Blair Collection > Celtic monthly > Volume 2, 1894

THE CELTIC MONTHLY.
233
The genius of the vision liade him so back, and
told him no other measure would turn to his
advantage. The King related his dream, and
many advised hira to return, but the King
would not ; and a little time after he was seized
with a disorder, antl died. The Scottish army
then broke up, and they removed the King's
body to Scotland. The Hebridians say, that the
men whom the King saw in his sleep, were
Saint Olave, King of Norway ; Saint Magnus,
Earl of Orkney ; and Saint Columba."
Alexander III. on attaining his majority,
resolved to complete the designs of his father,
and sent the Earl of Ross against the Isles.
Haco collected an army and assisted by many
Highland chiefs, determined to oppose the forces
of the Scottish King, and if possible assert his
supremacy over the territories in question. In
1263 both armies met at Largs where, as we
know, the Norwegians were totally routed and
Haco's hopes for ever blasted. Ewen, who
during the hostilities had changed his mind and
remained neutral, died without male issue, and
the Lordship of the Isles then passed to the
descendants of Reginald, second son of Somerled
I. This Reginald was a more powerful Prince
even than his father, and it was from him that
those Macdonalds of Kintyre who in other
days ruled with Princely state at Saddell and
Dunaverty, were descended. Kintyre paid the
Lords of the Isles a yearly tribute of five
hundred cows. Islay contributed another five
hundred, and the other isles a like proportion.
Robert Bruce visits the Castle.
One of the Macdonalds surnamed Angus Og,
was the friend of King Robert the Bruce in his
adversity and sheltered him at Saddell and
afterwards at Dunaverty whence he crossed over
to Rathlin after his defeat at Methven in 1306.
This chieftain was the selfsame
"... heir of mighty Somerled,
Ronald, from many a hero sprung.
The fair, the valiant, and the young,
Lord of the Isles, whose lofty name
A thousand bards have given to fame ;"
the true name of the hero as Sir Walter Scott
explains in a foot note being exchanged for
Ronald eiiphoniac gratia. It was to this Angus
also, on his arrival at Torwood, near Falkirk,
that Bruce addi-essed these words still borne as
a motto by the lineal descendants of the Lords
of the Isles : " My hope is constant in thee."
The monarch had waited long and anxiously
and was even beginning to suspect the chieftain's
allegiance, for Edward II. of England with a
mighty force was fast approaching and the battle
which was to decide the fate of Scotland was at
hand. Angus, however, like a ti-ue Highlander
proved as good as his word and nobly repaid his
monarch's confidence by his valiant bearing at
Bannockburn. It is to that juncture indeed
that the poet transfers the words of Bruce : —
" Lord of the Isles, my trust in thee,
Is firm as Ailsa Rock ;
Rush on with Highland sword and targe,
I, with my Carrick spearmen charge ;
Now, forward to the shuck ! "
Upon the failure of the line of Reginald by
the slaughter of Ronald in 134G, the Lordship
of the Isles was inherited by John Macdonald,
Chief of the Clan Donald, who had married his
third cousin Amy, sister of Ronald ; and in this
family it remained until the failure of the direct
line by the death of Donald Dhu in 154.5.
James IV. ascended the Scottish throne in
1488 and in the si.xth year of his reign thrice
visited the Highlands and the Isles, and having
penetrated as far as Dunstaffnage and Mingarry,
reduced most of the refractory chiefs to obedience.
The Lord of the Isles, however, refused to
submit and the King not being then in a condi-
tion to attack him in his strongholds with any
prospect of success, returned to Edinburgh,
where he assembled a Parliament which declared
the title and possession of John, then Lord of
the Isles, to be forfeited to the Crown. Since
that jjeriod the title has been borne by the heir-
apparent to the Scottish throne.
Captured by James IV.
When proceeding on his first expedition,
James landed at Tarbert, Loch Fyne, and having
repaired the fort originally built there l)y his
great ancestor Robert the Bruce, he provided
it with artillery and skilful gunners. On his
return in July he also seized the Castle of
Dunaverty and placed a garrison in it for the
purpose of reducing to submission the rude and
turbulent chiefs of the district. This act gave
great offence to Sir John Macdonald of Islay
who it is said had nourished the hope of regaining
possession of Kintyre which at one time had
belonged to his family. On the first favourable
opportunity the infuriated chieftain collected his
followers, laid siege to the Castle and being
successful showed his contempt for the royal
authority by hanging the governor over the
wall in sight of the King and his fleet. This
savage revolt took James completely by surprise,
but as most of his followers were absent on
another expedition, he was unable to take
immediate steps to punish the rebel chief. But
so promptly were measures taken for the vindi-
cation of the royal authority, that in a short
time Sir John and his four sons were captured
and conveyed to Edinburgh where they were
found guilty of high treason and executed on
the Boroughmuir, a huge tract of land in the
neighbourhood of what is now known as the
district of Bruntsfield.
('I'o be continued.)