Robins Hood Was A Legend, But Rob Roy Was Real

Their clan goes back to the times of Malcolm Canmore (1057-1093) and by the time of David II in 1329 they held their own lands by sheer force of the sword.

MacGregors were a clan that nearly became extinct. Their clan survived the hunting down of all MacGregors to the point that if you came in with a head of a MacGregor in a sack you were paid a bounty.


In the Privy Council in 1603 enacted that the name of GacGregor should be abolished all together. Death was the penalty for its use by any clansman or his descendants. So those who changed instead of choosing death became Drummonds, Murrays, Andersons and Campbells.

The name did not begin reformation until the marriage of Sir John Murray's son to the Duke of Athole's daughter in 1822 as Sir John Murrya (now added MacGregor to his name) was very influental in part of the British parliament.

Rob Roy MacGregor used the alias Campbell for his mother was sister of the Campbell of Glenlyon who commanded the government troops at the massacre of Glencoe.

Sir Walter Scott described Rob Roy as one of the best Swordsman in the country partly becaause his arms were so long that according to tradition he could tie his garters without stooping.

Wow, that is some interesting bits of history. Why were the MacGregors hunted down and almost killed off? It sure sounds like an bad thing to do...No clan or race should be hunted down until extinct..

Link to more Rob Roy history....Found here

Thanks, Annabelle, it's really interesting. My good friend comes from a Campbell on both sides of her family.

This is a bit more about the time the members of Clan McGregor have been hunted like wild animals and the time during which they called themselves the "Children of the Mists"...


Many people have heard of the name Rob Roy MacGregor because of the movie made of his famous exploits. Rob Roy actually existed, one of history's larger than life characters, a fearless fighter from a far off time. He belonged to Clan Gregor - a clan which suffered and endured more than most over the centuries, savagely hunted by both king, state officials and neighbours, all seemingly hell-bent on nothing less than its complete extermination.

But though often left without lands, and even name, Clan Gregor showed a spirit and tenacity which earned them respect and often admiration from many of their fellow clansmen across the Highlands. Historically, Clan Gregor lands lay widely scattered, in parcels from the western end of Perthshire to the wild mountains and glens of Argyll. With the rise of other, and subsequently more powerful clans, such as the Campbells, members of Clan Gregor were reduced more and more to the role of tenant - even though their natural allegiance was to their own chief, MacGregor of Glenstrae, not their landlord. As well as tenant, paying rent to an alien laird, members of the clan were also obliged to make up the numbers when it came to the inevitable inter-clan disputes, skirmishes and fights so common across the Highlands.

Traditionally, the Clan Gregor chief had a pretty impossible situation on his hands, because although he was responsible by law for the deeds of his clansmen, they were scattered across other clan lands where he effectively had no control over them. The landlords, of course, did and so it was little wonder MacGregors seemed often mixed up in much of the raiding and killing which was almost a way of life in the Highlands of 400 years ago.

The 16th century was a pretty bad time for the MacGregors. Neighbouring chiefs attempted to hunt them down in 1562, for example, and then some two years later they had another unsuccessful crack at it. Two decades on and James VI tried his hand at taming the "wicked and unhappie race of the clan Gregour".

Sounds like there was more than a little bit of politics behind the move. No sooner had the king attained the throne than an Act of Council outlawed the clan. The name was also abolished because, according to the king, it led clan members "to presume of thair power, force and strenthe", thus encouraging them in their law breaking. The move certainly produced results, although not immediately. However, a year later, the chief and 11 clansmen were hanged in Edinburgh. A price of 1,000 - an incredible sum in those days - was put on the heads of other leaders of the clan, 100 merks for minor members, and there were pardons on offer for every clansman who brought in the head of another clansman of equal rank.

The hunt continued and the cruelty intensified over the coming decades. There were even attempts to forcibly settle the MacGregor clan women and children in the Lowlands. The MacGregor wives were even branded on the face. The carrying of weapons was prohibited, and only four clansmen were allowed to gather together at any one time. But there were clans, both near and far, who were prepared to risk the wrath of the crown to give MacGregors shelter and protection. The persecution of the clan continued off and on throughout the century and into the next, yet despite this, it somehow survived with its identity remaining intact. And whenever the opportunity arose the clan fought back!

Incredibly, during the various Jacobite rebellions, Clan Gregor always managed to muster some kind of presence. In the rising of 1745, for example, two companies of MacGregors fought for Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Stuart cause.

But it was not until almost 30 years later, in 1774, that the centuries of persecution of the MacGregors ended finally, and officially, with the removal of the outlaw tag first placed on the clan by King James VI.



There is a book about "Rob Roy" I have read and can highly recommend to each of you who is interested in this time and his life:

It is "ROB ROY MACGREGOR; HIS LIFE AND TIME" by WH Murray, edited by Canongate Books, Edinburgh; ISBN 0 86241 538 1.

McGregor`s Gathering

The moon's on the lake, and the mist's on the brae
And the Clan has a name that is nameless by day;
Then gather, gather, gather, Gregarach!

Our signal for fight, that from monarchs we drew,
Must be heard but by night in our vengeful haloo!
Then haloo, Gregarach! haloo, Gregarach!

Glen Orchy's proud mountains, Kilchurn and her towers,
Glenstrae and Glenlyon no longer are ours;
We're landless, landless, landless, Gregarach!

But doomed and devoted by vassal and lord.
MacGregor has still both his heart and his sword!
Then courage, courage, courage, Gregarach!

If they rob us of name, and pursue us with beagles,
Give their roofs to the flame, and their flesh to the Eagles!
Then vengeance, vengeance, vengeance, Gregarach!

While there's leaves in the forest, and foam on the river,
MacGregor, despite them, shall flourish forever!
Come then, Gregarach, come then, Gregarach,

Through the depths of Loch Katrine the steed shall career,
O'er the peak of Ben-Lomond the galley shall steer!
And the rocks of Craig-Royston like icicles melt,
Ere our wrongs be forgot, or our vengeance unfelt!
Then gather, gather, gather, Gregarach!


another good book apart from the one Gabby recommended is `Sons of the Wolf` by Ronald Williams .

there is a lot more to the Clan Gregor than `Rob Roy` though he did us proud. A GREAT man whom it is quite amazing that he died in his own bed surrounded by family, quite an amazing feat for his time and the life he was forced to lead.


Another good book about the Clan Gregor on a whole not just Rob`s time is `Sons of the Wolf` by Ronald Williams, it explains a bit more as why the proscription law against the clan was brought about, and how Alasdair of Glenstrae was so cruelly deceived.
http://houseoflochar.com/books/his_scot_sonswolf.htm

Another good book which is more readily available in most countries is `Children of the Mist` by Nigel Tranter

Yes I've heard of "Children of the Mist" in relation to the campbells but I hope they are not to be confused with the movie " children of the corn" . I'll have to sleep with the lights on...scary....nope I don't do anything scary...

No matter what you say...I will hang on to my childhood lengend of ROBIN HOOD!

I agree Robin Hood was a fine story and a faery tale at best. He was still just a robber or bandit. Rob Roy on the other hand fought for a more noble cause, the existance of his people and name. It is sad to read about the cleansing of the highlands and what those people had to go through.

Elly, thank you for that poem.