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Skye Pioneers and "The Island"
Belfast Families - Ancestors and Descendants of Annabella MacLeod, Wife of Dr. James Munro, through The MacDonalds, Lords of the Isles


1. Somerled, married Raguhildis.
2. Reginald, married Fonia.
3. Donald, married daughter of Walter, Steward of Scotland.
4. Sir Angus Mor de Yle, married daughter of Sir Colin Campbell.
5. Angus de Yle, married Agnes O'Cahan.
6. John de Yle, married Margaret, daughter King Robert II.
7. Donald, married Mary Leslie.
8. Alexander de Yle
9. Hugh Alexander, II Baron of Sleat, married Elizabeth Gunn.
10. Donald Gallach, III Baron of Sleat, married, Agnes
11. Donald Gruamach, IV Baron of Sleat, married Catherine MacDonald.
12. Donald Gorm, V Baron of Sleat, married Margaret MacLeod.
13. Donald Gormson, VI Baron of Sleat, married Mary MacLean.
14. Archibald Macdonald,
15. Sir Donald Macdonald, first Baronet of Sleat, married Janet Mackenzie.
16. Sir James Macdonald, second Baronet of Sleat, married Margaret Mackenzie.
17. Somerled Macdonald, married Mary MacLeod.
18. Hugh Macdonald, married Marion Macdonald.
19. Annabella Macdonald, married Alexander Macdonald.
20. Marion Macdonald, married Murdoch MacLeod.
21. Annabella MacLeod, married James Munro.
22. Marion Munro, married Peter Nicholson.
23. Isabella Nicholson, married John A. Macqueen.
24. James, Matilda, Malcolm and Peter Macqueen.

1. The Great Somerled, "Rex Insularum," Thane of Argyle, took up arms against Malcolm IV, King of Scotland. After a war of three years peace was established in 1157. In 1164 Somerled renewed hostilities and invaded the mainland with a large army. He was assassinated at Renfrew by a bribed miscreant named Maurice MacNeil, a relative of Somerled, who had no fear of his presence in camp. Somerled was married to Raguhildis, daughter of Olave the Black, King of Man.

2. Reginald, described in his charter (about 1180) to Paisley Abbey as "Reginaldus Filius Somerled Dominus de Inchegal." His seal to this charter is inscribed, "Reginaldus Rex Insularum, Dominus de Ergile."

Reginald was married to Fonia, granddaughter of Fergus, Prince of Galloway.

3. Donald, in his charter to the monastery of Paisley, about 1210, was described as "Dovenaldus filius Reginaldi filii Somerled dominus de Inchegal." He was married to a daughter of Walter, Steward of Scotland, by his wife, Marjory, daughter of King Robert the Bruce.

4. Sir Angus Mor de Yle, Lord of the Isles, was son of Donald, Lord of Inchegal. He married a daughter of Sir Colin Campbell of Lochawe.

5. Angus de Yle, Lord of the Isles, was the second son of Sir Angus Mor. (The eldest son, Alexander de Yle, was forfeited by Robert the Bruce for siding with the Balliol party against him). Angus was the staunch friend of Bruce in his misfortunes, and did yeoman service in the final struggle at Bannockburn. He was married to Agnes, daughter of Guy O'Cahan of Ulster.

6. John de Yle, Lord of the Isles, was son of said Angus and Agnes. His second wife was Margaret, daughter of King Robert II. Being cousins Papal dispensation was granted to permit them to marry. "To the Bishop of St. Andrews, mandate to dispense John de Insulis, Lord of the Isles, and Margaret, daughter of Robert, called Stewart, Knight, of the diocese of Glasgow, so as to intermarry, they being related in the third and fourth degree of affinity." (18 Kalands, July, 1350, Avignon).

7. Donald, Lord of the Isles, was eldest son of said John and Margaret. He was a renowned chieftain, and led the Highland hosts in the famous battle of Harlaw. His wife was Mary, in her own right Countess of Ross, daughter of Sir Walter Leslie, by Euphemia, Countess of Ross.

