Loch Alsh
Encyclopedia
Loch Alsh or Lochalsh (from the Scottish Gaelic Loch Aillse, "foaming lake") is a sea inlet between the isle of Skye
in the Inner Hebrides
and the Northwest Highlands
of Scotland
. The name is also used to described the surrounding country and the feudal holdings around the loch. The area is rich in history, and is increasingly popular with tourists.
The hilly country around Loch Alsh has a temperate, well-watered climate. There is some pasture and woodland, but much of the area is moorland. The rocks are ancient Precambrian
Gneiss
, some of the oldest in the world, much eroded.
The earliest known inhabitants were Picts
, but in the late 6th century Loch Alsh became part of the Gaelic island kingdom of Dál Riata
. Between the 8th and 13th centuries the area was disputed between the kingdoms of Norway
and Alba
and often ruled by independent lords. Although nominally subject to the Kingdom of Scotland
after 1266 AD, the history of the region until the failed rebellion of Bonnie Prince Charlie
in 1745 is one of obscure struggles between the local clans and against the central government.
To prevent further feuds and rebellions, in 1746 the government enacted laws designed to break the bond between the clan leaders and their people. An indirect result was gradual conversion of the land from crofting
to more profitable and less labour intensive sheep farming. These Highland Clearances
and the subsequent Highland Potato Famine of 1846–52 forced many of the people to emigrate. Today, the area is thinly populated with an economy based mainly on tourism.
The loch runs inland about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) from Kyle of Lochalsh
to Ardelve
. From there Loch Duich
continues southeast another 10 km to Shiel Bridge while Loch Long
runs deeper into the mountains to the northeast. A narrow strait from the south of Loch Alsh leads to the Sound of Sleat
that separates the Isle of Skye from the mainland. The loch is overlooked by Sgurr na Coinnich
, which rises to 739 metres (2,424.5 ft) on Skye. The mainland hills to the north reach 452 metres (1,482.9 ft) at the summit of Auchtertyre Hill and 344 metres (1,128.6 ft) on Sgurr Mor but are generally lower and slope gradually down to the west.
The ancient stronghold of Inverness
is 50 miles (80.5 km) to the east as a crow flies over the Northwest Highlands
.
The climate is temperate. Annual rainfall is around 2.3 meters per year and temperatures range from 0–7oC in January to 10–18oC in July and August. On any given day of the year rain is more likely than not. Much of the countryside is moorland
or pasture
but there are lowland areas of deciduous forest with native birch
woods and oak
woods and some conifer plantations. At one time the forest would have been more extensive, but the early inhabitants converted parts of it to crofts
(small farms) and when the Highland Clearances
destroyed the crofts the land was kept as pasture.
, an unusual geological structure that runs from the Sleat
peninsula in Skye on a northeast diagonal to Loch Eriboll
on the north coast of Scotland. In this area, geologists found in 1907 that younger rocks from the west lay below the older rocks of the east, a discovery that helped lead to the modern theory of mountain building
. The Lewisian gneisses
around Loch Alsh were formed in the Precambrian
period, about 2800 million years ago, while the volcanic rocks, gabbro
and granite
that make up most of Skye, and that in some places lie under the older gneisses, are just 55 million years old. The ancient metamorphic rocks around Loch Alsh have been heavily eroded over the years, most recently by a series of ice ages.
, a Celtic people. Pictish brochs, tall stone towers up to ten meters high and more than 2,000 years old, are found near Glenelg to the south of the loch. The Scots
, a tribe of Gaels
from Ireland, established the kingdom of Dál Riata
in the Hebrides
and western Scotland late in the 6th century, and their Gaelic language gradually replaced the earlier Pictish language. Many of the local people speak Gaelic to this day.
In the 7th and 8th centuries the area suffered raids and invasions by Vikings from Norway
. From the 9th century until the Treaty of Perth
in 1266 CE control of the Hebrides
alternated between the kingdoms of Norway and of Alba to the east, and independent Gaelic/Scandinavian rulers such as Ketil Flatnose
, Maccus mac Arailt
, Godred Crovan
and Somerled
. The kingdom of Scotland that finally established its authority over the area included many lowlanders who spoke a Northumbrian language akin to English. However, it was only gradually and comparatively recently that Scottish English
became more common than Gaelic in the Lochalsh area.
The people of Lochalsh are thus a combination of Pictish and Scottish (Irish) with Norwegian and English elements.
in 1745 is one of obscure struggles between the local clans and against the central government.
