John of Isla MacDonald was succeeded by his eldest son by his second marriage to Margaret Stewart. His father had previously made provision for his sons by his first marriage. His eldest son John, whose mother was Amy McRuarie was given the lands of Garmoran and the North Isles which had been the lands of his mother's clan and were near to half of his father's holdings. In addition to this he received the lands of Swynort, Letter-Lochletter, Ardgowar, Hawleste, and 60 marklands in Lochaber. In this charter from the crown of Scotland, he is to hold these lands of his father John and his heirs. In effect he was to be a vassal of his younger half-brother. So, although he was the eldest of the living sons of John of Isla, Reginald was not his heir. Reginald was Donald's vassal and Reginald's descendants were the vassals of Donald's descendants.
Archibald MacDonald says in his book that the Book of Clanranald says that Reginald was High Steward of the Isles and that he gave over all the rights and privileges of the lordship of the Isles to Donald at Kildonan, in Eigg, and that Donald was nominated MacDonald and Donald of Isla, in presence of the principal men of the Isles. Donald was now feudal superior to his brothers and also chief of Clan Donald. The principal men of the clan could elect whomever they chose to be their chief. The Book of Clanranald states that Reginald died in 1386, and it appears from a charter in July of 1389, that his younger full brother Godfrey inherited his possessions. He kept these possessions even though they were conferred on Reginald's heirs by Robert III. I have not found any sources which say whether or not Reginald's heirs contested Godfrey taking their father's lands. But if they did, they must not have been successful in regaining them.
Donald besides being the superior lord of the Clan MacDonald and all its territories also received the lands of Colonsay and others not given to the younger sons in the grants. John Mor Tainistear, was the second son by the second marriage of John of Isla and Donald's younger brother. He received a grant of 120 marklands in Kintyre and 60 marklands in Isla. He was the founder of the MacDonald's of Dunnyveg and the Glens, which he gained by his marriage to Margery Bisset. John lived in the Castle of Dun-Naomhaig on Isla, but Donald lived in Finlaggan Castle on Isla. John and Donald's younger brother Angus died young without issue. Their next younger brother was named Alasdair, known as Alasdair Carrach, who was the founder of the family of MacDonalds of Keppoch. He was given lands in Mull and also the lands of Lochaber,
Archibald MacDonald says that there was still another younger brother called Hugh. He was granted a charter of the whole thanage of Glentilt, and referred to as the brother of Reginald of the Isles. Since these lands were granted by the Steward, Archibald assumes that he was Steward's grandson.
To return to Donald, Lord of the Isles, as previously mentioned in the story of his father, John of Isla. Doanld was given as a hostage in the year 1369 in order to ensure his father's good behavior. Donald was probably about ten years of age at that time, assuming that John's second marriage took place in 1358.
In 1378 a safe conduct was granted to him by Richard II whom he had been visiting in England. The document refers to him as the brother of John of Isla, clerk, John having been educated for the church. In 1382, Hugh of the Isles visited England, probably as an ambassador from his father, and was given a safe conduct and an escort of six men. In 1388 Donald visited the English,with his brother John Mor and his elder half-brother Godfrey, at which time, they were received as independent princes. While they were in England, they entered an allegiance with Richard II and John, now Bishop of the Isles is a party to this agreement.
In 1400 Donald and his brother John are given safe conduct and an escort of 80 horsemen. Just by the fact that their escorts seem to be growing in size, it can be surmised that Donald and his brother were being treated with increasing distinction by the English.
Donald and his two brothers visited England again in 1400, and returned in 1405 and 1408 to renew their allegiance to the King of England. Donald and his brothers remained on friendly terms with Richard II and when he was removed from the throne and sent to Pontefract Castle and Henry of Lancaster was placed on the throne in his place, he escaped from his captors and traveled disguised as a beggar to Finlaggan Castle in Isla where he was recognized by John Mor's wife. He was shown kindness and hospitality as well as asylum until a safer asylum could be secured for him with the king of Scotland.
