| Massacre of Glencoe | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofJacobite rising of 1689 | |||||
 After the Massacre of Glencoe, Peter Graham | |||||
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
 Kingdom of Scotland | Clan MacDonald of Glencoe | ||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||
| Alasdair MacIain | |||||
| Strength | |||||
| 920 | Unknown | ||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||
| None | About 30 killed[1] | ||||
TheMassacre of Glencoe[a] took place inGlen Coe in theArgyll region of theScottish Highlands on 13 February 1692. An estimated 30 members and associates of the ClanMacDonald of Glencoe were killed by Scottish government forces, allegedly for failing to pledge allegiance to the new monarchs,William II/III and his wifeMary II.
Although theJacobite rising of 1689 had largely been suppressed by May 1690, a continuing need to police the Highlands diverted military resources from theNine Years' War inFlanders. In late 1690, clan leaders loyal to the exiledHouse of Stuart agreed to swear allegiance to William and Mary, in return for a cash payment of £12,000. However, disagreements over how to divide this meant by December 1691 none of the clans had taken the oath.
In response,Lord Stair, ScottishSecretary of State, decided to show the consequences of further delay. While others, including theKeppoch MacDonalds, also missed the deadline, the Glencoe MacDonalds appear to have been selected due to a combination of clan politics and a reputation for lawlessness.
While similar events were not unknown in earlier Scottish history, this was no longer the case by 1692, and the brutality of the massacre shocked contemporaries. It became a significant element in the persistence ofJacobitism in the Highlands during the first half of the 18th century, and remains a powerful symbol to this day.
Some historians argue the late 17th-centuryScottish Highlands were more peaceful than often suggested; the exception beingLochaber, identified as a refuge for cattle raiders and thieves by government officials, other chiefs and Gaelic poets.[2] Much of this instability was blamed on the questionable legal status of lands ostensibly leased fromClan Mackintosh and occupied byClan MacDonald of Keppoch, though the latter disputed this claim.[3] Four Lochaber clans were consistently identified as prone to lawlessness, the Keppoch andGlencoe MacDonalds, theMacGregors, andCamerons.[2]
Levies from all four served in theIndependent Highland Companies used to suppress theConventicles in 1678–80. They also took part in the raid led by theMarquess of Atholl that followedArgyll's Rising in 1685. Primarily directed against Lowland migrants settled inCowal andKintyre, the damage inflicted by Atholl's raid destabilised large parts of the central and southern Highlands. In September 1688,James VII and II outlawed the Keppoch MacDonalds, shortly before he was deposed by the November 1688Glorious Revolution.[4]
In March 1689, James landed inIreland in an attempt to regain his kingdoms, with Camerons and Keppoch MacDonalds among those who joinedViscount Dundee for asupporting campaign in Scotland. Victory over a government army atKilliecrankie on 27 July cost the lives of Dundee and 600 Highlanders, while organisedJacobite military resistance largely ended afterCromdale in May 1690.[5] However, the ongoing need to police the Highlands used resources needed for theNine Years' War inFlanders, while close links between Western Scotland andUlster meant unrest in one country often spilled into the other.[6] Since peace in the Highlands required control of Lochaber, achieving this had wider strategic importance than might appear.[7]
After Killiecrankie, the Scottish government tried to negotiate a settlement with the Jacobite chiefs,[b] terms varying based on events in Ireland and Scotland. In March 1690,Secretary of StateLord Stair offered to pay £12,000 in return for their agreement to take anoath of allegiance to William and Mary. The chiefs agreed to do so in the June 1691 Declaration of Achallader, withJohn Campbell, Earl of Breadalbane, signing for the government. Crucially, it did not specify how the money was to be divided, and disputes over this delayed the oath. In addition, Breadalbane argued part of it was owed him as compensation for damage done to his estates by the Glencoe MacDonalds.[8]
TheBattle of Aughrim on 12 July ended Jacobite chances of victory in theWilliamite War in Ireland, and any immediate prospects of a Stuart restoration. On 26 August, the Scottish government issued a Royal Proclamation that offered a pardon to anyone taking the oath prior to 1 January 1692, with severe reprisals for those who did not. Two days later, secret articles began circulating which cancelled the Achallader agreement in the event of a Jacobite invasion. These were allegedly signed by all the attendees, including Breadalbane, who claimed they had been manufactured by the MacDonald chiefGlengarry.[9] Stair's letters now focused on enforcement, reflecting his belief that forged or not, none of the signatories intended to keep their word.[10]
