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| Dunaverty Castle | |
|---|---|
 The site of Dunaverty Castle | |
| Coordinates | 55°18′27″N5°38′41″W / 55.3075°N 5.6447°W |
| Reference no. | SM3041 |
  Location in Argyll and Bute | |
Dunaverty Castle is located at Southend at the southern end of the Kintyre peninsula in western Scotland. The site was once a fort belonging to the Clan Donald (MacDonald). Little remains of the castle, [1] although the site is protected as a scheduled monument. [2]
The remains of Dunaverty Castle stand on a rocky head land on the south east corner of Kintyre, Scotland. The headland it was built on forms a natural stronghold with the sea on three sides and is only approachable from the north. It is attached to the mainland only by a narrow path. It is known that the castle itself was accessed by a drawbridge.
In 1248, Henry III, King of England allowed Walter Byset to buy stores from Ireland for Dunaverty Castle which he had seized and was fortifying, apparently in revenge for hospitality given by Alexander II, King of Scotland to certain English pirates. However during that same year the castle was taken by Allan, the son of the Earl of Atholl, and Byset was taken prisoner.
In 1263, Dunaverty Castle was garrisoned by Alexander III, King of Scotland during the Norwegian campaign of Hákon Hákonarson, King of Norway.
The castle was eventually surrendered to the Norwegian king, who in turn granted it to Dubhghall mac Ruaidhrí, one of his steadfast supporters in the Hebrides. With the evaporation of Norwegian sovereignty in the Hebrides after 1263, Alexander III appears to have retaken the castle. [3]
Late in 1306, the embattled Robert I, King of Scotland seems to have fled to the safety of Dunaverty Castle and his friend, Aonghus Óg Mac Domhnaill, the Lord of the Isles. According to The Bruce , the king was harboured there for three days by Aonghus Óg Mac Domhnaill, before Aonghus took him to Rathlin Island. Some contemporary sources suggest that the castle was already under the king's control, however, and that the king acquired it from a certain Maol Coluim in March. In September of that year, when the English arrived at the castle, the Scottish king was not to be found.
In 1493 the fourth and last Lord of the Isles forfeited his title to James IV, King of Scotland. By 1494 the king had garrisoned and provisioned Dunaverty Castle. It is said that the MacDonalds, led by Sir John MacDonald whom the king had recently knighted, retook the castle before the King had even departed to Stirling and that the dead body of the King's castle governor was hung over the castle walls in sight of the King and his departing entourage. Sir John Macdonald however was later captured by MacIain of Ardnamurchan. He was tried and hanged on the Burgh Muir near Edinburgh.
The castle was repaired by the crown between 1539 and 1542. In January 1544, a Commission in Queen Mary's name was given to the captain, constable and keeper of the Castle of Dunaverty, to deliver it with its artillery and ammunition to the Earl of Argyll and in April of that year Argyll received a 12-year tack of North and South Kintyre, including the castle.
The English raided Kintyre and Campbeltown Loch in October 1588 because of the activities of the Clan MacDonald in Ireland. The Earl of Sussex sailed from Dublin in the Mary Willoughby with a small fleet and burnt Saddell, Dunaverty and Machrimore. He then burnt farms on Arran, Bute, and Cumbrae. [4]
In 1626, the Lordship of Kintyre was reconstituted in favour of the Earl of Argyll and Dunaverty Castle was denoted as its principal messuage. Argyll bestowed the Lordship of Kintyre on James, his eldest son by his second marriage, who, in 1635, at Dunaverty, granted a charter of the Lordship to Viscount Dunluce, eldest son of Randal MacDonnell, 1st Earl of Antrim. The transfer was set aside by the Scottish Privy Council, no doubt on a complaint by Argyll's eldest son, the Marquis of Lorn, who had bitterly resented his father's bestowal of the Lordship on his younger half-brother. On 12 December 1636, Lorn received a charter, under the Great Seal, of the Lordship of Kintyre, with the Castle of Dunaverty as its principal messuage.
During the Civil War Dunaverty was besieged in 1647 by Scottish supporters of Oliver Cromwell who were led by General David Leslie (Leslie later became a Royalist). The MacDonalds surrendered and then 300 of them were massacred. This incident became known as the Battle of Dunaverty, or "Dunaverty Massacre". The castle is nothing more than a ruin now, known as Blood Rock for the massacre which took place there.
Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles (Scottish Gaelic: Triath nan Eilean or Rìgh Innse Gall; Latin: Dominus Insularum) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was held by a series of his descendants, the Norse-Gaelic rulers of the Isle of Man and Argyll and the islands of Scotland in the Middle Ages. They wielded sea-power with fleets of galleys (birlinns). Although they were, at times, nominal vassals of the kings of Norway, Ireland, or Scotland, the island chiefs remained functionally independent for many centuries. Their territory included much of Argyll, the Isles of Arran, Bute, Islay, the Isle of Man, Hebrides, Knoydart, Ardnamurchan, and the Kintyre peninsula. At their height they were the greatest landowners and most powerful lords after the kings of England and Scotland.