Donald and his brothers being so friendly to the English over their own Scottish royal relatives caused them to be accuse of not having enough filial affection for their mother, who was the king's sister. It is most probably that this insinuation against their honor was really aimed at requiring them to be less independent of the Scottish throne and to add insult to injury, the king ordered the Earl of Fife to protect his sister. The interference into their business and the inference that their mother needed to be protected from them caused them to immediately rebel against the king. This enmity towards the crown may have been responsible for Donald and his brother joining in the conflict over the Earldom of Ross. The Earl of Ross died in 1394. Donald's brother Alasdair Carrach, with the aid of Donald joined in the fighting and took possession of the Castle of Uruquart, which was part of this earldom. Alasdair was imprisoned as a result of this. Donald was required to be his jailer and when he released his brother a year later, Donald was summoned to appear before Parliament to answer for his prisoner in order that the king might make a show of royal anger.
When Robert III of Scotland died, and the Duke of Albany was made Regent of the Kingdom, Donald does not appear to have either supported or opposed it, because it was not having any effect on his family's interests or on his own independence.
When it was rumored that Euphemia Lesley, daughter of Alexander Lesley, Earl of Ross might give up her rights, he again took an interest in Scottish politics. The earldom of Ross was partly made up of lands that had at one time belonged to his family in Argyle. But his claim to the Earldom of Ross came from his marriage to Lady Margaret Lesley, who was the nearest living relative in line of succession after Euphemia Lesley. The Duke of Albany who was Regent of the throne was the other chief contender for the Earldom of Ross. Aside from gaining a valuable property, it would have been in his interests to keep Donald of Isla or his brothers from gaining the earldom, in order to curb any increase in their power, which he would have perceived as a threat.
Donald's wife Margaret would have been the heir to the earldom if Euphemia died without naming an heir. The Duke of Albany by some means influenced her to enter a convent and dedicate her life to heavenly pursuits. As long was not of a legal age to resign her rights to the earldom and remained in the convent, the Duke had only to bide his time. Donald's position however became that if Euphemia had given herself as the bride of heaven that she should be considered legally dead, in which case he and his wife had the right to the earldom, since she had not named an heir before entering the convent. Donald was prepared to fight for what he believed rightfully his. The whole clan MacDonald from the Isles and from his holdings on the mainland gathered in preparation to fight with him. Donald MacDonald and his fleet arrived on the West Coast of Rossshire and landed at Strome. They marched through the glens of Ross and soon reached the vicinity of Dingwall. But they were met by the largest clan living in this vicinity, the clan of Mackay. Angus Dubh Mackay intended to stop them from going any further. Donald MacDonald and his forces routed Mackay's clan. Angus Dubh Mackay was taken prisoner and his brother Rory was killed. Donald took possession of the Castle of Dingwall and garrisoned it and then continued on his march toward Inverness. On the way, at Beauly, he stopped and diverted his troops to the Catle Downie and then went from there on to Inverness. He planted his standard in the Highland Capital and summoned all the fighting men of Ross to his banner. And they readily took up his cause and joined him. Instead of staying and defending what he had gained, Donald marched on toward the east in the hopes of raising even more troops on his way. He knew that eventually the Duke of Albany would meet him with his own forces, and he had threatened to burn down Abardeen and this may have been another reason for marching in that direction. When the people of Aberdeen learned that he and his 10,000 troops were marching in their direction with the intent to burn it down, they would have been thrown into a panic.
Eventually, Donald MacDonald arrived at Harlow and was met by his cousin the Earl of Mar. The men of Abardeen assembled under the leadership of the Earl of Mar. The Earl of Mar marched by Inverury and sighted the enemy near the village of Harlow, about ten miles from Abardeen.
The two forces met in bloody and fierce battle and fought all day and did not cease fighting until darkness fell, The force commanded by Mar had been annihilated. The Scottish version of what happened was that Donald retreated from his fear of this army he had just defeated, which makes no sense. Some writers believe that he had expected to have reinforcement from the English. But if he had, he now knew that it was not coming. With all of the Lowlanders now against him, he would have been aware of how difficult it would be to keep the forces which he had gathered from scattering and dispersing for a very long time, and he most likely felt it prudent to return to his own Island stronghold, instead of waiting for or pursuing further conflict with the Duke of Albany.