The Norse
Clan MacLeod
and Clan MacDonald on Skye, and the Celtic Clan Mackenzie
with their stronghold in the castle of Eilean Donan
at the head of the loch retained a large degree of independence for centuries. Often the MacDonald Lord of the Isles
acted as a sovereign in alliance with the Scottish king rather than a subject. Thus Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross
and Lord of the Isles allied himself with King James I of Scotland
against the Albany Stewarts
in 1424, but in 1429 went to war against the king. Although defeated and forced to surrender, his authority in the Hebrides and western highlands was such that he remained a leading power in the kingdom. Alexander's bastard sons Uisdean (Hugh of Sleat) and Gilleasbaig ("Celestine") were given Sleat and Lochalsh respectively.
Clan Matheson
, led by the McRuari descendents of Somerled, were another power in the area, participating in the battle of Largs
in 1263 when King Haakon IV of Norway was defeated, and later fighting for Donald of the Isles at the battle of Harlaw
in 1411 against an army commanded by Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
. Later, as a result of a feud with Clan MacDonell of Glengarry, clan Matheson switched allegiance to the Mackenzies. John Dubh was killed in 1539 while defending Eilean Donan Castle against Macdonald of Sleat
. After this, the power of the clan declined although they retained property in Lochalsh and in Sutherland. Sir James Matheson of Sutherland was founder of the trading house of Jardine Matheson Holdings
in the Far East. A Matheson still holds the title of Baronet of Lochalsh.
The MacDonald of Lochalsh
branch was founded by Celestine MacDonald (d.1476), second son of Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles. In 1491 Alexander MacDonald of Lochalsh joined Clan Cameron
in a raid into Ross
where they fought with Clan MacKenzie of Kintail, advanced east to Badenoch
where they were joined by the Clan Mackintosh
, and then to Inverness
where they took Inverness Castle. In 1495, threatened by King James's army, most of the highland chiefs submitted. However, soon after Sir Alexander MacDonald again rebelled and invaded Ross-shire, where he was defeated in battle by Clan Munro
and Clan MacKenzie at Drumchatt. He escaped to the Isles but was caught on Oransay and put to death.
In 1580 a feud started between the Mackenzies and the Macdonells of Glengarry. The Chief of Glengarry had inherited part of Lochalsh, Lochcarron, and Lochbroom, while the father of Colin Cam Mackenzie of Kintail
, a favourite of king James VI, had acquired the other part by purchase. Colin Cam MacKenzie took MacDonell prisoner and murdered his three uncles. The Privy Council investigated the matter and caused Strome Castle, which Macdonell yielded to Mackenzie as one of the conditions of his release, to be placed under the custody of the Earl of Argyll. MacKenzie of Kintail was briefly detained at Edinburgh, but shortly after pardoned by the king. His son Kenneth Mackenzie
(c.1569–1611) successfully continued the bloody feud with the Macdonells of Glengarry and secured the entire island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. Kenneth's son Colin Mackenzie
(1596/7-1633) became 1st Earl of Seaforth, with vast estates and wealth.
Broader changes were to profoundly affect the traditional life of the clans. In 1560, inspired by John Knox
, the Scottish Parliament abolished the jurisdiction of the pope in Scotland, condemned all doctrine and practice contrary to the reformed faith, and forbade the celebration of Mass. Many in the west and the islands resisted these changes, and continued to adhere to the Roman Catholic faith. In 1603 the crowns of England and Scotland were united when James VI became king James I of England. The English Revolution
of 1640–1660 destroyed forever the principle of the absolute power of monarchs, and the Succession to the Crown Act 1707
ensured that no Catholic could hold the crown. In 1714, the elector of Hanover succeeded Queen Anne
to become George I of Great Britain
.
A Jacobite rising
broke out in 1715 in an attempt to place Queen Anne's half-brother James
on the throne. The Pretender's supporters led by Lord Mar instigated rebellion in Scotland. The rising was a dismal failure and collapsed by the end of the year. In 1719, Philip V of Spain
lent support to a fresh attempt to restore the Stuart dynasty. He lent ships, troops and guns to George Keith, 10th Earl Marischal
, landing him on the Isle of Lewis to raise troops. On 13 April 1719, Keith's men disembarked near Lochalsh, although the Highlanders did not join in the expected numbers. Keith could not proceed to Inverness as planned, and established his headquarter in the castle of Eilean Donan. The bulk of his army moved south to Glen Shiel, a few miles south of the head of Loch Duich. On 10 May, three ships of the Royal Navy
arrived off the castle which they captured and destroyed. On 10 June 1719 at the Battle of Glen Shiel
the Jacobites were defeated by an army of English and Scottish soldiers dispatched from Inverness. Yet another rising led by Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) in 1745-6 had more success, but collapsed when his Scottish soldiers refused to proceed from Derby
to London. Prince Charlie was forced to flee, taking refuge on Skye for some time before escaping to the continent. There were no further challenges to the Hanoverian kings.
continued steadily from 1762 onwards. Chiefs who once had been responsible for the welfare of their people became rich while the land was depopulated, a process that accelerated with the Highland Potato Famine of 1846–52 CE.
