The Battle of Traigh Ghruinneart or in

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

''Blàr Tràigh Ghruineart'' or sometimes called the Battle of Gruinart Strand was a

Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Goidelic languages, Gaelic , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred') is a kinship group among the Scottish people. Clans give a sense of shared identity and descent to members, and in modern times have an official ...

battle fought on 5 August 1598, on the

Isle of Islay Islay ( ; gd, Ìle, sco, Ila) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll just south west of Jura and around north of the Northern Irish coast. The island's capital i ...

, in the

Hebrides The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebrid ...

. It was fought between the

Clan Donald Clan Donald, also known as Clan MacDonald ( gd, Clann Dòmhnaill; Mac Dòmhnaill ), is a Highland Scottish clan and one of the largest Scottish clans. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry i ...

and Clan Maclean. A ''tràigh'' or stand is the flat area of land bordering a body of water, a beach, or shoreline.

History

The

had belonged to

Clan MacDonald Clan Donald, also known as Clan MacDonald ( gd, Clann Dòmhnaill; Mac Dòmhnaill ), is a Highland Scottish clan and one of the largest Scottish clans. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry i ...

whose leader was

Sir James MacDonald, 9th of Dunnyveg Sir James MacDonald, 9th of Dunnyveg ( gd, Séamus Mac Dòmhnuill) (died 1626), was the last chief of Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg or Clan Donald South. He was most often known as James ''M'Connall'' from the Gaelic pronunciation of the name ''Mac ...

, the son of

Clan chief The Scottish Gaelic word means children. In early times, and possibly even today, Scottish clan members believed themselves to descend from a common ancestor, the founder of the clan, after whom the clan is named. The clan chief (''ceannard c ...

Angus MacDonald and who may have already imprisoned his father, and a nephew of

Sir Lachlan Mor Maclean Sir Lachlan Mór Maclean (1558 – 5 August 1598) or Big Lachlan Maclean, was the 14th Clan Chief of Clan MacLean from late 1573 or early 1574 until 1598. Mór or Mor translates as ''big'' in English, or ''magnus'' in Latin, when added to a nam ...

. Sir Lachlan Mor Maclean claimed that the island belonged to his clan and landed about 800 to 1,000 men at Loch Ghruinneart. MacDonald offered his uncle half of the island for MacLean's lifetime only, but he refused unless he received the entire island. James MacDonald had fewer troops but they were well trained. Allies to the Clan MacDonald sent men from

Kintyre Kintyre ( gd, Cinn Tìre, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately north ...

and Arran, including

Clan MacAlister Clan MacAlister is a Scottish Clan. The clan is the earliest branch to have split off from Clan Donald, claiming descent from Alasdair Mòr, son of Domhnall founder of Clan Donald. From Alasdair Mòr the clans takes its surname ''MacAlister''; ...

, which were led by Angus MhicMhuirich of Arran. MacDonald's forces feigned retreat toward the setting sun then turned around to fight with the sun in the eyes of their enemy. The MacDonalds were victorious and the MacLeans were defeated. A

dwarf Dwarf or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a being from Germanic mythology and folklore * Dwarf, a person or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a humanoid ...

named Dubh Sith (Black Fairy) was hidden in a tree and he killed Sir Lachlan Mor Maclean with a shot through his eye after he had removed his helmet. With Sir Lachlan Mor Maclean and about 280 of his men killed in battle, the rest were chased to their boats and some sought refuge in the chapel of Kilnave. The chapel was burnt down, killing all but one of the men inside. Sir James MacDonald was seriously wounded after being shot through the body with an arrow. He was found after the battle amongst the dead MacDonalds, which also included Angus MhicMhuirich of Arran. About 30 MacDonalds were slain and 60 wounded. Afterwards

King James VI James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

, awarded MacDonald lands to

Clan Campbell Clan Campbell ( gd, Na Caimbeulaich ) is a Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the largest and most powerful of the Highland clans. The Clan Campbell lands are in Argyll and within their lands lies Ben Cruachan. The chief of the clan be ...

, leading to an extension of the feud.

's reign in Islay came to an end in 1612 when

Angus MacDonald, 8th of Dunnyveg Angus MacDonald, 8th of Dunnyveg (Scottish Gaelic: ''Aonghus Mac Dòmhnuill'', died 21 October 1614) was the Chief of Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg. Life MacDonald was the son of James MacDonald, 6th of Dunnyveg (died 1565) and Agnes Campbell, da ...

, the father of Sir James, sold his land holdings to Sir John Campbell of Cawdor of

Clan Campbell of Cawdor Clan Campbell of Cawdor is a highland Scottish clan and a branch of the larger Clan Campbell. While the ''clan'' is recognised by the Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs, the clan does not have a ''clan chief'' recognised by the Standing Counci ...

References

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Islay 1598 in Scotland Traigh Ghruinneart Military action involving Scottish islands