Rathad mor a Ceann-loch-iu,Rathad ur a Ghearloch;Gabhaidh sinn an rathad morOlc na math le cach e.—Gaelic Song.
Rathad mor a Ceann-loch-iu,Rathad ur a Ghearloch;Gabhaidh sinn an rathad morOlc na math le cach e.—Gaelic Song.
The high road to Kenlochewe,The new road to Gairloch;Storm or sunshine, take with meThe high road to Gairloch.—Free rendering.
The high road to Kenlochewe,The new road to Gairloch;Storm or sunshine, take with meThe high road to Gairloch.—Free rendering.
Gairlochis a typical Highland parish on the west coast of Ross-shire. Its length, from Loch Rosque toRudha Reidh, is thirty miles, and its width is fifteen miles, so that it is one of the most extensive parishes in Great Britain.
The name "Gairloch" is composed of two Gaelic words,gearrandloch.Gearrmeans "short"; and the sea-loch which gives its name to the parish is appropriately called short, as compared with Loch Broom, Loch Ewe, and other more deeply indented arms of the sea. The native spelling and pronunciation of the name prove the derivation beyond all question.
There is a curious muddle in the old and new Statistical Accounts about the origin of the name Gairloch. In the former (Appendix C) it is said to have been taken from "a very small loch near the church and the house of Flowerdale, and so close by the shore that the sea at high tides covers it." In the New Statistical Account (Appendix E) "a hollow spot of ground" is spoken of as "the Gairloch," and the writer states that the natives allege that the parish takes its name from it. The explanation is supplied by the story of Hector Roy and the three M'Leods given inPart I., chap. ix. The place referred to as "a very small loch" and "ahollow spot of ground," is now represented by a well, still called "the Gairloch" from the reason given in that story, but it did not originate the name of the parish.
The name Gairloch is used in four different senses both in the following pages and among the inhabitants. It means,—
1. The sea-loch or bay of Gairloch.2. The whole parish.3. The place at the head of the sea-loch where the hotel, &c., stand, more properly called Achdistall.4. The original estate of the Mackenzie lairds of Gairloch.
1. The sea-loch or bay of Gairloch.
2. The whole parish.
3. The place at the head of the sea-loch where the hotel, &c., stand, more properly called Achdistall.
4. The original estate of the Mackenzie lairds of Gairloch.
These various meanings are a little confusing, but the context generally makes clear what is intended.
Considerations of health, followed by growing appreciation of the charms of Gairloch, have caused me to make my Highland home in this out-of-the-world parish. Its romantic scenery and health-giving climate are its most obvious attractions; but add to these its wonderful legends and traditions, the eventful history of its dominant family, the story of its old ironworks, the interesting peculiarities of its Highland inhabitants, the distinction conferred upon it by the visit of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, the great geological controversy about its rocks, the sport its waters afford to the angler, the varied subjects it displays to the artist, and the pregnant fields of research it yields to the scientist, and you have a list of allurements it would be difficult to beat elsewhere. Though its boundary line extends to within five miles of the railway, Gairloch still preserves many of the characteristics of old days, and these not only possess a peculiar fascination for most people, but are also well fitted to arouse and nourish a spirit of investigation.
The famous Loch Maree (with the small but romantic islet known as Isle Maree) is surrounded by the finest scenery in the parish. Their attractions bring annually some three thousand visitors to Gairloch. One might have fancied that such an influx of people would have led to the accumulation of a large and increasing stock of knowledge of this Highland parish, but as a rule the visitors are hereto-day and gone to-morrow, and take no thorough interest in the country or its inhabitants.
Some years ago I happened to travel by the railway from Inverness to Achnasheen in the company of a pleasant party, comprising a gentleman and three ladies, who were making a tour in the Highlands. They boasted that, though their time had been limited to a very few days, they would have seen the greater part of the Highlands before they returned home. On the day I fell in with them their object was to see Loch Maree. To accomplish this they had arranged by telegraph for a carriage and pair to await the arrival of the train at Achnasheen. The day proved wet and misty, and I saw them leave the railway station in a close carriage. I followed soon after on the mail-car. A short delay took place at Kenlochewe whilst the horses were changed. There I found my fellow-travellers enjoying their lunch in the hotel. They told me that although the day was too wet for them to drive down to the shore of the loch, and too misty to admit of its being fully seen from a distance, yet they were quite able to say that they had seen Loch Maree, for at one point they had put their heads out of the windows of their carriage during a brief cessation of the rain and had distinctly seen the water of the loch! They were returning to Achnasheen as soon as they had swallowed their lunch, to catch the train back to Inverness the same afternoon.
These tourists, who thus professed to have "seen Loch Maree," were a fair type of too many of those who rush through Gairloch, as if their sole object were to cover the most ground in the shortest possible time, and who thus fail to obtain any true perception of the belongings of the country, even of the scenery.
There are first-rate hotels within the parish, and lodgings may frequently be hired, or a furnished house taken. The hotels offer the inducement of lower terms to those whose visits exceed the usually brief period.