After the clearances, the greatly reduced population was employed in sheep raising, fishing, kelp gathering and weaving. The romantic but bloody days of clan warfare were a thing of the past. Although one of the poorest parts of Britain, conditions gradually improved. In 1897 the Highland Railway
opened the Kyle of Lochalsh Line
, connecting to the Skye ferry.
During World War II, Loch Alsh was a British naval base. On 26 November 1940 the mine layer HMS Port Napier
dragged her anchor during a gale and sank in the Kyle of Loch Alsh. The wreck remains and may be visited by scuba divers.
In 1995 the Skye Bridge
across the Kyle of Lochalsh was opened, connecting Skye to the mainland and causing the ferry to close. The use of tolls to recover the cost of building the bridge was the subject of much controversy.
Until recently part of Skye and Lochalsh, Lochalsh is now part of the Wester Ross, Strathpeffer & Lochalsh ward of the Highland Council. The entire ward had a population of just 11,454 in 2006. The population is healthy, well-educated, growing very slowly and ageing. As of August 2003 the unemployment rate was 2.7%. Tourism is now central to the economy. The wholesale, hotels & restaurants sector is the largest employer with 26.8% of the workforce, followed closely by the Public Administration, Education & Health sector.
There are many attractions in the area for tourists, including hiking trails of varying levels of difficulty through magnificent scenery, boat trips, sea fishing, scuba diving and visits to the ruined Pictish brochs and later castles that remain from the region's turbulent past. The local food is generally simple but very high in quality.
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...
in the Inner Hebrides
Inner Hebrides
The Inner Hebrides is an archipelago off the west coast of Scotland, to the south east of the Outer Hebrides. Together these two island chains form the Hebrides, which enjoy a mild oceanic climate. There are 36 inhabited islands and a further 43 uninhabited Inner Hebrides with an area greater than...
and the Northwest Highlands
Northwest Highlands
The Northwest Highlands are the northern third of Scotland that is separated from the Grampian Mountains by the Great Glen . The region comprises , Assynt, Caithness and Sutherland. The Caledonian Canal, which extends from Loch Linnhe in the west, via Loch Ness to the Moray Firth in the north...
of Scotland
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...
. The name is also used to described the surrounding country and the feudal holdings around the loch. The area is rich in history, and is increasingly popular with tourists.
The hilly country around Loch Alsh has a temperate, well-watered climate. There is some pasture and woodland, but much of the area is moorland. The rocks are ancient Precambrian
Precambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
Gneiss
Gneiss
Gneiss is a common and widely distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations that were originally either igneous or sedimentary rocks.-Etymology:...
, some of the oldest in the world, much eroded.
The earliest known inhabitants were Picts
Picts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
, but in the late 6th century Loch Alsh became part of the Gaelic island kingdom of Dál Riata
Dál Riata
Dál Riata was a Gaelic overkingdom on the western coast of Scotland with some territory on the northeast coast of Ireland...
. Between the 8th and 13th centuries the area was disputed between the kingdoms of Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Alba
Alba
Alba is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is cognate to Alba in Irish and Nalbin in Manx, the two other Goidelic Insular Celtic languages, as well as similar words in the Brythonic Insular Celtic languages of Cornish and Welsh also meaning Scotland.- Etymology :The term first appears in...
and often ruled by independent lords. Although nominally subject to the Kingdom of Scotland
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...
after 1266 AD, the history of the region until the failed rebellion of Bonnie Prince Charlie
Charles Edward Stuart
Prince Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart commonly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie or The Young Pretender was the second Jacobite pretender to the thrones of Great Britain , and Ireland...
in 1745 is one of obscure struggles between the local clans and against the central government.
To prevent further feuds and rebellions, in 1746 the government enacted laws designed to break the bond between the clan leaders and their people. An indirect result was gradual conversion of the land from crofting
Crofting
Crofting is a form of land tenure and small-scale food production unique to the Scottish Highlands, the Islands of Scotland, and formerly on the Isle of Man....
to more profitable and less labour intensive sheep farming. These Highland Clearances
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...
and the subsequent Highland Potato Famine of 1846–52 forced many of the people to emigrate. Today, the area is thinly populated with an economy based mainly on tourism.
