Glendale, Skye
Encyclopedia
Glendale is a community-owned estate on the north-western coastline of the Duirinish
peninsula on the island of Skye
and is in the Scottish
council area of Highland. The estate encompasses the small crofting townships
of Skinidin, Colbost
, Fasach, Glasphein, Holmisdale, Lephin, Hamaraverin, Borrodale
, Milovaig and Waterstein.
(2005) suggest that dail may also mean "level field by a river". This makes the English translation read: "valley of river-meadows" or "valley of level fields by a river".
Mac an Tàilleir (2003) suggests that dail is derived from the Norse dalr, giving a tautological name, where both parts simply mean "valley".
, which also provides good grazing for cattle and sheep.
sought land reform, this area played an important part in the struggle. After the Battle of the Braes
in 1882, the unrest spread to Glendale.
The landlords refused to allow the local population to collect wood from the shore for heating, and they had to use straw to thatch the houses as they were forbidden to cut rushes. Land was in short supply as the holdings had been sub-divided 40 years earlier to provide for those cleared
from better land.
Led by John MacPherson, the crofters demanded the return of the common grazing land that had been taken from them. Taking direct action, they began grazing their cattle on this land, court orders for their removal notwithstanding. Police action in January 1883 proved ineffective and eventually a government official was sent to Skye on board the navy gunboat HMS Jackal
to conduct negotiations. Five crofters including MacPherson agreed to stand in a token trial. They were sentenced to two months in jail and became known as the "Glendale martyrs", and are commemorated by a memorial in the village. It was also agreed that a Royal Commission would be set up to investigate the crofters’ grievances, which eventually resulted in the far-reaching Crofters Act of 1886
.
Historian Neil Oliver
stated that "what happened in Glendale was a hugely significant part of what was going on in the Highlands. The events that unfolded there were extraordinary. For communities to remember and teach the wider community about their own history is terrific".
In July 2010 there was a homecoming of the Glendale diaspora
during which local man Iain MacPherson blew the horn once used by his great-grandfather John.
Duirinish, Skye
Duirinish is a peninsula on the island of Skye in Scotland. It is situated in the north west between Loch Dunvegan and Loch Bracadale.Skye's shape defies description and W. H. Murray wrote that "Skye is sixty miles long, but what might be its breadth is beyond the ingenuity of man to state"...
peninsula on the island of Skye
Skye
Skye or the Isle of Skye is the largest and most northerly island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate out from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillin hills...
and is in the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
council area of Highland. The estate encompasses the small crofting townships
Croft (land)
A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land, usually small and arable with a crofter's dwelling thereon. A crofter is one who has tenure and use of the land, typically as a tenant farmer.- Etymology :...
of Skinidin, Colbost
Colbost
Colbost is a scattered hamlet on the B884 road, in the Glendale estate, overlooking Loch Dunvegan on the Scottish island of Skye.The two main attractions of this small settlement are the The Three Chimneys restaurant and the Croft Museum.-Three Chimneys:...
, Fasach, Glasphein, Holmisdale, Lephin, Hamaraverin, Borrodale
Borrodale
Borrodale is small hamlet on the Isle of Skye, in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.Borrodale is part of Glendale and the Glendale Estate, in the parish of Duirinish...
, Milovaig and Waterstein.
Etymology
The Gaelic name, Gleann Daill, is derived from gleann, meaning "valley", which usually refers to a harsher environment that can be steep and/or rocky, and dail meaning "field, dale, meadow, plain or river-meadow", which usually refers to fertile, arable land beside water. The Ordnance SurveyOrdnance Survey
Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
(2005) suggest that dail may also mean "level field by a river". This makes the English translation read: "valley of river-meadows" or "valley of level fields by a river".
Mac an Tàilleir (2003) suggests that dail is derived from the Norse dalr, giving a tautological name, where both parts simply mean "valley".
Geography
The crofts are strung out along a small strath of oolitic loam, which is the basis for the good quality of the farming land. The hills above are underlain by basaltBasalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
, which also provides good grazing for cattle and sheep.
