XXX. The multitude that watch'd afar, When strove the Bruce for Scotland's right; A frenzy fired the throng; Can bid the weak be strong. To us, as to our lords, are given The vengeance for our nation's wrongs, Bear down on England's wearied war. XXXI. Already scatter'd o'er the plain, But when they mark'd the seeming show O! give their hapless prince his due! (24) In vain the royal Edward threw His person 'mid the spears, ་་ Cried << Fight!» to terror and despair, I needs must turn again. Speed hence, my liege, for on your trace I know his banner well. XXXII. Again he faced the battle-field,— «Now then,» he said, and couch'd his spear, My course is run, the goal is near; One effort more, one brave career, Must close this race of mine.» Then, in his stirrups rising high, « Saint James for Argentine !»> And swung his broadsword round! -Stirrup, steel boot, and cuish gave way, Beneath that blow's tremendous sway, The blood gush'd from the wound; And the grim lord of Colonsay Hath turn'd him on the ground, And laugh'd in death-pang, that his blade The mortal thrust so well repaid. XXXIII. Now toil'd the Bruce, the battle done, << Save, save his life,» he cried, «< O save He raised his red-cross shield no more, He strove e'en then to couch his lance- The spur-stroke fail'd to rouse the horse; Yet this may Argentine, As boon from ancient comrade, crave- XXXIV. Bruce press'd his dying hand—its grasp It stiffen'd and grew cold- The courteous mien, the noble race, « For the mute page had spoke.» Page!» said Fitz-Louis, « rather say An angel sent from realms of day, I saw his plume and bonnet drop, When hurrying from the mountain top; A step as light upon the green, As if his pinions waved unseen.»>— CONCLUSION. Go forth, my song, upon thy vent'rous way; And graced thy numbers with no friendly name, Whose partial zeal might smooth thy path to fame. There was and O! how many sorrows crowd Into these two brief words!-there was a claim By generous friendship given-had fate allow'd, It well had bid thee rank the proudest of the proud! All angel now-yet little less than all, While still a pilgrim in our world below! What 'vails it us that patience to recal, Which hid its own, to soothe all other woe; What 'vails to tell, how virtue's purest glow Shone yet more lovely in a form so fair;And, least of all, what 'vails the world should know, That one poor garland, twined to deck thy hair, Is hung upon thy hearse, to droop and wither there! NOTES. CANTO I. Note 1. Stanza i. Thy rugged halls, Artornish! rung. The ruins of the castle of Artornish are situated upon a promontory, on the Morven, or main-land side of the Sound of Mull, a name given to the deep arm of the sea which divides that island from the continent. Spoke he with none ?»-«< With none-one word The situation is wild and romantic in the highest de Burst when he saw the Island Lord, « What answer made the chief ?»-« He kneel'd, XXXVII. E'en upon Bannock's bloody plain, gree, having on the one hand a high and precipitous chain of rocks overhanging the sea, and on the other the narrow entrance to the beautiful salt-water lake, called Loch-Alline, which is in many places finely fringed with copse-wood. The ruins of Artornish are not now very considerable, and consist chiefly of the remains of an old keep, or tower, with fragments of outward defences. But, in former days, it was a place of great consequence, being one of the principal strongholds which the Lords of the Isles, during the period of their stormy independence, possessed upon the mainland of Argyleshire. Here they assembled what popular tradition calls their parliaments, meaning, I suppose, their cour plenière, or assembly of feudal and patriarchal vassals and dependents. From this castle of Artornish, upon the 19th day of October, 1461, John de Yle, designing himself Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles, granted, in the style of an independent sovereign, a commission to his trusty and well-beloved cousins, Ronald of the Isles, and Duncan, Archdean of the Isles, for empowering them to enter into a treaty with the most excellent Prince Edward, by the grace of God, King of France and England, and Lord of Ireland. Edward IV., on his part, named Laurence Bishop of Durham, the Earl of Worcester, the Prior of St John's, Lord Wenlock, and Mr Robert Stillington, keeper of the privy seal, his deputies and commissioners, to confer with those named by the Lord of the Isles. The conference terminated in a treaty, by which the Lord of the Isles agreed to become a vassal to the crown of England, and to assist Edward IV. and James Earl of Douglas, then in banishment, in subduing the realm of Scotland. The first article provides, that John de Isle, Earl of Ross, with his son Donald Balloch, and his