Impressions of scenery are fixed by repetition; insight into nature is deepened by observation; and knowledge of a country is vastly more valuable if it include some acquaintance with the population, their characters, condition, and means of livelihood. Too many visitors overlook their opportunities in these directions.
Some remarks are necessary with regard to the traditions of Gairloch, contained mostly inPart I. In recent times there has been a tendency to discredit all such traditions, and to treat them as symbolic or didactic legends, or as localisations (with extra colouring) of myths common to the heroic period of every country. The principal features of one or two of the Gairloch traditions are certainly to be found in stories of other parts of the Highlands, and occasionally, but rarely, a resemblance may even be traced to the plot of some ancient European myth. On the other hand, it is to be noted that the Highland bards, down to the present time, have regularly transmitted their stories in precisely the same language from one trained memory to another, so that even the very words put into the mouths of thedramatis personæhave been insisted upon in every transmission. Another point to be noticed is, that except in two instances the Gairloch traditions do not date further back than four centuries. In the older legends referred to, visible evidences, such as the tombstones in Isle Maree and the cave at Ardlair, may perhaps be considered confirmatory. For my own part, I am disposed to accept all the traditions as generally worthy of credence. Much interest in the locality is gained by doing this, and certainly nothing is lost!
A difficulty the visitor to Gairloch always experiences is due to the Gaelic names. The Glossary should help to overcome this obstacle. Not only does it include the meanings of the Gaelic words, but it attempts to indicate their pronunciations. I am bound to warn the reader that the pronunciations stated are only approximate. There are sounds in the Gaelic language which cannot be expressed by English tongues or to English ears by any combinations of letters. Yet most of the pronunciations stated are sufficiently near the truth to answer ordinary purposes. I recommend the reader to refer to the Glossary at the occurrence of each Gaelic name in the book, and those names and their import will soon become familiar. The Gaelic sound ofchis about the same as that of the Germanch; it does not occur in the English language, but unless you can master it there is no use in your trying to speak even the two leading names in this parish,—viz., Gairloch, and Loch Maree. Whatever you do, pray avoid pronouncinglochas if it werelock. This is the most egregious error made by many southerners in trying to speak the commonest Highland names.
In communicating to the public the information about Gairloch contained in the following pages, I claim the right to offer a word or two of counsel and entreaty.
I would submit that it is unfair, as well as discourteous, to interfere with the rights of those who take deer forests or rent sheep farms. Rambles on upland moors and mountain ascents are almost certain to injure the sport or privileges of others. I am aware there is a strong feeling that every one ought to have access to mountains. Whether this be legalised by Parliament or not, I would appeal to the visitor here to refrain from the illiberality and discourtesy of spoiling other people's hardly-earned and well-paid-for privileges. There is plenty of room for all. Why should unpleasant feelings be stirred up, and tourists as a class be blamed for the intolerance of a few? All the mountains and hills of Gairloch are haunts of the red deer or feeding-grounds of sheep, and no ascents ought to be undertaken unless by due arrangement, which cannot be expected in the deer-stalking season, and which, when obtainable, should be made with the head-keeper of the ground.
There are some drawbacks to mountain ascents that may help the visitor more willingly to forego them. How often the view from a summit is entirely blotted out by clouds or mist, or marred by the distance being lost in haze! How often the fine morning that induced the expedition is followed by a stormy afternoon! To these must be added the frequent injury to health caused by the unusual strain on the systems of persons unaccustomed to mountaineering, and the possible risk of being lost in mist. It is hoped that tourists will be content with the shorter climbs recommended inPart IV. Artists tell us that landscapes seen from lower elevations are more thoroughly picturesque than the bird's-eye views from mountain tops.
Again, I entreat botanists and others looking for wild flowers and plants to abstain from rooting up the rare or beautiful things they may find, and from trespassing in places where their presence is obviously not required. The mania for removing every fragment of an uncommon plant has grown much of late years,—witness the extermination of the edelweiss from some of its best known habitats on the Swiss Alps. Who does not remember places whence ourown rare holly-fern has within the past few years been eradicated? A few years ago that comparatively scarce fern the sea-spleenwort (asplenium marinum) was abundant within three hundred yards of the Gairloch Hotel; now it is unknown there. A gentleman fond of botany planted some uncommon ferns not natives of Ross-shire in a wood in Gairloch parish; they were soon discovered by tourists staying at a neighbouring hotel, who ruthlessly removed the whole. Instances of this kind have brought the British tourist into disrepute in many parts of the world.
It is in the spirit of these remarks that I beg to introduce the reader to the charms of Gairloch and Loch Maree.
Theblessedness attributed to the nation without a history cannot be assigned to the parish of Gairloch. Although her ancient history has never been written, it is to be feared her inhabitants were far from wholly blessed in the far off days of yore. The earlier annals of Gairloch are indeed veiled in mists, almost as impenetrable as those that often shroud her mountains. Amid the gloom there are faint glimpses to be had of the wild natives of the district, of fierce warriors from other lands, and of saintly Christian pioneers; but complete pictures of the doings of those old times can be found only in the galleries of the imagination. The same everlasting hills still tower over the same straths, glens, and lochs; but the actors are changed, the play has another plot, with incidents of a very different kind. In a region so innocent of letters, so inaccessible to the scholar, it is easy to account for the total absence of ancient records. The narratives of the seannachies, or bards, handed down by oral tradition from generation to generation, might have been expected to fill in the blank, yet it is only in the stories of some few salient adventures that these traditions have been preserved beyond the past four centuries.
