OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH                  191

CHAPTER XL

1670—1690.

The Laird of Grant’s Chamberlain Killed by Mackay of Achmonie.
—Mackay forced to Surrender Achmonie to the Laird.—
Fatal Fight in Slochd-Muic—Achmonie conferred on William
Grant.—Restored to the Mackays.—Thomas Grant of Balma-
caan.—Culduthel’s Raid on Borlum.—The Castle Repaired.—
The Monmouth Rebellion.—Unsettled State of the Country.
—The Men of Urquhart and Glenmoriston support King
James.—The Revolution.—The Laird of Grant supports
William and Mary.—The Men of Urquhart and Glenmoriston
adhere to James.—Dundee’s Campaign.—The Camerons’
Raid on Urquhart.—Quarrels in Dundee’s Camp.—Killi-
crankie.—Adventures of Men of Urquhart and Glenmoriston
in the Battle. — Iain a’ Chragain’s Troubles. — Inver-
moriston House Burnt, and Glenmoriston Devastated—
A Whig Garrison in Urquhart Castle.—The Castle Besieged
by the Jacobites. —Supplies for the Garrison.—The Haughs
of Cromdale.—Close of the War.

About the year 1670 an event occurred in Glen-
Urquhart which added a chapter to the story of
our Parish, and involved the family of Achmonie
in much trouble. The Laird of Grant’s chamber­
lain—a man of the name of Grant, who resided in
Strathspey—appointed the mod, or rent-collection
court, to be held on a certain day at Kil St Ninian, or
Temple House. The chamberlain did not appear at
the appointed time,and while the people waited forhim
they drank freely at the expense of the gentlemen

192              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

of the Glen, among whom Gillies Mackay of Ach-
monie was prominent ; and when Grant arrived he
found them excited and quarrelsome. The mòd was,
however, proceeded with, and closed ; and thereafter
the gentry and tenantry were entertained in the
usual manner in the grange barn.¹ All sat late and
drank heavily, and as the hours passed the disposi­
tion to quarrel increased—the Grants and such as
were not of that name taking opposite sides in the
disputes, as was their wont. An insulting epithet
which the chamberlain applied to the men of Urquhart
brought the tumult to its height. Every man started
to his feet, and drew his dirk. In an instant the
torches which served to light the barn were extin­
guished ; and high above the shouts that followed
was heard the death-cry of the chamberlain, who had
been stabbed to the heart.

By whom the fatal thrust was given no one could
tell, but next morning Achmonie’s dirk was found
red with blood. Time passed, however, and no step
was taken to bring home the crime to him, or
to subject him to the punishment for which
it called. But, after the lapse of many months, the
Laird of Grant invited him, as he had often done
before, to a hunt in Strathspey. The invitation
was accepted, and Mackay and a few attendants
journeyed to Castle Grant. They were hospitably
entertained the first day ; but, early on the second,
Achmonie’s room was entered by an armed band,
headed by the Laird, who informed him of his know-

¹ See footnote, p. 114 supra.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                 193

ledge of his guilt, and intimated that he must yield
his lands or his life. The Laird meant what he
said, and Mackay was compelled to surrender the
estate—on the understanding that it should be
restored to him as vassal of the Laird.

No sooner was the business arranged than the
Laird’s illegitimate son, whose mother had become
the wife of the unfortunate chamberlain, entered
the room in which the Laird and Mackay were,
and demanded—“ Ciod tha mise dol a dh’ fhaighinn
airson eirig mo bhobug :” “ What am I to receive
as my stepfather’s eric?”¹ The Laird bade the
young man hold his peace ; but he was not thus to be
put off. As Achmonie and his men passed homeward
through the gorge of Slochd-Muic he suddenly fell
upon them with a number of the factor’s relatives
and friends. Several were killed on both sides ; and
of the Urquhart men Achmonie and one other only
escaped.