grandson John de Isle, with all their subjects, men, people, and inhabitants, become vassals and liegemen to Edward IV. of England, and assist him in his wars in Scotland or Ireland; and then follow the allowances to be made to the Lord of the Isles, in recompense of his military service, and the provisions for dividing such conquests as their united arms should make upon the main-land of Scotland among the confederates. These appear such curious illustrations of the period, that they are here subjoined: « Item, The said John Erle of Rosse, shall, from the seid fest of Whittesontyde next comyng, yerely, durying his lyf, have and take, for fees and wages in tym of peas, of the seid most high and christien prince c. marc sterlynges of Englysh money; and in tyme of werre, as long as he shall entend with his myght and power in the seid werres, in maner and fourme aboveseid, he shall have wages of cc. lib. sterlyng of Englysh money yerely; and after the rate of the tyme that he shall be occupyed in the seid werres. << Item, The seid Donald shall, from the seid feste of Whittesontyde, have and take, during his lyf, yerely, in time of peas, for his fees and wages, xx. 1. sterlynges of Englysh money; and, when he shall be occupied and intend to the werre, with his myght and power, and in maner and fourme aboveseid, he shall have and take, for his wages yerely, xl. J. sterlynge of Englysh money; or for the rate of the tyme of werre.―― Item, The seid John, sonn and heire apparent of the said Donald, shall have and take, yerely, from the seid feste, for his fees and wages, in the tyme of peas, x. 1. sterlynges of Englysh money; and for tyme of werre, and his intendyng thereto, in maner and fourme aboveseid, he shall have, for his fees and wages, yerely xx. 1. sterlynges of English money; or after the rate of the tyme that he shall be occupied in the werre: and the seid John, the Erle Donald and John, and eche of them, shall have good and sufficiaunt paiment of the seid fees and wages, as wel for tyme of peas as of werre, accordyng to these articules and appoyntements. Item, It is appointed, accorded, concluded, and finally determined, that, if it so be that hereafter the seid reaume of Scotlande, or the more part thereof, be conquered, subdued, and brought to the obeissance of the seid most high and christien prince, and his heires, or successoures, of the said Lionnell, in fourme aboveseid descendyng, be the assistance, helpe, and aide of the seid John Erle of Rosse, and Donald, and of James Erle of Douglas, then, the said fees and wages for the time of peas cessyng, the same erles and Donald shall have, by the graunte of the same most christien prince, all the possessions of the seid reaume beyonde Scottish see, they to be departed equally betwix them; eche of them, his heires and successours, to holde his parte of the seid most christien prince, his heires, and successours, for evermore, in right of his croune of England, by homage and feaute to be done therefore. «Item, If so be that, by the aide and assistance of the seid James Erle of Douglas, the said reaume of Scotlande be conquered and subdued as above, then lie shall have, enjoie, and inherite all his own possessions, landes, and inheritance, on this syde the seid Scottishe see; that is to saye, betwixt the seid Scottishe see and England, such he hath enjoied and be possess. ed of before this; there to holde them of the seid most high and christien prince, his heires, and successours, as is aboveseid, for evermore in right of the croune of Englande, as weel the seid Erie of Douglas, as his heires and successours, by homage and feaute to be done therefore.»-RYMER's Fadera, Conventiones, Literæ et cujuscunque generis Acta Publica, Fol. vol. V. 1741. Such was the treaty of Artornish; but it does not appear that the allies ever made any very active effort to realize their ambitious designs. It will serve to show both the power of these reguli, and their independence of the crown of Scotland. It is only farther necessary to say of the castle of Artornish, that it is almost opposite to the bay of Aros, in the Island of Mull, where there was another castle, the occasional residence of the Lord of the Isles. Note 2. Stanza ii. Rude Heiskar's seal through surges dark The seal displays a taste for music, which could scarcely be expected from his habits and local predilections. They will long follow a boat in which any musical instrument is played, and even a tune simply whistled has attractions for them. The Dean of the Isles says of Heiskar, a small uninhabited rock, about twelve (Scottish) miles from the Isle of Uist, that an infinite slaughter of seals takes place there. Note 3. Stanza vii. -dark Mull! thy mighty Sound. The Sound of Mull, which divides that