Even imagination fails to carry us further back than the Picts or Celts or Gaels, who are supposed to have been the aborigines of all the British Isles. They were a wild warlike race,—wild from their rough struggling state of existence, warlike in their constant attitude of self-defence. Some have supposed that there were giants among them in those days, and that these were the originals of the colossal heroes of the Fingalian legends. The name of the Giant's Point (Ru Nohar) on Loch Maree, and the discoveries in the neighbourhood of what are alleged to be enormous graves, give some colour to the supposition. There are slight traces of Fingalian legends still current in the parish. Thus the hollow near the Gairloch Established Church, in which the Free Church communion services are held, is said to have been scooped out by Fingal for a bed where his white cow might calve. It is still calledLeabaidh na Ba Bàine, or the bed of the white cow. Then the large stones in Loch Maree, in a line between the base of the Fox Point and the nearest part of the opposite shore, are said to have been placed there by Fingal for stepping-stones, to keep his feet dry when going this way to court Malvina, who lived in the direction ofTorridon. Only an enormous giant could have stepped from stone to stone; they are to this day called the sweetheart's stepping-stones. Again, there is a mound in a depression near the summit ofBeinn Tarsuinn, calledSuidheachan Fhinn, or Fingal's seat, where they say he used to sit and spy when hunting on the mountains. These fragments are all we are told of Fingal's doings in Gairloch.
Though we know nothing of their history, we can infer much regarding the condition of the original Pictish inhabitants of Gairloch. That they were numerous, we may judge from the several remains of Pictish brochs or round houses to be seen in the parish. These are doubtless but samples of numbers of others, still buried beneath moss and heather, or long since obliterated by agricultural operations. Each broch was the abode of several families, huddled together beneath its roof of skins. Most of the primitive weapons or implements to be enumerated in the chapter on the antiquities of Gairloch belonged to the Pictish natives of the parish. Our eyes may see, our hands may grasp, the very implements these Gairloch men formed and used possibly before the Christian era; and as we look upon them we may readily conceive how straitened were their owners' circumstances. Amongst the antiquities some alleged Druidical remains will be mentioned. Whether these were really Druidical or no, it is certain that the religion of this district before Christianity took root was that of the Druids. The sacrifices of bulls on Isle Maree, practised, as we shall see, so lately as 1678, were unquestionably relics of the rites celebrated by the Druidical priests, though they themselves had vanished a thousand years before.
When Agricola invaded Scotland ina.d.81, the tribe of Picts who inhabited Ross-shire was called the Cantæ. A punster might be excused for remarking (and that truly), that in Gairloch at least the race is still "canty,"i.e.knowing. It is not probable that the Romans ever reached this part of Ross-shire; the nearest evidence of their invasion is some trace of their roads in Strathspey, a hundred miles from Gairloch. It is very likely that Gairloch men helped their fellow Celts in the battles with the Romans. Tacitus relates how the Highlanders at that period made sacrifices before going to battle, and fought with broadsword and targe. The country was then almost destitute of agriculture, being mostly vast forests and morasses, teeming with wolves and other wild beasts; the possessions of the people were herds of cattle.
When the Romans abandoned Britain, abouta.d.446, the Picts were under the sway of a king called Drust, the son of Erp, who is said to have lived a hundred years, and to have fought a hundred battles. The Pictish monarchy continued untila.d.843, when Kenneth II. took Camelon, the capital of the Picts; on this the kings of Scotland, and subsequently of Great Britain, became at least the nominal rulers of the Highlands.
The introduction of Christianity brought a refining and civilising element to the rough people of the North, but it was many centuries before its influence became general. St Columba began his mission ina.d.563, and the ecclesiastical establishment at Iona was theresult. Local tradition says the little chapel at Sand of Udrigil, in Gairloch parish, was built by St Columba, or one of his immediate followers. But it was StMaelrubhawho was the apostle of Gairloch and of the adjoining parish of Applecross; he founded the church of Applecrossa.d.673, and died there on 21st Aprila.d.722. He appears to have made his Gairloch home on Isle Maree, a site that suggests the necessity, at least at first, of the Christian missionary having recourse to the protection afforded by an insular position. The new teaching soon displaced the Paganism of the Druids, though, in accordance with the policy of the early Christian church, the sacrifices of bulls were permitted, as we have seen, for a thousand years afterwards. The first church of Gairloch was dedicated to StMaelrubha; it was probably not erected until many years after his death. Tradition says that his cell on Isle Maree was occupied for some generations by the successors of this holy man; one of them is mentioned in the legend of the island given in the next chapter.