Location
Kyle of Lochalsh
Kyle of Lochalsh is a village on the northwest coast of Scotland, 63 miles west of Inverness. It is located at the entrance to Loch Alsh, opposite the village of Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye...
to Ardelve
Ardelve
Ardelve is a village in Highland, Scotland, on Loch Alsh. It overlooks the Eilean Donan Castle, which is in Rattigan, also on Loch Alsh, to the east of Skye. A caravan park is located at Ardelve.-Geography:...
. From there Loch Duich
Loch Duich
Loch Duich is a sea loch situated on the western coast of Scotland, in the Highlands.-History:In 1719, British forces burned many homesteads along the loch’s shores in the month preceding the Battle of Glen Shiel....
continues southeast another 10 km to Shiel Bridge while Loch Long
Loch Long (Highlands)
Loch Long is a sea loch situated on the western coast of Scotland, in the Highlands. It is a popular destination for tourists and fishermen.The nearby Eilean Donan Castle stands at the confluence of Loch Long, Loch Duich and Loch Alsh....
runs deeper into the mountains to the northeast. A narrow strait from the south of Loch Alsh leads to the Sound of Sleat
Sleat
Sleat is a peninsula on the island of Skye in the Highland council area of Scotland, known as "the garden of Skye". It is the home of the clan MacDonald of Sleat...
that separates the Isle of Skye from the mainland. The loch is overlooked by Sgurr na Coinnich
Sgurr na Coinnich
Sgurr na Coinnich is the highest peak on the Sleat peninsula at the east end of the island of Skye. Together with its slightly lower neighbour, Beinn na Caillich, it overlooks the Skye Bridge that links the towns of Kyle of Lochalsh and Kyleakin....
, which rises to 739 metres (2,424.5 ft) on Skye. The mainland hills to the north reach 452 metres (1,482.9 ft) at the summit of Auchtertyre Hill and 344 metres (1,128.6 ft) on Sgurr Mor but are generally lower and slope gradually down to the west.
The ancient stronghold of Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
is 50 miles (80.5 km) to the east as a crow flies over the Northwest Highlands
Northwest Highlands
The Northwest Highlands are the northern third of Scotland that is separated from the Grampian Mountains by the Great Glen . The region comprises , Assynt, Caithness and Sutherland. The Caledonian Canal, which extends from Loch Linnhe in the west, via Loch Ness to the Moray Firth in the north...
.
The climate is temperate. Annual rainfall is around 2.3 meters per year and temperatures range from 0–7oC in January to 10–18oC in July and August. On any given day of the year rain is more likely than not. Much of the countryside is moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
or pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...
but there are lowland areas of deciduous forest with native birch
Birch
Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...
woods and oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
woods and some conifer plantations. At one time the forest would have been more extensive, but the early inhabitants converted parts of it to crofts
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 :...
(small farms) and when the Highland Clearances
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...
destroyed the crofts the land was kept as pasture.
Geology
The loch lies between hills just east of the Moine Thrust BeltMoine Thrust Belt
The Moine Thrust Belt is a linear geological feature in the Scottish Highlands which runs from Loch Eriboll on the north coast 190 km south-west to the Sleat peninsula on the Isle of Skye...
, an unusual geological structure that runs from the Sleat
Sleat
Sleat is a peninsula on the island of Skye in the Highland council area of Scotland, known as "the garden of Skye". It is the home of the clan MacDonald of Sleat...
peninsula in Skye on a northeast diagonal to Loch Eriboll
Loch Eriboll
Loch Eriboll is a long sea loch on the north coast of Scotland, which has been used for centuries as a deep water anchorage as it is safe from the often stormy seas of Cape Wrath and the Pentland Firth...
on the north coast of Scotland. In this area, geologists found in 1907 that younger rocks from the west lay below the older rocks of the east, a discovery that helped lead to the modern theory of mountain building
Orogeny
Orogeny refers to forces and events leading to a severe structural deformation of the Earth's crust due to the engagement of tectonic plates. Response to such engagement results in the formation of long tracts of highly deformed rock called orogens or orogenic belts...
. The Lewisian gneisses
Lewisian complex
The Lewisian complex or Lewisian Gneiss is a suite of Precambrian metamorphic rocks that outcrop in the northwestern part of Scotland, forming part of the Hebridean Terrane. These rocks are of Archaean and Paleoproterozoic age, ranging from 3.0–1.7 Ga. They form the basement on which the...
around Loch Alsh were formed in the Precambrian
Precambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
period, about 2800 million years ago, while the volcanic rocks, gabbro
Gabbro
Gabbro refers to a large group of dark, coarse-grained, intrusive mafic igneous rocks chemically equivalent to basalt. The rocks are plutonic, formed when molten magma is trapped beneath the Earth's surface and cools into a crystalline mass....
and granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
that make up most of Skye, and that in some places lie under the older gneisses, are just 55 million years old. The ancient metamorphic rocks around Loch Alsh have been heavily eroded over the years, most recently by a series of ice ages.
