MacDonald of the Isles

[Nathan]

There are tartans called MacDonald of the Isles but from my research I can't find any clan/branch called MacDonald of the Isles.

Does anyone know if this is simply a tartan specific term? Is it a synonym for another branch (i.e. Sleat/Clan Donald North) or does it apply to all MacDonalds from the Western Isles regardless of Clan?

I know there are several branches both with chief and without including

Clan Donald (aka Macdonald of Macdonald = all of the branches)
Clanranald
Glengarry
Sleat (AKA Clan Donald North)
Keppoch (AKA Clanranald of Lochaber)
Antrim
MacAlister

And ones with no chief:

Dunnyveg (Aka MacDonald of Islay and Kintyre)
Glencoe
Ardnamurchan

And cadet branches of other branches like:

Boisdale
Glenaladale
Kingsburgh (?)

I'm also confused about the status of:

MacDonald of Lochalsh

There are tartans that are confusing because I'm not sure they correspond directly to clan branches, though perhaps they do, such as:

MacDonald of the Isles (the subject of this query)
MacDonald Lord of the Isles (I'm thinking this applies to all MacDonalds)
MacDonald of Staffa

Are some of these just titles bestowed on idividuals and not Clan branches per se?

[Liam]

Some very good questions, that I will also be looking forward to the answers to.

[CMcG]

According to The Scottish Register of Tartans, MacDonald of Sleat was originally called MacDonald of Sleat, Lord of the Isles, and it is very similar to MacDonald Lord of the Isles #2. MacQuarrie #5 (the most common MacQuarrie variant) resembles both of the above, which is attributed to them being followers of the Lord of the Isles.


MacDonald of the Isles appears to have been a fabrication of the notorious Sobieski-Stuarts, and the Register suggests it is not a clan tartan.



MacDonald of Sleat


MacDonald Lord of the Isles #2


MacQuarrie #5


MacDonald of the Isles

[figheadair]

I think that this is really a tartan question, or that at least is how it is developing, and it may therefore more properly belong in the 'Tartan Place' and recommend that it is moved there.

There is no branch of Clan Donald called MacDonald of the Isles and as CMcG correctly states the name owes its origins to the only MacDonald given by the Sobieski-Stuarts' in their Vestarium. The name was clearly based on the old title Lord of the Isles which was appropriated by the Crown in 1493 and is currently one of Prince Charle's titles. Unlike the majority of the Highland clan tartans in the VS, the Stuarts invented this design rather than base it closely on an existing MacDonald sett. I guess at a stretch one could argue that the overall colour scheme, but not the proportions, follows the theme of the Clan Donald/Clanranald/Glengarry settings of the late 1700s/early 1800s.

One needs to be careful with the entries in the STR as some are erroneous and others incomplete. So it is with the MacDonald of Sleat. This is at best a very late 18th century sett but is more likely post-1800. It is amongst the Wilsons' samples in the Cockburn Collection of 1810 where it is called Lord MacDonald and by which name it was known until 1850 when the Smith Brothers published it in their book and included it under the name MacDonald of Slate.

Whether in error or by design, Wilsons' Lord MacDonald was presumably based on the the coat of the younger of the MacDonald Boys in Mosman's portrait of c1750. It appeared in D.W. Stewart's 'Old & Rare Scottish Tartans under the name MacDonald Lord of the Isles by which it is still commonly sold today although it is sometimes seen under the name Lord of the Isles Red.

The similarity of either of these setts to the most common MacQuarrie is down to Grant's poor research and interpretation.

I don't think MacDonald of Staffa was ever an armigerous title. It was another of the Wilsons' tartans from the early 1800s. It probably owes its name to the combination of the popularity of Staffa following Boswell and Johnson's visit to the Hebridies and the fact that at the beginning of the 19th century it belonged to MacDonald of Lochboisdale.

[Nathan]

Thanks for the info. The reason I put the thread here is because my chief motivation for the thread is to sort out the various branches of Clan Donald. Some are cadets of others and I might not even know about all of them. Certainly there are more branches than the current group of chiefs but I'm just trying to sort it all out. Dunnyveg and the Glens has overlap with Antrim. Is Boisdale the same as lochboisdale? The question does involve tartan insofar as tartan names confuse the matter. Your help in sorting true branches from tartan names is most appreciated. Did I miss anyone in my OP?

[figheadair]

I can't help with Lochboisdale but assume them to be the same as the Boisdales i.e. cadets of Clanranald.

There were a whole load of other cadet branches; for example: Aird & Valley, Borrodale, Dalilea, Geridhoil, Knockeltaig, Morar etc.

[Riverkilt]

My ancestors were Scandanavian Vikings who "settled" on the Trotternish Peninsula of Skye. First at Uig, then Staffin. I've a few variations of the Macdonald tartans. As mentioned - those pigeon holes are created by others.

Macdonald of Kingsburgh...a few miles from Uig and a Bonnie Prince Charlie relic.



Macdonald Lord of the Isles - one of the most beautiful tartans



Macdonald of the Isles Weathered Hunting - a tartan with a huge 9 inch sett.



And the "genetic" we are one Clan Donald - Macdonald tartan.



On my list is a BLUE Lord of the Isles.... Enjoy all the choices

[Liam]

Nathan... I came across this link which you might find interesting:

http://www.clandonaldeurope.org/ClanDonald/History.html

Bill

[Nathan]

Nathan... I came across this link which you might find interesting:

http://www.clandonaldeurope.org/ClanDonald/History.html

Bill

It is interesting indeed. Some of the statements contradict some other records I have but it's a great lead. Thank you!