During the rule of the Pictish kings the Norwegian Vikings made continual raids upon the Highlands, at first as independent pirates, but later on as vassals of Harold Harfager, the first king of all Norway. About the end of the ninth century the Norwegians became so powerful as to be able to establish a separate and independent kingdom in Orkney and the Western Isles. Parts of Ross-shire were frequently ravaged, and often held, by them. In Gairloch they have left a number of footprints in the names of places. Thus the Islands Longa and Foura exhibit the Norwegian suffixa, meaning an island. The Vikings used to retire during the winter months to small islands off the coast, where they laid up their vessels. The names of these two Gairloch islands, according to the Rev. Isaac Taylor, bear curious evidence to their having been the winter quarters of Vikings. The tragic legend of Isle Maree, given in the next chapter, is an episode in the career of one of these piratical princes. A large Gairloch island is named Thorisdale, after the Norse god Thor. Among other Norwegian names in Gairloch is "Sgeir,"i.e.a detached rock; it occurs inSgeir Bhoora,Sgeir an Fharaig, &c. So also the suffixdaleordalis Norwegian; it occurs in Thorisdale, Talladale, Slatadale, Erradale, Inverasdale, &c. Naast is believed to be a Norwegian name. Other Norse names are given in theGlossary.
It has been supposed that the Danes did not invade the west coast, but an examination of Gairloch names shews that they were most likely here. Some of the Vikings were Danes. Mr Taylor says that the terminationaigsignifies a small bay, and is Danish; it occurs in a number of Gairloch names (see theGlossary). The Danes were driven out of Scotland in 1040.
There can be no doubt that both Norwegians and Danes intermarried with the people of Gairloch, and thus the native Pictish breed became a mixed race. One can almost identify Norwegian and Danish types of face in Gairloch to this day.
The dominion of the Norwegian monarchs over the Hebrides and some parts of the mainland was broken by the defeat of Haco theaged king of Norway, at the battle of Largs, on 3d October 1263. His successor Magnus, in 1266, ceded the whole of the Scottish territory held by Norway (except Orkney and Shetland) to the king of Scotland. An Icelandic saga states that Ross-shire was part of the dominion of the earls of Orkney under Norway, whilst another authority regards it as part of Scotland. In all probability the wild Highlanders of Ross had never entirely submitted to either king. Though the king of Norway at this time abandoned all claim to Ross-shire, yet some tribes of Norwegian descent long afterwards held Gairloch; they were the MacBeaths and M'Leods, of whom more shortly.
The earls of Ross followed the Norwegians in the rule of the Northern Highlands. They were of the ancient Celtic family of the O'Beolans, and had been the Pictish maormors of Ross before the title of earl (comes) took the place of the older Pictish designation. Gairloch, as a part of North Argyle, was included by name in the Sheriffdom of Skye, erected in 1292 by King John Balliol. This is believed to be the first mention of Gairloch in existing records. King Robert Bruce confirmed the possession of Gairloch to the earls of Ross between 1306 and 1329. In 1366 Earl William granted "to Paul M'Tyre and to his heirs by Mary of Grahame, with remainder to the lawful heirs of Paul, the lands of Gerloch within the parts of Argyle, for yearly payment of a penny of silver in name of blench ferme in lieu of every other service except the forinse service of the king when required." In 1372 King Robert II. confirmed the grant. Paul M'Tyre is stated to have been a cousin of Earl William; we hear no more of him.
Earl William left only a daughter, who married Walter Leslie. They had a son, Alexander, who became Earl of Ross, and also a daughter, who married Donald, Lord of the Isles. Earl Alexander married a daughter of the Regent, Robert Duke of Albany. Their only child Euphemia died young in 1406, after she had resigned her title to the son of the regent. Donald, Lord of the Isles, by virtue of his marriage with the daughter of Walter Leslie, laid claim to the earldom of Ross, in opposition to the regent's son. After a prolonged strife the earldom of Ross was forfeited, and annexed to the crown in 1476. During the unsettled period which began with Donald's ambitious claim, Gairloch seems to have been in a state of anarchy. Not only the MacBeaths and M'Leods struggled for its possession, but the Macdonalds, as clansmen of the Lord of the Isles, appear to have overrun the district.
Meanwhile the Mackenzies of Kintail had grown to be a great power in Ross-shire, and being of the same original stock as the O'Beolan earls of Ross, they had a better right to Gairloch than the other claimants, all of whom in turn gave way to the victorious Mackenzies.
The legends and narratives which follow are placed as nearly as may be in chronological order. They all belong to the period of the Mackenzies, except that of the tragedy of Isle Maree, which forms our next chapter; it occurred long before.
IsleMaree was as sweet a spot at the end of the ninth century as it is now. A thick grove of tall trees crowded round its circular Druidical enclosure. There were noble specimens of the indigenous oak, so mysteriously connected with the Druidical worship; there was a dense thicket of the smooth-leaved holly, the sacred tree brought here by StMaelrubhahimself, who, it would seem, intended it to become (as it did) a Christian rival to the Pagan oak. Then, as now, the undergrowth of ferns and flowers, and a large kind of grass, attained almost tropical proportions beneath the benign influence of the warm shade.