People
Records from Roman times describe the people of the area as PictsPicts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
, a Celtic people. Pictish brochs, tall stone towers up to ten meters high and more than 2,000 years old, are found near Glenelg to the south of the loch. The Scots
Scoti
Scoti or Scotti was the generic name used by the Romans to describe those who sailed from Ireland to conduct raids on Roman Britain. It was thus synonymous with the modern term Gaels...
, a tribe of Gaels
Gaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
from Ireland, established the kingdom of Dál Riata
Dál Riata
Dál Riata was a Gaelic overkingdom on the western coast of Scotland with some territory on the northeast coast of Ireland...
in the Hebrides
Hebrides
The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
and western Scotland late in the 6th century, and their Gaelic language gradually replaced the earlier Pictish language. Many of the local people speak Gaelic to this day.
In the 7th and 8th centuries the area suffered raids and invasions by Vikings from Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. From the 9th century until the Treaty of Perth
Treaty of Perth
The Treaty of Perth, 1266, ended military conflict between Norway, under King Magnus VI of Norway, and Scotland, under King Alexander III, over the sovereignty of the Hebrides and the Isle of Man....
in 1266 CE control of the Hebrides
Hebrides
The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
alternated between the kingdoms of Norway and of Alba to the east, and independent Gaelic/Scandinavian rulers such as Ketil Flatnose
Ketil Flatnose
Ketill Bjǫrnsson, nicknamed Flatnose , was a Norwegian hersir of the 9th century.-Biography:Ketill Bjǫrnsson was the son of Bjorn Grimmson. He was from Romsdal , a valley in the county of Møre og Romsdal, between Nordmøre and Sunnmøre...
, Maccus mac Arailt
Maccus mac Arailt
Maccus mac Arailt or Maccus Haraldsson was a Scandinavian or Norse-Gael king. He and his brother Gofraid were active in the lands around the Irish Sea in the 970s and 980s...
, Godred Crovan
Godred Crovan
Godred Crovan was a Norse-Gael ruler of Dublin, and King of Mann and the Isles in the second half of the 11th century. Godred's epithet Crovan may mean "white hand" . In Manx folklore he is known as King Orry.-Ancestry and early life:...
and Somerled
Somerled
Somerled was a military and political leader of the Scottish Isles in the 12th century who was known in Gaelic as rí Innse Gall . His father was Gillebride...
. The kingdom of Scotland that finally established its authority over the area included many lowlanders who spoke a Northumbrian language akin to English. However, it was only gradually and comparatively recently that Scottish English
Scottish English
Scottish English refers to the varieties of English spoken in Scotland. It may or may not be considered distinct from the Scots language. It is always considered distinct from Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic language....
became more common than Gaelic in the Lochalsh area.
The people of Lochalsh are thus a combination of Pictish and Scottish (Irish) with Norwegian and English elements.
Feudal period
The history of Lochalsh from its nominal acquisition by the Kingdom of Scotland in 1266 CE until the rebellion of Bonnie Prince CharlieCharles Edward Stuart
Prince Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart commonly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie or The Young Pretender was the second Jacobite pretender to the thrones of Great Britain , and Ireland...
in 1745 is one of obscure struggles between the local clans and against the central government.
Norsemen
Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...
Clan MacLeod
Clan MacLeod
Clan MacLeod is a Highland Scottish clan associated with the Isle of Skye. There are two main branches of the clan: the Macleods of Harris and Dunvegan, whose chief is Macleod of Macleod, are known in Gaelic as Sìol Tormoid ; the Macleods of Lewis, whose chief is Macleod of The Lewes, are known in...
and Clan MacDonald on Skye, and the Celtic Clan Mackenzie
Clan MacKenzie
Clan Mackenzie is a Highland Scottish clan, traditionally associated with Kintail and lands in Ross-shire.-Origins:The Mackenzies, a powerful clan of Celtic stock, were not among the clans that originated from Norman ancestry. Descendants of the long defunct royal Cenél Loairn of Dál Riata, they...
with their stronghold in the castle of Eilean Donan
Eilean Donan
Eilean Donan is a small island in Loch Duich in the western Highlands of Scotland. It is connected to the mainland by a footbridge and lies about half a mile from the village of Dornie. Eilean Donan is named after Donnán of Eigg, a Celtic saint martyred in 617...
