Clan Gregor, also known as Clan MacGregor, is a

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Scottish Gaelic , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred') is a kinship group among the Scottish people. Clans give a sense of shared heritage and descent to members, and in modern times have an official structure r ...

that claims an origin in the early 9th century. The clan's most famous member is Rob Roy MacGregor of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. The clan is also known to have been among the first families of Scotland to begin playing the

bagpipes Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, N ...

in the early 17th century.

History

Origins of the clan

Clan Gregor held lands in

Glen Orchy Glen Orchy () is a glen in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It runs from Bridge of Orchy to Dalmally. Geography Glen Orchy is about 17 km or 11 miles long, and runs south-west from Bridge of Orchy () to Dalmally () following the River ...

, Glenlochy and Glenstrae. According to Iain Moncreiffe the MacGregors were descended from an ancient

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

royal family, through the Abbots of Glendochart. This is alluded to in the clan's motto: "Royal is my race". There is also a tradition that Gregor was the brother of

Kenneth MacAlpin Kenneth MacAlpin (; ; 810 – 13 February 858) or Kenneth I was King of Dál Riada (841–850), and King of the Picts (848–858), of likely Gaelic origin. According to the traditional account, he inherited the throne of Dál Riada from his fa ...

. Though there is little evidence to support this tradition, it is supported by the Scottish historian, William Skene. It is possible that the eponymous Gregor from whom the family derives may have been Griogair, son of Dungal, who was allegedly co-ruler of

Alba ''Alba'' ( , ) is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is also, in English-language historiography, used to refer to the polity of Picts and Scots united in the ninth century as the Kingdom of Alba, until it developed into the Kingd ...

. Most modern historians agree that the first chief of Clan Gregor was Gregor ''of the golden bridles''. His son was Iain Camm ''One eye'', who succeeded as the second chief sometime before 1390. The barony of Loch Awe which included much of the MacGregor lands was granted to the chief of

Clan Campbell Clan Campbell ( ) is a Scottish Highlands, Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the largest and most powerful of the Highland clans. The Clan Campbell lands are in Argyll and within their lands lies Ben Cruachan. The chief of the clan be ...

Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...

. The Campbells had already built Kilchurn Castle which controlled the gateway to the western Highlands and they harried the MacGregors who were forced to retire deeper into their lands until they were restricted to Glenstrae.

16th century and clan conflicts

Iain of Glenstrae died in 1519 with no direct heirs. He was the second of his house to be called ''the Black''. The succession of ''Eian'' was supported by the Campbells, and he married a daughter of Sir Colin Campbell of Glenorchy. In 1547 Eian's son, Alistair, fought against the English at the

Battle of Pinkie Cleugh The Battle of Pinkie, also known as the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh (), took place on 10 September 1547 on the banks of the River Esk, Lothian, River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland. The last pitched battle between Scotland and England before the U ...

but died shortly after. Colin Campbell refused to recognize the claim of Gregor Roy MacGregor to the estates, and for ten years Gregor waged a war against the Campbells. He was an outlaw who raided cattle and sheltered in the high glens. However, in 1570, he was captured and murdered by the Campbells. The chiefship was claimed by his son, Alistair, but he was unable to stem the Campbell's persecution of his kinsmen, who over time became known as the ''Children of the Mist,'' a name associated with the MacGregors due to the extent of their losses. Additionally, John Drummond of Clan Drummond was the king's forester and was subsequently killed after hanging a number of MacGregors for poaching. The chief took responsibility for the killing and it was condemned by the Privy Council.

17th century, clan conflicts and civil war

In response to the execution of two MacGregor clansmen in 1603, Alasdair MacGregor marched into Colquhoun territory with a force of over 400 men. The chief of

Clan Colquhoun Clan Colquhoun ( ) is a Highland Scottish clan. History Origins of the clan The lands of the clan Colquhoun are on the shores of Loch Lomond. During the reign of Alexander II, Umphredus de Kilpatrick received from Malduin, Earl of Len ...

, in response, had been granted a royal commission to suppress the MacGregors. Colquhoun assembled a force of 500 foot and 300 cavalry and advanced to Glen Fruin to repel the Highland raiders. MacGregor split his force in two and while the main MacGregor force and the Colquhouns engaged in combat, the second MacGregor force attacked the Colquhouns from the rear. The Colquhouns were driven into the Moss of Auchingaich where their cavalry was useless, and over 200 Colquhouns were killed. At the end of the 18th century, in an act of good will, the chiefs of the two clans met and shook hands on the site of the former slaughter. In April 1603,

James VI of Scotland James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

issued an edict that proclaimed the name of MacGregor as "altogidder abolisheed". This meant that anyone who bore the name must renounce it or suffer death. In 1604, MacGregor and eleven of his chieftains were hanged at

Mercat Cross, Edinburgh The Mercat Cross of Edinburgh is a market cross, which stands in Parliament Square, Edinburgh, Parliament Square next to St Giles' Cathedral, facing the Royal Mile#High Street, High Street in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh. Des ...

