Iain Ciar MacLeod (Scottish Gaelic:Iain Ciar MacLeòid) (1330 –c. 1392) is considered to be 4thChief ofClan MacLeod. He was the eldest son of, and is thought to have succeeded his father,Malcolm, in the years spanning 1360–1370. Clan tradition states that he was the mosttyrannical of all MacLeod chiefs. His wife supposedly was as cruel as he was; she is said to have had two of her daughtersburied alive in the dungeon ofDunvegan Castle when they attempted to leave the clan. Iain Ciar was killed in anambush in about 1392. He was succeeded by his second and only surviving son,William Cleireach.

According to the twentieth-century clan historian, R.C. MacLeod, Iain Ciar is estimated to have been born in the year 1330, or possibly later; he was the eldest child and succeeded his father,Malcolm, sometime between the years 1360 and 1370. The early nineteenth centuryBannatyne manuscript states that he received acharter fromRobert II, for the lands ofTrotternish and all his other lands onSkye—although MacLeod noted that he could not find any evidence for the said charter. The manuscript states that Iain Ciar was said to have been "the mosttyrannical and bloodthirstydespot, equally feared and hated by all hisvassals, and by the members of his own family". It continues that he married the daughter of an IrishO'Neil chieftain and that she was just as cruel as her husband. For example, the manuscript tells that when she discovered that two of her daughters were about to escape her tyranny with their lovers (twoMacQueen brothers fromRoag), she had the brothersflogged to death, their bodies thrown into the sea, and her two daughters wereburied alive within thedungeon ofDunvegan Castle.^[1]

The manuscript relates a story in which Iain Ciar was hunting deer with the leading men of his clan. The forest onHarris, in which they hunted, was owned in ancient times by Clan Vic Ghitthich ("the children of the Wolf") and still was partially possessed by the family, although they paid tribute to MacLeod. During the hunt, Iain Ciar expressed his anger that they had not come across the white stag that was known to live in the area; the MacLeod chief offered a large reward to whoever could discover the offender who had killed the animal. An enemy of the MacGhitthich chief put the blame on MacGhitthich and in consequence, Iain Ciar had MacGhitthich cruelly put to death by forcing the antlers of a large deer into his bowels. When the hunting party returned toRodel, intending to set sail forDunvegan, the vengeful MacGhitthiches attacked the MacLeods. Iain Ciar was struck by an arrow. His son,William Cleireach managed to rally his clan and fend off the attackers. Iain Ciar's wife, three of his illegitimate daughters, and other women, fled the hostilities in agalley. The ship was, however, blown out to sea and acrossThe Minch, before it was dashed to pieces against rocks, which the manuscript describes as being called "the Maidens". The wounded Iain Ciar was taken to thechurch at Rodel, where he died that evening. His body was taken toIona where it was buried. He was succeeded by his surviving son, William Cleireach. The late nineteenth-century historianA. MacKenzie stated that Iain Ciar died shortly after the ascension ofRobert III;^[2] MacLeod thought that he was killed in the year 1392.^[1]

TheBannatyne manuscript states that the first seven chiefs of Clan MacLeod were buried atIona.^[3] Thechoir ofIona Abbey, for the most part, dates from the early sixteenth century. Within the centre of the choir there is a large stone which once contained amonumental brass, traditionally said to have been a MacLeod marker.^[4] The stone formed amatrix which at one time contained thebrass inlay (tradition states that it was asilver inlay). It is the largest carved stone on the island, measuring 7 feet 9.25 inches (2.37 m) by 3 feet 10 inches (1.17 m).^[5] R. C. MacLeod speculated that perhaps Leod and five of his successors were buried beneath—however, in his opinion Iain Ciar was buried elsewhere.^[3]

MacLeod stated that there was another MacLeod tombstone on Iona, which was supposed to have been the stone of a sixteenth-centuryMacLeod of Lewis. In spite of this, MacLeod speculated that this stone was in fact that of Iain Ciar; since, in his opinion, Iain Ciar was too wicked a man to have been buried in the family vault with his predecessors.^[3] MacLeod transcribed the stone and considered theLatin short-form to represent: "Here lies the body of the distinguished John Dominus M'Leoid", as well as the date, "1414". He also noted that the stone bears acoat of arms and described it as containing alymphad, below which were four animals standing erect. The two animals on the left were facing one another and MacLeod thought they could belions. The third animal he considered to be astag; the fourth MacLeod could not identify, though he supposed it could represent someheraldic device from his wife, who was of the Irish O'Neil dynasty.^[6]

According to theBannatyne manuscript, Iain Ciar and his O'Neil wife had two sons, four daughters. It also records that he had three illegitimate daughters who were killed with his wife. The eldest son, Malcolm, was killed at afeast onLewis where he intended to wed the daughter of his kinsman. A fight broke out during the feast, however, and both he and his kinsman were slain. In consequence, bitterness was felt between the two branches—Sìol Torcaill andSìol Tormoid—for some time afterward. Iain Ciar's second son, William, was intended to be trained for the church, and was known as "a Cleireach", the clerk. He ended up succeeding his father.

The manuscript states that one of Iain Ciar's daughters marriedLachlan MacLean of Duart and another married Cameron of Locheil—both had issue.^[1][7] Two were murdered, as noted above, before marriage.

• 1330 births
• 1390s deaths
• 14th-century Scottish people
• Clan MacLeod Chiefs

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from April 2022
• Articles with hCards
• Year of death uncertain