Everything about Clan Macaulay totally explained
Clan MacAulay is a
Scottish clan. The clan was historically centred around the lands of Ardincaple, which are today consumed by the little village of
Rhu and
burgh of
Helensburgh in
Argyll and Bute. The MacAulays of Ardincaple were located mainly in the traditional county of
Dunbartonshire, which straddles the "Highland Line" between the
Scottish Highlands and
Lowlands. Clan MacAulay has been considered a "Highland clan" by writers and has been linked by various
historians to the original
Earls of Lennox and in later times to
Clan Gregor. The MacAulays of Ardincaple, like Clan Gregor and several other clans, have traditionally been considered one of the seven clans which make up
Siol Alpin. This group of clans were said to have claimed descent from
Cináed mac Ailpín,
King of the Picts, from whom later kings of Scotland traced their descent. The chiefs of Clan MacAulay were styled
Laird of Ardincaple.
Clan MacAulay dates, with certainty, to the 16th century. The clan was engaged in several feuds with neighbouring clans. However, the clan's fortunes declined in the 17th and 18th centuries. After the decline and fall of Clan MacAulay, which ended with the death of Aulay MacAulay of Ardincaple in the mid-18th century, the clan became dormant. With the revival of interest in Scottish clans in the 20th century a movement was organised to revive Clan MacAulay. The modern organisation strove to unite the three unrelated groups of MacAulays, and all who bore the
surname MacAulay, under one clan and chief. Also, there are several Irish septs or
clans of MacAulays with no connection with Clan MacAulay. These include: the McAuleys of
County Offaly and
County Westmeath, the McAuleys in
Ulster (
County Fermanagh), and the MacAuleys of the Glens (
County Antrim). The MacAuleys of the Glens, however, have been thought to have been originally Scottish.
History
Origin
The origin of Clan MacAulay shares both land and names with the early medieval Earls of Lennox. The
Classical Gaelic personal name Amhlaoíbh, (today
Anglicised as
Aulay), was a common
christian name in the early families of the Earls of Lennox. Amhlaoíbh, a younger son of
Alwyn, 2nd Earl of Lennox, is the subject of the
lay Mairg thréigios inn, a Amhlaoíbh, which was dedicated to him by the poet
Muireadhach Albanach. In the lay, Amhlaoíbh's land is named "
Ard nan Each" Amhlaoíbh and his descendants held the lands of
Fasselane (Faslane) and an extensive tract of land on the
Gare Loch, Aulay de Fasselane had an elder son named
Walter de Fasselane who married a cousin,
Margaret, Countess of Lennox, after which Walter became the
de facto Earl of Lennox through his wife.
Ardincaple ("cape of the horses" or "height of the horses"), the ancestral home of Clan MacAulay, is located on the shores of Gare Loch in the historical district of Lennox. In the
Middle Ages, the Lairds of Ardincaple paid
homage to the Earls of Lennox. According to the
Scottish heraldist Alexander Nisbet (1657-1725), "Morice de Arncappel", who appears in the
Ragman Rolls swearing allegiance to
Edward I of England in 1296, was the ancestor of the MacAulays of Ardincaple. His seal consists of a "Stag's head
cabossed; between the antlers a small animal and
fleur-de-lys". An early Laird of Ardincaple was Alexander de Ardincaple, who in 1473, served on the inquest of the
Earl of Menteith. Another laird, Aulay de Ardincaple, was invested on a precept from
John, Earl of Lennox, in the lands of Faslane adjoining Ardincaple in 1518. Nisbet wrote that Alexander took the name "from a predecessor of his own of the name of Aulay, to humour a patronymical designation, as being more agreeable to the head of a clan than the designation of Ardincaple of that Ilk." (reigned 1440–1488). There is record in 1536 of a Awla McAwla of Ardencapill; another Awla McAwla was clerk of the watch of
Queen Mary's guard in 1566. In July 1567, after
Mary, Queen of Scots was forced to abdicate the Scottish throne in favour of her infant son,
James, Walter MacAulay of Ardincaple was one of the signators of the bond to protect the young prince. "The Laird of M'Cawla of Ardincaple" appears in the General Band of 1587 as a principal vassal of the
Duke of Lennox. In 1594, the "M'Cawlis" appear in the Roll of Broken Clans.
