D' Unlichity, The Gathering Place Of The Clan

D' Unlichity, The Gathering Place Of The Clan

Dunlichity Church looking east from the top of the graveyard. At left by the walk and gate can be seen a part of the wall of the MacGillivray Enclosure.

Situated centrally in the hinterland of upper Strathnairn, Dunlichity for centuries was a place of great importance to the MacGillivrays and several other nearby clans. It served them not only as a place of worship but as a gathering place for many social activities, in times of both peace and war. And, of course, it was the sacred ground where they buried and remembered their dead.
Dunlichity has been a site of Christian worship since the 7th century, and was dedicated to St. Finan, an early evangelist of the Celtic Christian Church. A statue of the saint was kept there until 1643, when it was taken to Inverness and burned in a fit of Reformation zeal. An older church was rebuilt in 1569, and the present structure mainly dates back to 1758. Originally separate, the parishes of Dunlichity and of Daviot, about four miles downstream on the River Nairn, were united in 1618. Today its Church of Scotland congregation is under the stewardship of the Rev. Lilian Bruce.
In times of war and danger Dunlichity was a rallying point and defensive outpost. On the rocky height just north of the church, sheltered by a large stone called the Clach na Faiere, or "Lookout Stone," clansmen kept watch against the "Lochaber robbers,"Camerons and Keppoch McDonnells from the south who would periodically raid the area for cattle. Archery practice was held in the field between the rock and the church. And Dunlichity was the usual gathering place when the Clan mustered for battle. Until a vehicle demolished the southeast corner of the outer graveyard wall recently, marks were visible on it where clansmen sharpened their broadswords before battle. Similar marks are still visible on the wall of the Shaw Enclosure. In 1820 a watch-house was built into the south wall of the graveyard, a measure to protect against graverobbing for the grim but lucrative market of the time in bodies for medical dissection.

Looking west, the front of the MacGillivray Burial Enclosure, the first structure seen when approaching Dunlichity.

For centuries, Dunlichity has been the burial place for not only MacGillivrays but other adjacent Clan Chattan families--Mackintoshes, MacBeans, Shaws--as well as for Frasers occupying the eastern shore of Loch Ness. Dunmaglass, seat of the chiefs of Clan MacGillivray, is only 6.5 miles to the south, while Tordarroch, seat of the chiefs of Clan Ay, the Shaws of Tordarroch, is in the immediate neighborhood. Both clans have walled enclosures at Dunlichity containing the remains of chiefs and their families.
The present MacGillivray Enclosure dates to 1968 and replaced a smaller one containing only the graves of John Lachlan (1782-1852), Chief and 10th laird of Dunmaglass and the last of the old Dunmaglass line, and his wife Jane Walcott. The present larger structure now encloses adjacent graves and markers memorialising members of three further important local MacGillivray families--of Knocknageil, Dalscoilte (or Clovendale) and Dalcrombie--including Neil John (1827-1886), Chief and 12th Laird, of the later Dalcrombie line. Also within the enclosure are stones in memory of Alexander of Knocknageil (1700-53)and Archibald of Daviot, two grandsons of Farquhar MacAlister (Chief 1614-79). Farquhar of Dalcrombie (1727-1797?), ancestor of the Dalcrombie chiefs, has two stones, one with each of his two wives. Donald of Dalscoilte (1740-1803) and his wife Ann McTavish are also present. They were the parents of William, Duncan and Simon McGillivray, distinguished principals of the NorthWest Company fur trading empire in Canada.

Plaque within the Enclosure showing the arms of the Dunmaglass chiefs.

The Enclosure was erected in 1968 by Col. George B. Macgillivray of Thunder Bay, Ontario, at a time when his own petition to be recognized as Chief of the Clan was pending before Lord Lyon King of Arms. Though he was not ultimately successful, the works he left are a testament to the one-time prominence of the MacGillivrays in this area and a gift to the whole Clan. Certain features of the Enclosure are worth noting.
On the north wall within the Enclosure, Col. Macgillivray placed a handsome granite plaque (at right) displaying the arms of the MacGillivray chiefs. The arms too were a product of Col. Macgillivray's efforts. Though the Strathnairn MacGillivrays did use arms locally in early times, these were never officially recorded in the Public Register as required by law. In 1967 Col. Macgillivray had the arms shown on the plaque matriculated, or officially recorded, in favour of earlier MacGillivray chiefs. The plaque records this site as the burial place of the MacGillivray chiefs of Dunmaglass and Dalcrombie and cadet families of Dalscoilte and Knocknageil, and is dedicated in the name of the Colonel's father, Dr. Thomas Dow Macgillivray. The plaque was carved by the noted Scottish scuptor, Charles Pilkington-Jackson, who also created the monumental equestrian statue of King Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn Battlefield, near Stirling. A similar armorial plaque by the same artist is located within the adjacent Shaw Enclosure, attached to the end of the church, showing the arms of the chiefs of Clan Ay, the Shaws of Tordarroch. This was commissioned about the same time by the late Maj. Ian Shaw, who succeeded in restoring the Tordarroch chiefship in his own name.
The yett, or gate, of the MacGillivray Enclosure is of wrought iron and the transom above it also carries armorial and decorative elements: the cat crest and boxwood embellishments from the Chiefly Arms, along with maple leaf flourishes invoking the donor's Canadian origins.

