The Mackays of Aberach also known as the Clan Aberach are a Scottish family and a branch of the ancient Clan Mackay of the Scottish Highlands. They were the senior cadet branch of the Clan Mackay and were seated at Achness, in Strathnaver, which is in modern-day Sutherland.[1] In Scottish Gaelic they are known as the Sleaght-ean Aberigh (descendants of John Aberach).[2]
John Mackay, I of Aberach's older brother, Neil Mackay was imprisoned on the Bass Rock for his part in the Battle of Tuiteam Tarbhach in 1406.[4] Meanwhile, chief Angus Du Mackay's cousins, Neil and Morgan Mackay, had formed an alliance with the Murrays and Clan Sutherland who were enemies of Angus.[5] Neil and Morgan along with the Murrays and Sutherlanders invaded Strathnaver in an attempt to take Angus's lands. However, they were defeated at the Battle of Drumnacoub by the forces of John Mackay, I of Aberach who supported his father, the chief, Angus Du Mackay.[6]
John Mackay, I of Aberach married a daughter of the chief of Clan Mackintosh and left two known sons; William Du Mackay and John Mackay.[1]
William Du Mackay, II of Aberach
William Du Mackay, II of Aberach took a prominent part in the Battle of Aldy Charrish in 1486 against the Clan Ross where chief Alexander Ross 6th of Balnagowan was killed.[1] The Mackays appear to have taken revenge on the Rosses who had killed their chief Angus Roy Mackay at the Battle of Tarbat a year earlier. William Du Mackay married a daughter of Hector Roy Mackenzie of Gairloch and left two known sons; William and Donald.[1]
William Mackay, III of Aberach
William Mackay, III of Aberach was killed in 1517 in the aftermath of the Battle of Torran Dubh which took place at Loch Salchie, between Loch Shin and Oikel.[1] According to the Bute MS he married a daughter of Murray of Tulibardine and had six sons: Thomas, John, Alexander, Murdo and Neil. He was succeeded by his second son John.[7]
John Williamson Mackay, IV of Aberach
John Williamson, IV of Aberach along with nine others was in 1538 summoned to appear before the Lords of Justice in Inverness for alleged “reset and intercommunicating with Donald and William Galdochson, rebels, accused of the slaughter of Donald Henryson and others”.[8] John married the daughter of chief Donald Mackay, 11th of Strathnaver. He left a son, Neil MacEan MacWilliam Mackay and a daughter named Margaret.[8]
Neil MacEan MacWilliam Mackay, V of Aberach
Neil MacEan MacWilliam Mackay, V of Aberach witnessed the sasine to his cousin, chief Iye Du Mackay, 12th of Strathnaver, of the lands of Strathnaver on 20 April 1571.[9] Neil became involved in feuds with the Clan Gunn,[9] which culminated in the Battle of Leckmelm.[10] He later married a daughter of Hector Munro of Contullich Castle and had four sons: Murdo, William Mor, Robert and Neil.[9] In 1542, Neil Mackay of the Aberach family was placed in command of Skibo Castle by his chief Donald Mackay, 11th of Strathnaver.[11]
Murdo Mackay, VI of Aberach
Murdo Mackay, VI of Aberach held the lands of Gnubmore in wadset as cautioner to chief Donald Mackay, 1st Lord Reay.[9] He married on 15 April 1615 to Christina, daughter of Donald Balloch of Scoury, and left several children: John, Robert, Neil, and Ann.[12]
John Mackay, VII of Aberach
John Mackay, VII of Aberach was, according to historian Angus Mackay, known as a man of “pronounced piet” and strongly sympathetic with the persecuted Scottish Covenanters during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.[12] He married Christina, daughter of the Rev. Alexander Munro, poet and preacher of Durness and left one son, William.[12]
Rev. William Mackay, VIII of Aberach
Mackay of Aberach Family Tree
Rev. William Mackay, VII of Aberach was the minister of Dornoch.[12] A document from 1673 records him as the ‘’Aberach chieftain’’.[12] He married Jane, daughter of John Dunbar, Ballie of Elgin and left three sons: John; George, Sheriff-Depute of Moray; and Hugh, all of whom died without issue.[12] William Mackay was succeeded as the Aberach chieftain by Robert Mackay, grandson of the second son of Murdo Mackay VI of Aberach.[12]
Robert Mackay, IX of Aberach
Robert Mackay, IX of Aberach was taken prisoner at Balveny, along with the chief, the 2nd Lord Reay in 1649.[12] He married Isabella Munro and had issue: Murdo, Alexander, John, William, Janet and Christina.[13] The next Aberach chieftain was Hugh Mackay who was son of Murdo Mackay, brother of Robert, IX of Aberach.