The surrendered lands were conferred by the
Laird on William Grant, of the family of Glenmoris-
ton, whom we find in possession of them in 1677,
and as late as 1691. Gillies Mackay did not live to
see the promised restoration ; but the promise was
fulfilled on 24th May, 1721, when his son John
obtained from Sir James Grant a feu-disposition of
the estate, which was thereafter held of the Laird of
Grant, instead of under the Bishops or the Crown,
as in the past.²

¹ Eric : compensation for death or injury.
² Disposition at Castle Grant.

13

194              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

Notwithstanding the ungenerous treatment that
Lady Ogilvy had received in Glen-Urquhart, two of
her sons, when they grew up to man’s estate, elected
to settle there, among the scenes of their childhood.
Patrick, who commanded the Grant Regiment at
the battle of Worcester, possessed Clunemore and
Clunebeg, while his brother Thomas—the Tomas
Dubh ot his own time—held Balmacaan, where his
portrait is still preserved, and succeeded the
slain factor as chamberlain of Urquhart. He
found much to worry and annoy him. In 1675 his
brother, Major George Grant, gave him great
offence by entering his territory, under cover of a
commission to suppress robberies in the Highlands,
and taking away, without his authority, farm stock
from the lands of Borlum-more. In December of
the same year, Malcolm Fraser of Culduthel and his
brothers, Alasdair Roy and John Ruie, made a
sudden raid on Borlum, and lifted sixty ewes, thirty
lambs, four horses, four mares, twelve cows, one ox,
one stirk, and ten ells of linen, belonging to the
tenants, Donald Og Mac Dhomhnuill and Alasdair
Mac Dhomhnuill Vic Iain Dui, alias Macdonell, who
afterwards sought redress in the Court of Session.¹
In 1676 the chamberlain repaired the Castle, at a
cost of 200 merks²—the last repairs probably it ever
received, for troublous times soon overtook the
ancient fortress. Next year he appears at a Presby-

¹ Act and Commission, Donald Oig v. Frasers, at Castle Grant.

² Letter from William Trent, Inverness, dated 20th April, 1676, at Castle
Grant.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                195

terial visitation of the old church of Kilmore as an
elder of the Parish ; but even there he found no peace,
for the harmony of the meeting was disturbed by a
dispute between Grant of Corrimony and the
Cummings of Dulshangie, regarding an encroach­
ment by Corrimony on a grave within the church
belonging to the Cummings.¹ And in October, 1678,
he and his neighbours, John Grant of Glenmoriston,
John Grant of Coineachan, and John Grant of Corri-
mony, and a host of other “ heads and branches of
families” throughout the Highlands, were required
by royal proclamation to repair to Inverlochy, and
give bonds for the peaceable behaviour of themselves
and their tenants and servants.²

The people of Urquhart and Glenmoriston were
not immediately affected by the persecutions of the
Covenanters which disgraced the reign of Charles
the Second. The minister and his flock conformed
to Episcopacy, and there was no suffering within the
Parish for conscience’ sake. But when, after Charles’
death, the Covenanters, led by the Duke of Argyll,
attempted to place the Duke of Monmouth on the
throne, the men of Urquhart and Glenmoriston and
their neighbours were called upon to show their
loyalty to King James the Seventh. In June, 1685,
Lord Strathnaver, who was in command of the Royal
troops, issued an order from the heights of Drum-
uachdar, commanding the Master of Tarbat, with his
men, and Thomas Fraser of Beaufort, with the men of

¹ Records of Presbytery of Inverness.
² Antiquarian Notes, 188.