The scene of our story is laid in this beautiful and hallowed island. StMaelrubhahad been long gathered to his fathers, and the sacred college of Iona had appointed a successor to his hermitage on Isle Maree, who in turn had made room for another. The occupant of the cell at the date of our story is an aged saint of peculiar sagacity and piety. Long known to the wild people of Gairloch for his bold denunciations and shrewd penetration, he had acquired by his stern eloquence and ascetic life an extraordinary influence over them. The Christian festivals brought successive offerings to the sainted hermit, and the island oft resounded with the psalms of David chaunted by the throng of faithful pilgrims.
But not only the common people resorted to the cell of the holy man; the Norse Vikings, who held the district in partial subjugation, frequently came to him for the ministrations of religion and for the benefit of his sage counsel. To one and all, to young and old, to Celt and Norwegian, he was alike accessible.
A young Norwegian prince was chief among the Vikings who then dominated this part of the west coast. Prince Olaf was of the blood royal of Norway, and on this account alone would have been willingly adopted by his fellows as their leader, had not his personal bravery and reckless daring secured to him the post of honour. He had a grievous failing,—a restless and ungovernable temper. Naturally high-spirited, he had been as a boy the spoilt darling of his fellows, and had grown up a creature of impulse, subject to paroxysms of fearful passion. Whenever he was thwarted in his plans, or roused to anger by foe or friend, the evil spirit came upon him, and he lost all command of himself.
The prince lived with his fighting men in his great war galley, except during the winter, when they encamped on one or other of the islands of Loch Ewe. Often would Olaf repair to the hermitage of Isle Maree, and receive from the saint kindly advice and priestly absolution.
It was natural that one so impulsive should early fall under the influence of the tender passion. We need not try to imagine the story of Olaf's love; it was no common attachment; the flame burned in his breast with an intensity becoming his fiery spirit.
But a difficulty arose. He was unwilling, at least at first, to ask his bride to exchange the comparative quietude of her father's home for the restless life of a ship of war. In dire perplexity he sought the advice of his friend the saint of Isle Maree. The wise old man proposed that another and a larger dwelling should be erected in the form of a tower to the west of the enclosure in the centre of which stood his own humble cell. To this tower Olaf might bring his bride and there they might take up their abode, within easy reach of the prince's galley on Loch Ewe.
To hasten on. The prince eagerly adopted this plan, and in a short time the tower was built, and Olaf brought his bonny bride to the island. Here they were married by the aged hermit, amid the rejoicings of their followers. The princess and her maidens were delighted with the romantic and secure retreat. Olaf's attendants pitched their tents around, and the leafy grove grew gay with joyful laughter and with genial song.
For a while all went smoothly. The life of the young lovers was a continual delight; their passion for one another only increased as months rolled on. In vain his comrades sent message after message entreating the presence of the prince on board his ship. He could not tear himself away from his darling, and she in turn was more than unwilling that he should leave her. At length there came word that a long-planned expedition, in which other leaders were to take part, was ready to start, and Olaf was expected to assume the command. He dared no longer remain in retirement. With aching heart he told the princess of his approaching departure. Her tears were unavailing; on the morrow he must leave. Meanwhile strange forebodings of evil filled the minds of both. What if he should be slain in battle! What if some unknown danger should cause her death in his absence! A scheme was concocted for shortening the final moments of suspense. It was agreed that when the prince should return, a white flag would be displayed from his barge on Loch Maree if all were well; if otherwise, a black flag would be shewn. The maidens prepared these flags, and the prince took them with him. The princess was to leave the island in her barge whenever her lord's boat should come in sight, and she in like manner was to display a white or black flag to denote her safety or the reverse.
The morning came, and they parted. The prince arrived at Poolewe, was received by his men with wild enthusiasm, and set sail at once. It is not necessary that we should follow him through the perilous campaign. Enough that all ended well, and the victorious prince returned safely to Poolewe. In hot haste, and half crazy with excitement, he sought his boat on Loch Maree, raised with his own hand the snow-white banner of success, and mustered the faithful attendants who were to row him to Isle Maree.
During his absence the princess had passed through several phases of anxiety. At first despair took possession of her heart, and it was long ere the good old saint and her own maidens were able to soothe her with words of hope. As she became calmer, a new misgiving occurred to her. Did Olaf prefer the excitement of warfareto the peaceful society of his bride? Had she lost the devotion of his heart? Did he really love her? Then horrible jealousy became her absorbing feeling. Was the faithless prince to treat her as an insignificant plaything, to be caressed one day and deserted the next? It was all in vain that her companions strove to check this new folly; she declared continually that her husband had never truly loved her. Under the influence of this crushing doubt, she devised a scheme whereby she resolved to test the reality of his vaunted affection, if indeed he should ever return.
LOCH MAREE FROM INVERAN.