at the head of the loch retained a large degree of independence for centuries. Often the MacDonald Lord of the Isles
Lord of the Isles
The designation Lord of the Isles is today a title of Scottish nobility with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It emerged from a series of hybrid Viking/Gaelic rulers of the west coast and islands of Scotland in the Middle Ages, who wielded sea-power with fleets of...
acted as a sovereign in alliance with the Scottish king rather than a subject. Thus Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross
Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross
Alexander of Islay or Alexander MacDonald was a medieval Scottish nobleman, who succeeded his father Domhnall of Islay as Lord of the Isles and rose to the rank of Earl of Ross...
and Lord of the Isles allied himself with King James I of Scotland
James I of Scotland
James I, King of Scots , was the son of Robert III and Annabella Drummond. He was probably born in late July 1394 in Dunfermline as youngest of three sons...
against the Albany Stewarts
Duke of Albany
Duke of Albany is a peerage title that has occasionally been bestowed on the younger sons in the Scottish, and later the British, royal family, particularly in the Houses of Stuart and Hanover....
in 1424, but in 1429 went to war against the king. Although defeated and forced to surrender, his authority in the Hebrides and western highlands was such that he remained a leading power in the kingdom. Alexander's bastard sons Uisdean (Hugh of Sleat) and Gilleasbaig ("Celestine") were given Sleat and Lochalsh respectively.
Clan Matheson
Clan Matheson is a Highland Scottish clan.-Origins of the clan:The name Matheson has been attributed to the Gaelic words Mic Mhathghamhuin which means Son of the Bear or Son of the Heroes...
, led by the McRuari descendents of Somerled, were another power in the area, participating in the battle of Largs
Battle of Largs
The Battle of Largs was an engagement fought between the armies of Norway and Scotland near the present-day town of Largs in North Ayrshire on the Firth of Clyde in Scotland on 2 October 1263. It was the most important military engagement of the Scottish-Norwegian War. The Norwegian forces were...
in 1263 when King Haakon IV of Norway was defeated, and later fighting for Donald of the Isles at the battle of Harlaw
Battle of Harlaw
The Battle of Harlaw was a Scottish clan battle fought on 24 July 1411 just north of Inverurie in Aberdeenshire. It was one of a series of battles fought during the Middle Ages between the barons of northeast Scotland against those from the west coast....
in 1411 against an army commanded by Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
Alexander Stewart, Earl of Mar
-Biography:He was an illegitimate son of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan and probably Mairead inghean Eachann.Alexander held the Earldom of Mar and the Lordship of the Garioch in right of his first wife Isabel Douglas, Countess of Mar . Alexander's marriage to Isabella followed his capture of...
. Later, as a result of a feud with Clan MacDonell of Glengarry, clan Matheson switched allegiance to the Mackenzies. John Dubh was killed in 1539 while defending Eilean Donan Castle against Macdonald of Sleat
Clan MacDonald of Sleat
Clan Macdonald of Sleat, sometimes known as Clan Donald North and in Gaelic Clann Ùisdein , is a Scottish clan and a branch of Clan Donald — one of the largest Scottish clans. The founder of the Macdonalds of Sleat is Ùisdean, 6th great-grandson of Somhairle, a 12th century Rì Innse Gall...
. After this, the power of the clan declined although they retained property in Lochalsh and in Sutherland. Sir James Matheson of Sutherland was founder of the trading house of Jardine Matheson Holdings
Jardine Matheson Holdings
Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited often referred to as Jardines, is a multinational corporation incorporated in Bermuda and based in Hong Kong. While listed on the London Stock Exchange and the Singapore Exchange, the vast majority of Jardines shares are traded in Singapore...
in the Far East. A Matheson still holds the title of Baronet of Lochalsh.
The MacDonald of Lochalsh
Clan MacDonald of Lochalsh
-History:The MacDonald of Lochalsh branch was founded by Celestine MacDonald . Celestine MacDonald was the second son of Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross, 3rd Lord of the Isles and 8th chief of Clan Donald...
branch was founded by Celestine MacDonald (d.1476), second son of Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles. In 1491 Alexander MacDonald of Lochalsh joined Clan Cameron
Clan Cameron
Clan Cameron is a West Highland Scottish clan, with one main branch Lochiel, and numerous cadet branches. The Clan Cameron lands are in Lochaber and within their lands is the mountain Ben Nevis which is the highest mountain in the British Isles. The chief of the clan is customarily referred to as...