When the Duke of Albany heard of the defeat at Harlow he hastened to Ross and went to Dingwall and took possession of the castle and established his own authority through Ross, displacing any authority that Donald may have gained. Donald's domain on the Island was impenetrable because his fleets were superior to the Scottish fleet. The Duke of Albany knew that there was only one place where Donald was vulnerable, at his mainland holding of Argyll. He took an army there in order to attack it. Donald, however was able to repel him and the Duke did not succeed in humbling him.
Archibald MacDonald says that John of Fordun recorded that Donald made a treaty with the Duke of Albany and submitted himself to be a vassal and gave hostages to ensure it. He also says that no record of this is in the national records and no other chronicler of the time mentions it. There are records that show that Albany made a campaign against Donald but none that show this treaty. There is record of the Duke complaining because he had not been reimbursed for his expenses. Although Donald did not succeed in his attempt for the earldom of Ross, he remained unaffected in his own island principality.
Donald MacDonald is said to have joined a religious order and spent his last years in religious duty, dying about 1423. He was buried at Iona.
Sources:
http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/m/macdonald/other_isles.htm
The clan Donald
By Archibald Macdonald - 1896
History of the Macdonalds and Lords of the Isles: with genealogies ... -
by Alexander Mackenzie - 1881
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domhnall_of_Islay,_Lord_of_the_Isles
http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/usbiography/ghi/donaldofislay.html
Showing posts with label McRuarie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label McRuarie. Show all posts
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
John of Isla MacDonald
John of Isla was also known in Gaelic as Eoin na-h Ile, and the clergy called him "good John of the Isles", because of his generosity to the church. At the time he was assuming the lordship of Isla, Scotland also had a new king on the throne, David II. David was a child when he became king and in his minority, Scotland's politics were controlled by the regency of Randolph, Earl of Moray. When Randolph no longer controlled the country, chaos and anarchy ensued. Although Scotland was going through many changes, trying to maintain her independence from England, John of Isla did not gain his reputation in battle as had his forebears. He was motivated by the desire to maintain his house and the domains he had inherited. He may have been loyal to the Scottish crown, but most likely only when it was expedient to be so. With regard to maintaining his independence, it would have been appaent to him that the English influence in Scotland and a weak king on Scotland's throne could be used to his advantage. This was most likely what motivated him to support Balliol. In other words, John supported England's interests in order to maintain his own independence from Scotland. Randolph, Earl of Moray, while regent of Scotland, refused to confirm some of the lands John had inherited from his father, Angus Og. And when Randolph was replaced, they were still not confirmed to him. So, when Balliol took the throne, John of Isla figured he was the person most likely to give him this confirmation of his lands.
In 1335, John made a treaty with Edward Balliol, which put him into possession of his lands. He was put into possession of the Island of Ysla (Isla), Kentyre (Kintyre), Knappedoll (Knapdale), the Island of Githe (Gigha), half of the Island of Dure (Jura), the Island of Golwonche (Colonsay), the Island of Mulle, the Island of Skye, the Island of Lewethy (Lewis), Kenalbadon and Ardinton (Morvern and Ardnamurchan). These constitute a large amount of property. The process of having these lands which were rightfully his amounted to this: when a lord died, his lands temporarily reverted to his overlord or king and his successor was only allowed to inherit if his overlord or king said so. Sometimes, they took back parts of an inheritance, but frequently they would grant the possessions back to the successor if he swore loyalty to his overlord or king.
John was also granted the wardship of Lochaber, until Lord David of Strathbolgie reached his maturity, as Earl of Athol.
In return for this confirmation of lands, John swore to be loyal and faithful to the King of Scotland, Edward Balliol and his heirs. He was also bound to fight all enemies of the king and any rebels. He had to swear this oath on the holy eucharist, the cup of the altar, and the missal. He also agreed that if the king required a hostage to ensure that he honor the agreement, a cousin or cousins, a close relative who was underage would be delivered to the king. This was because John at that time had no legal heirs. The king also stipulated that when he should have an heir, John would be it's godfather.