Details of arms on Dunlichity gravestones.
Top, within the Enclosure: at left, Alexander MacGillivray of Knocknageil; at right, his wife Ann Fraser.
Bottom, in the outer graveyard: the "Lagg" stone.

It It is significant to note that the source of the design for the arms Col. Macgillivray recorded for the Chiefsis several MacGillivray gravestones found at Dunlichity which carry armorial carvings. The design is consistent among these examples, and quite recognizeable, and is therefore good authority for this design as one that was known locally during the 18th century as signifying the Clan MacGillivray. Two examples are shown at left.
All of these arms are quartered, and at least two of the charges are familiar Clan Chattan elements found on other amorial stones at Dunlichity: the right hand cut off at the wrist, in this case upright, and the sailing ship, a galley or lymphad, with its oars crossed in front of the mast. The fish, a salmon, appears to be distinctive to MacGillivrays. But most distinctive of all, in the very first quarter is what appears to be a seated cat, its tail turned forward and its left forepaw raised. While the cat is very common among the Clan Chattan clans, it is usually found as the crest, or sometimes the supporters on either side of the shield. The MacGillivray stones are the only ones to show the cat as a charge on the shield itself, and its placement in the first quarter must have been a significant distinguishing sign for the Clan.
For a comparison of these arms with others used by MacGillivrays over time, and further discussion on MacGillivray heraldry, click on the hotlinks below to view the pages on heraldry found elsewhere on this website.

Recently, in July 1997, two new memorial plaques were added at the McGillivray Enclosure at Dunlichity. The occasion was the 2nd International Gathering of the Clan in Inverness, which brought close to 150 MacGillivray clansfolk from around the world together in the homeland of their ancestors. Use the hotlinks below for more details on the Gathering and the dedication of the new plaques.

Today, when our Clan is no longer a local community in Strathnairn and elsewhere in Scotland but instead a great worldwide family, Dunlichity still serves as a gathering place, drawing us with its rustic Highland beauty, a nexus sacred to the memory of our ancestors and their times.

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EARLY MACGILLIVRAY ARMS

EARLY MACGILLIVRAY ARMS

The armorial gravestones found at Dunlichity are a very sound foundation for the design of the Chiefly arms matriculated in 1967, since they represent a design actually in use by MacGillivrays in Strathnairn as early as the 18th century. However, this is not the earliest use of arms by MacGillivrays on record. Armorial seals on documents dating back at least two centuries earlier are quite different in design and have their own story to tell.

Conjectural drawing of seal of Farquhar of Dunmaglass, 1549

The earliest instance of a MacGillivray chief using armorial bearings is found in the form of a seal of wax and resin attached to a document among the early papers of the Mackintosh chiefs. This was the customary way of "signing" documents at the time. On a letter of revision for the property of Dalmigavie is the seal shown at left, attributed by the legend upon it to "farlandi makinkier"--or "Farquhar McConquhy McAnkier," the patronymic name of Farquhar MacGillivray, 1st of Dunmaglass. The document is dated 19 September 1549. (The drawing at left and others on this page were done not from eyewitness but from the descriptions in heraldic blazon given in Scottish Armorial Seals by William Rae MacDonald, 1904.)
Even earlier than this are arms, shown below, depicted on seals attributed to two sons of Farquhar, Duncan and Alexander, on deeds connected with the Campbells of Cawdor and the lands of Dunmaglass and dated 1535.

Arms from seals of Duncan and Alexander, sons of Farquhar of Dunmaglass, 1535.