8. Alexander de Yle, Earl of Ross, and Lord of the Isles, was the son of said Donald and Mary.

9. Hugh Alexander, son of Alexander de Yle, succeeded his half brother John, I Baron of Sleat. From him he received a charter in 1469 of the lands of Sleat and Uist. (Dispensation by Pope Eugenius IV in favour of Hugh Alexander and Donald, sons of Alexander de Yle, Earl of Ross, legitimating them-the illegitimate sons of the said Alexander de Yle, Earl of Ross, a married man and an unmarried woman). He married Elizabeth Gunn, daughter of the Crowner of Caithness, and had among other issue,

10. Donald Gallach, III Baron of Sleat, son of Hugh Alexander and Elizabeth. He married Agnes, daughter of Sir John of the Isles (called Cathanac), Lord of Dunnyveg and the Glens. They were succeeded by their son,

11. Donald Gruamach, IV Baron of Sleat. Next to Macdonald of Islay, he was the most prominent chieftain of his race in his day. "Donald the Grim despised the peaceful art of the clerk, and when along with other chiefs he signed a bond of offence and defence (at Inverness) on the 30th April, 1527, it was with his 'hand at the pen guided by Sir William Munro, notary public.' " He died in 1534. He married Catherine, daughter of the Captain of Clanranald.

12. Donald Gorm, V Baron of Sleat, was son of Donald Gruamach, by his wife Catherine. The chiefs of Sleat now took up their abode in the castle of Duntulm. His claim to the lordship of the Isles, and to the earldom of Ross, was disputed by Mackenzie of Kintail. He ravaged Mackenzie's lands and besieged him in his castle before which he received an arrow wound in the foot, from which he died in 1539. His wife was Margaret, daughter of Siol Torquil MacLeod of the Lewis.

13. Donald Gormson (Sassunach), VI Baron of Sleat, was son of Donald Gorm. He "was a minor of tender years" when he succeeded his father. He died in 1585. His wife was Mary, daughter of Hector Mor MacLean of Duart. Their eldest son, Donald Gorm Mor, succeeded as VII Baron of Sleat. He died in December, 1616.

14. Archibald, second son of Donald Gormson, married. His son was

15. Sir Donald Macdonald (Donald Gorm Oig), first Baronet of Sleat, died in October, 1643. He married Janet, daughter of Kenneth, first Lord Mackenzie of Kintail, sister of Colin and George, first and second Earls of Seaforth.

16 Sir James Macdonald, second Baronet, eldest son of Sir Donald, succeeded his father. He joined Montrose in 1645. After the defeat of the King's forces at Worcester in 1651, he retired to Skye, "where he lived with great circumspection" until his death on December 8, 1678. His first wife was Margaret, daughter of Sir Roderick Mackenzie of Tarbat, ancestor of the Earls of Cromarty.

17. Somerled, "Soirlee" Macdonald of Sartle was fourth son of Sir James, by his first wife, Margaret. He married Mary, daughter of Murdo MacLeod, called "Tutor" of Raasay.

18. Captain Hugh Macdonald [Emigrated to North Carolina about 1771 or 1772 where he died 1780. In addition to Annabella and others, he had a son James, a lieutenant in the Dutch service 1747-8.] of Armadale, was third son of Somerled. In 1728 he abducted and married Marion Macdonald, widow of Ranald Macdonald II, of Milton, South Uist, the mother, by her first husband, of the celebrated Flora Macdonald. Capt. Hugh was one of the most powerful men of his clan. Being blind of an eye, he was known as Uisdean Cam. It was he who, while in command of a body of militia in Uist, furnished his stepdaughter, Flora, with a passport for herself, "Betty Burke" (the Prince) and crew, to pass the Minch to Skye.

19. Annabella Macdonald, daughter of Capt. Hugh and Marion, married Major Alexander Macdonald of Cuidrach, Skye, a descendant of Hugh Macdonald, fourth son of Domhnull Mac Ian'ic Sheumais, a "distinguished warrior of unsurpassed courage and enormous strength," third of Kingsburgh. In or about 1772 they joined the great Macdonald migration to the Carolinas.