Near the shores of
Faslane (which today is consumed by
Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde), there was a place called
Cnoch-na-cullach (translation from
Scottish Gaelic: "Knoll of the cock"). There is a legend that when a cock crowed beneath the branches of an old oak tree upon the
knoll that a member of Clan MacAulay was about to die. Note the similarity to various Stewart Arms, perhaps hinting of an actual descent or dependence upon the Stewarts.]]
On
1 August 1590, Walter MacAulay, son of Allan MacAulay of Durling, was killed on the "Highway and street of
Dunbarton" in a clash against a contingent of Buchanans, who were lead by Thomas Buchanan, Sheriff Depute of Dunbarton. On
6 October 1590, Thomas Buchanan of Blairlusk, John Buchanan, his son John Buchanan Burgess of Dunbarton, and others were formally charged in
Edinburgh with the murder of Walter MacAulay. The accused were ordered to appear before the Justice at Edinburgh on
21 December 1590. To complicate matters, the Laird of Ardincaple had married the Laird of Culcreuch's widowed mother against his consent and Galbraith had "
gevin vp kindnes, and denunceit his euill-will to him with solempne vowis of revenge" (given up kindness, and denounced his evil will to MacAulay with solemn vows of revenge). Ultimately, Robert Galbraith's letter of commission was taken from him. Prior to this bond of manrent, the chief of Clan MacAulay doesn't appear to have been involved with Clan Gregor in anyway. According to the 19th century historian Joseph Iriving even though the chief of Clan MacAulay was at feud with the Buchanans it's unclear how such an alliance would benefit his own clan. Irving wrote that the MacAulay chief must have known that any connection with Clan Gregor "would end (as it actually did) in a manner most disastrous to all connected with the turbulent Macgregors".
This bond of manrent has been used as evidence of an ancestral connection between clans Gregor and MacAulay. A passage in the bond states: "
Alexander M'Gregor of Glenstray on the ane part and Awly M'Cawley of Ardingapill on the other part understanding ourselfs and our name to be M'Calppins of auld and to be our just and trew surname" (Alasdair MacGregor of Glenstrae on the one part and Aulay MacAulay of Ardincaple on the other part, understanding ourselves and our names to be MacAlpins of old and to be our just and true surname). Later historians have shown that such bonds were used by the MacGregors to cement alliances with weaker clans, and that such a bond was likely to have been forced upon the MacAulays by the more powerful MacGregors.
Following the
Battle of Glen Fruin, between Clan Gregor and Clan Colquhoun in February 1603, there was much public outcry against the rebellious MacGregors. By an Act of the Privy Council, on
April 3 1603, it was made an offence to bear the name
MacGregor, or to give one aid or shelter. The Earl of Argyll, who was responsible to the Privy Council for the actions of the MacGregors, was entrusted to bring the force of the law against this lawless clan. Deeply suspicious of the Clan MacAulay chief and his relations with the Clan Gregor chief, one of his first moves was to bring acts against Aulay MacAulay of Ardincaple. On
17 March 1603, Aulay MacAulay and his sureties were ordered to appear and answer for reset, supplying, and intercommuning with Alasdair MacGregor of Glenstrae and other MacGregors. He was also to answer for not "rising ye fray" and pursuing the outlawed clan Gregor in the Lennox. MacAulay was accused of bringing the MacGregor "thevis and rebells" to the Colquhoun lands of
Luss and for their part in stealing from the Colquhouns of Luss.
It seems clear that the Duke of Lennox's influence with the King is all that saved Clan MacAulay from suffering the same fate as Clan Gregor, who were outlawed and hunted down throughout the country. On
7 April 1603,
James VI of Scotland wrote from
Berwick to the Justice General and his deputies, stating; "
And We, vnderstanding that the said Aulay M'cauley is altogidder frie and innocent of the saidis allegit crymes laid to his chairge ; and that he's to accumpany ws to our realme of Ingland, with our darrest cousing the Duik of Lennox, his maister" (And we, understanding that the said Aulay MacAulay is altogether free and innocent of the said alleged crimes laid to his charge; and that he's to accompany us to our realm of England, with our dearest cousin the Duke of Lennox, his master). The King's order stopped all investigation against the Laird of Ardincaple, thus protecting the small Clan MacAulay from the powerful
Earl of Argyll and his allies. By the time the time the King's letter was received, MacAulay had left the Lennox as part of the Duke of Lennox's train, which accompanied King James VI on his way to England to be declared King
James I of England.