island from the continent of Scotland, is one of the most striking scenes which the Hebrides afford to the traveller. Sail ing from Oban to Aros, or Tobermory, through a narrow channel, yet deep enough to bear vessels of the largest burthen, he has on his left the bold and mountainous shores of Mull; on the right those of that district of Argyleshire, called Morven, or Morvern, successively indented by deep salt-water lochs, running up many miles inland. To the south-eastward arises a prodigious range of mountains, among which Cruachan Ben is pre-eminent. And to the north-east is the no less huge and picturesque range of the Ardnamurchan hills. Many ruinous castles, situated generally upon cliffs overhanging the ocean, add interest to the scene. Those of Dunolly and Dunstaffnage are first passed, then that of Duart, formerly belonging to the chief of the warlike and powerful sept of Macleans, and the scene of Miss Baillie's beautiful tragedy, entitled the Family Legend. Still passing on to the northward, Artornish and Aros become visible upon the opposite shores, and, lastly, Mingarry, and other ruins of less distinguished note. In fine weather, a grander and more impressive scene, both from its natural beauties, and associations with ancient history and tradition, can hardly be imagined. When the weather is rough, the passage is both difficult and dangerous, from the parrowness of the channel, and in part from the number of inland lakes, out of which sally forth a number of conflicting and thwarting tides, making the navigation perilous to open boats. The sudden flaws and gusts of From Hirt To the green Ilay's fertile shore. camp Mingarry. Thus the castle was maintained until relieved by Alister Mac-Donnel (Colkitto), who had been detached for the purpose by Montrose. These particulars are hardly worth mentioning, were they not began his enterprise in 1644, by taking the castles of Kinloch-Alline and Mingarry, the last of which made considerable resistance, as might, from the strength of the situation, be expected. In the mean while, Alister Mac-Donnel's ships, which had brought him over, were attacked in Loch Eisord, in Skye, by an armament sent round by the covenanting parliament, and his own vessel was taken. This circumstance is said chiefly to have induced him to continue in Scotland, where there seemed little prospect of raising an army in behalf of the king. He had no sooner moved eastward to join The number of the western isles of Scotland exceeds Montrose, a junction which he effected in the braes of two hundred, of which St Kilda is the most northerly, Athole, than the Marquis of Argyle besieged the castle anciently called Hirth or Hirt, probably from «<earth,» of Mingarry, but without success. Among other warbeing in fact the whole globe to its inhabitants. Ilay, riors and chiefs whom Argyle summoned to his which now belongs almost entirely to Walter Campbell, to assist upon this occasion, was John of Moidart, the Esq. of Shawfield, is by far the most fertile of the HeCaptain of Clanronald. Clanronald appeared; but, far brides, and has been greatly improved under the spirited from yielding effectual assistance to Argyle, he took and sagacious management of the present proprietor. the opportunity of being in arms to lay waste the disThis was in ancient times the principal abode of the trict of Sunard, then belonging to the adherents of ArLords of the Isles, being, if not the largest, the mostyle, and sent part of the spoil to relieve the castle of important island of their archipelago. In Martin's time, some relics of their grandeur were yet extant. « LochFinlagan, about three miles in circumference, affords salmon, trouts, and eels: this lake lies in the centre of the isle. The isle Finlagan, from which this lake hath its name, is in it. It is famous for being once the court in which the great Mack-Donald, King of the Isles, had his residence; his houses, chappel, etc. are now ruinous. His gardes du corps, called Luicht-tach, kept guard on the lakeside nearest to the isle; the walls of their houses are still to be seen there. The high court of judicature, consisting of fourteen, sat always here; and there was an appeal to them from all the courts in the isles; the eleventh share of the sum in debate was due to the principal judge. There was a big stone of seven foot in which there was a deep impression made to receive the feet of Mack-Donald; for he was crowned King of the Isles standing in this stone, and swore that he would continue his vassals in the possession of their lands, and do exact justice to all his subjects: and then his father's sword was put into his hands. The Bishop of Argyle and seven priests anointed him king, in presence of all the heads of the tribes in the isles and continent, and were his vassals; at which time the orator rehearsed a catalogue of his ancestors, etc.»