Besides making John the godfather of his heir, John must have been important to the king, because he made sure that his subjects understood that John and those travelling with him were under his protection. It also indicates that he could have been in danger from those Scots as were not supporters of Edward Balliol.
Eventually, there was another change in rulers in Scotland, and David II assumed his throne. Due to John's support of Balliol, during David's minority he forfeited the lands of Gigha, Isla, Jura, and Cononsay, which wre granted to John's kinsman, Angus Maciau of Ardnamurchan. John resisted this decree to take his lands from him with the aid of Reginald MacRourie.
In 1346, David II decided to invade England, while Edward III was in France. He began preparing for this as early as 1343. He needed all of the military force he could muster, and with that in mind he pardoned John and Reginald MacRouri, so within a short period of time John forfeited his lands and then had them restored to them. Some of them had reverted back to their original owners and were not returned to them including: Kintyre, Knapdale,and Skye.
Reginald MacRourie answered the king's summons to bring his men to Perth where the army was being gathered in preparation for invading England, he and his men made their quarters in the monastery of Elcho. There had been a long standing disagreement between Reginald and the Earl of Ross over land. The Earl of Ross took advantage of Reginald's situation within the monastery and broke into the monastery and killed Reginald and seven of his men. Reginald's murder caused John to inherit some of his possessions.
John had married about 1337 to Euphemia MacRuari, who was the sister of Reginald. Upon Reginald's death, she inherited his lands, and thus by marriage, they became the possession of John of Isla. He being a close relative to Reginald, also gave him a secondary claim to these lands, including Garmoran and the Northern Isles. The Scottish crown refused to recognise his claim to these lands.
When Scotland invaded England, the expedition failed and the young king was taken hostage. Edward III of England was preoccupied with his war in France and made a temporary peace with Scotland, while keeping his hostage. So, for eleven years John was not only in possession of his own lands, but also of the lands of MacRuari, even though they had not been confirmed to him.
In 1354 the English were negotiating a treaty with Scotland and the ransom of their king which Edward III held hostage. The English were still at war with France and the French paid 40,000 moutous of gold to the Scots nobles to break the truce with England.
In 1356 there were Scottish troops in France to aid them in their war with England. The English had fought their way deep into France and the French king aided by the Scottish allies, tried to cut off their retreat, but was unsuccessful. In the battle of Poitiers in 1356, the Scottish suffered massive losses and John, Lord of the Isles was taken prisoner. He was held prisoner in England for about a year.
He was freed and given safe conduct by the King of England to return to his home. Two years later, the treaty and the ransom for David II were being negotiated and part of the stipulations of the treaty were that were that Edward Balliol and John of Isla were to be included in the truce. This was an indication of his importance to both the English and Scottish, as did his marriage to Margaret Stewart, daughter of the Steward, around the time of David II's return to Scotland.
In order to marry Margret, it was necessary for John to divorce his MacRuarie wife. He was urged to do this by the Steward and his own advisors. Archibald MacDonald says that Amy lived for a long time after her separation from John and during this time she built Castle Tirrim in Moidart and Borve Castle in Benbecula. She also built some places of worship.
Although John was connected in marriage to the Steward and his family, he seems to have maintained favor with King David II. In 1360, he was appointed Constable of Edinburgh Castle, which was a very high and prestigious military appointment. In 1364 he surpassed even this and was made Senescall, or High Steward of the King.
This came about because the Stewart family was next in line to the throne if the king did not produce an heir. In 1363, David II's queen Joanna died without having produced an heir. The king then began an affair with a woman of humble birth and because of his love for her, granted all of his lands to her, meaning that if she produced an heir, the Stewart's would not inherit the throne.
As a result of the Stewart's opposition, that the Steward and his son were imprisoned, and John of Isla was appointed as the replacement Steward.
Again as in his earlier life, John's allegiance fluctuated. Scotland was still having trouble raising the ransom money to be paid for David II's release. The taxation was particularly resented in the Highlands, and John sided with other northern barons in refusing to pay the tax or to attend a meeting of the Estates of the realm.