196              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

the Aird, and Sir Robert Gordon of Gordonstown,
with the Frasers of Stratherrick, the men of Urquhart
and Glenmoriston, and those of the Castle lands of
Inverness, to join the Duke of Gordon in a proposed
expedition into Argyllshire.¹ The collapse of the
rebellion, and the execution of Monmouth and Argyll,
rendered the expedition unnecessary ; but the pre­
parations which had been made for the war greatly
disturbed the North. At a meeting of the Presby­
tery of Inverness, held on 10th June, the minister
of our Parish and other clergymen were absent,
because they “ could not wait upon the diet, consi­
dering the great stirs that was in the country in
respect of the preparation to His Majesty’s host.”²
The failure of the insurrection gave the Presbytery
unbounded joy ; and on the 13th of August our
Parish joined in observing a day of solemn thanks­
giving “for the happy and successful suppression
of the rebellion in both kingdoms.”³

But the observers of the fast cried “ Peace, peace,”
when there was no peace. While the Covenanters of
the Lowlands were hunted down by the Episco­
palians, the Highlands continued to be torn with
clan strifes and cateran outrages. A meeting of
Presbytery, held at Inverness on 5th September,
1688, was attended only by the ministers of Inver­
ness and Kirkhill, “all the rest absent, some by
reason of the great stirs that were in the country
anent the late rebellion, and bloodshed in Lochaber ^”4

¹ Dunbar’s Social Life (First Series), p. 310.
² Records of Inverness Presbytery. ³ Ibid. ⁴ Ibid

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                197

—an allusion to the skirmish at Mulroy. Before the
end of the year the Prince of Orange landed in
England, and drove James off the throne. James’
cause was taken up by John Graham of Claverhouse,
Viscount Dundee, who, following the example of his
great namesake Montrose, placed himself at the head
of a Highland army. He was opposed by General
Hugh Mackay, a Sutherlandshire soldier who had
won the confidence of the Prince of Orange during
a long military career on the Continent.

To the Covenanters, Dundee was evil incarnate
—the “ Bloody Claverse,” who had sold his soul to
Satan, and, as part of the paction, was wading his
way to the realms of darkness through the blood of
the saints. To the Highlanders, on the other hand,
he was the great Iain Dubh nan Cath—Black John
of the Battles—a brave and chivalrous soldier, true
to his religion, loyal to his king, devoted to his
country, and, above all, an enthusiastic lover of the
lore of their own bards and seanachies. The Mac-
donalds and Camerons joined him early, and brought
in the smaller septs in their neighbourhood. Sir
Ludovick Grant, the proprietor of Strathspey and
Urquhart, adhered to the principles of the Revolu­
tion, and supported Mackay ; but John Grant,
younger of Glenmoriston, and James Grant of
Shewglie, ignored the claims of their chief to their
allegiance, and took the side of Dundee. Young
Glenmoriston, better known by the name of Iain a’
Chragain,¹ brought 150 men into the field, while

¹ Iain a’ Chragain—John of the Rock. So called from his having resided
on the Cragain Darraich of Blairie, after Killicrankie.

198              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

James Grant, who had added the district of Inch-
brine to his old wadset lands of Shewglie and Loeh-
letter,¹ was followed by his tenants, and by the
Macdonalds and Macmillans of Urquhart.

Glenmoriston and Shewglie, placing themselves
under the banner of the powerful Alasdair Dubh of
Glengarry, joined Dundee in Lochaber on 18th May ;
but two months elapsed ere they had an opportunity
of meeting the enemy. During that period of compara­
tive inactivity Dundee experienced great difficulty
in procuring necessary provisions for his forces, and
a party of Camerons resolved to help him, and at the
same time avenge the death of some of their clans­
men who had been hanged by the Laird of Grant.
Quietly leaving his camp, they, apparently without
his knowledge, marched into Glen-Urquhart, and
began lifting cattle. The inhabitants resisted,
and one of them—a Macdonald, who claimed connec­
tion with the family of Glengarry—imagined “ that
the simple merit of his name,” to quote Drummond,
or rather Macgregor, of Balhaldy,² “ and the clan to
which he belonged, was enough to protect himself
and the whole name of Grant from the revenge of
the Camerons. Confident of this, he came boldly
up to them, and, acquainting them with his name
and genealogy, he desired that, on his account, they
would peaceably depart the country, without injuring

¹ Discharge by Ludovick Grant of Freuchie, to James Grant of Shewglie,
dated 26th May, 1683, in possession of Dr Cameron, late of Lakefield.

