Alastair Carragh MacDonald (Alexander the Strong) (d. c.1440) was a son of

John of Islay, Lord of the Isles :''This article refers to John I, Lord of the Isles; for John II, see John of Islay, Earl of Ross'' John of Islay (or John MacDonald) ( gd, Eòin Mac Dòmhnuill or gd, Iain mac Aonghais Mac Dhòmhnuill) (died 1386) was the Lord of the Isles (1 ...

and Margaret Stewart, daughter of King

Robert II of Scotland Robert II (2 March 1316 – 19 April 1390) was King of Scots from 1371 to his death in 1390. The son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland, and Marjorie, daughter of King Robert the Bruce, he was the first monarch of the House of St ...

and

Elizabeth Mure Elizabeth Mure (est. born 2 March 1320 - died before May 1355), a member of Clan Muir, was the first wife of Robert, High Steward of Scotland, and Guardian of Scotland (1338–1341 and from October 1346), who later became King Robert II of Scotl ...

. He is the eponymous ancestor of

Clan MacDonald of Keppoch Clan MacDonald of Keppoch ( gd, Clann Dòmhnaill na Ceapaich ), also known as Clan Ranald of Lochaber or Clan MacDonell of Keppoch'','' is a Highland Scottish clan and a branch of Clan Donald. The progenitor of the clan is Alistair Carrach Mac ...

. He fought alongside his brother, Donald of the Isles, at the

Battle of Harlaw The Battle of Harlaw ( gd, Cath Gairbheach) was a Scottish clan battle fought on 24 July 1411 just north of Inverurie in Aberdeenshire. It was one of a series of battles fought during the Middle Ages between the barons of northeast Scotland a ...

in 1411, supporting Donald's claim to the

Earldom of Ross The Earl or Mormaer of Ross was the ruler of the province of Ross in northern Scotland. Origins and transfers In the early Middle Ages, Ross was part of the vast earldom of Moray. It seems to have been made a separate earldom in the mid 12 ...

. For his involvement in the 1431 insurrection of Donald Balloch and the Battle of Inverlochy, Alistair had a large portion of his lands confiscated, with those lands transferred to the Malcolm Beg Mackintosh, Chief of

Clan MacKintosh Clan Mackintosh (''Clann Mhic an Tòisich'') is a Scottish clan from Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. The chiefs of the clan are the Mackintoshes of Mackintosh. Another branch of the clan, the Mackintoshes of Torcastle, are the chiefs of Cl ...

. After Alastair Carragh's death in 1440, his fellow clansmen and kinsmen would later identify themselves as the "race of Alastair" for the next 300 years.

Family

By his wife Mary (b. 1365), daughter of Malcolm, Earl of Lennox, they had the following known issue: *Angus, d. c.1484, married a daughter of MacPhee of Glenpean. *Alexander MacAlastair, b. 1400, d. 1465

References

*{{Citation , title=The Scots peerage : founded on Wood's edition of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland : containing an historical and genealogical account of the nobility of that kingdom / edited by Sir James Balfour Paul , author1=Paul, James Balfour , author2=Douglas of Glenbervie, Robert , author3=Wood, John Philip , year=1904 , publisher=David Douglas Medieval Gaels from Scotland Clan MacDonald of Keppoch People from Argyll and Bute 15th-century Scottish people