|
|
|
MacDonald
|
Sir Ian Godfrey Bosville Macdonald of Sleat, Bt.
Arms: Quarterly first, Argent a lion rampant Gules armed and langued Azure; second, Or a hand in armour fessways Proper holding a cross crosslet fitchee Gules; third, Or a lymphad sails furled and oars in action Sable flagged Gules; fourth, Vert a salmon naiant in fess Proper.
Crest: a dexter forearm in armour fessways Proper the hand Proper holding a cross crosslet fitchee Gules
Motto: PER MARE PER TERRAS
Supporters: two leopards Proper collared Or.
Matriculated: The Courtof the Lord Lyon, 6th January 2000. Register; Volume 80, page67.
The Macdonalds of Sleat are descended from Hugh, a son of Alexander, Lord of the Isles and Earl of Ross. Sir Ian succeeded his Father in 1958 as 25th Chief and Premier Baronet of Nova Scotia (created on the 14th July 1625 with precedence over Sir William Douglas of Glenbervie who was created in the same year).
Since the death of the third Lord Macdonald in 1832 in Bridlington, my family have lived at Thorpe Hall, Rudston in the East Riding of Yorkshire, a property inherited from William Bosville who died childless and whose Sister, Diana had married Alexander, who in 1776 was elevated to the Peerage as Lord Macdonald of Slate, County Antrim in Ireland. At that time, Alexander William Robert, the eldest son was considered illegitimate because of doubts over the validity of his father's Scottish marriage to Louisa Maria La Coast, a natural daughter of HRH The Duke of Gloucester and Lady Almeria Carpenter, daughter of the Earl of Tyrconnel. Subsequently, he took the name Bosville, remained in Yorkshire with his younger brother, Godfrey succeeding to the Scottish estates and titles.
My great-grandfather, Alexander, obtained a decree of the Court of Session in 1910 in an action of Declarator which proved that his grandfather was indeed the eldest lawful son of the third Lord. At that, he resumed the name Macdonald, the Chiefship of Sleat, the Baronetcy and matriculated arms as Bosville quartering Macdonald of Sleat.
When it came to my turn to matriculate after three generations, I decided to do so as Macdonald of Sleat and also correct the tincture on the lower left quarter which mistakenly had been blazoned Argent behind the galley instead of Or. Although by bardic tradition, the Chiefs of Sleat were in their own country always referred to as 'Nan Eilean', the Lord Lyon could not allow this and so my Father ceased calling himself Macdonald of the Isles and Sleat was used from then on. Interestingly, I was baptised 'Of the Isles' by Bishop Furze in 1947 and will probably be the last Sleat Chief to be so!
My chosen patronymic is 'Mac Uisdein' (Son of Hugh) which relates straight back to the original Hugh and the Lordship of the Isles. My slogan, 'Carna' is the name of a small island on Loch Sunart where Donald Balloch gathered the Clan in 1431 before the Battle of Inverlochy, and also Donald Dubh in 1545 before his last insurrection. The war cry of Clan Donald is 'Fraoch Eilean', but sadly no-one is quite sure today to which island it refers. Perhaps it is the islet in the Sound of Islay off Jura or perhaps it is Carna? Perhaps somewhere else, who knows?
|
|
| Rate this file (current rating : 2.4 / 5 with 52 votes) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