Feud with the Earl of Argyll
The Earl of Argyll suspected the Laird of Ardincaple, among others, of involvement in a conspiracy which resulted in the murder of the
John Campbell, Laird of Calder in 1591. Argyll's evidence pointed to a larger conspiracy which had designs on the assassination of himself, his brother
Colin Campbell of Lundy,
the Earl of Moray, and John Campbell of Calder. It seems the conspirators' goal was to replace the Earl of Argyll with his kinsman, Campbell of Lochnell, who followed his brother Colin in the line of
succession to Argyll, and to divide the vast estates of Argyll amongst themselves. When Argyll discovered MacAulay was somehow involved in the plot, he took action and invaded and took
Ardencaple Castle from the MacAulays by May 1594. The Duke of Lennox, taking Argyll's action to be a direct assault on himself, demanded that Argyll return the lands of Ardincaple.
As stated before, in the confession of Alasdair MacGregor of Glenstrae, he stated that the Earl of Argyll attempted to convince MacGregor to slay Aulay MacAulay of Ardincaple. This wasn't the first time the earl had been accused of such an act, in the Treasurer's Books, dated November 1602, reads: "Item, to Patrik M'Omeis, messinger, passand of Edinburghe, with Lettres to charge
Ard Earle of Argyle to compeir personallie befoir the Counsall, the xvj day of December nixt, to ansuer to sic things as salbe inquirit at him, tuiching his lying at await for the Laird of Ardincapill, vpone set purpois to have slain him, xvj li".
Feud with the Captain of Carrick
A bitter feud began at the end of the 16th century between the MacAulays of Ardincaple and Campbells of Carrick, who were based at
Carrick Castle on the shores of
Loch Goil (about northwest of Ardincaple). Though the origins of the feud are unclear, the first documented evidence of trouble occurred in 1598. Duncan Campbell, Captain of Carrick, registered a bond of 300
merks for each of his men in
Rosneath, to keep from harming "Awlay McCaulay of Ardingapill." Another bond of 2000 merks was registered for Campbell of Carrick to not harm "McCaula" and his followers.
In 1599, the Duke of Lennox legally evicted Donald Campbell of Drongie and several of his followers from the lands of Mamoir,
Mambeg, and Forlancarry along the banks of the Gare Loch. In retaliation, a combined force of Campbells of Carrick and Drongie assembled at Rosneath, on the opposite shore of the Gare Loch from Ardincaple, and returned laid waste to the Duke's new acquisitions. When the case was presented to the
Privy Council on
17 May 1600, Campbell of Carrick and Campbell of Drongie were denounced as rebels. After the episode at Glen Fruin between clans Gregor and Colquhoun in 1603, western
Dumbartonshire slowly became more "settled" or peaceful.
On
26 March 1639,
Covenanters captured
Dumbarton Castle to prevent it from being used as an Royalist base in the event of an invasion from Ireland. Once secured, the
Earl of Argyll placed Walter MacAulay, Laird of Ardincaple, as keeper of the castle with a garrison of forty men.
The
Glorious Revolution of 1688 saw the overthrow of the
Roman Catholic,
James II of England, in favour of the
Protestant,
William III of Orange. Though most of the English accepted William,
Jacobites within Ireland and Scotland opposed him in favour of the deposed James. In 1689, the Earl of Argyll's offer to raise a regiment of 600 men in aid of William was accepted. Argyll's regiment was to consist of 10 companys of about 60 men each. William and his wife Mary were crowned
King and Queen of Scotland as William II and
Mary II on
5 November 1689. In 1690, "Ardencaple's Company" within the Earl of Argyll's Regiment was commanded by Captain Archibald MacAulay of Ardencaple, Lieutenant John Lindsay, and Ensign Robert MacAulay "Anshent" (ancient). Later in 1694, Archibald's younger brother, Robert, is listed as Captain Robert MacAulay in the
Earl of Argyll's Regiment of Foot. Even after the revolution had succeeded there was still a fear of invasion in Dumbartonshire by adherents to the expelled Jacobite king. Local parishes were required to
muster their men. An example of the size of one particular muster around 1693 is as follows: in
Kilmaronock, fifty men and ten guns; in Gleneagles, seventy-four men and three-score swords; in Luss, seventy men "with arms conforme"; in Cardross, one hundred men and thirty stand of arms; and in Rhu, there were eighty-men and fifty-six firelocks. At first the individual parishes selected their own officers, but at general musters they were divded into two companies—one containing those above
Leven, and those living below in the other. At a shire mustering at
Kilpatrick in 1696, MacAulay of Ardincaple was selected as Captain of the company above Leven, with Noble of Ferme, Lieutenant, and Dugald MacFarlane of Tullibintall, Ensign.