The king, unable to rectify the situation released John's father-in-law from prison in order to restore the king's authority over these barons. John of Isla was one of the most difficult to subdue, but at this time there was peace between England and Scotland and he was unable to use the enmity between the two kingdoms to his advantage as he had in the past. After several years of defiance, the Steward convinced John to meet with the King at Inverness in 1369.
John of Isla signed a document in which he more or less appologised for transgressing against the king and humbly asked for forgiveness and for the favor of the king. He also states that he would make reparations to any men of the kindom whom he or his sons had injured. And he was to remain faithful to the king. In order to ensure his compliance to this document he gave his son Donald, by Margaret Stewart and his grandson Angus, son of his son John and some others as hostages. David II died two years later, and since John was the son in law of the new king Robert II Stewart, he immediately began to benefit.
Robert II confirmed upon him the 300 merklands of Moidart, Arisaig, Morar, Knoydart in the lordship of Garmoran, the Islands of Uist, Barra, Rum, Eigg and Harris. This was given to him during a parliament in 1371-2. After 1372 he lived out the rest of his life in relative peace and prosperity.
He married as his second wife, Margaret Stewart, daughter of Robert II, the first Stewart king of Scotland. According to the historian of Sleat, Hugh McDonald, he had a son named Donald who succeeded him.
John of Isla was an ally of the English against his neighbors the Scotch despite the generosity his family had been shown the Scottish rulers and he himself had received from David II. At the instigation of the English he headed an army of his Highlanders and Islemen in order to attack the Scottish. A tentative peace was made, but having been shown just how vulnerable they were to danger from the English, through the MacDonald's island kingdom, they watched it very closely from that point on, always looking for an opportunity to destroy it. Even so, this policy of sidng with the English was continued by John's successors and eventually was the cause of its downfall.
John had sons by Anna MacRourie, daughter of Rorie, high chief of Lorn. These sons were Godfrey, Ranald and Angus. John supposedly did not marry Anna until later at the time of her death. His advisors opposed this marriage saying that he would not be able to make suitable matches for these sons if they were his legitimate heirs. He did however make provisions for them. His son Raald was given all the land extending from Fort-August in Abertarff to the river Sheil, and from the river Sheil to the Belleith in the north, Eig and Rum, and the two Uists. He then went to the mouth of the river of Glasgow, bringing with him threescore longships, and married Margaret, the daughter of Robert Stewart, the King of Scotland.
In an article in the Celtic magazine, edited by A. MacKensie and A. MacGregor, it is stated that there was a dispensation given toJohn and Amy/Ann in 1337. There is also a treaty between John of Islay and David II in 1369 which refers to hostages from his family, which indicates that their sons, John, Godfrey, and Ranald were legitimate. The article also states that Robert II persuaded John to make the sons of both of his marriages feudally independent of each other. In my opinion, these two facts should be proof that their marriage was a lawful one. But you could also add to these the fact that she was the daughter of the lord of her clan, and thus unlikely to have simply handfasted or lived without marriage with John of Isla. However, the papal dispensation was sought because they being third cousins were too closely related, and may have been the reason why the Scottish government did not recognise it as legitimate. In those times, kings had the right to decide who their subjects were allowed to marry. The legitimacy of John's sons by his first marriage is of importance to later descendants from this line, who consider themselves to be the rightful heirs. In my opinion, you cannot unspill milk, and it is rediculous to speculate over what might have been.
As previously stated, John's eldest son by the first marriage received lands from the lordship of Gamoran and other lands. John also set aside certain lands to be inherited by his son from the marriage to the King's daughter. This charter was confirmed by the King. These children of the second marriage were not John's feudal heirs, making it necessary to provide for them through this charter. Politically, it would have been a hard situation. On the one hand he had these sons by his first marriage who should have inherited. But the children from the second marriage were of royal blood and therefore, presumed superior to the half-siblings.
John and Margaret had several sons; Donald of Isla, his heir, and John Mor the Tanist; Alaster Carrach the third son; as well as another son named Marcus, whose descendants are the Clan Donald of Cnoic-an-chluith in Tirone, Ireland.