In early October, the Jacobite chiefs asked the exiled James VII for permission to take the oath unless he could mount an invasion before the deadline, a condition they knew was impossible.[11] A document granting his approval was sent fromSaint-Germain on 12 December and received by Glengarry on 23 December, who did not share it until 28th. While his reasons for the delay are unclear, one suggestion attributes it to an internal power struggle betweenEpiscopalian MacDonalds like Glencoe, and theCatholic minority headed by Glengarry.[12]
As a result, it was not until 30 December that MacIain of Glencoe left forFort William to take the oath from its commander, Lieutenant Colonel John Hill. Since he was not authorised to accept it, Hill sent MacIain toInveraray with a letter for Sir Colin Campbell, the local magistrate. He administered the oath on 6 January, after which MacIain returned home.[13]
Glengarry himself did not take the oath until 4 February, while others did so by proxy, but only MacIain was excluded from the indemnity issued by the Scottish Privy Council.[14] Stair's letter of 2 December to Breadalbane shows the decision to make him an example was taken well before the deadline for the oath, originally as a much bigger operation; "...the clan Donell must be rooted out and Lochiel. Leave the McLeans to Argyll..."[15]
In January, Stair wrote three letters in quick succession toSir Thomas Livingstone, military commander in Scotland; on the 7th, the intention was to "....destroy entirely the country of Lochaber, Locheal's lands, Kippochs, Glengarrie and Glenco..."; on the 9th, "...their chieftains all beingpapists, it is well the vengeance falls there; for my part, I regret the MacDonalds had not divided and...Kippoch and Glenco are safe." The last, on 11 January, states, "...my lord Argile tells me Glenco hath not taken the oaths at which I rejoice...."[16]
TheScottish Parliament passed a Decree of Forfeiture in 1690, depriving Glengarry of his lands, but he continued to holdInvergarry Castle, whose garrison included the senior Jacobite officersAlexander Cannon andThomas Buchan. This suggests the Episcopalian Glencoe MacDonalds only replaced the Catholic Glengarry as the target on 11 January; MacIain's son John MacDonald told the 1695 Commission the soldiers came to Glencoe from the north "...Glengarry's house being reduced".[17]
The targeting of the Glencoe MacDonalds appears to have been driven by a variety of factors. After two years of negotiations, Stair was under pressure to ensure the deal stuck, whileArgyll was competing for political influence with his kinsman Breadalbane, who also found it expedient to concur with the plan.[18] Glengarry managed to eliminate an internal rival, was pardoned and had his lands returned by the Williamite government, while enhancing his reputation with the exiled court in Saint-Germain by being the last to swear.[19]
In late January 1692, approximately 120 men from theEarl of Argyll's Regiment of Foot arrived in Glencoe. Their commander wasRobert Campbell of Glenlyon, an impoverished local landowner whose niece was married to one of MacIain's sons.[c] Campbell carried orders for 'free quarter', an established alternative to paying taxes in what was a largely non-cash society.[21] The Glencoe MacDonalds had themselves been similarly billeted on the Campbells when serving with the Highland levies used to policeArgyll in 1678.[22]
On 12 February, Hill ordered Lieutenant Colonel James Hamilton to take 400 men and block the northern exits from Glencoe atKinlochleven. Meanwhile, another 400 men underMajor Duncanson would join Glenlyon and sweep northwards up the glen, killing anyone they found, removing property and burning houses.[23] Later that evening, Glenlyon received orders from Duncanson carried by Thomas Drummond, who commanded the Argylls'Grenadier company and was thus Glenlyon's superior. His presence appears to have been to ensure the orders were enforced, since witnesses later claimed he shot two people who asked Glenlyon for mercy.[24]
