Our History
More than a thousand years of
heritage, courage, loss, and resilience.
The MacKinnon Story
c. 700 AD
12th Century
14th Century
1600s
1715, 1719, 1745
1791
1750s - 1800s
The Kingdom of Dalriada
The ancient roots of the clan reach back to Loarn, son of King Erc.
Finguine
Finguine emerges as the historical founder of Clan MacKinnon.
Dun Ringill
The MacKinnon chiefs establish their stronghold on Skye.
The Lordship of the Isles
MacKinnons become deeply involved in Gaelic culture and the affairs of the Isles.
The Jacobite Risings
The clan supports the Stuart cause.
The Loss of the Lands
Charles, the penultimate chief, sells the last of his patrimony.
The Highland Clearances
MacKinnons are scattered across the world.
L'histoire ancienne du clan MacKinnon se perd dans la nuit des temps. Cependant, il est généralement admis que le clan descend de Loarn, l'un des fils du roi Erc, fondateur de l'ancien royaume irlandais de Dalriada, dont les terres comprenaient la région de l'actuelle Lorn ainsi que les îles de Mull, Coll et Tiree. Les longues luttes entre les tribus de Dalriada affaiblirent considérablement le royaume et, vers 700 apr. J.-C., il tomba aux mains des Vikings. Pendant plusieurs siècles, on ne retrouve plus aucune trace de la tribu de Loarn, mais elle n'avait pas disparu. Finguine, fondateur du clan MacKinnon, était un personnage historique et un guerrier de premier plan dont on sait qu'il vécut durant les dernières années du XIIe siècle. Finguine, petit-fils d'Aibertach de Lorn, donna au clan son nom gaélique : Mac Fhionghuin (« Fils de Fingon »). Le nom fut finalement anglicisé en « MacKinnon » par un chef MacKinnon au XVIIIe siècle, un événement relativement tardif dans l'histoire du clan. Lorsque le Royaume des Îles devint la Seigneurie des Îles à la fin du premier millénaire, les arts, la littérature, la construction et le commerce gaéliques connurent un essor. Le clan MacKinnon participa activement à tous les aspects de cette culture gaélique florissante et unique. Les chefs MacKinnon étaient des membres respectés du Conseil des Îles, et le clan fournissait les abbés et les prieurs du monastère d'Iona. Sous la Seigneurie des Îles, les MacKinnon obtinrent les terres de Strath sur l'île de Skye, une ferme appelée Sliddery sur l'île d'Arran, et consolidèrent leur emprise sur Mishnish, un district du nord de Mull. C'est pendant les guerres civiles qui embrasèrent l'Écosse, l'Irlande et l'Angleterre dans les années 1640 que les MacKinnon soutinrent pour la première fois les rois Stewart/Stuart. La cause Stewart/Stuart gagna un large soutien en 1707 avec l'adoption de l'Acte d'Union, impopulaire, qui forgea l'Angleterre et l'Écosse en un seul pays. Le clan MacKinnon participa activement à toutes les tentatives de restauration de la souveraineté de l'Écosse en 1715, 1719 et 1745. La période qui suivit les funestes révoltes jacobites vit le clan MacKinnon, autrefois prospère, réduit à la pauvreté. Incapable de payer toutes les dettes dont il était responsable, Charles, l'avant-dernier chef MacKinnon, vendit le reste de son patrimoine en 1791. Le clan, qui vivait désormais sur des terres appartenant à d'autres, perdit une grande partie de ses dirigeants à cause de l'émigration. La déforestation brutale, mais bien connue, des Highlands vit les MacKinnon, après plus de mille ans passés dans les Hébrides, dispersés aux quatre coins du monde.
Ancient Clan Seats
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DUN RINGILL
Castle Findanus
The ancient seat of the MacKinnon chiefs.
DUNAKIN
Caisteal Maol
The roofless castle overlooking the Kyle of Lochalsh.
There is reason to believe that MacKinnon chiefs first occupied land on Skye during the mid-14th century; they would have required an easily-defensible place to live. The tradition that Dun Ringill was the first MacKinnon home on Skye is borne out by the archaeological evidence. After several hundred years of abandonment, the 2000-year-old broch was renovated during the medieval period. The defenses were updated by the addition of a parapet and a remodeling of the entrance to make it easier to defend. The domestic comforts of the old structure were also improved by the addition to the interior of two hip-roofed buildings. Outside the fort the MacKinnons established a small village, complete with stone-built outbuildings and run-rig fields. By 1360 Dun Ringill had become the main residence of the MacKinnon chiefs and was known officially as Castle Findanus. The stronghold was home to the clan's chiefs until as late as 1549. Sometime before 1577 Castle Findanus disappears from the official record, suggesting that after some 200 years the chiefs and their retainers had moved, taking up residence at Kilmorie.
There is a well-known tradition that Dunakin, also called Caisteal Maol, was owned by a Norse princess known as “Saucy Mary.” She is said to have regulated sea traffic through the Kyle of Lochalsh by the use of a huge iron chain that was stretched across the narrows. By means of this chain Saucy Mary was able to levy a toll on all passing ships, except those from her own country. When she died, Saucy Mary is said to have been buried west of Broadford under a cairn on Beinn na Caillaich ("the beinn of the old woman") with her face pointed toward her native land. The often-repeated story that Fingon, the founder of Clan MacKinnon, acquired the watchtower through marriage to Saucy Mary is, unfortunately, not true. The tower was built by a Lord of the Isles during the 15th century and was not acquired by the MacKinnons until the 16th century. There is no historical record indicating that Dunakin was ever a permanent home of the MacKinnon chiefs. Tradition tells us, however, that Jane, the sister of Chief Sir Lachlan MacKinnon, and her nephew, Neil, sought shelter there during the 17th century. It was Sir Lachlan MacKinnon, the signatory to the statutes of Icolmcill in 1609, who had his primary residence at Kilmorie near the ancestral home of Dun Ringill/Castle Findanus. We may never know if the fire that reputedly destroyed Dunakin was an accident or an act of war. It may be coincidence that after Cromwell's cavalry visited the Kyle in 1652 Dunakin was commonly known as Caisteal Maol ("the bald/roofless castle"). What little is left of the old tower is, however, still an imposing ruin.
Slogan
CREST
MOTTO
BADGES
Cuimhnich bas Alpan
Remember the death of Alpin
Audentes Fortuna Juvat
Fortune favors the bold
St. John's Wort
&
Scots Pine
