A Brief History of Clan Macfie

In Scotland, different racial groups gave birth to individual clans and prominent among these groups were the Scots, Norse, and Normans.

Long before Scotland became a nation, it is known the Macfies were a branch of a larger group of Scots called 'Siol Alpin' (Clan Alpin). Their language was Gaelic and they lived predominantly in the Highlands and Western Isles of Scotland. In the 800s the Macfies were one of 7 clans led by Kenneth MacAlpin who established the kingdom of 'Alba'. That kingdom grew into the country we know today as Scotland.

While its origins are not clear, it cannot be disputed that Clan Macfie is one of the oldest clans in Scotland. The clan's ancestral home and territory is the two small islands of Colonsay and Oronsay. They are located off the west coast of Scotland and form part of the Inner Hebrides.

Colonsay is a small island about 40 km off the Scottish coast and one of many islands in that part of the Atlantic Ocean. Mull is 19 km to the north and Jura 22 km to the east.

The smaller island of Oronsay is joined to Colonsay by a 1.5 km wide tidal causeway and you can walk between islands at low tide. Oronsay Priory was the burial place of the Chiefs.

These islands off the central west coast of Scotland are a short distance from the island of Iona, the cradle of Christianity in Scotland, and are part of the Inner Hebrides which together with the Outer Hebrides form the Western Isles.

From the earliest of times, as families expanded, clan members moved to the mainland and nearby islands. This was not unusual considering the size of Colonsay. Natural population growth, clan warfare and marriage precipitated branches of Clan Macfie being established in other Highland and island areas. 

Over 300 years of Norse (Viking) occupation along the western seaboard of Scotland between the 9th and 13th centuries (890-1266) I had a lasting impact on the Macfies. The clan's ancestral home was at the heart of Norwegian territory. Intermarriage saw the clan grow with a strong Norwegian influence in the people.

When Norway lost control of the isles around Scotland’s west coast to the King of Scotland, the vacuum that was created was filled by the strongest clan leader in the area - the chief of Clan Donald (the McDonalds) of Islay. The McDonald chief proclaimed himself 'Lord of the Isles'.

The Macfie Clan chief was one of 12 subordinate clan chiefs who gave allegiance to the powerful McDonalds of Islay. In 1314 they fought alongside the McDonalds in support of Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn. The Macfie chief was the hereditary custodian or 'keeper of the records' for successive Lords of the Isles. A number of Macfies also held the position of priors at the Oronsay church and priory.

In 1493, following numerous clashes with the King of Scotland, the Lordship of the Isles was forfeited. So began a difficult period of inter-clan warfare and rebellion detrimental to the small Clan Macfie.

In 1615, Malcolm, the chief of Clan Macfie and living on Colonsay, supported the uprising of Sir James MacDonald. The rebellion was put down with disastrous consequences for Malcolm. He was betrayed and imprisoned. After his release and return to Colonsay, Malcolm was harassed relentlessly by his former colleague Colkitto McDonald. In 1623 Malcolm and several other Macfie clansmen were captured by a party of McDonalds led by Colkitto and murdered.

 Malcolm was the last hereditary chief of Clan Macfie. After his death, the clan was dispossessed of its lands and dispersed as a 'broken clan'.

Despite the demise of the chiefly family on Colonsay, Macfie families prospered in other districts. In Lochaber they were allied with the Cameron Clan. In 1746, a number of Macfies fought and died alongside the Camerons at the Battle of Culloden.

A milestone occurred in 1864 when Grants of Arms were made to Robert Macfie of Langhouse and Robert Andrew Macfie of Dreghorn, the first clan members to be recognised in this way.

In 1968 Canadian Dr Earle Douglas MacPhee, commenced a worldwide campaign to re-establish Clan Macfie. Nearly 360 years after the death of its last chief, Clan Macfie was officially recognised again as an active clan on the 27th May 1981. Dr Earle MacPhee was appointed the clan's first Commander.

The First Macfies

The origin of the Clan is obscure, but it is believed to have existed for at least 1000 years. All authorities agree that our first ancestors were Celts (pronounced Kelts) who were a mixture of many races by the time they arrived in Colonsay.

Unfortunately for history the Celts had no written language. However, by phenomenal feats of memory their Bards and Druids, the latter being their astronomers, and wise men retained mental records of their language, history, science, and songs and, apparently, with great accuracy.