-MARTIN'S Account of the Western Isles, octavo, London, 1716, P. 240, 1. square, Note 5. Stanza viii. O'erawes the woodland and the waste. connected with the memorable successes of Montrose, related by an eye-witness, and hitherto unknown to Scottish historians. Note 6. Stanza viii. upon the Somerled was Thane of Argyle and Lord of the Isles, about the middle of the twelfth century. He seems to have exercised his authority in both capacities independent of the crown of Scotland, against which he often stood in hostility. He made various incursions upon the western Lowlands during the reign of Malcolm with him peace IV, and seems to have made terms of an independent prince, about the year 1157. In 1164, he resumed the war against Malcolm, and invaded Scotland with a large, but probably a tumultuary army, collected in the isles, in the main-land of Argyleshire, and in the neighbouring provinces of Ireland. He was defeated and slain in an engagement with a very inferior force, near Renfrew. His son Gillicolane fell in the same battle. This mighty chieftain married From him our gea daughter of Olaus, King of Man. nealogists deduce two dynasties, distinguished in the stormy history of the middle ages; the Lords of the Isles descended from his elder son Ronald, and the Lords of Lorn, who took their surname of M'Dougal, as descended of his second son Dougal. That Somerled's territories upon the main-land, and upon the islands, should have been thus divided between his two sons, instead of passing to the elder exclusively, may illustrate the uncertainty of descent among the great Highland families, which we shall presently notice. Note 7. Stanza viii. LOAD OF THE ISLES. The castle of Mingarry is situated on the seacoast of the district of Ardnamurchan. The ruins, which are tolerably entire, are surrounded by a very high wall, forming a kind of polygon, for the purpose of adapting itself to the projecting angles of a precipice overhanging the sea, on which the castle stands. It was anciently the residence of the Mac-lans, a clan of Mac-Donalds descended from lan, or John, a grandson of Angus Og, Lord of the Isles. The last time that Mingarry was of military importance, occurs in the celebrated Leabhar-dearg, or Red-book of Clanronald, a MS. re-occasionally the pre-eminence of the Scottish crown, nowned in the Ossianic controversy. Alister Mac Donnel, commonly called Colkitto, who commanded the Irish auxiliaries, sent over by the Earl of Antrim during the great civil war to the assistance of Montrose, The representative of this independent principality, for such it seems to have been, though acknowledging was, at the period of the poem, Angus, called Angus Og; but the name has been, euphoniæ gratia, exchanged for that of Ronald, which frequently occurs in the genealogy. Angus was a protector of Robert Bruce, whom he received in his castle of Dunnaverty, during the time of his greatest distress. As I shall be equally liable to censure for attempting to decide a controversy which has long existed between three distinguished chieftains of this family, who have long disputed the representation of the Lord of the Isles, or for leaving a question of such importance altogether untouched, I chuse, in the first place, to give such information as I have been able to derive from Highland genealogists, and which, for those who have patience to investigate such subjects, really contains some curious information concerning the history of the Isles. In the second place, I shall offer a few remarks upon the rules of succession at that period, without pretending to decide their bearing upon the question at issue, which must depend upon evidence which I have had no opportunity to examine. Angus Og,» says an ancient manuscript translated from the Gaelic, << son of Angus Mor, son of Donald, son of Ronald, son of Somerled, high chief and superior Lord of Innisgall (or the Isles of the Gael, the general name given to the Hebrides), he married a daughter of Cunbui, namely, Cathan; she was mother to John, son of Angus, and with her came an unusual portion from Ireland, viz. twenty-four clans, of whom twenty-four families in Scotland are descended. Angus had another son, namely, young John Fraoch, whose descendants are called Clan-Ean of Glencoe, and the M'Donalds of Fraoch. This Angus Og died in Isla, where his body was interred; his son John succeeded to the inheritance of Innisgall. He had good descendants, namely, three sons procreate of Ann, daughter of Rodric, high chief of Lorn, and one daughter, Mary, married to John Maclean, Laird of Duart, and Lauchlan, his brother, Laird of Coll; she was interred in the church of the Black