Lord Reay, of

Reay Reay ( gd, Ràth) is a village which has grown around Sandside Bay on the north coast of the Highland council area of Scotland. It is within the historic Parish of Reay and the historic county of Caithness. The village is on the A836 road som ...

in the County of Caithness, is a title in the

Peerage of Scotland The Peerage of Scotland ( gd, Moraireachd na h-Alba, sco, Peerage o Scotland) is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Unio ...

. Lord Reay (pronounced "ray") is the hereditary Clan Chief of

Clan Mackay Clan Mackay ( ; gd, Clann Mhic Aoidh ) is an ancient and once-powerful Highland Scottish clan from the far North of the Scottish Highlands, but with roots in the old Kingdom of Moray. They supported Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish ...

, whose lands in

Strathnaver Strathnaver or Strath Naver ( gd, Srath Nabhair) is the fertile strath of the River Naver, a famous salmon river that flows from Loch Naver to the north coast of Scotland. The term has a broader use as the name of an ancient province also kn ...

and northwest

Sutherland Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later c ...

were known as the Reay Country. The land was sold to the

Earls of Sutherland Earl of Sutherland is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created circa 1230 for William de Moravia and is the premier earldom in the Peerage of Scotland. The earl or countess of Sutherland is also the chief of Clan Sutherland. The origi ...

in the 18th century. Lord Reay also refers to a legendary magician in Caithness folklore. The title was created in 1628 for the soldier Sir Donald Mackay, 1st Baronet. He had already the year before been created a baronet, of Far, in the

Baronetage of Nova Scotia Baronets are a rank in the British aristocracy. The current Baronetage of the United Kingdom has replaced the earlier but existing Baronetages of England, Nova Scotia, Ireland, and Great Britain. Baronetage of England (1611–1705) King James I ...

. He was succeeded by his son, the second Lord, who fought as a Royalist in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

. On the death of his great-grandson, the ninth Lord, the line of the eldest son of the second Lord failed. The late Lord was succeeded by his kinsman, the tenth Lord. He was the son of Barthold John Christian Mackay (who had been created ''Baron Mackay of Ophemert and Zennewijnen'' in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in 1822), great-grandson of Hon. Aeneas Mackay, a Brigadier-General in the Dutch army and the second son of the second Lord. Lord Reay was a Dutch citizen and served as a government minister in the Netherlands. His son, the eleventh Lord, became a

British citizen British nationality law prescribes the conditions under which a person is recognised as being a national of the United Kingdom. The six different classes of British nationality each have varying degrees of civil and political rights, due to the ...

in 1877 and four years later he was created Baron Reay, of Durness in the County of Sutherland, in the

Peerage of the United Kingdom The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five Peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great ...

. Lord Reay was later

Governor of Bombay Until the 18th century, Bombay consisted of seven islands separated by shallow sea. These seven islands were part of a larger archipelago in the Arabian sea, off the western coast of India. The date of city's founding is unclear—historians tr ...

, Under-Secretary of State for India in the Liberal administration of Lord Rosebery and Lord Lieutenant of Roxburghshire. On his death the UK Barony became extinct while he was succeeded in the other titles by his cousin, the twelfth Lord. He was the son of Baron Aeneas Mackay (1838–1909) (a Dutch politician who had been created ''Baron Mackay'' in the Netherlands in 1858), son of Johan Francois Hendrik Jakob Ernestus Mackay, brother of the tenth Lord Reay. He was also a Dutch citizen. However, his son, the thirteenth Lord, became a

in 1938 and later sat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

as a Scottish Representative Peer. His only son, the fourteenth Lord, was a

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

and also served in junior positions in the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

administrations of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

and

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament (MP) for Huntingdon, formerly Hunting ...