The last strongholds of the Celts were in Wales, Isle of Man, Ireland, The Western Isles and Highlands of Scotland, the latter two via Ireland. They intermarried with many races which must have contributed greatly in maintaining the virility of the Celts throughout their long history. No doubt the Celtic strain has given the Welsh, Manxman, Irish and Highland Scots that fierce national streak: in their nature, produced such superb fighting men, and made them such inveterate wanderers.

In addition to our Celtic ancestors, it must be remembered that for a long period Norway controlled the Western Isle and Isle of Man, (a Viking is buried with his ship on Oronsay), and in consequence, there would be an infusion of Norse blood in the inhabitants in those areas. This control ended in the 13th century when the Norsemen were defeated by the Scots at the Battle of Largs on the Aylishire coast.

The inhabitants of the Western Isles did not consider their territory as part of mainland Scotland and it was not until 1609 that they were forced into submission by the armies of King James VI & I.

Following the defeat of the Norsemen, the islands came under the control of MacDonald, self-styled 'Lord of the Isles' and his twelve subordinate chiefs of whom Macfie of Colonsay was one. This control continued for almost 400 years. Macfie was also appointed hereditary 'Keeper of the Record' for the Lord of the Isles. The appointment of the chief of probably the smallest clan in the group believed not to have exceeded 100 families, could have been related to the fact that a Priory was established on Oronsay at an early date, and the Prior being more literate than most of the inhabitants of the Isles could, under the authority of the chief, carry out the secretarial work.

My assumption is strengthened by Loder's statement that when the Statutes of Iona was signed by the 12 chiefs in 1609, Donald Macfie, Vicar of Oronsay signed the document on behalf of his brother Malcolm, the Chief:

The Statutes of Iona was a kind of peace treaty agreed to by the 12 chiefs of the Isles after their defeat by the King's forces and provided for a new order in the area. It was a simple document on nine clauses and was really a code of behaviour and reforms that the chiefs undertook to introduce in their areas as subjects of King James VI &l. The document was revised in 1616.

Following the murder of Malcolm and a few of his companions at a 'standing stone' on Baleromin Mor, Colonsay in 1623 our clan was dispossessed of the island by the Macdonalds. With a few exceptions, the families migrated to other areas where they lived under the protection of other clans. Having lost its only land and its Chief, the Clan became a 'broken Clan'. No hereditary line of descent from Malcolm has ever been established and although there have been claimants until a claim is actually made to the Lord Lyon Court and proved, the Clan will remain without a Chief:

Ownership of Colonsay changed hands many times after the murder of Malcolm alternating between the Macdonalds and Campbells, often depending on which clan was in favour with the reigning monarch at the time. However, the island appears to have been in the hands of the McNeils from 1695 until 1904 when it passed to an Englishman, Lord Strathcona, in settlement of a debt.

For a picture of Colonsay read the 'The Crofter and the Laird', by John McPhee, an Australian edition of which was published by Angus and Robertson in 1972.

The Dispossessed Macfies

The dispossessed families leaving Colonsay moved to several areas including Islay, Bute, and, according to Loder, a great number to Upper Lome and Lochaber where they took shelter under Lochiel Cameron. It is possible that in each area the clansmen joined other families who, because of the limited size of Colonsay, had migrated earlier from sheer necessity.

In each area, the Macfies, under various spellings, appear to have been accepted as tenants probably on a man rent basis, i.e., on condition that they supplied fighting men to the chief when required.

They also retained their own names and did not become Septs of other clans. By all accounts, they also multiplied in each area. This situation is quite evident at Lochaber where the name is still plentiful under the spellings MacPhee, McPhee and Macphee. In Fort William McPhee is a very honoured name in the area.

At Glenfinnan (near Fort William) where Bonnie Prince Charlie raised his standard to commence the Rising of 1745, there is a plaque which states that a MacPhee and a Macmaster supported the standard when it was raised. The MacPhees of Lochaber formed part of the Cameron force throughout the ill-fated campaign which ended on Culloden Field in 1746.

After the defeat of the Scots at Culloden, the first time in 400 years, the English were determined to break up the Clans and rid themselves of these troublesome Highlanders for all time. How this was achieved is documented by John Prebble in the 'The Highland Clearances’.

 Migration from Scotland had been taking place for a long time due to the limited amount of arable land and, despite famine and disease, overpopulation.  However, during the 100 years after Culloden, many tens of thousands of Highlanders were driven by force from their clan lands to seek unaccustomed work in the southern towns or, to the lasting benefit of the countries concerned, to migrate to America, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

We do have a name to be proud of so let us take pride in being a McPhee, MacPhee, MacPhie, Macfie or any other spelling of the name.