John lived a long life. He made donations to Iona and he also covered the chapel of Isle Eorsag and the Chapel of Isle Finlagan, and the Chapel of Isle Suibne, with all their appropriate instruments for order and mass and the service of God, for the better upholding of the monks and priests this lord kept in his company. He also erected the monastery of the Holy Cross.
He died in his castle of Ardtornish, with the monks and priests in attendance and having received last rights, his body was taken to Iona. As was the custom, his body was met by the abbot and the monks and vicars. A wake was held for eight days and nights and then he was placed in a grave with his father in the church of Oran in the year 1380.
My particular descent is through Donald of Isla, who was John MacDonald's heir.
An historical account of the Macdonnells of Antrim: including notices of ...
by George Hill - Antrim (Northern Ireland : County) - 1873
Reliquiæ celticæ: texts, papers and studies in Gaelic literature and ... - Page 159
by Alexander Cameron - 1894
The Celtic magazine, conducted by A. Mackenzie and A. MacGregor - Page 210
edited by Alexander Mackenzie - 1881
A History of the Scottish Highlands, Highland clans and Highland regiments - Page 146
by Thomas Maclauchlan, John Wilson, John Scott Keltie - Clans - 1875
History of the Macdonalds and Lords of the Isles: with genealogies of the ... - Page 31
by Alexander Mackenzie - Clans - 1881
The clan Donald - by Archibald Macdonald - 1896
In 1335, John made a treaty with Edward Balliol, which put him into possession of his lands. He was put into possession of the Island of Ysla (Isla), Kentyre (Kintyre), Knappedoll (Knapdale), the Island of Githe (Gigha), half of the Island of Dure (Jura), the Island of Golwonche (Colonsay), the Island of Mulle, the Island of Skye, the Island of Lewethy (Lewis), Kenalbadon and Ardinton (Morvern and Ardnamurchan). These constitute a large amount of property. The process of having these lands which were rightfully his amounted to this: when a lord died, his lands temporarily reverted to his overlord or king and his successor was only allowed to inherit if his overlord or king said so. Sometimes, they took back parts of an inheritance, but frequently they would grant the possessions back to the successor if he swore loyalty to his overlord or king.
John was also granted the wardship of Lochaber, until Lord David of Strathbolgie reached his maturity, as Earl of Athol.
In return for this confirmation of lands, John swore to be loyal and faithful to the King of Scotland, Edward Balliol and his heirs. He was also bound to fight all enemies of the king and any rebels. He had to swear this oath on the holy eucharist, the cup of the altar, and the missal. He also agreed that if the king required a hostage to ensure that he honor the agreement, a cousin or cousins, a close relative who was underage would be delivered to the king. This was because John at that time had no legal heirs. The king also stipulated that when he should have an heir, John would be it's godfather.
Besides making John the godfather of his heir, John must have been important to the king, because he made sure that his subjects understood that John and those travelling with him were under his protection. It also indicates that he could have been in danger from those Scots as were not supporters of Edward Balliol.
Eventually, there was another change in rulers in Scotland, and David II assumed his throne. Due to John's support of Balliol, during David's minority he forfeited the lands of Gigha, Isla, Jura, and Cononsay, which wre granted to John's kinsman, Angus Maciau of Ardnamurchan. John resisted this decree to take his lands from him with the aid of Reginald MacRourie.
In 1346, David II decided to invade England, while Edward III was in France. He began preparing for this as early as 1343. He needed all of the military force he could muster, and with that in mind he pardoned John and Reginald MacRouri, so within a short period of time John forfeited his lands and then had them restored to them. Some of them had reverted back to their original owners and were not returned to them including: Kintyre, Knapdale,and Skye.
Reginald MacRourie answered the king's summons to bring his men to Perth where the army was being gathered in preparation for invading England, he and his men made their quarters in the monastery of Elcho. There had been a long standing disagreement between Reginald and the Earl of Ross over land. The Earl of Ross took advantage of Reginald's situation within the monastery and broke into the monastery and killed Reginald and seven of his men. Reginald's murder caused John to inherit some of his possessions.
