from their lands. One settled in Brahan (Gelsk. - Brahan), not far from Dingwall , the second settled in Argyle , the third in Kintail ^[3] .

At that time, the Mackenzie clan dominated Kintail , which was going through hard times. MacRae was a relative of Mackenzie , so the leader of the Mackenzie clan greeted the people of the Mackenzie clan and assured them that they could rely on the help of the Mackenzie clan . Although the name of the man from the Macre clan who settled in Kintail did not reach us, it is known that he married a daughter or granddaughter of MacBeolan, who owned most of Kintail before the capture of these lands by the Mackenzie clan . Alexander Mackenzie approved this marriage and hoped that MacRae would become reliable allies of the Mackenzie clan.

Alexander McRae believes that these events took place somewhere in the beginning of the XIV century , before the Mackenzie clan established itself in Kintail . But he notes that Eilean Donan Castle had a garrison of people from the Macre Clan back in the 13th century , when the castle became part of the possessions of Kenneth, the founder of the Mackenzie line in Kintail .

According to historical tradition, one of the ancestors of the Macre line from Kintail was Fionnla mac Dubh Gillechriosd (Gaelic - Fionnla mac Dubh Gillechriosd). According to the writings of Alexander Macre, two or three generations have passed from the time the Macre clan settled in Kintail to the Fionnly poppy Oak Gillehroysda. Fionna Oak was a contemporary of Murdo Mackenzie, the 5th leader of the Mackenzie clan from Kintail. In 1416, Murdo died and was succeeded by his son Alexander . When the bastard uncle of the young clan leader, Mackenzie, seized power in the clan’s lands and began to oppress the population, Fionna Oak played an important role in returning power to the clan leader. The main lines of Macre from Quintail and Macre from Inverinat come from Fionnla Oak.

Clan MacRae is known as a permanent ally of the Mackenzie clan. In the records of 1520 we see the mention of the Macrean clan as constables of the Eilean-Donan castle. In 1539, the MacDonald clan of Slit laid siege to Eilean Donan Castle in order to regain their dominance on the Islands. Duncan Macrae killed the leader of the Clan MacDonald with an arrow, which put an end to the siege of the castle. Thanks to the permanent service of the Mackenzie clan, the Macrean clan from Kintail became known as the "Mackenzie Chain".

Clan Makre belonged to Rev. Farquhar Macre (Gelsk - Farquhar MacRae), who was born in 1580 . He was a constable of the castle of Eilean-Donan and at the same time an energetic priest and a great expert in Latin. His second son, John Macrae, became Minister of Dingwall in 1640 and died in 1704 .

During the Civil War in the British Isles, the Macrean clan supported the royalists , but not consistently. The clan supported the Earl of Seafort , was on the side of the forces that lost the battle of Aldern in May 1645 , supported the royalists James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose .

The grandson of Rev. Farquhar Macreet, Duncan Macreet of Inverinath, was the compiler of the famous manuscript Fernaig (Gelsk. - Fernaig) in 1688 - 1693 .

The first Jacobite revolt in 1715 turned into a disaster for the Macrean clan. The decisive battle of the rebels with government forces took place at Sheriffmoor , near Stirling . The Macraean warriors were on the left flank, which remained unprotected when the Jacobite cavalry made mistakes. Cavalry of government troops struck the Macre clan unit, then again and again, and so more than 20 times. Of the 663 victims in the ranks of the Jacobites, 58 were from the Macrea clan. Among those killed was Duncan Macrae, a young man who was known for nobleness, high growth, strength, stamina and a tender heart. During the battle, he killed at least 7 enemies before being killed by an English soldier. His sword was exhibited at the Tower as the “Great Highlander's Sword”. Another warrior killed in this battle from the Makre clan is John of Konhra. He distinguished himself in battle and in the mountains he was revered as a brave warrior, as one of the "four John".

In 1721, people from the Ross clan , led by leader William Ross 6 of Pitkalney and his brother Robert, went to collect rent in the lands of the Mackenzie clan. They encountered a detachment of 300 people from the Mackenzie and Macrean clans led by Colonel Donald Murchison. After the clash, the people of the Ross clan realized that further resistance was futile. The next day, the leader’s son Walter Ross died of his wounds, and his nephew William, the son of Robert Ross, was wounded, but survived. This battle went down in history as the battle of Glen Affric .

During the second Jacobite revolt in 1745, the Macrean clan did not support the rebels, but took the position of the British government. The clan formed a squad led by Captain Colin Mackenzie. The Mackenzie clan detachment was under Shiramore in Badenoch in June 1746, this detachment included more than 60 people from the Macrean clan. At the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th centuries, Scottish highlanders intensively emigrated to Canada, the USA , Australia, and New Zealand. Clan McRae has become one of Kintail’s “children scattered around the world.”

Eilean Donan Castle is where three lakes meet - Loch Daych , Loch Long and Loch Alsh . The castle has long been associated with the Macrean clan and has long been a stronghold of the Mackenzie clan . The castle was destroyed by the British Royal Navy in 1719 during the first Jacobite revolt. The ruins of the castle were bought and restored in 1912-1932 by Lt. Col. John Macre-Gilstrap (1861-1937). The beauty of this castle and its interesting location made it one of the most popular tourist sites in the UK .

Septs : Crae, Crea, Cree, MacAra, MacArra, MacCra, MacCrach, MacCrae, MacCraith, MacCraw, MacCray, MacCrea, MacCreath, MacCree, MacCrie, MacCrow, MacCroy, MacGrath, MacGraw, MachRay, MacRa, MacRach , MacRaith, MacRath, MacRaw, MacRay, MacRie, McRae, Rae, Raith, Ray, Rea, Reath, Wray.

• Bain, Robert. The Clans and Tartans of Scotland / MacDougall, Margaret O .. - Glasgow: Collins, 1983. - ISBN 0-00-411117-6 .
• Way of Plean, George ; Squire, Romilly. Clans & Tartans. - Glasgow: HarperCollins, 2000 .-- ISBN 0-00-472501-8 .
• Bush, Cornelia. MacRaes to America !!. - Chapel Hill NC: Chapel Hill Press, 2006 .-- ISBN 978-1-59715-025-5 .

• Clan macrae scotland
• Clan MacRae Society of Canada
• Clan MacRae Society of North America