The Monach Islands, also known as Heisker ( / , ), are an island group west of

North Uist North Uist (; ) is an island and community in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Etymology In Donald Munro's ''A Description of the Western Isles of Scotland Called Hybrides'' of 1549, North Uist, Benbecula and South Uist are described as one isla ...

in the

Outer Hebrides The Outer Hebrides ( ) or Western Isles ( , or ), sometimes known as the Long Isle or Long Island (), is an Archipelago, island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland. It is the longest archipelago in the British Isles. The islan ...

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 ...

. The islands are not to be confused with Hyskeir in the

Inner Hebrides The Inner Hebrides ( ; ) is an archipelago off the west coast of mainland Scotland, to the south east of the Outer Hebrides. Together these two island chains form the Hebrides, which experience a mild oceanic climate. The Inner Hebrides compri ...

, or Haskeir which is also off North Uist and visible from the group.

Geology and geography

The main islands of (once home to a

nunnery A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican Comm ...

), and Shivinish () are all linked at

low tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...

. It has been claimed that it was at one time possible to walk all the way to Baleshare, and on to

, five miles away at low tide. In the 17th century, a large tidal wave is said to have washed this route away. The islands of the group tend to be low-lying and sandy, subject to intense

coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of Wind wave, waves, Ocean current, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts ...

. Not unlike the

Isles of Scilly The Isles of Scilly ( ; ) are a small archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, Isles of Scilly, St Agnes, is over farther south than the most southerly point of the Great Britain, British mainla ...

it is possible that , Shivinish and formed a single body of land within historic times, and that their land area has greatly decreased due to overgrazing, sea inundation, and wind erosion. Smaller islands in the group include Deasker (), Shillay () and (or Stockay).

History

The islands have been uninhabited since 1942, but were populated by up to 100 people for centuries (possibly for a millennium or more) prior to 1810. They were originally abandoned due to

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature ...

, but were resettled by 1841 in the wake of the

Highland Clearances The Highland Clearances ( , the "eviction of the Gaels") were the evictions of a significant number of tenants in the Scottish Highlands and Islands, mostly in two phases from 1750 to 1860. The first phase resulted from Scottish Agricultural R ...

. The 19th century census records for the islands show a fluctuating population, from 39 people in 1841 up to 140 people at their peak population in 1891. Shillay is the location of Monach Lighthouse, built by

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

and Thomas Stevenson in 1864. The lighthouse was closed in 1942 but, following the sinking of the oil tanker MV ''Braer'' in 1993, a new and much smaller lighthouse was built in 1997. This had a range of ; when a range of was deemed necessary, the new lighthouse was shut down in 2008 and the old lighthouse recommissioned with a new optic. Like all British lighthouses it is now unmanned and fully automated. In 2007 renovations of the old schoolhouse were completed, enabling visitors to stay on the island, and learn about its history and wildlife. The old Heisgeir mailboat has also been restored at the Grimsay boatshed. The motorised open wooden boat was built circa 1932 for the last family to leave the Monach Islands, and had lain unused at

Lochmaddy Lochmaddy ( , "Loch of the Hounds") is the administrative centre of North Uist in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. ''Na Madaidhean'' (the wolves/hounds) are rocks in the bay after which the loch, and subsequently the village, are named. Lochmaddy i ...

before being rescued by the local history society.

Lady Grange

Jacobite sympathiser

James Erskine, Lord Grange James Erskine, Lord Grange (1679 – 20 January 1754) was a Scottish advocate, judge and politician. He served as Lord Justice Clerk and a Lord of Justiciary. Life The son of Charles Erskine, Earl of Mar, by his spouse Lady Mary, eldest daught ...

(1679–1754), had his wife

Rachel Rachel () was a Bible, Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph (Genesis), Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban (Bible), Laban. Her older siste ...

kidnapped and abandoned on the Monach Isles between 1732 and 1734. At the time the islands were owned by Sir Alexander MacDonald of

Sleat Sleat ( ) is a peninsula and civil parish on the island of Skye in the Highland council area of Scotland, known as "the garden of Skye". It is the home of the clan '' MacDonald of Sleat''. The name comes from the Scottish Gaelic , which in tur ...

and she was housed with his tacksman (leaseholder), another Alexander MacDonald and his wife. When Lady Grange complained about her condition, she was told by her host that he had no orders to provide her either with clothes, or food other than the normal fare he and his wife were used to. She lived in isolation, not even being told the name of the island where she was living, and it took her some time to find out who her landlord was. She was there until June 1734 when John and Norman MacLeod from North Uist arrived to move her on. They told her they were taking her to

Orkney Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland, ...

,Haswell-Smith (2004) pp. 254–56 but she was taken to

Hirta Hirta () is the largest island in the St Kilda archipelago, on the western edge of Scotland. The names (in Scottish Gaelic) and ''Hirta'' (historically in English) have also been applied to the entire archipelago. Now without a permanent resi ...

where she lived from 1734 to 1742 before being taken to

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye, is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated by the Cuillin, the rocky slopes of which provide some o ...

where she died after a failed rescue attempt.

Wildlife and conservation

The islands are of special interest for undisturbed

machair A machair (; sometimes machar in English) is a fertile low-lying grassy plain found on part of the northwestern coastlines of Ireland and Scotland, particularly the Outer Hebrides. The best examples are found on North and South Uist, Harris ...

and their

grey seal The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or "earless seals". The only species classified in the genus ''Halichoerus'', it is found on both shores of the Nort ...

population. About 10,000 seals come ashore each autumn to have their pups and mate, making it one of the largest such colonies in the world. There are also a large number of nesting

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adaptation, adapted to life within the marine ecosystem, marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent ...

s and a rich

flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...

Grey heron The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia, and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more norther ...

s nest in some of the abandoned buildings. There are no trees on the islands. The islands are designated as a

Special Protection Area A special protection area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cer ...

(SPA), a

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

(SAC), and a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI). The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the stat ...

(IUCN) classifies as the islands (via the SSSI designation) as meeting the criteria for a Category IV

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

. The SAC designation extends to cover the seas surrounding the group, and in 2014 a larger area of the sea surrounding the islands (in total ) was declared a Nature Conservation Marine Protected Area (NCMPA). The designation is in place to protect the feeding grounds of the islands' seabirds, as well as the marine

geomorphology Geomorphology () is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features generated by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or near Earth's surface. Geomorphologists seek to understand wh ...

of the seabed. The Monach Islands were also formerly designated as a National Nature Reserve, but this designation was withdrawn in May 2018.

References

{{coord, 57, 31, N, 7, 40, W, region:GB_type:isle, display=title Uninhabited islands of the Outer Hebrides Former populated places in Scotland Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Western Isles South Special Areas of Conservation in Scotland Important Bird Areas of the Outer Hebrides Protected areas of the Outer Hebrides Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas of Scotland Archipelagoes of Scotland

Geology and geography

History

Lady Grange

Wildlife and conservation

See also

References