² Memoirs of Lochiel. The name Drummond was assumed by Macgregor
of Balhaldy, in consequence of the penal enactments against his clan.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                199

the inhabitants, his neighbours and friends. To this
it was answered that, if he was a true Macdonald, he
ought to be with his chief in Dundee’s army, in the
service of his king and country ; that they were at
a loss to understand why they should on his account
extend their friendship to a people who had, but a
few days before, seized on several of their men and
hanged them, without any other provocation than
that they served King James, which was contrary
to the laws of war, as well as of common humanity ;
that, as they had indeed an esteem for him, both for
the name he bore and the gentleman to whom he
belonged, so they desired that he would instantly
separate himself and his cattle from the rest of his
company, whom they were resolved to chastise for
their insolence. But the Macdonald replied that he
would run the same fate with his neighbours ; and,
daring them to do their worst, departed in a huff.”

The Camerons thereupon attacked the Urquhart
men, and, killing some and dispersing the rest, drove
their cattle in triumph to Lochaber. Dundee and
Lochiel connived at their conduct, “ both on account
of the provocation they had, and of the supply of
provisions which they had brought and generously
distributed among the army.” But the brave Mac-
donald was among the slain, and his death was
keenly resented by Glengarry, whose name the
unfortunate man had unsuccessfully used to charm
away the Camerons. “ Glengarry,” says Lord Mac-
aulay,¹ “in a rage went to Dundee, and demanded

¹ History of England.

200              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

vengeance on Lochiel and the whole race of Cameron.
Dundee replied that the unfortunate gentleman who
had fallen was a traitor to the clan as well as to the
king. Was it ever heard of in war that the person
of an enemy, a combatant in arms, was to be held
inviolable on account of his name and descent ? And,
even if wrong had been done, how was it to be
redressed ? Half the army must slaughter the
other half before a finger could be laid on Lochiel.
Glengarry went away raging like a madman. Since
his complaints were disregarded by those who ought
to right him, he would right himself : he would draw
out his men, and fall sword in hand on the murderer
of his cousin. During some time he would listen to
no expostulation. When he was reminded that
Lochiel’s followers were in number nearly double of
the Glengarry men, ‘No matter,’ he cried, ‘one
Macdonald is worth two Camerons.’ Had Lochiel
been equally irritable and boastful, it is probable
that the Highland insurrection would have given
little more trouble to the Government, and that the
rebels would have perished obscurely in the wilder­
ness by one another’s claymores. But nature had
bestowed on him in large measure the qualities of a
statesman, though fortune had hidden those qualities
in an obscure corner of the world. He saw that this
was not a time for brawling ; his own character for
courage had long been established, and his temper
was under strict government. The fury of Glen­
garry, not being inflamed by any fresh provocation,
rapidly abated. Indeed, there were some who
suspected that he had never been quite so pugna-

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                201

cious as he had affected to be, and that his bluster
was meant only to keep up his own dignity in the
eyes of his retainers. However this might be, the
quarrel was composed ; and the two chiefs met with
the outward show of civility at the General’s table.”

Drummond of Balhaldy, whom Macaulay follows
in this narrative, states that Glengarry “meant
nothing more by the great noise he made, but to
ingratiate himself with his people by humoring their
vanity, and showing them that the least injury
offered to the very meanest of them was equally his
own quarrel.”¹ The wisdom of his conduct appears
evident ; for among his followers were Shewglie and
other Glen-Urquhart men who must have been well
acquainted with the chivalrous Macdonald who had
refused to save his life by deserting his neighbours.
His feigned anger had the desired effect, and
the men of Urquhart did good service at the battle
of Killicrankie.