At last the lookout announced that he saw the prince's barge, bearing the white flag, emerge from the river Ewe into the open loch. And now what emotions filled the breast of the lovely princess! What conflicting sentiments, love and doubt, joy and fear! All had been arranged to carry out her strange scheme. The large barge was ready; from its stern the black flag was raised aloft; a bier was placed in the centre of the barge on which the princess herself—now pallid with anxiety—reclined as if sleeping the sleep of death; a white shroud covered her recumbent form; around were grouped her maidens, gloomy with well-simulated grief; and the sad and silent rowers moved the barge slowly onwards toward the lower end of Loch Maree.
Meanwhile Olaf gazed earnestly in the direction of the island (which was kept in sight all the way), urging anon his willing crew to put forth their utmost speed. Soon, in the distance, he discovered the barge of the princess. Could he be mistaken? Was that the black flag of death which waved above it? He made all his men in turn scrutinize the approaching barge, and each reluctantly confirmed what Olaf's own eyes had testified. Gradually the prince grew frantic with awful despair. Was he to be thus foiled by evil fate in the very hour of his triumph? Had death snatched his darling from his fond embrace? Were they never to meet again? Yes, he would follow her to that heavenly home the holy father had often told them of! His agony increased each moment; he cursed; he raved; his manly face became like a maniac's; his words andgestures were those of a man possessed. The crew were horror-struck; none dared speak; they pulled the oars with what seemed superhuman strength, but the wind was against them, and some time elapsed before the barges were alongside. The dreadful interval served only to increase the prince's frenzy; his wild ravings became unintelligible.
Before the vessels touched, the madman leapt into the other barge. He saw the shroud; he raised it; he gazed a moment on the still, pale face of his bride; he gave one agonized cry; then he plunged his dirk in his own breast, and in a moment that storm-tossed heart ceased to beat!
And now the miserable princess sprang from the bier, convinced too late of her husband's passionate love; there he lay dead, she alone the cause; with a wild shriek of remorse, she drew the dirk from Olaf's heart and plunged it in her own. Her death was not so instantaneous as his, and life had not quite fled when the barge, with its terrible freight, arrived at Isle Maree. The holy father raised the crucifix before the lady's closing eyes, and uttered words of earnest prayer; then her spirit passed away, and all was over.
The bodies of the unhappy pair were buried within the enclosure on the island, beneath the shade of the sacred hollies; they were laid with their feet towards each other, and smooth stones with outlines of mediæval crosses (seeillustration) were placed over the graves, and there remain to this day. A few stones still indicate the site of the hermit's cell, and a considerable mound marks where the tower stood.
Such, with some little filling-in of detail, is the story as commonly told in Gairloch of the sad tragedy which casts a halo of romance around the beautiful Isle Maree. There are, as might be expected, some slightly different versions of the legend, but this is the most usual one. Its variations in form only go to prove its general truthfulness, and there is no reason to doubt that the tragedy really occurred substantially as here related; the tombstones, with their ancient crosses, are still to be seen, and there is no other account of them proposed.
CROSSES ON THE GRAVES OF THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS ON ISLE MAREE.
Twoorigins of the great house of Mackenzie, lords of Kintail, and afterwards earls of Seaforth, of whom the Gairloch family are a branch, have been propounded, and have given rise to considerable discussion.
By one pedigree they have been made to spring from Colin Fitzgerald, descendant of Otho who came to England with William the Conqueror, fought with him at the battle of Hastings in 1066, and was created Castellan and Baron of Windsor. Otho married a Welsh princess; their grandson Maurice distinguished himself in the subjugation of Ireland, was appointed to the joint government of that country, and was created Baron of Wicklow and Naas Offelim in 1172. Others say this Maurice was of the ancient Tuscan family of Gherardini, who date as far back asa.d.800. Gerald, a son of Maurice, was created Lord Offally. A grandson of Gerald married the grand-daughter and representative of the last of the ancient line of the kings of Desmond. Colin Fitzgerald was their eldest son. He came to Scotland, and assisted Alexander III. at the battle of Largs. It is said that Colin was afterwards settled by Alexander III. in Eileandonain Castle, in Kintail; that he received a grant of the lands of Kintail from that king; that he married the daughter of MacMhathain, heritor of the half of Kintail; and that their only son Kenneth became the progenitor of the clan MacKenneth, or Mackenzie.
The use of theCabar Feidh, or deers' horns, as the crest of the Mackenzies, is supposed to have originated in a brave deed done by Colin Fitzgerald. He was hunting with Alexander III. in the forest of Mar in 1265 when an infuriated stag, closely pursued by the hounds, charged the king. Colin interposed, and shot the stag in the head with an arrow. The grateful monarch granted to Colin a stag's head puissant as his armorial bearing.
The other genealogy of the Mackenzies asserts that the first Kenneth from whom the family sprang was of a native Gaelic stock, almost as ancient as the ancestry of Fitzgerald. This descent is argued by Mr Alexander Mackenzie, in his History of the Mackenzies. Relying on an old MS. dated 1450, he shows that Kenneth was of the seed of Gilleon Og, or Colin the younger, son of Gilleon na h'Airde, who lived in the tenth century, and was also the ancestor of the O'Beolan earls of Ross. It seems that AngusMacMhathain, constable ofEileandonain, was descended from Gilleon Og, and was a near relative of the O'Beolan earls of Ross, who were the superior lords of Kintail. Kenneth, the only son of Angus, was a nephew of William, third Earl of Ross, and succeeded his father in the government of Kintail. This Kenneth, we may assume, was the founder of the Mackenzie family.
