Series 2 > Origins of the 'Forty-five

MEMORIAL CONCERNING THE HIGHLANDS 75
Anne as his secondary title, and this country continued
the property of the family till now. Out of Cogach and
some branches of his family in Loch-Broom together
with the few I have mentioned from Assint, the Earl of
Cromarty raised above 200 men for the late Rebellion.
What number he had altogether will be mentioned when
I come to the East Coast where he dwelt.
McKenzies of Loch-Broom
Next to Cogach is Loch-Broom, belonging to several
small Heritors of the name of McKenzie. John McKenzie
of Ardloch and James McKenzie of Cepoch, the only
Papists that I know in all that tract of ground except the
Lady Assint, bred their children Protestants.
Next is the Country of Gairloch, belonging mostly to
McKenzies of Gairloch.
McKenzies of Applecross and Loch-Carran
To the south of it is Applecross a new erection in the
year 1720. And next to it Loch-Carran. To this last
place, the Earl of Seaforth,1 as we call him here, retired
when the Rebels retreated North and gathered 600 or 800
of his men about him by which he kept them in readiness
for any service proper for him to do and preserved them
from straggling companies of the Rebels who went about
recruiting men. This last is the property of the Earl.
Mathesons and Murchisons of Loch Ailsh
Next to the South is the country of Loch Ailsh the
property of the Seaforth Family. The McDonalds of
Glengarry of old pretended right to the country and had
many battles and skirmishes with the McKenzies about
it. The last was a Sea-fight in Birlins and Boats, with
long poles, corn forks and Lochabyr axes, in which the
McDonalds were defeated, and Glengary with many of his
company killed.2 This happened before the Reformation.
1 See post, p. 104.
, 2 A battle at Sgeir na Caillich on Lochalsh, between the Straits of Kylerhea
and Kyleakin. According to the Clan Donald historians, the battle was fought
in 1603. It was not Glengarry (Donald, 7th of Glengarry, who died in 1645,
aged 102), but his eldest son Angus, ‘Young Glengarry,’ who was killed.