That battle, which the Highlanders know by the
name of Rinrory,² was fought on the 27th of July.
Mackay was marching northward from Perth ;
Dundee was on his way south. Early in the
day the armies came in view of each other.
The Highlanders, wild with joy, clamoured for the
fray ; but the sun was fast sinking behind the
Grampians before Dundee drew them out in order
of battle. Lochiel was credited not only with
great military genius but also with the power
of divination, and just before the onset he was

¹ Memoirs of Lochiel.
² Raon Ruaraidh—Roderick’s Field.

202                URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

consulted as to the issue. “ That side will
win that first spills blood,” replied the chief. “ Do
you hear that ?” said Iain a’ Chragain, addressing a
noted Glenmoriston deerstalker, who stood by his
side, and significantly pointing to an officer who,
mounted on a white steed, had galloped out of
Mackay’s lines to survey the battlefield—“ Do you
hear that ?“ The stalker crouched forward, and
fired ; and down came the rider of the white horse,
shot through the heart.¹ The battle now began.
Casting off their plaids and coats, the clansmen
rushed forward with shouts of exultation. The
men of Urquhart and Glenmoriston formed part
of a battalion led by the young chief of Glengarry,
who carried the royal standard of King James. As
they charged, Shewglie was brought to his knees
by a ball that struck his shield ; but it was only for
a moment. Exclaiming, “ Och, but the boddachs
are in earnest!” he bounded forward.² At a short
distance from the enemy the Highlanders paused for
a moment, and fired ; and then, throwing away their
firelocks, sprang upon the foe with claymore and
Lochaber-axe. A Glenmoriston man, of the name
of Mackintosh, especially distinguished himself by
passing his sword from the left shoulder to the right
loin of a Hessian soldier.³ Mackay and his officers

¹ Tradition in Glenmoriston.

² Chambers’ History of the Rebellions.

³ Glenmoriston tradition. Mackintosh’s feat was one of “ the three
wonders of the battle.” His son fought for Prince Charles at Falkirk and
Culloden ; and his grandson, John Mackintosh, joined the British army, under
John Grant of Glenmoriston, in 1780, and, after seeing service in India and
elsewhere, returned to Glenmoriston, where he was remembered by persons
who communicated the Killicrankie traditions to the Author.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                203

did all that brave men could do, but the Highland
avalanche swept all before it. The victory for King
James was dearly bought by the death of Dundee.
“ How goes the day ?“ he asked, as he lay on the
sward, mortally wounded. “ Well for King James,”
replied an attendant ; “ but I am sorry for your
lordship.” “ If it is well for him,” said the dying
hero, “ it matters the less for me.” His place was
taken by General Cannon, who knew little of High­
land warfare, and less of Highland sentiment, and
who soon offended and alienated the chiefs. In less
than a month, the men who had adored Dundee,
and conquered as he lay dying, returned to their
homes, dissatisfied and disheartened ; “ and all the
fruits of victory were gathered by the vanquished.”¹
For the part taken by Iain a’ Chragain in the
rising his praises were sung in Latin verse by admir­
ing Saxons,² and in Gaelic duans by the bards of his

¹ Macaulay’s History of England.

² In “ Prælium Gillicrankianum,” he is referred to in the lines :—

Glenmoristonus junior, optimus bellator
Subito jam factus hactenus venator.
(Glenmoriston the younger, suddenly become a warrior from being
hitherto a hunter).

