The Ruling Clans

On Lewis, the main clans had been the MacAulays of Uig, the Morrisons of Ness and the MacLeods on the rest of the island. The Morrisons had been placed in Ness by the Lords of the Isles, for whom they acted as brieves, or judges, and when the Lordship’s authority waned, the Morrisons had difficulty in maintaining themselves against the other clans. There were Morrisons in Harris also, in such numbers as to suggest that this may have been the original home of the clan.

The MacLeods of Lewis at this time were involved in protracted squabbles between their chief Roderick and his large brood of sons, legitimate and otherwise, and by 1600 the MacKenzies, later of Seaforth, had made use of this excuse to take over the whole of the island for themselves. William, Earl of Seaforth at the time of the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715, was resident in Lewis, but later chiefs were absentees, and had little interest in the islands, except as a source of finance and for recruitment for their regiments.

Harris had belonged to a different branch of the MacLeods, but by the 1700s they had moved their centre of power to Dunvegan on the Isle of Skye. The Harris families always maintained their independence of Dunvegan, and when Dunvegan sent to MacLeod of Berneray to come to fight for him on the Government side in the 1745 rebellion, Berneray sent the required number of soldiers, but went off himself to fight for the Prince! In 1779 MacLeod of Dunvegan sold Harris to Captain Alexander MacLeod of Berneray, who tried to establish a commercial fishing industry there, but his successors took little interest in the Island, and were responsible for some of the most complete clearances of tenants to occur anywhere in the Islands.

The Uists had belonged to different branches of the MacDonalds - North Uist to the family of Sleat in Skye and South Uist to Clanranald. The latter had been resident locally, and probably for this reason, the South Uist people are still more aware of and feel more connection with their clan inheritance than most of the Islanders. Both estates were eventually sold and their new owners carried out extensive clearances.

Barra was always the land of the MacNeills - and they used to claim that the only reason that they were not mentioned in the story of Noah’s flood was that MacNeil had a boat of his own! When the kelp trade failed, however, this did not prevent the sale of the island, and massive emigration. The current clan chief, Iain MacNeil of MacNeil, is probably the most famous and well-liked modern day clan chief in the islands, and is now resident in Castlebay, Barra.

Clanship’s Demise

Most of the clan chiefs had used the huge income from the kelp industry as a means of becoming city gentlemen in Edinburgh and London, and when the kelp income ceased, they quickly became bankrupt. Some instituted clearance of their estates as a means of obtaining increased rent from sheep-farmers, and others sold their estates so that others could do so - so far as their tenants were concerned there was little difference - the leaders they had relied on had deserted them. What respect people had for their clan chief waned. Few people today know who their clan chiefs are, but particularly in North America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, a mounting interest in finding your roots has led to the revival of many clans in the form of clan societies, that organise reunions, or Clan Gatherings, to bring the members together on home ground.

The idea of the clan as a large family is still relevant, and where a visitor is unable to establish a proper genealogy for his family, there is at least the probability that they came from the area where the clan was strongest. It is not genealogy - who could seriously believe that all MacLeods are related, to each other or to "chiefs" in London or Tasmania? - but it is at least something to know that Lewis and Harris are the most likely homes for the surname.

The feeling of belonging to a clan may even lead the visitor to try to establish a real genealogy, and so discover a real family history and home for themselves.