Hugh Mackay, X of Aberach
Hugh Mackay, born in about 1715 was commonly known as “Huistean McCorrichie”. He had a tack of Brae Strathy and married Catherine, daughter of John Mackay of Lettermore. Hugh died in 1797 leaving three sons and two daughters: George, Murdo, John, Isabella and Barbara.[14]
George Mackay, XI of Aberach
George Mackay, XI of Aberach married Catherine, daughter of George Mackay of Arichliney, Kildonan, Sutherland.[14] During the Highland Clearances he sold out and removed to Wick where he died in 1840.[14] He had seven sons and three daughters including: George, John, Hugh, Robert, Angus, William, James, Elizabeth, Jessie and Andrew.[15]
George Mackay, XII of Aberach
George Mackay, XII of Aberach became a merchant in Inverness in 1811, in partnership with his maternal uncle, Captain Robert Mackay of Hedgefield and continued the business for over fifty years.[16] He married in Inverness on 16 Oct 1819, Lillias, 2nd daughter of Duncan Grant of Dalshangie, Inverness. George died in 1869 leaving eight sons and three daughters including: Rev.Dr. James, Robert, Dr. Duncan, Hugh, George Grant, Lillias, Rev. John, Catherine, Joseph and William [17]
Rev. Dr. James Mackay, XIII of Aberach
Rev. Dr. James Mackay, XIII of Aberach was born in Inverness on 5th Sept 1820. He was a chaplain during the Indian Mutiny for which he was awarded a medal.[18] He married firstly Lucretia Livingstone Reed with whom he had two sons and one daughter: Lieutenant-Colonel James Livingstone of the 8th Bengal Cavalry, George Robert and Lillias. He married secondly Margaret Fowler but without issue.[18]
John Mackay of Moudale
A notable member of the Mackay of Aberach family is Ensign John Mackay of Moudale. A cadet of the Mackays of Aberach, he is famous for leading an Independent Highland Company of soldiers in support of the British Government during the Jacobite rising of 1745. He and his men defeated a Jacobite force in what is now known as the Battle of Littleferry in 1746. Historian Angus Mackay stated that John Mackay of Moudale was a “hero” as he also captured the Jacobite commander George Mackenzie, 3rd Earl of Cromartie. John Mackay of Moudale descended directly from a younger son of Neil MacEan MacWilliam, V of Aberach.[19]
Angus Mackay also quotes a short poem about John Mackay of Moudale in gaelic:
Cuis ardain nan Aberach, Laimh laidir nach bagradh, Ian failteach macRaibert ‘icNeil
Which translates in English as:
The pride of the Aberachs, Strong hand without menace, Genial John, the son of Robert, son of Neil
Related Research Articles
Clan Mackay is an ancient and once-powerful Highland Scottish clan from the far North of the Scottish Highlands, but with roots in the old Kingdom of Moray. They supported Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century. In the centuries that followed they were anti-Jacobite. The territory of the Clan Mackay consisted of the parishes of Farr, Tongue, Durness and Eddrachillis, and was known as Strathnaver, in the north-west of the county of Sutherland. However, it was not until 1829 that Strathnaver was considered part of Sutherland when the chief sold his lands to the Earls of Sutherland and the Highland Clearances then had dire consequences for the clan. In the 17th century the Mackay chief's territory had extended to the east to include the parish of Reay in the west of the neighbouring county of Caithness. The chief of the clan is Lord Reay and the lands of Strathnaver later became known as the Reay Country.
