Samuel Mcdonald, a giant (Wellcome V0007445 cropped)

Sam McDonald (1762 – 6 May 1802), called "Big Sam", was a Scotsman of unusual height for his day who had a distinguished military career and was a noted "strongman". Most sources state his height as , with a burly build, although one 1822 source claims .

Life

Born in Lairg,

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 ...

in 1762, he served in the

2nd Sutherland Fencibles The plan of raising a fencible corps in the Highlands was first proposed and carried into effect by William Pitt the Elder, (afterwards Earl of Chatham) in the year 1759. During the three preceding years both the fleets and armies of Great Britain ...

1779–83 and the Royal Scots 1783–1789 (where he served as

Fugleman Fugleman (from the German ''Flügelmann'', the man on the ''Flügel'' or wing; wingman), properly a military term for a soldier who is selected to act as guide, and posted generally on the flanks with the duty of directing the march in the requ ...

or drill-leader). From 1791 to 1793 he was employed by the Prince of Wales as lodge porter at Carlton House, and during this time appeared at the

Drury Lane Theatre The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dru ...

playing Hercules in "Cymon and Iphigenia". From 1793 to 1799 he was a sergeant in the

3rd Sutherland Fencibles The plan of raising a fencible corps in the Highlands was first proposed and carried into effect by William Pitt the Elder, (afterwards Earl of Chatham) in the year 1759. During the three preceding years both the fleets and armies of Great Britain ...

, and from 1799 until his death in 1802 in the newly formed 93rd Sutherland. Due to his height and bulk he generally marched to the side of the formation, leading the regimental mascot, a deer. He was frequently detached for recruiting, and his image was later used on recruiting posters. Sergeant MacDonald died while stationed with the regiment on

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

. There exist several engravings of him, both in military uniform and while serving as a gatekeeper for the Prince of Wales, including three by noted Scottish caricaturist John Kay. His obituary in the '' Sydney Gazette'' was the first newspaper obituary printed in Australia; it appeared in the 12 March 1803 edition. A memorial stone and plaque for McDonald exists along Upland Road,

St. Peter's Port St. Peter Port (french: Saint-Pierre Port) is a town and one of the ten parishes on the island of Guernsey in the Channel Islands. It is the capital of the Bailiwick of Guernsey as well as the main port. The population in 2019 was 18,958. St. ...

on Guernsey, marking the former place of the Stranger's Cemetery where he was buried in 1802.

Colorful stories

A number of colorful stories were told of McDonald after his death. One said that the

Countess 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 ...

, impressed by his size, had given him 2 shillings 6 pence a day extra pay to feed himself, since she figured he must eat prodigiously. Another concerned a challenge to a fight from an Irish "giant"; McDonald insisted on shaking hands before the fight, and when his grip squeezed blood from the Irishman's fingernails, the Irishman backed down. A third had McDonald assigned to guard a cannon outside on a cold night; after a while he carried the cannon, unassisted, to the fire in the guardhouse, saying he could just as well watch it there. Another story concerned McDonald and an Irish butcher in Dublin who didn't believe the stories of McDonald's strength; he challenged McDonald that if he carried a bullock two miles back to the barracks, he could have it for free, and McDonald promptly did so.Burgoyne, p. 427

References

External links

Bio of McDonald in clan newsletter

Engravings of McDonald at National Portrait Gallery

"In pictures: 18th Century caricatures,"
''BBC News''

{{DEFAULTSORT:McDonald, Sam 1762 births 1802 deaths Royal Scots soldiers People from Sutherland Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders soldiers