These are among the earliest armorial bearings found anywhere in the Clan Chattan. They demonstrate that, although the Strathnairn MacGillivrays never officially recorded arms in the Public Register as mandated by law in 1672, they did use them in their normal business dealings in a customary way entirely consistent with prevailing uses of heraldry.
It will be immediately obvious that these examples are very different in design from the present Dunmglass arms on record and the armorial stones at Dunlichity on which those are based. As with many early arms, they are simple and unquartered, with a stag's head or its antlers as the principle or only charge. What is the significance of the stag? It must surely be as a mark of the patronage the MacGillivrays owed to the Thanes of Cawdor for their newly-acquired property of Dunmaglass in Stratherrick. Dunmaglass is first found on record as belonging, first only in half but by 1419 in whole, to the family of Calder, the original Thanes of Cawdor and hereditary Sheriffs of the county of Nairn.

Arms of Muriel Calder, heiress of William Thane of Cawdor, Cawdor Church, 1513.

At left, are arms from Cawdor Church, dated 1513 and attributed to Muriel Calder of that Ilk, granddaughter and sole heiress of William, Thane of Cawdor. Here a stag's head cabossed (facing front and with the neck not shown) is the principal charge. There are also arms at Cawdor Church, dated 1458, for her grandfather William, the Thane. These show simply the stag's head cabossed, but with a buckle between the antlers (attires) instead of the star (mullet).
The Calder family lost Cawdor, the thanage and the sheriffdom when this Muriel, an infant at the time, succeeded her grandfather William in 1493. Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll, appointed as ward for Muriel, kidnapped her and married her to his third son John in 1510, securing at Cawdor a new northern branch of the vastly acquisitive Campbell hegemony. As the new Thanes (Earls) of Cawdor, this branch of the Campbells added a stag's head cabossed (sable, attired gules) to the first quarter of their arms to signify the acquisition.
The need to raise funds to prosecute territorial campaigns elsewhere motivated the Campbells to wadset (mortgage) Dunmaglass to the MacGillivrays, probably already resident there, for the sum of 1000 merks. The document sealed by Duncan and Alexander's arms in 1535 is probably at least related to this transaction.

Hon. William McGillivray
of NW Co., 1801.

It is over 250 years later before we find arms officially matriculated in the Public Register in Scotland for a MacGillivray, in this case the Hon. William McGillivray, born in Strathnairn the son of Donald McGillivray of Dalscoilte, near Dunmaglass, and Chief Superintendent of the NorthWest Company fur trading consortium in Montreal. Soon after taking over management of the company in 1799, William visited Scotland and purchased the old MacGillivray holding of Pennyghael on the Isle of Mull. He also matriculated the arms at left with Lyon Court.
Though William was a native of Strathnairn, where the armorial stones at Dunlichity had been in place for some years, these arms bear no reference to them at all. Instead they seem clearly inspired by the association of Dunmaglass with the House of Cawdor, and perhaps by the seals already mentioned. The Galley of Clan Chattan, distinguished by its blue and gold colour scheme, is writ large--very large indeed, though enclosed by a curious bordure of white (argent). But the Cawdor/Dunmaglass charges surely come next in prominence. The stag's head couped has pre-eminence as the Crest, and the Motto, "Be Mindful," comes straight from the Cawdor arms. Centered on the chief in the top part of the Shield is the unmistakeable stag's head cabossed sable attired gules of the Cawdors. The two cross crosslets fitchy that flank it are less easy to explain. As the only MacGillivray arms officially recorded up to the 20th century, a certain definitiveness appears to have been attached to William's achievement.
When the late Col. George Macgillivray of Thunder Bay, Ontario, three times a claimant to the Chiefship and ultimately appointed as Commander of the Clan, acquired personal arms in 1947 (see Armigers of the Clan), the stag again was an important element in the design: as Crest, with the Motto "Be Mindful" this time rendered in Gaelic as "Faichil Ort"; and cabossed sable attired gules on a gold field in the first quarter of the Shield, exactly as it appears in the Cawdor arms.

Dr. Angus MacGillivray, 1914.

Even so, the stag motif did not have a complete monopoly among MacGillivray matriculations. In 1914, long before the 1967 matriculation of the Chiefly Arms, the arms at left were entered in the Public Register for Dr. Angus MacGillivray, an opthalmic surgeon residing in Dundee, Scotland. Dr. MacGillivray claimed descent from a family resident in the Lagg township of the old Dunmaglass estate. Among the MacGillivray stones at Dunlichity there is a very weathered, and strangely altered, stone in the outer graveyard bearing the name "Lagg," the date 1761 and arms in the Dunlichity style that was a model for the 1967 Chiefly Arms. Dr. MacGillivray was clearly quite familiar with these stones when he matriculated personal arms in 1914. During the 1950s, he also pressed a well publicised claim on the Chiefship of the Clan itself, going so far as to publicly style himself "MacGillivray of MacGillivray." Lacking sufficient documentation, however, he never acquired official recognition as Chief from Lord Lyon during his lifetime, which ended in 1947.