Donald Mackay, 1st Lord Reay, 14th of Strathnaver was a Scottish soldier and member of Parliament. He played a prominent role in the Thirty Years' War, raising a regiment of 3,000 men, which served in both the Danish and Swedish forces. He was later an unwilling Covenanter. He was the fourteenth chief of Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan.
The Battle of Dingwall was a Scottish clan battle said to have taken place in the year 1411, in Dingwall in the Scottish Highlands. It was fought between the Clan Mackay and the Clan Donald.
The Battle of Drumnacoub was a Scottish clan battle involving factions of the Clan Mackay fought in the far northwest of Scotland, some time between 1427 and 1433. It took place on a hill called Carn Fada at the southern end of the Kyle of Tongue, between Ben Loyal and the village of Tongue. It was fought between members of the Clan Mackay and men of the Clan Sutherland. The battle was recorded by the 15th century chronicler, Walter Bower, in his work Scotichronicon.
The Sandside Chase was a Scottish clan battle which took place in 1437 in Caithness, about 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Thurso. The Clan Mackay launched a raid from Strathnaver towards Thurso until they encountered resistance from the locals at Dounreay. The Mackays then pulled back to Sandside, where they were joined by reinforcements and slaughtered the defenders on the coast north of Reay.
The Battle of Aldy Charrish was a Scottish clan battle that took place on 11 July 1487. The Clan Mackay and possibly the Clan Sutherland defeated the Clan Ross and their allies in the Scottish Highlands, probably on the south side of Strathoykel.
The Battle of Alltan-Beath also known as the Battle of Ailtan-Beath was a Scottish clan battle said to have taken place in the year 1542 in the village of Knockarthur, in Sutherland, in the Scottish Highlands. It was fought between men of the Clan Mackay and men of the Clan Sutherland whose chiefs were the Gordon, Earls of Sutherland.
The Battle of Leckmelm was a Scottish clan battle that took place in 1586, in the Scottish Highlands. It was fought between the Clan Gunn against the Clan Sutherland, Mackays of Aberach and the MacLeods of Assynt.
Huistean Du Mackay, 13th of Strathnaver, was the thirteenth chief of Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan.
Angus Du Mackay, 7th of Strathnaver was the seventh chief of the Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan. He is recorded in the 15th-century Scottish chronicle, Scotichronicon, as Enneas-en-Imprissi meaning Angus the Absolute due to his power of commanding 4000 men.
Iye Du Mackay, 12th of Strathnaver, was the chief of the Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan, from 1550 to 1572.
The Mackays of Scoury were a minor noble Scottish family and a branch of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan. They were seated at Scourie Castle, in Scourie, in the parish of Eddrachillis, county of Sutherland. However, Scourie was part of the Mackay chief's province of “Strathnaver” until it was sold to the Earl of Sutherland in 1829.
The Mackays of Borley were a minor noble Scottish family and a branch of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Highland Scottish clan. Their territorial designation of Borley is a small village within the parish of Durness, in the modern-day county of Sutherland, Scotland
Donald Mackay, 5th of Strathnaver, was the fifth chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
Angus Mackay, 6th of Strathnaver was the sixth chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
Neil Mackay, 8th of Strathnaver, was in the 15th century the eighth chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands. He is sometimes also recorded as Neil Bass Mackay or Neil Wasse Mackay which was a nickname taken from the fact that for a time he was a prisoner on the Bass Rock.
Iye Roy Mackay, 10th of Strathnaver, was the tenth chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
John Mackay, 11th of Strathnaver, was the eleventh chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
Donald Mackay, 11th of Strathnaver, was the eleventh chief of the ancient Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands.
George Mackay, 3rd Lord Reay (1678–1748), was a Scottish noble and chief of the Clan Mackay, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands. During his life the Glorious Revolution took place which directly affected his family and estate, and during his chiefdom he served the British-Hanoverian Government during the Jacobite rising of 1715 and the Jacobite rising of 1745.
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