John had married about 1337 to Euphemia MacRuari, who was the sister of Reginald. Upon Reginald's death, she inherited his lands, and thus by marriage, they became the possession of John of Isla. He being a close relative to Reginald, also gave him a secondary claim to these lands, including Garmoran and the Northern Isles. The Scottish crown refused to recognise his claim to these lands.
When Scotland invaded England, the expedition failed and the young king was taken hostage. Edward III of England was preoccupied with his war in France and made a temporary peace with Scotland, while keeping his hostage. So, for eleven years John was not only in possession of his own lands, but also of the lands of MacRuari, even though they had not been confirmed to him.
In 1354 the English were negotiating a treaty with Scotland and the ransom of their king which Edward III held hostage. The English were still at war with France and the French paid 40,000 moutous of gold to the Scots nobles to break the truce with England.
In 1356 there were Scottish troops in France to aid them in their war with England. The English had fought their way deep into France and the French king aided by the Scottish allies, tried to cut off their retreat, but was unsuccessful. In the battle of Poitiers in 1356, the Scottish suffered massive losses and John, Lord of the Isles was taken prisoner. He was held prisoner in England for about a year.
He was freed and given safe conduct by the King of England to return to his home. Two years later, the treaty and the ransom for David II were being negotiated and part of the stipulations of the treaty were that were that Edward Balliol and John of Isla were to be included in the truce. This was an indication of his importance to both the English and Scottish, as did his marriage to Margaret Stewart, daughter of the Steward, around the time of David II's return to Scotland.
In order to marry Margret, it was necessary for John to divorce his MacRuarie wife. He was urged to do this by the Steward and his own advisors. Archibald MacDonald says that Amy lived for a long time after her separation from John and during this time she built Castle Tirrim in Moidart and Borve Castle in Benbecula. She also built some places of worship.
Although John was connected in marriage to the Steward and his family, he seems to have maintained favor with King David II. In 1360, he was appointed Constable of Edinburgh Castle, which was a very high and prestigious military appointment. In 1364 he surpassed even this and was made Senescall, or High Steward of the King.
This came about because the Stewart family was next in line to the throne if the king did not produce an heir. In 1363, David II's queen Joanna died without having produced an heir. The king then began an affair with a woman of humble birth and because of his love for her, granted all of his lands to her, meaning that if she produced an heir, the Stewart's would not inherit the throne.
As a result of the Stewart's opposition, that the Steward and his son were imprisoned, and John of Isla was appointed as the replacement Steward.
Again as in his earlier life, John's allegiance fluctuated. Scotland was still having trouble raising the ransom money to be paid for David II's release. The taxation was particularly resented in the Highlands, and John sided with other northern barons in refusing to pay the tax or to attend a meeting of the Estates of the realm.
The king, unable to rectify the situation released John's father-in-law from prison in order to restore the king's authority over these barons. John of Isla was one of the most difficult to subdue, but at this time there was peace between England and Scotland and he was unable to use the enmity between the two kingdoms to his advantage as he had in the past. After several years of defiance, the Steward convinced John to meet with the King at Inverness in 1369.
John of Isla signed a document in which he more or less appologised for transgressing against the king and humbly asked for forgiveness and for the favor of the king. He also states that he would make reparations to any men of the kindom whom he or his sons had injured. And he was to remain faithful to the king. In order to ensure his compliance to this document he gave his son Donald, by Margaret Stewart and his grandson Angus, son of his son John and some others as hostages. David II died two years later, and since John was the son in law of the new king Robert II Stewart, he immediately began to benefit.
Robert II confirmed upon him the 300 merklands of Moidart, Arisaig, Morar, Knoydart in the lordship of Garmoran, the Islands of Uist, Barra, Rum, Eigg and Harris. This was given to him during a parliament in 1371-2. After 1372 he lived out the rest of his life in relative peace and prosperity.
He married as his second wife, Margaret Stewart, daughter of Robert II, the first Stewart king of Scotland. According to the historian of Sleat, Hugh McDonald, he had a son named Donald who succeeded him.