. He was one of the ninety-two elected

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsidi ...

s allowed to remain after the passing of the House of Lords Act of 1999. the titles are held by his son, the fifteenth Lord, who in that year was also elected to serve in the House. The family seat now is Ophemert Castle, near

Tiel Tiel () is a municipality and a town in the middle of the Netherlands. The town is enclosed by the Waal river and the Linge river to the South and the North, and the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal to the East. Tiel comprises the population centres Kapel- ...

Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...

, in

Lords Reay (1628)

* Donald Mackay, 1st Lord Reay (1591–1649) * John Mackay, 2nd Lord Reay (c. 1612-c. 1680/1681) *

George Mackay, 3rd Lord Reay George Mackay, 3rd Lord Reay (1678–1748), was a Scottish noble and chief of the Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands. During his life the Glorious Revolution took place which directly affected his family and estate, and durin ...

(1678–1748) * Donald Mackay, 4th Lord Reay (died 1761) * George Mackay, 5th Lord Reay (–1768) * Hugh Mackay, 6th Lord Reay (died 1797) * Eric Mackay, 7th Lord Reay (1773–1847) (second son of

George Mackay of Skibo George Mackay of Skibo (''c.'' 1715 – 25 June 1782) was a Scottish lawyer, soldier and politician. He fought for the British Government during the Jacobite rising of 1745 and was later a Member of Parliament.Mackay. Page 193. Early life M ...

) * Alexander Mackay, 8th Lord Reay (1775–1863) (third son of George Mackay of Skibo) * Eric Mackay, 9th Lord Reay (1813–1875) * Aeneas Mackay, 10th Lord Reay (1806–1876) *

Donald James Mackay, 11th Lord Reay Donald James Mackay, 11th Lord Reay (22 December 1839 – 1 August 1921) (in the Netherlands: Donald Jacob, Baron Mackay, Lord of Ophemert and Zennewijnen) was a Dutch-born British administrator and Liberal politician. Background Mackay was bor ...

(1839–1921) * Eric Mackay, 12th Lord Reay (1870–1921) * Aeneas Alexander Mackay, 13th Lord Reay (1905–1963) * Hugh William Mackay, 14th Lord Reay (1937–2013) * Aeneas Simon Mackay, 15th Lord Reay (b. 1965) The

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

is the present holder's son the Hon. Alexander Shimi Markus Mackay, Master of Reay (b. 2010)

Lord Reay in Caithness folklore

In the

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, rangin ...

Caithness Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded ...

, in the

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

area of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, ''Lord Reay'' is a magician who believed he had come off best in an encounter with a

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

Smoo Cave Smoo Cave is a large combined sea cave and freshwater cave in Durness in Sutherland, Highland, Scotland. The cave name is thought to originate from the Norse '' or '', meaning a hole or hiding-place. Geology Smoo Cave was formed within Earl ...

. His prize was a gang of

fairies A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, ...

who liked nothing better than to work. The construction of various

earthworks Earthworks may refer to: Construction *Earthworks (archaeology), human-made constructions that modify the land contour *Earthworks (engineering), civil engineering works created by moving or processing quantities of soil *Earthworks (military), mi ...

in the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

are attributed to these fairies, working under direction from Lord Reay. However, the fairies' appetite for work was insatiable and, eventually, their demands became intolerable. So Lord Reay put them to work building a

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tr ...

sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class ...

across the

Pentland Firth The Pentland Firth ( gd, An Caol Arcach, meaning the Orcadian Strait) is a strait which separates the Orkney Islands from Caithness in the north of Scotland. Despite the name, it is not a firth. Etymology The name is presumed to be a corrupti ...

where, of course, the fierce currents wash away the sand just as fast as the fairies can build.

References

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. *
Baronetage of Nova Scotia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reay, Lord 1628 establishments in Scotland Lordships of Parliament Caithness Scottish fairy tales European folklore characters Scottish folklore People associated with Highland (council area) Lord Reay Noble titles created in 1628

Lords Reay (1628)

Lord Reay in Caithness folklore

See also

References