The author of “ The Grameid,” in describing Dundee’s supporters, thus
sings of our hero :—

His quoque se comitem Morisina ex valle ferebat
Grantius egregius bello, non degener ille
Grantiades Balli dictus de nomine castri,
Qui Batavi partes praedonis, et arma secutus
Sustulit Auriaci vexilla nefanda tyranni.
Ille sed incoctum fido qui gestat honestum
Pectore, Cæsareos Urquhartius acer in hostes.
Magnorum usque adeo mores imitatus avorum
Corripit arma manu, Regi inconcussus acerbis

204                URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

own people. His loyalty, however, cost his father
and himself much. “The enemy was so enraged
against him,” says Balhaldy,¹ “ that they burnt his
own seat to the ground, plundered his people, and
made such horrible devastations that the poor
gentleman was obliged to offer some proposals of
submission.” At Inverness, Sir Thomas Livingston
dispensed military law at the head of the Scots
Dragoons and the regiments of Lord Strathnaver
(now an opponent of King James), Sir James Leslie,
and the Laird of Grant. Young Glenmoriston and
his followers had to be chastised, and Strathnaver
was entrusted with the work. He himself
has recorded that he did it well. “ To raise
up the spirits of such as were in the interest of
King and Government,” says he in an unpublished
report (a fragment of which is still preserved at
Dunrobin), “I went out with a detachment from
Inverness of five hundred foot, and three troops of

Temporibus laturus opem, perque invia montes

Scandit inaccessos, magnoque in bella paratu

Arduus agmen agens graditur, quern Grantia pubes

Ordine servato ductorem in castra secuta est.
(With them also, from Glenmoriston, came as their companion in the
war, the valiant Grant ; not that degenerate Grant who takes his name from
Balachastle [Freuchie, or Castle Grant], and who was following the party and
the army of the Batavian robber, and was upholding the nefarious standard
of the Dutch tyrant ; but the bold Grant of Urquhart, bearing unstained
honour in a faithful breast, and keen against the foes of the Cæsar. He,
following the ways of his great ancestors, took arms, and, undeterred by the
misfortunes of the time, contributed his help to his King. Through pathless
tracts he climbs precipitous mountains with great equipment for the war.
Tall in stature, he advances, leading his line ; and there follows him into the
camp, as their chief, the children of Grant, all in good order).
¹ Memoirs of Lochiel.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.                205

Sir Thomas Livingston’s dragoons, to Glenmoriston,
where with great difficulty we forced open the iron
gate [of Invermoriston House], not having a petard
to blow it open. Some of the rebels very nearly

SHIELD CARRIED BY IAIN A’ CHRAGAIN AT KILLICRANKIE—
IN GLENMORISTON’S POSSESSION.

escaped me, by a boy’s acquainting them of our
march. I burnt their corn, and drove their cattle
and horses that fell in my way, to Inverness. This
put them into such a consternation that, notwith­
standing our defeat at Killicrankie, above fifteen

206              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

hundred came and took the oath to King William
and Queen Mary ; and,” he adds, as if he felt he had
overstepped his duty, “I had Sir Thomas Living­
ston’s warrant and approbation.” Sir Thomas
accepted the responsibility, and wrote on the report :
—“ I, underwritten, do hereby declare that what was
done at Glenmoriston was by my orders, and that I
altogether approve of the commander’s conduct and
diligence in that affair.—T. Livingston. At Inver­
ness, the 6th of September, 1689.”

These harsh measures brought little advantage
to the Government. Young Glenmoriston con­
structed for himself a rude fort on the Cragain
Darraich—Oak Rock—of Blairie, and continued
true to King James. He soon found himself among
friends. Urquhart Castle was garrisoned by Captain
Grant with three companies of the Highlanders of
Lord Strathnaver and the Laird of Grant ; but the
men were poorly armed, having neither swords nor
bayonets, and only a few carbines sent them by the
Duke of Hamilton.¹ Before the end of the year the
old fort was besieged by the Jacobites. “ I am cer­
tainly inform’d,” writes Sir James Leslie to Lord
Melville, on 6th December,² “that 500 of the rebells
were come to Urquett [Urquhart] ; they threatned
the Castle, but I looke upon it to be in little dainger,
they [the garrison] haveing a fortnight’s or three
weeks’s provisions. I sent the last night Captain

¹  General Mackay’s Memoirs of the Wars in Scotland and Ireland
(Bannatyne Club), 299-302.