After the Revolutionary War broke out, agents of the British government recruited the Royal Highland Emigrant Regiment, numbered the 84th, in the Highland settlements in Carolina. Allan Macdonald, husband of Flora, was Brigade Major. Alexander Macdonald, of Cuidrach, served as Major under him. Despite the lessons of the "forty-five," when she found herself a prisoner in the Tower of London, Flora threw her powerful and ill-fated influence among the clansmen, on the side of reaction. She exerted herself to gain recruits. Mounted on a white charger she rode before, and animated the assembled troops by a stirring address in Gaelic.

In February, 1776, the regiment started its march from Cross Creek to Brunswick, N.C., to embark for Halifax, Nova Scotia. On February 27, 1776, at Widow Moore's Creek Bridge, the Highland Army, eighteen hundred strong, was met by the insurgents and scattered. With grim irony, almost all the officers soon found themselves prisoners in Halifax, Virginia, instead of in the Halifax for which they started. Major Allan, his son Lieut. Alexander, and Major Alexander of Cuidrach, were exchanged in the autumn of 1777, and after serving in New York until the end of 1778 Majors Allan and Alexander rejoined their regiment in Nova Scotia, where they remained on duty until the regiment was disbanded in 1783. They then returned to Skye, where Flora and her daughters had gone in 1779. Annabella and her five children returned from Carolina to London in 1781. In addition to her husband, Flora had five sons in the war, all officers.

In the memorable Battle of the Saints, or "Glorious 12th of April," 1782, Compte de Grasse surrendered his flagship "Ville de Paris" to the immortal Rodney. She was the finest and largest first-rate line-of-battle ship in the world, the gift of the citizens of Paris to Louis XIV. She had thirteen hundred men on board in the battle, hundreds of whom were soldiers. From three hundred to four hundred were dead or wounded when the fight was over.

In the summer of 1782, the "Ville de Paris" started for England in convoy_ There were upwards of five hundred men on board. The prize crew was under command of Flora's son, Ranald, Captain of Marines, who was wounded on the "Princessa" in the battle. With him was his brother, Lieut. Alexander, who had joined the ship shortly prior thereto. In mid ocean, on September 14, 1782, she was struck by a terrific hurricane and foundered. All on board were lost.

Flora's son, Charles, a Captain in the Queen's Rangers, under Col. Simcoe ; Captain James, "a brave officer who served with distinction" in Tarleton's British Legion; and Colonel John, commandant of the Royal Edinburgh Artillery, all retired to Scotland when the wars were over. Anne, was wife of Maj.-Gen. Alexander MacLeod, and Frances was wife of Donald Macdonald of Cuidrach, her cousin.

Major Alexander Macdonald of Cuidrach, and his wife, Annabella Macdonald, had the following issue:

I. KENNETH, [A daughter, Fanny, was wife of John Munro, Forres, Scotland.] d. Feb. 13, 1814. Aide-de-Camp to Gen. Donald Macdonald at Moore's Creek Bridge. Married a daughter of Nicolson of Scorribreck. The family monument at Forres is inscribed thus:

In memory of Capt. Kenneth Macdonald 84th Foot Regt. of Caroline Hill, Skye, and his wife Jane Nicholson. Also their daughter Jessie, died at Forres, 15th June, 1857. Mary, long resident in Forres, died in Edinburgh, 11th May, 1898, aged 95.

II. JAMES, married Isabella, daughter of Rev. Donald Macqueen, [Brother of Rev. William. Their mother, Florence, was daughter of William Macdonald, styled "the Tutor," uncle of Sir Alexander, of "the 45."] Skye, Capt. at Moore's Creek. Prisoner of war for two years in Maryland. Rejoined the King's Army in N.Y. Died of fever 1780.

III. DONALD, [Arrived in North Carolina Christmas 1774. Given 500 acres in Anson Co. by his grandfather, Capt. Hugh Macdonald. Returned to London, 1783. ] Ensign Tarlton's Br. Legion 1780. In 1790 married his cousin Frances, daughter of celebrated Flora. Emigrated to Australia.

IV. first wife of James Macdonald, tacksman of Skeabost and merchant in Portree, son of John Macdonald Heisker, North Uist, with issue, among others: Emily, wife of Capt. James Macdonald of Flodigarry. Their daughter Jessie was wife of Ninian Jeffrey, with issue, among others, Agnes Johanna, wife of Ranald Livingstone, with issue: Col. Ranald J. (Livingstone-Macdonald, d. 1926) ; Alex. Wm. John; Emily Nina; Mary Frances; Flora Charlotte.