in a raid into Ross
Ross
Ross is a region of Scotland and a former mormaerdom, earldom, sheriffdom and county. The name Ross allegedly derives from a Gaelic word meaning a headland - perhaps a reference to the Black Isle. The Norse word for Orkney - Hrossay meaning horse island - is another possible origin. The area...
where they fought with Clan MacKenzie of Kintail, advanced east to Badenoch
Badenoch
Badenoch is a traditional district which today forms part of Badenoch and Strathspey, an area of Highland Council, in Scotland, bounded on the north by the Monadhliath Mountains, on the east by the Cairngorms and Braemar, on the south by Atholl and the Grampians, and on the west by Lochaber...
where they were joined by the Clan Mackintosh
Clan MacKintosh
Clan Mackintosh is a Scottish clan from Inverness with strong Jacobite ties. The Mackintoshes were also chiefs of the Chattan Confederation.-Origins:...
, and then to Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
where they took Inverness Castle. In 1495, threatened by King James's army, most of the highland chiefs submitted. However, soon after Sir Alexander MacDonald again rebelled and invaded Ross-shire, where he was defeated in battle by Clan Munro
Clan Munro
-Origins:The main traditional origin of the clan is that the Munros came from Ireland and settled in Scotland in the 11th century and that they fought as mercenary soldiers under the Earl of Ross who defeated Viking invaders in Rosshire...
and Clan MacKenzie at Drumchatt. He escaped to the Isles but was caught on Oransay and put to death.
In 1580 a feud started between the Mackenzies and the Macdonells of Glengarry. The Chief of Glengarry had inherited part of Lochalsh, Lochcarron, and Lochbroom, while the father of Colin Cam Mackenzie of Kintail
Colin Cam Mackenzie of Kintail
Colin Mackenzie of Kintail , nicknamed “Cam” , was a Highland chief of the Scottish clan Mackenzie who greatly increased his ancestral estates through royal favour and a career of vigorous self-aggrandisement....
, a favourite of king James VI, had acquired the other part by purchase. Colin Cam MacKenzie took MacDonell prisoner and murdered his three uncles. The Privy Council investigated the matter and caused Strome Castle, which Macdonell yielded to Mackenzie as one of the conditions of his release, to be placed under the custody of the Earl of Argyll. MacKenzie of Kintail was briefly detained at Edinburgh, but shortly after pardoned by the king. His son Kenneth Mackenzie
Kenneth Mackenzie, 1st Lord Mackenzie of Kintail
Kenneth Mackenzie, the first Lord Mackenzie of Kintail , was a Highland clan chief who secured for himself and his heirs the entirety of the island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides and successfully pursued a bloody feud with the Macdonells of Glengarry.-Origins:Mackenzie was the son of Colin Cam...
(c.1569–1611) successfully continued the bloody feud with the Macdonells of Glengarry and secured the entire island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. Kenneth's son Colin Mackenzie
Colin Mackenzie, 1st Earl of Seaforth
Colin Mackenzie, 1st Earl of Seaforth , was a Highland clan chief and Scottish nobleman, possessed of vast estates and wealth.-Origins:...
(1596/7-1633) became 1st Earl of Seaforth, with vast estates and wealth.
Calvinists and Jacobites
John Knox
John Knox was a Scottish clergyman and a leader of the Protestant Reformation who brought reformation to the church in Scotland. He was educated at the University of St Andrews or possibly the University of Glasgow and was ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 1536...
, the Scottish Parliament abolished the jurisdiction of the pope in Scotland, condemned all doctrine and practice contrary to the reformed faith, and forbade the celebration of Mass. Many in the west and the islands resisted these changes, and continued to adhere to the Roman Catholic faith. In 1603 the crowns of England and Scotland were united when James VI became king James I of England. The English Revolution
English Revolution
"English Revolution" has been used to describe two different events in English history. The first to be so called—by Whig historians—was the Glorious Revolution of 1688, whereby James II was replaced by William III and Mary II as monarch and a constitutional monarchy was established.In the...
of 1640–1660 destroyed forever the principle of the absolute power of monarchs, and the Succession to the Crown Act 1707
Succession to the Crown Act 1707
The Succession to the Crown Act 1707 is an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of Great Britain which is still in force in the United Kingdom, with amendments...
ensured that no Catholic could hold the crown. In 1714, the elector of Hanover succeeded Queen Anne
Anne of Great Britain
Anne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
to become George I of Great Britain
George I of Great Britain
George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 until his death, and ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1698....
.
