Isle Maree () is an island and traditional site of

Christian pilgrimage Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to sit ...

and

pattern day A pattern () in Irish Roman Catholicism refers to the devotions that take place within a parish on the feast day of the patron saint of the parish, on that date, called a Pattern day, or the nearest Sunday, called Pattern Sunday. In the case of a ...

festivals in

Loch Maree Loch Maree () is a loch in Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. At long and with a maximum width of , it is the fourth-largest freshwater loch in Scotland; it is the largest north of Loch Ness. Its surface area is . Loch Maree c ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

History

It has the ruins of a

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

, graveyard,

holy well A holy well or sacred spring is a well, Spring (hydrosphere), spring or small pool of water revered either in a Christianity, Christian or Paganism, pagan context, sometimes both. The water of holy wells is often thought to have healing qualitie ...

, and

holy tree A sacred tree or holy tree is a tree which is considered to be sacred, or worthy of spiritual respect or reverence. Such trees appear throughout world history in various cultures including the ancient Hindu mythology, Greek, Celtic and Germanic m ...

on it, believed to be the 8th-century hermitage of Saint

Maol Rubha Maol may refer to: People * Maol Choluim I, Earl of Lennox * Maol Choluim II, Earl of Lennox * Maol Choluim de Innerpeffray * Maol Chosna * Maol Domhnaich, Earl of Lennox * Maol Eoin Ó Crechain * Maol Muire Ó hÚigínn, Irish Catholic clergyman ...

(d. 722), a missionary from

Bangor Abbey Bangor Abbey was established by Saint Comgall in 558 in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland and was famous for its learning and austere rule. It is not to be confused with the slightly older abbey in Wales on the site of Bangor Cathedral. Hi ...

Gaelic Ireland Gaelic Ireland () was the Gaelic political and social order, and associated culture, that existed in Ireland from the late Prehistory of Ireland, prehistoric era until the 17th century. It comprised the whole island before Anglo-Norman invasi ...

who founded the

Celtic Church Celtic Christianity is a form of Christianity that was common, or held to be common, across the Celtic-speaking world during the Early Middle Ages. The term Celtic Church is deprecated by many historians as it implies a unified and identifiab ...

monastery of

Applecross Applecross ( , 'The Sanctuary', historically anglicized as 'Combrich') is a peninsula in Wester Ross, in the Scottish Highlands. It is bounded by Loch Kishorn to the south, Loch Torridon to the north, and Glen Shieldaig to the east. On its wes ...

() in 672. The island contains ancient stands of

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

holly ''Ilex'' () or holly is a genus of over 570 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family. ''Ilex'' has the most species of any woody dioecious angiosperm genus. The species are evergreen o ...

and other trees not found on the other islands in the loch. The waters of the loch were thought to be a holy well with curative effects. For example, as recently as the 18th century, being towed

sunwise Sunwise, sunward or deasil (sometimes spelled ''deosil''), are terms meaning to go clockwise or in the direction of the sun, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere. The opposite term is ''widdershins'' (Middle Low German), or ''tuathal'' (Scottish ...

three times around the island behind a boat followed each time by a dip in the loch waters was believed to impart a cure for

mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...

through St. Mael Ruba's

intercession Intercession or intercessory prayer is the act of prayer, praying on behalf of others, or Intercession of saints, asking a saint in heaven to pray on behalf of oneself or for others. The Apostle Paul's exhortation to Saint Timothy, Timothy speci ...

. It is also traditionally said in Highland

Scottish culture The culture of Scotland includes Scots law, its distinct legal system, financial institutions, sports in Scotland, sports, literature of Scotland, literature, art of Scotland, art, music of Scotland, music, media of Scotland, media, cuisine of ...

that anyone acting irrationally, "must be wanting a dip in

." Two incised cross-slabs of probably 8th-century date are to be seen in the ancient graveyard. The local

oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication in which knowledge, art, ideas and culture are received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another.Jan Vansina, Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (19 ...

(still observed) commands that nothing must ever be taken from the island, be it even a pebble from the shore, lest the insanity formerly cured in past pilgrims follow the item back into the outside world. In the 17th-century, the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

Presbytery of

Dingwall Dingwall (, ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest castle north ...

was disturbed by reports of several rituals, thought to be of pagan origin, such as the slaughter and roasting of bulls, on an island in Loch Maree, as part of the celebration of the saint's

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...

. These revolved around, some believe, an allegedly debased memory of St Máel Ruba, who is thought to have become mixed with an ancient pre-Christian cult of 'God Mourie'. The island is near the north shore of the loch, and the adjacent shore is called in

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

''Creag nan Tarbh'', 'Cliff of the Bull', recalling these

festivals.

Wish tree

On the island of St

or St Maree, in

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a golf course, a ...

in the

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Africa * Highlands, Johannesburg, South Africa * Highlands, Harare, Zimbab ...

is an

wish tree A wish tree (or wishing tree) is a tree, usually distinguished by species, location or appearance, which is used as an object of wishes and offerings. Such trees are identified as possessing a special religious or spiritual value. Postulants ma ...

made famous by a visit in 1877 by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

and its inclusion in her published diaries. The tree, and others surrounding it, are festooned with hammered-in coins. The original tree, now much decayed, died many years ago because of

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

poison A poison is any chemical substance that is harmful or lethal to living organisms. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figurati ...

ing. It is near the healing well of St Maree, to which votive offerings were made. Records show that bulls were sacrificed openly up until the 18th centurySharp, Mick (1997). Holy Places of Celtic Britain. Blandford. . P. 149. The Wish Tree on Isle Maree

Footnotes

* *

External links

Catholic devotions Celtic Christianity Christian pilgrimage sites Christianity in medieval Scotland History of Catholicism in Scotland Holy wells in Scotland Maree Roman Catholic shrines in the United Kingdom {{Highland-geo-stub

History

Wish tree

See also

Footnotes

External links