Clan Donald, also known as Clan MacDonald or Clan Mc Donald, is a Highland Scottish clan and one of the largest Scottish clans. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grants of coats of arms, and serving as the judge of the Court of the Lord Lyon, recognises under Scottish law the High Chief of Clan Donald. Historically the chiefs of the Clan Donald held the title of Lord of the Isles until 1493 and two of those chiefs also held the title of Earl of Ross until 1476. Queen Mary of Denmark is member of Clan Donald.
Clan MacDougall is a Highland Scottish clan, historically based in and around Argyll. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in Scotland, issuing new grants of coats of arms, and serving as the judge of the Court of the Lord Lyon, recognizes under Scottish law the Chief of Clan MacDougall. The MacDougall chiefs share a common ancestry with the chiefs of Clan Donald in descent from Somerled of the 12th century. In the 13th century the Clan MacDougall whose chiefs were the original Lords of Argyll and later Lords of Lorne was the most powerful clan in the Western Highlands. During the Wars of Scottish Independence the MacDougalls sided with the Clan Comyn whose chiefs rivaled Robert the Bruce for the Scottish Crown and this resulted in clan battles between the MacDougalls and Bruce. This marked the MacDougall's fall from power and led to the rise of their relatives, the Clan Donald, who had supported Bruce and also the rise to power of the Clan Campbell who were then the habitual enemies of the MacDougalls and later of Clan Donald.
Lorne is an ancient province in the west of Scotland, which is now a district in the Argyll and Bute council area. The district gives its name to the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area, one of forty such areas in Scotland, which have been defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection from inappropriate development. The national scenic areas cover 15,726 ha, of which 10,088 ha are marine seascape, and includes the whole of the island of Lismore, along with neighbouring areas on the mainland such as Benderloch and Port Appin, and the Shuna Island.
Magnús Óláfsson was a King of Mann and the Isles. He was a son of Óláfr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles, and a member of the Crovan dynasty. Magnús' realm encompassed Mann and parts of the Hebrides. Some leading members of Magnús' family—such as his father—styled themselves "King of the Isles"; other members—such as Magnús and his brothers—styled themselves "King of Mann and the Isles". Although kings in their own right, leading members of the Crovan dynasty paid tribute to the Kings of Norway and generally recognised a nominal Norwegian overlordship of Mann and the Hebrides. Magnus was driven out by King Alexander III.
The Battle of Dalrigh, also known as the Battle of Dail Righ, Battle of Dalry or Battle of Strathfillan, was fought in 1306 between the army of King Robert the Bruce against Clan MacDougall of Argyll, who were allies of Clan Comyn and the English. It took place at the hamlet of Dalrigh near Tyndrum in Perthshire, Scotland. Bruce's army, reeling westwards after defeat by the English on 19 June at the Battle of Methven, was intercepted and all but destroyed, with Bruce himself narrowly escaping capture. The battle took place sometime between July and early August, but the exact date is unknown.
Domhnall Dubh was a Scottish nobleman. He was the son of Aonghas Óg, chief of Clan Donald, and claimant to the Lordship of the Isles, which had been held by his grandfather John of Islay, Earl of Ross. While just an infant, Domhnall Dubh was captured by Colin Campbell, 1st Earl of Argyll and imprisoned in Innischonnel Castle in Loch Awe. He remained in captivity for most of his life. He died at Drogheda, Ireland, in 1545.
Clan Sweeney is an Irish clan of Scottish origin. The Mac Suibhne family did not permanently settle in Ireland before the beginning of the 14th century, when they became Gallowglass soldiers for the Ua Domnaill dynasty of Tír Chonaill. The clan also claims an Irish descent from a prince of the Uí Néill dynasty, Ánrothán Ua Néill, son of Áed, son of Flaithbertach Ua Néill, King of Ailech and Cenél nEógain, died 1036. Through this descent the clan can claim a descent from Niall Noigíallach.
Aonghus Óg Mac Domhnaill, or Angus Og MacDonald, was a fourteenth-century Scottish magnate and chief of Clann Domhnaill. He was a younger son of Aonghus Mór mac Domhnaill, Lord of Islay. After the latter's apparent death, the chiefship of the kindred was assumed by Aonghus Óg's elder brother, Alasdair Óg Mac Domhnaill.
Donnchadh of Argyll or Donnchadh mac Dubhghaill was a late 12th and early 13th century Scottish noble. He was the son of Dubhghall mac Somhairle, son of Somhairle mac Gille Bhrighde. He is the first of the MacDougall lords of Argyll to take the title de Argadia, and can be regarded as the founder of the successful MacDougall lordship of Argyll. He was also a prominent builder, notable for his construction of Ardchattan Priory and Dunstaffnage Castle.
