January Snow
The western end of Ardnamurchan, protruding as it does into the warm waters of the Atlantic, is more used to gales than snow but, when it comes, even a light fall will transform the landscape....
Tagged: Mingary Castle
Mingary Castle under Scaffold
This picture of Mingary Castle, the seat of the MacIains for three centuries and finally abandoned in 1838, shows it today, with restoration work well under way. Many people didn’t believe the scaffolding would...
Saving Mingary Castle
The castle which is so closely associated with Clan MacIain was described in 2013 by an eminent archaeologist as “The most intact thirteenth century castle in Scotland”. Yet Mingary’s present importance to Scottish archaeology and...
Ardnamurchan’s Last MacIains
It would be good to be able to trace the fate of those MacIains who may have stayed on Ardnamurchan after the Campbells finally took full possession of the peninsula, but this is difficult....
MacIain Places
There are a number of places on Ardnamurchan which are special to the MacIains. Mingary Castle: Mingary Castle was built some time between about 1265 and 1295, probably by the MacDougalls when they held...
The MacIain People
When Iain Sprangach MacDonald took control of his lands, the people he is likely to have found there would have been a mixed lot. Some would have been descended from the Gaelic-Norse population which...
Belonging to Ardnamurchan Clan MacIain
The scattering of the Ardnamurchan MacIains which began early in the 17th century means that it is unusually difficult for its present members to establish their sense of belonging to the clan. Your situation...
A 700th Anniversary
The year 1314 created Ardnamurchan Clan MacIain. In that year Angus Og MacDonald (Aonghas mac Domhnaill) fought with Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn and, as a reward, was given extensive lands on the west...