V. JANET, wife of her cousin, Major Alexander Macdonald, of Courthill House, Kishorn, Loch Carron, d. Nov. 19, 1815. He was son of Rev. Hugh of Portree, son of Hugh of Glenmore, son of Sir James Macdonald, 2nd Baronet of Sleat. Janet died at Stornoway 1847, buried in Skye. They had issue:

a. ALEXANDER, unmarried;
b. HUGH PETER, of Monkstadt, d. July, 1868, married Jessie, daughter of Donald Macdonald, Second of Skeabost, with issue:
1. ALEXANDER, married, with issue;
2. DONALD, married Jessie Macdonald of Balranald, with issue, among others, Hugh:
3. HUGH, married Eleanor Crisp with issue;
4. JESSIE, wife of Mr. Crisp with issue;
5. JULIA, wife of Mr. Crisp with issue;
6. JOHN, married with issue;
7. JAMES, d. 1928, aged 85, unmarried; (All above went to Australia.)
8. MARGARET, wife of Mr. Todd, with issue, Hugh M. Todd, London, married Margaret, daughter of Inspector-Gen. Wm. MacLeod, M.D., C.B., R.N., also Andrew, Dunedin, N.Z., with issue, among others, Bruce.
9. BOSVILLE, wife of Mr. Ross, with issue, among others, Sybella, wife of Frank Grey Smith, solicitor, Melbourne, d. 1926, with issue, Ross, solicitor; Nancy, wife of judge Macindoe, and Sybella.
10. JOHANNA and Eliza, unmarried.
c. ELIZABETH, pursuant to marriage contract dated at Mugstot, Skye, Oct. 6, 1813, married Alexander MacLeod, of Borlin, Skye (eldest son of William MacLeod, b. 1750, d. at Borlin, Skye, 10th Aug., 1811, of Luskintyre, Harris), without issue. Elizabeth died at Stornoway in 1872, where she is buried.
d. ALICE, b. about 1805, d. May 27, 1870, wife of Roderick Millar, M.D., d. 1889 (son of John Millar, M.D.), of Stornoway, with issue: Johanna Eliza, b. Nov. 10, 1844, and Janetta Macdonald, b. Sept. 6, 1846, both now residing in Edinburgh and dispensing cheerful Highland hospitality and Highland history.

VI. JACOBINA, b. in Carolina. In 1805 or 1806 she married Adjutant John (Eon) Macdonald, Skye, of Lord Macdonald's Regiment. He is said to have died about a year after their marriage.

VII. MARION,

20. Marion Macdonald, daughter of Major Alexander and Annabella, was wife of Captain Murdoch MacLeod, of Cuidrach, Skye (a branch of the Lewis and Raasa MacLeods), with issue among others:

ALEXANDER, married, with issue, Banna.

MARION, wife of Mr. Macintyre, with issue, among others: Mary, Margaret, wife of Rev. George Rainey Kennedy, minister at Dornoch, in 1868, with issue, among others: George Rainey, and Harry A. A., prof., Edin.

MARGARET, wife of Rev. Alexander MacLeod, minister of Rogart Free Church, Sutherlandshire, in 1868, without issue.

MALCOLM, emigrated to Cape Breton.

ANNABELLA.

21. Annabella MacLeod, daughter of Capt. Murdo MacLeod, by his wife Marion Macdonald, was wife of Dr. James Munro of Kilmuir, Skye. She was born in 1792, and emigrated to P.E.I. in 1841. She died at Alberry Plains, in August, 1852.

22. Marion Munro, daughter of Dr. James Munro, by his wife Annabella, was wife of Peter Nicholson, miller of Orwell.

23. Isabella Nicholson, daughter of Peter Nicholson by his wife Marion Munro, was wife of John A. Macqueen, farmer, of Orwell.

24. James, Matilda Brown, Malcolm A., and Peter I. Macqueen, are the surviving issue of John A. and Isabella Macqueen.


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