In letters written on 30 January to Hamilton and Hill, Stair expresses concern that the MacDonalds would escape if warned, and emphasises the need for secrecy. This correlates with evidence from James Campbell, one of Glenlyon's company, stating that they had no knowledge of the plan until the morning of 13 February.[25] MacIain was killed, although his two sons escaped, and the 1695 Commission was given various figures for the number of casualties. The often-quoted figure of 38 dead was provided by Hamilton's men, who were at the opposite end of the glen from where the killing took place,[d] while the MacDonalds themselves claimed "the number they knew to be slaine were about 25".[26] Modern research estimates deaths resulting from the Massacre as "around 30", while claims others died of exposure cannot be substantiated.[1]
Since he arrived two hours late at 7:00 am, Duncanson joined Glenlyon only after most of the killings had been carried out, then advanced up the glen burning houses and removing livestock. Hamilton was not in position at Kinlochleven until 11:00; his detachment included two lieutenants, Francis Farquhar and Gilbert Kennedy, who often appear in anecdotes claiming they "broke their swords rather than carry out their orders." This differs from their testimony to the Commission and is unlikely since they arrived hours after the killings, which were carried out at the opposite end of the glen.[27]
In May, fears of a French invasion meant the Argylls were posted toBrentford in England, thenFlanders, where they served until the end of theNine Years' War in 1697 when the regiment was disbanded. No action was taken against those involved; Glenlyon died in Bruges in August 1696, Duncanson was killed in Spain in May 1705, while Drummond survived to take part in another famous Scottish disaster, theDarien scheme.[28]
On 12 April 1692, theParis Gazette published a copy of Glenlyon's orders, allegedly found in anEdinburgh tavern and taken to France.[29] Despite criticism of the government, there was little sympathy for the MacDonalds, Livingstone writingit's not that anyone thinks the thieving tribe did not deserve to be destroyed, but that it should have been done by those quartered amongst them makes a great noise.[30] The motivation for investigating the affair was largely political; having served in the old and new regimes, Stair was unpopular with supporters of both.[18]
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In the debate that followed, Colonel Hill claimed most Highlanders were peaceful, and even in Lochaber,a single person may travell safley where he will witout harme. He argued lawlessness was deliberately encouraged by leaders like Glengarry, whilethe midle sort of Gentrey and Commons....never got anything but hurt from it. The 1693 Highland Judicial Commission encouraged using the law to resolve issues like cattle theft, but the clan chiefs opposed it as reducing control over their tenants.[31]
The issue appeared settled until the EnglishLicensing of the Press Act 1662 expired in May 1695. The result was a huge increase in the number of political pamphlets published in London, among themGallienus Redivivus, or Murther will out, &c. Being a true Account of the De Witting of Glencoe, Gaffney. Written by Jacobite activistCharles Leslie, it focused on William's alleged complicity in the 1672 death ofJohan de Witt, with Glencoe and other crimes as secondary charges.[32]
A Commission was set up to determine whether there was a case to answer under 'Slaughter under trust', a Scottish act introduced in 1587 to reduce endemic feuding. The law applied to murder committed in "cold-blood", when articles of surrender had been agreed, or hospitality accepted.[33] It was first used in 1588 againstLachlan Mor Maclean, whose objections to his mother's second marriage led him to murder his new stepfather, John MacDonald, and 18 members of the wedding party. Interpretation varied, such as in the cases of James MacDonald, who locked his parents in their house before setting it on fire in 1597, and the killing of prisoners after the 1647Battle of Dunaverty. Both were deemed to have been committed in "hot blood", and thus excluded.[34]
As a capital offence and treason, it was an awkward weapon with which to attack Stair, since William himself signed the orders, and the intent was widely known in government circles. The Commission instead considered whether participants had exceeded orders, not their legality, and concluded Stair and Hamilton had a case to answer, but left the decision to William.[35] While Stair was dismissed as Secretary of State, he returned to government in 1700 and was made an earl by the last Stuart monarch,Queen Anne.[36] An application by the survivors for compensation was ignored; they rebuilt their houses, and participated in the 1715 and 1745 Jacobite risings.[37] Anarchaeological survey in 2019 showed Glencoe was occupied until theHighland Clearances of the mid-18th century.[38]