At the beginning of the 18th century, a group of MacAulays migrated to the former counties of
Caithness and
Sutherland.]]
The power of Clan MacAulay and the fortune of the Lairds of Ardincaple diminished from the 17th century into the 18th century. Successive lairds were forced to divide and sell, piece by piece, the lands once governed by the clan. As the laird's resources dried up, their lands fell into decay, and the once expansive lands of Ardincaple shrank to only a few farms.
The last Macaulays seem to have been a perfect type of the true old Celtic school of men who thought much of their Chiefery, of their old connection with Clan Gregor, and of the retainers whom they could send out to fight or reive in alliance with them, but who thought nothing of the acres under their own power which could be made to bear the fruits of industry and of peace. |
By the early 1750s, even the roof of
Ardincaple Castle, seat of the clan chief, had fallen in. The overall condition of the castle had deteriorated to such an extent that the next laird was forced to abandon it and live in nearby Laggarie. The bulk of the Ardincaple estate ultimately passed into the hands of
John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll. The last chief of the MacAulays, Aulay MacAulay, died at High Laggarie (now encompassed by the tiny village of
Rhu) landless and without an heir to succeed as chief in about 1767.
In 2001, an
ad hoc derbhfine took place at
Tulloch Castle,
Dingwall in
Easter Ross with the intention of nominating a person to petition
Lyon Court to become a recognised
clan chief. Prior to the derbhfine
Ross Herald wrote to six
armigers and ten landowners supplied by the Clan MacAulay Association, who would be involved in the voting. Following this,
The Scotsman reported that the reasoning behind his ruling was that recognising MacAulay as chief would discourage any further research into finding a blood link to the chiefs of the clan. Following Iain McMillan MacAulay's death in 2003 his son, Diarmid Iain MacAulay, was elected by members as chief of Clan MacAulay. The present Clan MacAulay doesn't have a chief recognised by the Lord Lyon King of Arms, and therefore can be considered an Armigerous clan. According to the Clan MacAulay Association in Scotland website, there will be a "clan gathering" held in
Edinburgh during the
International Gathering of the Clans festivities which will take place from
July 25–
July 26 2009.
DNA study: separate clans, unrelated septs
In 2003 the Clan MacAulay Society decided to undertake a DNA project to determine how people with the surname, including its many variants, were related to each other. There have also been several other DNA projects involving the MacAulay surnames, including one for MacAulays with ancestral links to
North Uist. An analysis of the combined results, 54 members as of November 2007, showed that there were nine separate blood-lines of "MacAulays" and 8 members who couldn't be attached to a blood-line. Of these nine distint groups, three were determined to represent known clans or septs, however these clans/septs have no historical link with Clan MacAulay: the MacAuleys of Fermanagh (Ireland); the MacAulays of North Uist (Western Isles); the Macaulays of Lewis (Western Isles). The other blood-line groups couldn't be attached to any particular clan, as well as the 8 members without a blood-line group, and as such no DNA group or member has yet stood out as representing a Clan MacAulay blood-line.
In Ireland
During the early 17th century, Clan MacAulay was involved in the
Plantation of Ulster, as King James I began colonising regions of
Ireland with
English and
Scottish settlers. Several MacAulays were transplanted from
Scotland to
Ulster during this era. The Duke of Lennox was the chief undertaker in the precinct of Portlough (eastern
County Donegal) and his resident agent was Sir Aulay MacAulay. In the same precinct, Alexander MacAulay of Durling (also known as "Alexander M'Awley, alias Stewart") was alloted, called Ballyneagh. By 1617, the MacAulay-controlled Ballyneagh consisted of a stone house, a
bawn of
lime and stone, two freeholders, nine lessees, and was able to produce thirty men with arms. Alexander MacAulay, alias Stewart later succeeded Sir Aulay MacAulay of Ardincaple as chief of Clan MacAulay, and sold his lands in Ireland.
Irish MacAuleys
Today many of the McAuleys (and other various spellings of the name) living in
Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland are descendants of Clan MacAulay of Ardincaple, though there are several different clans or septs of native
Irish MacAuleys who are unrelated to one another and also have no link with Scotland at all.