The question really seems to be whether Kenneth was aMacMhathainon his father's side or on his mother's side. In either case he had the blood of the earls of Ross flowing in his veins.
Kenneth, who died about 1304, set his relative, the Earl of Ross, at defiance, and established himself in an independent position as lord of Kintail, but his descendants were harassed by the earls of Ross, who endeavoured to regain their power in the district.
John Mackenzie, the second lord of Kintail, and only son of Kenneth, sheltered Robert Bruce when he was in hiding, and afterwards assisted him to gain the throne of Scotland. John Mackenzie led five hundred of his clansmen—some of them possibly Gairloch men—to the victorious field of Bannockburn on 24th June 1314, and by his loyalty and valour rendered more secure his possessions in Kintail.
Kenneth Mackenzie, called Kenneth of the Nose, only son of John, became third chief of Kintail; he was a weak man, and in his time the Earl of Ross regained a considerable hold over the district.
Kenlochewe, which is part of Gairloch in the present day, was attached to the lordship of Kintail and shared its troubles. It was about 1350 that some of the followers of the Earl of Ross made a raid into Kenlochewe, and carried off a great spoil. Kenneth Mackenzie, third lord of Kintail, pursued them, slew many of the invaders, and recovered much of the spoil. The Earl of Ross after this succeeded in apprehending Mackenzie, and had him executed at Inverness. The Earl then granted the lands of Kenlochewe to his follower Leod Mac Gilleandreis.
The fourth lord of Kintail was Black Murdo of the Cave, only lawful son of Kenneth of the Nose. Murdo received thissoubriquetbecause, being a wild youth, he preferred, rather than attend the ward school where the heirs of those who held their lands from the king were sent, to take up his abode in some one or other of the caves about Torridon and Kenlochewe, hoping to get a chance of slaying Leod Mac Gilleandreis. The latter hearing of Murdo's resort, and fearing mischief, endeavoured to apprehend him, so that Murdo had to flee the country. He went to his uncle, M'Leod of the Lews, and there met oneGille Riabhach, who had come to Stornoway with twelve men about the same time as himself. After so long a time had elapsed thatMac Gilleandreissupposed Murdo was dead, his uncle gave to Murdo one of his great galleys or birlinns, with as many men as he desired. Murdo embarked at Stornoway, accompanied also byGille Riabhachand his twelve men, and with a favourable wind they soon arrived at Sanachan in Kishorn. Thence they marched straight to Kenlochewe, and concealed themselves in a thick wood near the house ofMac Gilleandreis. Mackenzie left his followers there, whilst he went to look for his old nurse, who lived thereabouts. He found her engaged in making up a bundle of sticks to carry to Leod's house. Murdo inquired her name, for he did not remember her face at first. She gave her name, and inquired in return who he was. He told her, on which she replied, "Let me see your back, and I will know if you are that man." She remembered that he had a black spot on his back. He took off his clothes, and she saw the black spot, and so she knew him. She was overjoyed at his return, having long grieved for his supposed death. He asked her to procure him information of Leod's doings, and to lethim know that night. He made up the bundle of sticks for her, and she went to Leod's house, and duly returned with the news that Leod had fixed a hunt for the next day, and was to meet the people at Kenlochewe in the morning. She said Leod might be known by the red jacket he wore. Murdo determined to take advantage of this occasion, and was early on the ground, accompanied by his followers. As the people arrived he slew all he did not recognise; the natives he knew were dismissed to their homes. When Leod, in his red jacket, came on the ground with his sons and attendants, Murdo and his band attacked them with their swords, and after a slight resistance Mac Gilleandreis and his followers fled, but were soon overtaken at a place ever since calledFe Leoid, where they were all slain except one of Leod's sons, named Paul, who was taken prisoner, but afterwards released on his promising never again to molest Mackenzie. Murdo gave the widow ofLeod Mac GilleandreistoGille Riabhachto wife, and their posterity were long known at Kenlochewe. The heads of the people who were slain in Kenlochewe were cut off and thrown into the river there; the stream carried the heads down to a ford, where they massed together, and this place has ever since been called Ath-nan-ceann, or the "ford of the heads." The name is now corrupted into Athnagown or Anagown. It is shewn on the maps. The place whereLeod Mac Gilleandreisand his followers were slain is about three miles from Kenlochewe, on the hill to the east of the Torridon road. The name Fe Leoid, more correctly writtenFeith Leoid, means the bog of Leod; it is also shewn on all the maps.