Aonghus Mór mac Domhnaill was a leading figure in the thirteenth-century kingdoms of the Isles and Scotland. He was a son of Domhnall mac Raghnaill, the eponym of Clann Domhnaill, a branch of Clann Somhairle. Aonghus Mór appears to have succeeded his father in the mid part of the thirteenth century. At the time, the rulers of the Isles were fiercely independent of the Scottish Crown, and owed nominal allegiance to the distant Norwegian Crown. Aonghus Mór's first certain appearance in the historical record seems to evince his involvement in aiding native Irish kindreds against the consolidation of Anglo-Irish authority in the north-west of Ireland. Such cooperation could have been undertaken in the context of overseas kindreds like Clann Domhnaill constructing Irish alliances to gain assistance against Scottish encroachment.
Ruaidhrí mac Raghnaill was a leading figure in the Kingdom of the Isles and a member of Clann Somhairle. He was a son of Raghnall mac Somhairle and was the eponymous ancestor of Clann Ruaidhrí. Ruaidhrí may have become the principal member of Clann Somhairle following the annihilation of Aonghus mac Somhairle in 1210. At about this time, Ruaidhrí seems to have overseen a marital alliance with the reigning representative of the Crovan dynasty, Rǫgnvaldr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles, and to have contributed to a reunification of the Kingdom of the Isles between Clann Somhairle and the Crovan dynasty.
Domhnall mac Raghnaill was a Hebridean noble in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. He is the eponymous progenitor of Clan Donald. For this reason some traditions accumulated around him in the later Middle Ages and early modern period. His vast impact on culture and in the centuries remains today. Despite his role as the historical figurehead of one of the world's most famous kindreds and surnames, there is almost no contemporary evidence yielding certain information about his life.
Alasdair Óg Mac Domhnaill was Lord of Islay and chief of Clann Domhnaill. He was the eldest son of Aonghus Mór mac Domhnaill, Lord of Islay. Alasdair Óg seems to first appear on record in 1264, when he was held as a hostage of the Scottish Crown for his father's good behaviour. During Alasdair Óg's career, the Scottish realm endured a succession crisis as a result of the unexpected death of Margaret, Maid of Norway, heir to the Scottish throne, in 1290. One of several factions that staked a claim to the throne was the Bruce kindred. Both Alasdair Óg and his father were cosignatories of the Turnberry Band, a pact that may have partly concerned the Bruces' royal aspirations.
Saddell Castle is a historic 16th-century castle on the shore of the Kilbrannan Sound near Saddell, Kintyre, Argyll and Bute, Scotland of significant importance. The original castle existed in Somerled's time in the 12th century. The castle served as a bastion of the MacDonald family for several centuries and continues to be visited by MacDonald diaspora from around the world who return to Western Scotland and the Isles. Several MacDonald Lords have resided at Saddell over the centuries, including Alasdair Mor MacDonald, younger brother of Angus Mor MacDonald, Lord of the Isles in the 13th century. Angus Og MacDonald once provided refuge to Robert the Bruce during the First War of Scottish Independence in the early 14th century before taking him on to Dunaverty Castle on the Mull of Kintyre.
Aonghus mac Somhairle was a leading member of Clann Somhairle. He was a son of Somhairle mac Giolla Brighde, King of the Isles and Ragnhildr Óláfsdóttir. Other sons of Somhairle and Ragnhildr include Dubhghall, Raghnall, and possibly Amhlaoíbh. Aonghus' father was the common ancestor of Clann Somhairle. The succession of this kindred upon Somhairle's death is uncertain. The Clann Somhairle imperium appears to have spanned from Glenelg in the north, to the Mull of Kintyre in the south. It is possible that Aonghus came to rule in the north, with Dubhghall centred in Lorne, and Raghnall in Kintyre and the southern islands.
Amy of Garmoran also known as Amie MacRuari and Euphemia was a 14th-century Scottish noblewoman who was the sister of Raghnall mac Ruaidhri, Lord of Garmoran and the spouse of John of Islay. After her marriage had produced three sons, the ambitious John of Islay divorced her in order to remarry and cement his links with the House of Stewart. She then retired to her estates in the Highlands and Islands, and completed various ecclesiastical and other building projects. Her son Ranald was the progenitor of Clanranald.
Murchadh Mac Suibhne was a leading member of Clann Suibhne. He was a grandson of the family's eponymous ancestor Suibhne mac Duinn Shléibhe, and a nephew of the family's mid-thirteenth-century representative, Dubhghall mac Suibhne.
Eóin Mac Suibhne was a fourteenth-century Scottish nobleman and a leading member of Clann Suibhne. In the middle of the thirteenth century, seemingly during the 1260s, Eóin's family appears to have been ejected from its homeland in Argyll by the Stewart/Menteith kindred. It may have been during this period that members of Clann Suibhne took up residence in Ireland.
Domhnall Mac Domhnaill, also known as Domhnall of Islay and Domhnall of the Isles, was a fourteenth-century Scottish nobleman. He appears to have been a member of Clann Domhnaill. First attested in the first decade of the fourteenth century, Domhnall appears to be last recorded in the second decade upon his death. Domhnall's attestations suggest that he was a claimant to the chiefship of Clann Domhnaill, and may have possessed the chiefship.