. As a result, Clan Gregor was scattered, with many taking other names such as Murray or Grant. They were hunted like animals and flushed out of the heather by bloodhounds. An Edinburgh burgess, Robert Birrel, who kept a diary of events at the time, described the episode thus (translated into modern English): An act of the Scottish Parliament from 1617 stated: (translated into modern English): Clan Lamont of Cowal defied this and provided aid and refuge for fleeing MacGregors in their lands in the wake of the persecution. Clan Chattan also protected Macgregors from the MacDonalds of Keppoch in Badenoch. Despite the savage treatment of the MacGregors, they had nevertheless fought for the king during the Scottish Civil War. Some 200 men of Clan Gregor fought for the

Earl of Glencairn Earl of Glencairn was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. King James III of Scotland, James III created the title in 1488 by royal charter for Alexander Cunningham, 1st Earl of Glencairn, Alexander Cunningham, 1st Lord Kilmaurs. He held the e ...

, in what was known as

Glencairn's rising Glencairn's rising was a Royalist revolt in Scotland against the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell from 1653 to 1654. It was led by William Cunningham, 9th Earl of Glencairn (1610–1664), who was given command of the Royalist forces in Scotland ...

, against the Commonwealth. In recognition of this,

Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651 and King of England, Scotland, and King of Ireland, Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest su ...

repealed the proscription of the name by the (c. 195), but William of Orange, after Charles's brother James VII was deposed, reimposed the proscription in 1693; it was to last until 1784.

18th century and Jacobite risings

Rob Roy MacGregor was born in 1671, a younger son of MacGregor of Glengyle. (However, given the circumstances, he had been forced to assume his mother's surname of Campbell). The adventures of Rob Roy MacGregor have been immortalized and romanticized by

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

in his novel '' Rob Roy''. Rob Roy was undoubtedly a thorn in the flesh of the government until he died in 1734. He supported the Jacobite cause in 1715 and after the

Battle of Sheriffmuir The Battle of Sheriffmuir (, ) was an engagement in 1715 at the height of the Jacobite rising of 1715, Jacobite rising in Scotland. The battlefield has been included in the Inventory of Historic Battlefields in Scotland and protected by Histor ...

he set out plundering at will. In one such raid on

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...

, the town was put into panic and

Dumbarton Castle Dumbarton Castle (, ; ) has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It sits on a volcanic plug of basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high and overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton. History Dumbarton Rock was forme ...

was forced to open fire with its cannon. He also led Clan Gregor at the

Battle of Glen Shiel The Battle of Glen Shiel took place on 10 June 1719 in the Scottish Highlands, during the Jacobite rising of 1719. A Jacobitism, Jacobite army composed of Highland levies and Spanish Marine Infantry, Spanish marines was defeated by British gover ...

in 1719. He is buried in Balquhidder churchyard. During the 1745 uprising, some of Clan Gregor fought at the

Battle of Prestonpans The Battle of Prestonpans, also known as the Battle of Gladsmuir, was fought on 21 September 1745, near Prestonpans, in East Lothian, the first significant engagement of the Jacobite rising of 1745. Jacobitism, Jacobite forces, led by the Stua ...

with the Jacobite army under the Duke of Perth. Some of Clan Gregor were among the Jacobite force that was defeated at the Battle of Littleferry in 1746 in Sutherland, and therefore missed the

Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden took place on 16 April 1746, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. A Jacobite army under Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, thereby endi ...

that took place the next day and for which they would have been too late. After the rising, when the MacGregors were returning home, no-one ventured to interfere with them when they strode across Atholl, with their flying colours they strode passed Finlarig Castle where according to one source the

militia "durst not move more than pussies", and the MacGregors defying in broad daylight the outposts which Lord Campbell of Glenorchy had established in the passes. Persecution of the MacGregors did not end until 1774, when the laws against them were repealed.

19th century and restored clan

To restore pride in the clan, the chiefs needed to be re-established. Eight hundred and twenty six MacGregors subscribed to a petition declaring General John Murray of Lanrick to be the true chief. Murray was in fact a MacGregor who was descended from Duncan MacGregor of Ardchoille, who had died in 1552. His son was Sir Evan, who played a part in the visit of

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

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 ...

in 1822, where he and his clansmen were given the tremendous honour of guarding the

Honours of Scotland The Honours of Scotland (, ), informally known as the Scottish Crown Jewels, are the regalia that were worn by List of Scottish monarchs, Scottish monarchs at their Coronation_of_the_British_monarch#Scottish_coronations, coronation. Kept in the ...