The brutality of the Massacre shocked Scottish society and became aJacobite symbol of post-1688 oppression. In1745,Prince Charles ordered Leslie's pamphlet and the 1695 Parliamentary minutes reprinted in the EdinburghCaledonian Mercury.[39] Glencoe then largely disappeared from public knowledge until it was referenced by historianThomas Macaulay in his 1850History of England.[40] He sought to exonerate William from every one of Leslie's charges, and is the origin of the claim that the Massacre was simply part of an ongoing feud between the MacDonalds andClan Campbell.[41]
Victorian era Scotland developed values that were bothUnionist andImperialist, while also being uniquely Scottish.[42] Historical divisions meant this was largely expressed through a shared cultural identity, while the teaching of Scottish, rather than British history, virtually disappeared from universities.[43] One modern historian suggests this meant that instead of being analysed as an historical event, Glencoe was incorporated into "the emotional trappings of the Scottish past...bonnie Scotland of the bens,glens and mistyshieling, the Jacobites,Mary, Queen of Scots, tartan mania and the raising of historical statuary."[44]
Even when the study of Scottish history re-emerged in the 1950s, Leslie's writings continued to shape views of William's reign as disastrous for Scotland. The Massacre became one of several incidents used to illustrate this perspective, others including the Darien scheme, thefamine of the late 1690s, and the1707 Union.[45]
The Massacre is still commemorated in an annual ceremony by the Clan Donald Society. Initiated in 1930, this is held at the Upper Carnoch memorial, a tapering Celtic cross installed in 1883 at the eastern end of Glencoe village.[46] Another memorial includes theHenderson Stone, a granite boulder south of Carnach, originally known as the "Soldier's Stone".[47] In the late 19th century, it was renamedClach Eanruig, or "Henry's Stone", after the man reputed to bePiper to MacIain.[48]
Since 1925, Duncanson's letter to Glenlyon, ordering him to "fall on the Macdonalds of Glencoe and destroy them", has been in the possession of theNational Library of Scotland inEdinburgh.[49]
Glencoe was a popular topic with 19th-century poets, notably SirWalter Scott's "Massacre of Glencoe".[50] It was used as a subject byThomas Campbell andGeorge Gilfillan, as well as byLetitia Elizabeth Landon in her 1823 work "Glencoe",T. S. Eliot's "Rannoch, by Glencoe" and "Two Poems from Glencoe" byDouglas Stewart.[51]
The massacre is alluded to in Beethoven's25 Irish songs, WoO 152.[52]
Examples in literature include "The Masks of Purpose" byEric Linklater, and the novelsFire Bringer byDavid Clement-Davies,Corrag (known asWitch Light in paperback) bySusan Fletcher andLady of the Glen byJennifer Roberson.William Croft Dickinson references Glencoe in his 1963 short story "The Return of the Native".A Song of Ice and Fire author,George R. R. Martin, cites the Glencoe Massacre as one of two historical influences on the infamous "Red Wedding" in his 2000 bookA Storm of Swords.[53]
In 1962,Jim McLean wrote the song "The Massacre Of Glencoe", which was published under Duart Music.[54] The song was later adapted and performed by The Corries,[55] as well as adapted for the Highland Bagpipes by various artists. In 1972 the Scottish bandNazareth released the song "1692 (Glencoe Massacre)" on their album,Exercises.
In the eleventh episode ofMad Men's seventh season,Pete Campbell's daughter is refused admission intoGreenwich Country Day School directly by the headmaster, a MacDonald, over Clan Campbell's role in the massacre.[56]
The event is the name sake to the traditionalPiobaireachd "Massacre of Glencoe". The original author is unknown, however numerous settings exist, the most common source being Donald MacDonald's.[57]
After the Massacre, the Glencoe MacDonalds rebuilt their homes; a military survey undertaken between 1747 and 1755 shows seven separate settlements along the glen, each containing between six and eleven buildings.[58] In 2018, a team ofarchaeologists organised by theNational Trust for Scotland begansurveying several areas related to the massacre, with plans to produce detailed studies of their findings.[59]
Work in the summer of 2019 focused on the settlement of Achadh Triachatain, or Achtriachtan, at the extreme end of the glen; home to an estimated 50 people, excavations show it was rebuilt after 1692 and still occupied in the mid-18th century.[38] A hoard of coins was found in a house linked to MacIain in August 2023, which archaeologists believe may have been hidden there by a victim of the Massacre.[60]
In 2021, a full-size reconstruction of one of the buildings excavated at Achtriachtan was created using traditional techniques and materials at theNational Trust for Scotland Visitor Centre.[61]
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