² Ibid, 299.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.

207

Grant up with ten bowles [bolls] of meale, and
ammunition, and thirteen men and a sargeant of
my regiment, and twelve of my Lord Strathnaver’s ;
but the boat springing a leake by forcing her out of
the river into the laugh [loch], he tooke but twelve
of my men and a sargeant, and sent the rest back
againe ;“ and, after referring to affairs in other parts
of the country, he concludes—“ I have just now
received a letter from Corremonie, your nephewe’s
brother-in-law, that the Highlanders are come into
the countrey of Urquett, with 4 or 500 men, under
the command of Glengerry and my Lord Fredrick
[Fendraught], and this night or to­morrow they
expect Laugheale [Lochiel] and Cannon with more
forces. It is reported that a great many of the
M’Kenzies are like to joyne them, as likewise severall
of the Fraziers.” And he gives in a postscript a list
of the districts reported as ready to join Cannon—
among them being “ the Urquhart and Strathglass
men,” and “the Glenmoriston men.”

Captain Grant, notwithstanding the hole in his
boat, reached his destination with his men and meal
and ammunition ; and, landing at the ancient water-
gate, which was beyond the reach of the fire of the
Jacobites, “gott verry safe” into the Castle. From
there he wrote Sir James Leslie that the enemy
numbered 800 men—an estimate which he subse­
quently modified to 600. These circumstances were,
on 9th December, reported by Sir James to General
Mackay. “I have likewise,” said he, “given Captain
Grant, commander of the Castle of Urquett, £5,

208              URQUHART AND GLENMORISTON.

and am this day sending him ten bowles of meale
more, with candles ; which money I must lay out of
my own pockett, and it costs me two per cent. to
gett, besides one per cent. to the officer for bringing
it.” Corrimony, who had hitherto kept him informed
of the course of events in the Glen, was himself now
under suspicion. The Sheriff-Depute, added Sir
James, “gives me notice that Corremonie is with
the enemie, and severall others, soe that they play
fast and loose, as they think fitt. I shall endeavour
to put myselfe in the best posture I can, having
given notice to all the countreys round about, as
Ross, Elgin, and Murrey, to be in reddeness, and put
themselves in the best posture they can for theire
owne defence, having assured them of what assist­
ance I can afford.” ¹

The Jacobites, indeed, had now so far recovered
from the confusion that followed Killicrankie, that,
with a Montrose or a Dundee at their head, they
might have turned the stream of British history.
They had, however, no such leader. The Highland
friends of the Stewarts were left to linger in Glen-
Urquhart for months, consuming the cattle and grain
of the people, but achieving nothing else. In March,
1690, Cannon was superseded by General Buchan,
who found the Highlanders disgusted, and their
zeal all but extinguished. A few rallied round the
new commander, including Iain a’ Chragain and the
men of Glenmoriston. With these he went through
Lochaber, Badenoch, and Strathspey, with the

¹ General Mackay’s Memoirs, 302-5.

OLDEN TIMES IN THE PARISH.               209

intention of raising the vassals of the Gordons, and
turning round on the garrisons in Inverness and
neighbourhood. But his movements were watched,
and, as his followers lay asleep on the Haughs of
Cromdale, on the last night of April, they were
surprised by Sir Thomas Livingston and his dragoons
and the Reay and Grant Highlanders, and scattered
naked over the moorlands. They never rallied
again ; and although Glengarry and Iain a’ Chragain
and some others still withheld their allegiance from
William and Mary, and continued to give trouble,
the war in Scotland was virtually closed at
Cromdale. Two months later, the hopes of King
James were for ever extinguished at the Battle of
the Boyne.

IAIN A’ CHRAGAIN’S SWORD—IN GLENMORISTON’S POSSESSION.

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