In 1961 the popular clan map "Scotland of Old" was published by the late Sir Ian Moncrieffe, Albany Herald, decorated in the margins by Don Pottinger, then Unicorn Pursuivant, with the arms of no fewer than 174 Scottish chiefs and family heads. Number 101, shown at right, was designated "MacGillivray of Dunmaglass." It was annotated to indicate that, since no arms were actually on record for a chief at that time, those illustrated were a reconstruction based on recorded cadets of the name or old armorials. It is obviously very similar to the Hon. William's arms, substituting a hand palewise couped at the wrist and apaumy gules for one of the cross crosslets fitchy, and the name "Dun-ma-glas" for the Cawdor motto. The Dunlichity stones as well as Dr. MacGillivray's matriculation were apparently overlooked, or overruled by the slight preponderance of the stag and galley motifs among recorded clansmen's arms. This clan map is still widely sold and circulated.
Likewise, until quite recently when the crest and motto from the chiefly arms of 1967 have become more common, merchants purveying bonnet badges and other clan regalia have consistently offered up the stag's head and motto "Dun-ma-glass" for use by MacGillivray clansfolk. Meanwhile, as a mixture of the two versions is still on the market, it is clearly a source of confusion for MacGillivrays which is the proper one to use. Let it be said that there can now be no doubt that the devices from the 1967 Chiefly Arms--as Crest, a Cat sejant guardant, its sinister forepaw raised in a guardant posture and its tail reflexed beneath; and as Motto "Touch Not This Cat"-- are definitely the correct ones for use as a Clan crestbadge by MacGillivray clansfolk at large.
Still, it remains something of a mystery why such an early and persistent symbol of Dunmaglass as the stag is absent from the armorial stones at Dunlichity. And it is a pity too, perhaps, that this handsome and distinctively Highland beast, and its associations with the early history of Dunmaglass, should now be banished altogether from the recorded Chiefly Arms, which are, after all, designated "MacGillivray of Dunmaglass." This is all the more so since wild herds of the native red deer seasonally roam the hills and moors of Dunmaglass, which in recent times has generated a significant income as a shooting estate because of this.

The Scottish Wildcat (felis sylvestris grampia)

A Short History Of The Scottish Wildcat

9000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age glaciation, the English Channel formed and isolated a group of European wildcats in the British Isles. Over time they evolved unique characteristics in response to the particular habitats and species resident here growing bigger and more heavily camoflaged. As human led deforestation changed the face of Britain and the species was hunted close to extinction across England, Wales and most of Scotland it evolved beyond it's forest led behaviour to be able to hunt over the full range of habitats available to it, and developed a greater mistrust of mankind than any other animal. Today, the small number of wildcats that survived persecution are now heavily outnumbered by human introduced feral domestic cats. The two species are closely related and readily mate, causing the wildcat genes to slowly water down and disappear into the huge domestic genepool. Recent conservation efforts have been led by scientists, naturalists and the interested public, with support from government and statutory agencies proving slow and, to date, ineffective.

The Rise Of The Cat To The"Crest" (2,000 years ago)
Excerpt taken from: The Scottish Wildcat Asociation
Under the Romans cities grew larger, people more numerous, and hunting became a sport as well as a necessity. The domestic cat was introduced in large numbers whilst wild carnivores like the British lynx were pushed to the abyss of extinction and fell over not long after the Romans left. Wildcats were also prized for their wonderful fur though somehow evaded extinction, learning quickly never to trust mankind.

Scotland at the time was ruled by the Picts, an artistic but fearsome race that scared the Romans so much they constructed the 80 mile long Hadrian's wall to keep them out of the Empire. Pictish society operated around the clan system, with many clans adopting animals to represent themselves and in the process retaining a respect for nature you can still feel in the Highlands today. An area in Scotland called Caithness (Caith meaning cat) was home to a "cat clan" said to worship the wildcat for it's fierce spirit. Eventually they became a group of clans (the Clan Chattan) who all took the wildcat as their leader's coat of arms and still exist today as clans like Macpherson, Mackintosh, Macbean and of course the widely famous Clan MacGillivray.