, better known as the Scottish Regalia and the oldest set of crown jewels in the British Isles.

Clan chief

The current chief of Clan Gregor is Sir Malcolm Gregor Charles MacGregor of MacGregor, 7th

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

of Lanrick and Balquhidder, 24th Chief of Clan Gregor. His Gaelic designation is , a name which bears testimony to the clan's traditional descent from .

Clan badges

* Crest badge: suitable for any members of Clan Gregor to wear; consists of the chief's heraldic crest and

slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan or a political, commercial, religious, or other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the public or a more defined target group ...

. The crest is: ''A lion's head erased Proper, crowned with an antique crown Or''. The slogan is , which is

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

for 'Royal is my race'. * Plant badge: Scots pine, a

conifer Conifers () are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a sin ...

native to Scotland.

Tartans

Many tartans are associated with the name ''MacGregor''. However, only the following are recognized as " clan tartans" by the current chief of Clan Gregor:

Signet and seal in Iowa

Descendants of Rob Roy MacGregor settled around McGregor, Iowa, and in 1849 it was reported that the original MacGregor seal and signet was owned by Alex McGregor of Iowa. The clan seal was inscribed: " / ", which was interpreted as 'I am of royal descent/Slay and spare not'. (The first part is

; the second is rather dialectal Scots language, which today would be rendered "".) The signet was a bloodstone from

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; ) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault (HBF), often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Central Scotland and the Highlands.Tom Weir. ''The Scottish Lochs''. pp. 33-43. Published by ...

, and was sketched by William Williams.

Septs

The following table lists clan names and sept names recognized by the Clan Gregor Society. The society states that people who bear the following surnames, or who descend from a woman with one of the following surnames, is eligible for membership. The prefixes ''M''', ''Mc'' and ''Mac'' are considered interchangeable, and other spelling variations are also omitted from this list. *Alpin *Fletcher *Greer *Gregg *Graig *Gregor *Gregorson *Gregory *Gregson *Greig *Grewer *Grier * Grierson *Grigg(s) *Grigor *Gruer *Hubberd *King *Lawrence *MacAdam *Macaldowie , , Macara , , Macaree , , MacChoiter *McGehee *MacConachie *MacCrowther *MacEan *MacEwin *MacGregor *MacGrigor *MacGrowther *MacGruder *Macilduy *MacLeister *MacLiver *MacNee *MacNeice * MacNeish *MacNie *MacPeter(s) *MacPetrie *Magruder *Malloch * Neish *Patullo/Pittillow *Peter *Petrie *Gragg The following names are documented aliases of MacGregor from the proscription. Membership is available for individuals who can show evidence of descent or a family tradition of MacGregor connection. *Bain *Beachley *Black *Bowers *Bowie *Coleman *Comrie *Dochart *Dunn *Lakie *Lakey *Landless *Lawrence *Leckie *Lockie *Mor *Roy *Skinner *White *Whyte *Willox The following names are traditional aliases of MacGregor with little documented evidence. Membership is available for individuals who can show evidence of descent or a family tradition of MacGregor connection. *Argyl *Arrowsmith *Begland *Brewer *Caird *Callander *Clark *Craigdallie *Crerar *Crowther *Denison *Docherty *Dorward *Dowie *Fisher *Gair *Goodsir *Grayson *Gudger *Guinness *Kirkwood *Leishman *MacAndrew *MacAngus *MacCanish *MacGeach *Macgehee *Macghee *MacGill *MacGrew *Macnocaird *Macnucator *Nelson *Neilson *Nucator *Orr *Paterson *Peat *Peterson *Shankland *Stringer *Tainsh *Telfer *Telford *Tossach *Walker *Weliver The following names are other clan names that are known to have been used by the MacGregors. People with the names from this list are properly the domain of other Clan and Family societies, however the MacGregor clan welcomes inquiries from persons bearing these names who can show their descent from a MacGregor who adopted the name as an alias. *Balfour *Buchannan *Campbell *Cunningham *Donald *Dougal *Douglas *Drummond *Erskine *Ferguson *Gordon *Graham *Grant *Hay *Johnson *Johnston *Livingston *MacAlastair *MacDonald *MacDougal *MacEwan *MacFarlane *MacIan *MacInnes *MacLaren *MacNeil *MacNicol *MacPherson *Menzies *Murray *Ramsay *Stewart *Stirling *Williams *Wilson

Notes

References

External links

Clan Gregor Society

American Clan Gregor Society

The German Clan Gregor Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gregor Scottish outlaws