John of Isla was an ally of the English against his neighbors the Scotch despite the generosity his family had been shown the Scottish rulers and he himself had received from David II. At the instigation of the English he headed an army of his Highlanders and Islemen in order to attack the Scottish. A tentative peace was made, but having been shown just how vulnerable they were to danger from the English, through the MacDonald's island kingdom, they watched it very closely from that point on, always looking for an opportunity to destroy it. Even so, this policy of sidng with the English was continued by John's successors and eventually was the cause of its downfall.
John had sons by Anna MacRourie, daughter of Rorie, high chief of Lorn. These sons were Godfrey, Ranald and Angus. John supposedly did not marry Anna until later at the time of her death. His advisors opposed this marriage saying that he would not be able to make suitable matches for these sons if they were his legitimate heirs. He did however make provisions for them. His son Raald was given all the land extending from Fort-August in Abertarff to the river Sheil, and from the river Sheil to the Belleith in the north, Eig and Rum, and the two Uists. He then went to the mouth of the river of Glasgow, bringing with him threescore longships, and married Margaret, the daughter of Robert Stewart, the King of Scotland.
In an article in the Celtic magazine, edited by A. MacKensie and A. MacGregor, it is stated that there was a dispensation given toJohn and Amy/Ann in 1337. There is also a treaty between John of Islay and David II in 1369 which refers to hostages from his family, which indicates that their sons, John, Godfrey, and Ranald were legitimate. The article also states that Robert II persuaded John to make the sons of both of his marriages feudally independent of each other. In my opinion, these two facts should be proof that their marriage was a lawful one. But you could also add to these the fact that she was the daughter of the lord of her clan, and thus unlikely to have simply handfasted or lived without marriage with John of Isla. However, the papal dispensation was sought because they being third cousins were too closely related, and may have been the reason why the Scottish government did not recognise it as legitimate. In those times, kings had the right to decide who their subjects were allowed to marry. The legitimacy of John's sons by his first marriage is of importance to later descendants from this line, who consider themselves to be the rightful heirs. In my opinion, you cannot unspill milk, and it is rediculous to speculate over what might have been.
As previously stated, John's eldest son by the first marriage received lands from the lordship of Gamoran and other lands. John also set aside certain lands to be inherited by his son from the marriage to the King's daughter. This charter was confirmed by the King. These children of the second marriage were not John's feudal heirs, making it necessary to provide for them through this charter. Politically, it would have been a hard situation. On the one hand he had these sons by his first marriage who should have inherited. But the children from the second marriage were of royal blood and therefore, presumed superior to the half-siblings.
John and Margaret had several sons; Donald of Isla, his heir, and John Mor the Tanist; Alaster Carrach the third son; as well as another son named Marcus, whose descendants are the Clan Donald of Cnoic-an-chluith in Tirone, Ireland.
John lived a long life. He made donations to Iona and he also covered the chapel of Isle Eorsag and the Chapel of Isle Finlagan, and the Chapel of Isle Suibne, with all their appropriate instruments for order and mass and the service of God, for the better upholding of the monks and priests this lord kept in his company. He also erected the monastery of the Holy Cross.
He died in his castle of Ardtornish, with the monks and priests in attendance and having received last rights, his body was taken to Iona. As was the custom, his body was met by the abbot and the monks and vicars. A wake was held for eight days and nights and then he was placed in a grave with his father in the church of Oran in the year 1380.
My particular descent is through Donald of Isla, who was John MacDonald's heir.
An historical account of the Macdonnells of Antrim: including notices of ...
by George Hill - Antrim (Northern Ireland : County) - 1873
Reliquiæ celticæ: texts, papers and studies in Gaelic literature and ... - Page 159
by Alexander Cameron - 1894
The Celtic magazine, conducted by A. Mackenzie and A. MacGregor - Page 210
edited by Alexander Mackenzie - 1881
A History of the Scottish Highlands, Highland clans and Highland regiments - Page 146
by Thomas Maclauchlan, John Wilson, John Scott Keltie - Clans - 1875
History of the Macdonalds and Lords of the Isles: with genealogies of the ... - Page 31
by Alexander Mackenzie - Clans - 1881
The clan Donald - by Archibald Macdonald - 1896
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