The McAuleys of
County Offaly &
County Westmeath derive their name from
Amhalgaidh (
Old Irish), who lived in the 13th century. They are of native Irish descent, with an ancient descent from
Niall of the Nine Hostages. Their lands were in western County Westmeath and northern County Offaly; the heartland of the sept was near Ballyloughnoe, County Westmeath, known in
Elizabethan times as "MacGawleys Country." These McAuleys trace a descent from Amhlaoibh, son of the first Maguire King of Fermanagh,
Donn Carrach Maguire. The Mac Amhlaoibhs are said to have conquered southern Fermanagh for the Maguires and have left their name on the area in
Clanawley. On the plain of Bun-na-mairgie, near
Ballycastle, the MacDonnells (lead by
Sorley Boy MacDonnell) fought the
MacQuillans. Before the battle, the MacQuillans appealed to the
O'Neills of Lower Claneboy and to the MacAuleys and MacPhoils of the middle Glens of Antrim for assistance against the MacDonnells. The two small clans (the MacAuleys and MacPhoils) were two days late to the battle; when they arrived, they were only spectators to a battle which was near its climax. Sorley Boy MacDonnell then rode out to the chief of the MacAuleys and persuaded him to join his ranks, as did the MacPhoils. Their combined force then drove the MacQuillans to the banks of the river Aura, where they were finally defeated and the chief of the MacQuillans slain in what is known as the
Battle of Aura. Festivities lasted for several days after the battle and a
cairn, called "Coslin Sorley Boy",was raised on the mountain
Trostan.
A branch of the MacAulays of Ardincaple settled in
County Antrim, with the leading member of the family owning the
Glenarm estate for some time until it passed to the MacDougalls in 1758.
Clan profile
Origin of the name
As stated, the clan surname
MacAulay (and its numerous variations) has been thought by some to descend from the family of the Earls of Lennox. George F. Black wrote that this name originated from the
Gaelic patronymic name MacAmhalghaidh ("son of
Amalghaidh"). The
Old Gaelic personal name
Amalghaidh, pronounced almost like "Aulay" or "Owley", is of uncertain meaning. Several unrelated "MacAulay" clans or septs, such as MacAulays from the Western Isles, and MacAuleys from County Fermanagh, derive their name from a Gaelic form of an Old Norse personal name. The crest within the badge is
an antique boot, couped at the ankle, proper.
Another clan symbol is a clan badge or plant badge. Clan badges were originally plants worn from a
bonnet or tied to a spear or pole. There have been two clan badges attributed to Clan MacAulay:
Cranberry (Scottish Gaelic:
A'Muileag, and
Scots Pine (Scottish Gaelic:
Giuthas).
|-
| ||
MacAulay: This shortened version of the tartan published by Logan is first found in 1881 by M'Intyre North, who had copied (possibly erroneously) Logan's thread counts. The tartan then appears in James Grant's work of 1886, with Logan's original MacAulay tartan being listed again as a Comyn (Cumming). There are several theories as to how the shortened version came to be; a copyist's error could have left out four lines from Logan's count to produce this version, or manufacturers seeing Logan's design listed as a Cumming in the Smith work may have made the change to eliminate confusion. This shortened version looks similar to the MacGregor tartan, with whom the MacAulays have been associated.
|-
| ||
MacAulay: This tartan shows a definite similarity to the MacGregor tartan. It was first published in the
The Baronage of Angus and Mearns in 1856.
The Baronage of Angus and Mearns describes the tartan as "12 red, 1/4 blue, 6 green, 1/4 blue, 2 1/2 red, 1/4 blue, 3 green, 1/4 black, 1 white, 1/4 black, 3 green, 1/4 blue, 2 1/4 red, 1/4 blue, 6 green, 1/4 blue, 24 red."
|-
| ||
Hunting MacAulay: this modern tartan conforms to the early MacAulay tartan recorded by Logan (top).
|}
Clan septs
The
Clan Campbell sept of
MacPhederain (Anglicised as
MacPhedran,
McPhedran,
Patterson, and
Paterson) were descended from a
MacAulay, according to William Buchanan of Auchmar. The MacPhedrans traditionally held the lands of
Sonachan on
Loch Awe, in what was largely Campbell territory. The earliest account of the MacPhedrans is in 1439, when "
Domenicus M'Federan" was granted confirmation for the lands of Sonachan by Sir
Duncan Campbell of Lochawe.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Clan Macaulay'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://clan_macaulay.totallyexplained.com">Clan MacAulay Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