Black Murdo of the Cave, after dispossessingLeod Mac Gilleandreis, went to Kintail, where he was received with open arms by all the people of the country. He married the only daughter of his friend Macaulay, who had defendedEileandonainCastle during his long absence, and through her Mackenzie succeeded to the lands of Loch Broom (including probably the parts of Gairloch lying to the north of Loch Maree and Loch Ewe), granted to Macaulay's predecessor by Alexander II. In 1357, when David II., king of Scotland, returned from England, Murdo laid before his majesty a complaint against the Earl of Ross for the murder of his father, but could obtain no redress; however the king confirmed him in his possession of Kintail by charter dated 1362. Murdo died in 1375.
Murdo of the Bridge, only son of Black Murdo of the Cave, became the fifth lord of Kintail. He was one of the Highland chiefs who accompanied the Earl of Douglas to England and defeated the renowned Hotspur at the battle of Otterburn, or Chevy Chase, on 10th August 1388. Murdo refused to join Donald, the great Lord of the Isles, in his insurrection which culminated in the battle of Harlaw. The history of the Highlands shows that this was a period of extreme disorder and violence, and Gairloch itself was not exempt from the terrors of anarchy. Murdo does not appear to have troubled his head about his rights in Gairloch, and, as other parts of our history will shew, it was overrun by several tribes. Possibly neither this Murdo nor his father pressed their claim to Gairloch, being sufficiently occupied in keeping possession of Kintail.Ten years after King Robert II. had confirmed Kintail to Black Murdo of the Cave, the same king confirmed the grant of Gairloch made by the Earl of Ross to Paul M'Tyre (Part I., chap. i.). But we hear no more of Paul M'Tyre; and, as an old writer has well said of this time, "during this turbulent age securities and writs, as well as laws, were little regarded; each man's protection lay in his own strength."
Murdo of the Bridge, who died about 1416, married Finguala, daughter of Malcolm M'Leod of Harris by his wife Martha, daughter of Donald Earl of Mar, a nephew of King Robert Bruce. Their only son, Alexander the Upright, so called "for his righteousness," became the sixth laird of Kintail. He died in 1488, about ninety years of age. By his first wife, Anna Macdougall of Dunolly, he had two sons, Kenneth and Duncan. By his second marriage he had one son, known among Highlanders asEachainn Ruadh, or Hector Roy, destined to become the famous founder of the Gairloch family. There was also a daughter by the second marriage, who became the wife of Allan M'Leod, laird of Gairloch.
In the year 1452, during the rule of Alexander the Upright, the desperate skirmish ofBeallach nan Brogoccurred, in which the Earl of Ross, to punish the western tribes for seizing his son, attacked and slaughtered his foes, including Mackenzie's Kenlochewe men, who are said to have been almost exterminated.
It is not within the scope of this narrative to pursue further the history of the great house of Kintail. The next chapter will relate a Gairloch legend treating of events which occurred during the time of one of the earlier Kintail Mackenzies.
It may be convenient to explain, that long before 1609, when Kenneth, twelfth laird of Kintail, was created Lord Mackenzie of Kintail, these great lairds were commonly called Lords of Kintail. Colin, son of this Kenneth, was created Earl of Seaforth and Viscount Fortrose in 1623. Some time prior to this date the possessions of the Kintail family had increased to the dimensions of a province, and Eileandonain Castle had ceased to be their headquarters, the castle of Chanonry in the Black Isle, formerly the bishop's palace, being preferred. The first Lord Seaforth added to Chanonry Castle, and built Brahan Castle, which continued the residence of the Seaforth family to a recent date. The family became extinct in the male line on the death of the last Lord Seaforth in 1815. Long before the erection of Brahan Castle the lairds of Kintail frequently resided at a mains or farm they possessed at Brahan.
Onthe north-eastern shore of Loch Maree, about three miles above the place where the river Ewe leaves the loch, is situated Ardlair, than which no lovelier spot can be found in all the range of Highland scenery. There are groves of different kinds oftrees, and a belt of them skirts the shingly shore of the loch; smooth grassy glades are interspersed among the woods, behind which rise a series of marvellous precipices, unclimbable, except in two or three places, save by sure-footed deer or goats. Below the steep background lie here and there great masses of rock, which ages ago have fallen from the cliffs above. About a quarter of a mile to the south-east of the present Ardlair House, and rather nearer to the house than a small tarn nestling there beneath the cliffs, is a large cairn or assemblage of enormous rocks, heaped and piled upon each other in fantastic confusion. Ash trees and wild roses, heather and ferns, grow in tangled medley among thedébris, and, concealing the interstices, render access extremely difficult. But the persevering searcher will discover a roomy cave, formed by a mighty block of rock lying slantways over other fallen blocks. The entrance to the cave is well concealed, and can only be got at by climbing on to a ledge that forms a narrow platform in front of it. After groping two or three yards along a low narrow passage a dark chamber is reached in which one can stand upright. The floor is level, and perfectly dry. The cairn is about a hundred and fifty yards from the shore of Loch Maree. This cave is called by old Gairloch people now living "The cave of the king's son," a name that it owes to the following story, the opening scene of which is laid here. No date can be assigned to the events narrated, but they cannot have occurred later than in the thirteenth or fourteenth century.