A Jacobite rising
Jacobite rising
The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at returning James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was deposed by...
broke out in 1715 in an attempt to place Queen Anne's half-brother James
James Francis Edward Stuart
James Francis Edward, Prince of Wales was the son of the deposed James II of England...
on the throne. The Pretender's supporters led by Lord Mar instigated rebellion in Scotland. The rising was a dismal failure and collapsed by the end of the year. In 1719, Philip V of Spain
Philip V of Spain
Philip V was King of Spain from 15 November 1700 to 15 January 1724, when he abdicated in favor of his son Louis, and from 6 September 1724, when he assumed the throne again upon his son's death, to his death.Before his reign, Philip occupied an exalted place in the royal family of France as a...
lent support to a fresh attempt to restore the Stuart dynasty. He lent ships, troops and guns to George Keith, 10th Earl Marischal
George Keith, 10th Earl Marischal
George Keith, 10th Earl Marischal was a Scottish and Prussian army officer and diplomat...
, landing him on the Isle of Lewis to raise troops. On 13 April 1719, Keith's men disembarked near Lochalsh, although the Highlanders did not join in the expected numbers. Keith could not proceed to Inverness as planned, and established his headquarter in the castle of Eilean Donan. The bulk of his army moved south to Glen Shiel, a few miles south of the head of Loch Duich. On 10 May, three ships of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
arrived off the castle which they captured and destroyed. On 10 June 1719 at the Battle of Glen Shiel
Battle of Glen Shiel
The Battle of Glen Shiel was a battle in Glen Shiel, in the West Highlands of Scotland on 10 June 1719, between British government troops and an alliance of Jacobites and Spaniards, resulting in a victory for the government forces. It was the last close engagement of British and foreign troops on...
the Jacobites were defeated by an army of English and Scottish soldiers dispatched from Inverness. Yet another rising led by Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) in 1745-6 had more success, but collapsed when his Scottish soldiers refused to proceed from Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
to London. Prince Charlie was forced to flee, taking refuge on Skye for some time before escaping to the continent. There were no further challenges to the Hanoverian kings.
The Clearances and later events
The Jacobite risings resulted in laws that prohibited possession of swords and the wearing of tartans or kilts, ended the feudal bond of military service and removed the virtually sovereign power the chiefs had over their clan. The clan leaders became no more than wealthy landowners. Increasing demand in Britain for cattle and sheep, and the creation of new breeds of sheep which could be reared in the mountainous country, allowed higher rents to meet the costs of an aristocratic lifestyle. As a result, many families living on a subsistence level were displaced, emigrating in large numbers to Canada and elsewhere. Unrest was suppressed by troops where needed. The highland clearancesHighland 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...
continued steadily from 1762 onwards. Chiefs who once had been responsible for the welfare of their people became rich while the land was depopulated, a process that accelerated with the Highland Potato Famine of 1846–52 CE.
After the clearances, the greatly reduced population was employed in sheep raising, fishing, kelp gathering and weaving. The romantic but bloody days of clan warfare were a thing of the past. Although one of the poorest parts of Britain, conditions gradually improved. In 1897 the Highland Railway
Highland Railway
The Highland Railway was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921; it operated north of Perth railway station in Scotland and served the farthest north of Britain...
opened the Kyle of Lochalsh Line
Kyle of Lochalsh Line
The Kyle of Lochalsh Line is a primarily single track railway line in the Scottish Highlands, running from Dingwall to Kyle of Lochalsh. The population along the route is sparse in nature, but the scenery is beautiful and can be quite dramatic, the Kyle line having been likened to a symphony in...
, connecting to the Skye ferry.
During World War II, Loch Alsh was a British naval base. On 26 November 1940 the mine layer HMS Port Napier
HMS Port Napier
The Port Napier was taken over by the Admiralty during its construction and converted to lay mines. After being loaded with her cargo, she dragged her anchor during a gale in the Kyle of Loch Alsh on 26 November 1940 and grounded in shallow water...
dragged her anchor during a gale and sank in the Kyle of Loch Alsh. The wreck remains and may be visited by scuba divers.
In 1995 the Skye Bridge
Skye Bridge
The Skye Bridge is a road bridge over Loch Alsh, connecting mainland Highland with the Isle of Skye, Scotland. It forms part of the A87. The bridge is located at around , with one pillar standing on the island of Eilean Bàn....
across the Kyle of Lochalsh was opened, connecting Skye to the mainland and causing the ferry to close. The use of tolls to recover the cost of building the bridge was the subject of much controversy.
Lochalsh today
There are many attractions in the area for tourists, including hiking trails of varying levels of difficulty through magnificent scenery, boat trips, sea fishing, scuba diving and visits to the ruined Pictish brochs and later castles that remain from the region's turbulent past. The local food is generally simple but very high in quality.