History
During the unsettled times of the late nineteenth century, when the local croftersCroft (land)
A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land, usually small and arable with a crofter's dwelling thereon. A crofter is one who has tenure and use of the land, typically as a tenant farmer.- Etymology :...
sought land reform, this area played an important part in the struggle. After the Battle of the Braes
Camastianavaig
Camastianavaig is a crofting township on the island of Skye in Scotland. It is located on the shores of the Sound of Raasay south east of Portree. The Allt Osglan watercourse flows from Loch Fada through the township into Tianavaig Bay.The name is from both Gaelic and Norse, Camas Dìonabhaig...
in 1882, the unrest spread to Glendale.
The landlords refused to allow the local population to collect wood from the shore for heating, and they had to use straw to thatch the houses as they were forbidden to cut rushes. Land was in short supply as the holdings had been sub-divided 40 years earlier to provide for those cleared
Highland Clearances
The Highland Clearances were forced displacements of the population of the Scottish Highlands during the 18th and 19th centuries. They led to mass emigration to the sea coast, the Scottish Lowlands, and the North American colonies...
from better land.
Led by John MacPherson, the crofters demanded the return of the common grazing land that had been taken from them. Taking direct action, they began grazing their cattle on this land, court orders for their removal notwithstanding. Police action in January 1883 proved ineffective and eventually a government official was sent to Skye on board the navy gunboat HMS Jackal
HMS Jackal
Eight ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Jackal, after the predatory mammal, the jackal: was a 10-gun cutter purchased in 1778 and sold in 1785. was a 14-gun cutter purchased in 1779. She was handed over to the French by her mutinous crew later that year, becoming the privateer...
to conduct negotiations. Five crofters including MacPherson agreed to stand in a token trial. They were sentenced to two months in jail and became known as the "Glendale martyrs", and are commemorated by a memorial in the village. It was also agreed that a Royal Commission would be set up to investigate the crofters’ grievances, which eventually resulted in the far-reaching Crofters Act of 1886
Crofters' Holdings (Scotland) Act 1886
The Crofters' Holdings Act, 1886 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which created legal definitions of crofting parish and crofter, granted security of tenure to crofters and produced the first Crofters Commission, a land court which ruled on disputes between landlords and crofters...
.
Historian Neil Oliver
Neil Oliver
Neil Oliver is a Scottish broadcaster and author. He grew up in Ayr and Dumfries before attending Glasgow University to study archaeology...
stated that "what happened in Glendale was a hugely significant part of what was going on in the Highlands. The events that unfolded there were extraordinary. For communities to remember and teach the wider community about their own history is terrific".
In July 2010 there was a homecoming of the Glendale diaspora
Diaspora
A diaspora is "the movement, migration, or scattering of people away from an established or ancestral homeland" or "people dispersed by whatever cause to more than one location", or "people settled far from their ancestral homelands".The word has come to refer to historical mass-dispersions of...
during which local man Iain MacPherson blew the horn once used by his great-grandfather John.
See also
- Highland Land LeagueHighland Land LeagueThe first Highland Land League emerged as a distinct political force in Scotland during the 1880s, with its power base in the country's Highlands and Islands. It was known also as the Highland Land Law Reform Association and the Crofters' Party...
- Battle of Glendale (Skye)Battle of Glendale (Skye)The Battle of Glendale was a battle fought on the Inner Hebridean island of Skye, between the MacDonalds of Sleat and the MacDonalds of Clanranald, against the MacLeods of Harris and Dunvegan and the MacLeods of Lewis...
, a battle fought near Glendale, by combined forces of MacDonalds and MacLeods - Eilean mo chridheEilean mo chridhe"Eilean Mo Chridhe" is a Scottish Gaelic folk song written during the First World War. The composer was John Maclean of Glendale, Skye.-Scottish Gaelic:-External links:**...
, a Scottish Gaelic folk song written by a Glendale native during World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.