Nuns. The eldest sons of John were Ronald, Godfrey, and Angus. - ---He gave Ronald a great inheritance. These were the lands which he gave him, viz. from Kilcumin in Abertarf to the river Seil, and from thence to Beilli, north of Eig and Rum, and the two Uists, and from thence to the foot of the river Glaichan, and threescore long ships. John married afterwards Margaret Stewart, daughter to Robert Stewart, King of Scotland, called John Fernyear; she bore him three good sons, Donald of the Isles, the heir, John the Tainister (i. e. Thane), the second son, and Alexander Carrach. John had another son called Marcos, of whom the clan Macdonald of Cnoc, in Tirowen, are descended. This John lived long, and made donations to Icolumkill; he covered the chapel of Eorsay-Elan, the chapel of Finlagan, and the chapel of the Isle of Tsuibhne, and gave the proper furniture for the service of God, upholding the clergy and monks; he built or repaired the church of the Holy Cross immediately before his death. He died at his own castle of Ardtorinish; many priests and monks took the sacrament at his funeral, and they embalmed the body of this dear man, and brought it to Icolumkill; the abbot, monks, and vicar, came as they ought to meet the King of Fiongal,' and out of great respect to his memory mourned eight days and nights over it, and laid it in the same grave with his father, in the church of Oran, 1380. « Ronald, son of John, was chief ruler of the Isles in Western Isles and adjacent coast. his father's life-time, and was old in the government at his father's death. « He assembled the gentry of the Isles, brought the sceptre from Kildonan in Eig, and delivered it to his brother Donald, who was thereupon called M'Donald, and Donald Lord of the Isles, contrary to the opinion of the men of the Isles. « Ronald, son of John, son of Angus Og, was a great supporter of the church and clergy; his descendants are called Clanronald. He gave the lands of Tiruma, in Uist, to the minister of it for ever, for the honour of God and Columkill; he was proprietor of all the lands of the north along the coast and the isles; he died in the year of Christ, 1386, in his own mansion of Castle Tirim, leaving five children. Donald of the Isles, son of John, son of Angus Og, the brother of Ronald, took possession of Innisgall by the consent of his brother and the gentry thereof; they were all obedient to him; he married Mary Lesly, daughter to the Earl of Ross, and by her came the earldom of Ross to the M'Donalds. After his succession to that earldom, he was called M'Donald, Lord of the Isles, and Earl of Ross. There are many things written of him in other places. << He fought the battle of Garioch (i. e. Harlaw), against Duke Murdoch, the governor: the Earl of Mar commanded the army, in support of his claim to the earldom of Ross; which was ceded to him by King James the First, after his release from the King of England, and Duke Murdoch, his two sons and retainers, were beheaded he gave lands in Mull and Isla to the minister of Hi, and every privilege which the minister of Iona had formerly, besides vessels of gold and silver to Columkill, for the monastery, and became himself one of the fraternity. He left issue, a lawful heir to Innisgall and Ross, namely, Alexander, the son of Donald: he died in Isla, and his body was interred in the south side of the temple of Oran. Alexander, called John of the Isles, son of Alexander of the Isles, son of Donald of the Isles. Angus, the third son of John, son of Angus Og, married the daughter of John, the son of Allan, which connexion caused some disagreement betwixt the two families about their marches and division of lands, the one party adhering to Angus, and the other to John: the differences increased so much, that John obtained from Allan all the lands betwixt Abhan Fahda (i. e. the long river) and ald na sionnach (i. e. the fox-burn brook), in the upper part of Cantyre. Allan went to the king to complain of his son-in-law; in a short time thereafter, there happened to be a great meeting about this young Angus's lands to the north of Inverness, where he was murdered by his own harper, Mac-Cairbre, by cutting his throat with a long knife. He lived a year thereafter, and many of those concerned were delivered up to the king. Angus's wife was pregnant at the time of his murder, and she bore him a son, who was named Donald, and called Donald Du. He was kept in confinement until he was thirty years of age, when he was released by the men of Glencoe, by the strong hand. After this enlargement, he came to the Isles, and convened the gentry thereof. There happened great feuds betwixt these families while Donald Du was in confinement, insomuch that MacCean of Ardnamurchan destroyed the greatest part of |