The Mackintoshes of Borlum were a cadet branch of the

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 ...

, 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 ...

of the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

. Their most famous member was Brigadier William Mackintosh, Laird of Borlum (1658–1743) usually known as Mackintosh of Borlum who was a leader of the

Jacobite rising of 1715 The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( gd, Bliadhna Sheumais ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts The House of Stuart, ori ...

William Mackintosh, 1st of Borlum

The Mackintosh of Borlum branch of Clan Mackintosh was founded by William Mackintosh, younger son of

Lachlan Mor Mackintosh, 16th of Mackintosh Lachlan Mor Mackintosh, 16th of Mackintosh (died 1606) was the chief of the Clan Mackintosh, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands. He was also chief of the confederation of clans that was known as the Clan Chattan. Early life Lachlan Mor Mac ...

(d.1606). William Mackintosh, 1st of Borlum married Beatrix, daughter of Innes of Innermarkie and had four sons: Lachlan, Robert, Angus and William. He died in 1630 aged 63.

Lachlan Mackintosh, 2nd of Borlum

Lachlan Mackintosh, 2nd of Borlum was a loyalist during the wars of

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose (1612 – 21 May 1650) was a Scottish nobleman, poet and soldier, Lord Lieutenant, lord lieutenant and later viceroy and captain general of Scotland. Montrose initially joined the Covenanters in the Wa ...

and was consequently fined £666 by the Committee of Process and Moneys. He married Helen Gordon and the Gordon

Marquess of Huntly Marquess of Huntly (traditionally spelled Marquis in Scotland; Scottish Gaelic: ''Coileach Strath Bhalgaidh'') is a title in the Peerage of Scotland that was created on 17 April 1599 for George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly. It is the oldest existin ...

subsequently gave him a

sasine Sasine in Scots law is the delivery of feudal property, typically land. Feudal property means immovable property, and includes everything that naturally goes with the property. For land, that would include such things as buildings, trees, and unde ...

of the town and lands of Ballidmor and other dues on the payment of 6,000

merks The merk is a long-obsolete Scottish silver coin. Originally the same word as a money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 13 shillings 4 pence (exactly ...

. He had four sons: William, John of Lynvulig, Harrie and Alexander. The latter were twins who became

bailie A bailie or baillie is a civic officer in the local government of Scotland. The position arose in the burghs, where bailies formerly held a post similar to that of an alderman or magistrate (see bailiff). Baillies appointed the high constables i ...

s of

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

William Mackintosh, 3rd of Borlum

William Mackintosh, 3rd of Borlum purchased the feu right of the barony of Borlum from Sir Hew Campbell of Calder and wadsetted Benchar to

Cluny Macpherson Ewen MacPherson of Cluny, also known as "Cluny Macpherson" (11 February 1706 – 30 January 1764), was the Chief of Clan MacPherson during the Jacobite Rising of 1745. He took part as a leading supporter of Prince Charles Edward Stuart. After t ...

. He married Mary, daughter of Duncan the Baillie of Duncean and had five sons and two daughters: William, Lachlan, John (a Major of Mackintosh's Regiment in 1715), Duncan (a Captain in Mackintosh's Regiment of 1715), Joseph (who acquired Raigmore and by a daughter of Mackintosh of Aberarder was ancestor of the Mackintoshes of Raigmore and of William Mackintosh M.P for the Inverness Burghs), Lydia (wife of Sir Patrick Grant of Dalvey) and Janet (wife of Ludovic Gordon, brother of Sir Robert Gordon of Gordonston). William Mackintosh, 3rd of Borlum died in 1716 and was succeeded by his eldest son.

William Mackintosh, 4th of Borlum

During the

the leader of the Jacobites, the Earl of Mar, detached a small force of 2,000 Highlanders led by Brigadier William Mackintosh, 4th of Borlum from the main army. Mackintosh of Borlum moved into

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

and crossed the

Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meani ...

in fishing boats. He briefly held

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

and came close to capturing

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. He linked up with some English and Lowland Jacobites at

Kelso, Scottish Borders Kelso ( sco, Kelsae gd, Cealsaidh) is a market town in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Roxburghshire, it lies where the rivers Tweed and Teviot have their confluence. The town has a pop ...

, then they marched south as far as Preston until they were captured at the Battle of Preston. He was charged with

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

, but escaped from

Newgate Prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey Street just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, t ...

with seven others the night before his trial was due to start.

John Prebble John Edward Curtis Prebble, FRSL, OBE, (23 June 1915 – 30 January 2001) was an English journalist, novelist, and screenwriter. He is known for his studies of Scottish history. Early life He was born in Edmonton, Middlesex, England, but in 1921 ...

considers that Mackintosh of Borlum should really have led the rising instead of Mar. He also fought for the Jacobites at the

Battle of Glen Shiel The Battle of Glen Shiel ( gd, Blàr Ghleann Seile) took place on 10 June 1719 in the West Scottish Highlands, during the 1719 Jacobite Rising. A Jacobite army composed of Highland levies and Spanish marines, was defeated by British troops, rei ...

in 1719. William Mackintosh, 4th of Borlum married Mary Reade, and they had two sons Lachlan and Shaw who both emigrated to the

Colony of Georgia In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

with the Highland Rangers a regiment in the British Army recruited by

James Oglethorpe James Edward Oglethorpe (22 December 1696 – 30 June 1785) was a British soldier, Member of Parliament, and philanthropist, as well as the founder of the colony of Georgia in what was then British America. As a social reformer, he hoped to re ...

. Both Lachlan and Shaw fought in the

War of Jenkins' Ear The War of Jenkins' Ear, or , was a conflict lasting from 1739 to 1748 between Britain and the Spanish Empire. The majority of the fighting took place in New Granada and the Caribbean Sea, with major operations largely ended by 1742. It is con ...

. He was succeeded by his eldest son.

Lachlan Mackintosh, 5th of Borlum

Lachlan Mackintosh, 5th of Borlum went to

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

where he married a daughter of his great-uncle Harrie Mackintosh. He died there and was succeeded by his brother.

Shaw Mackintosh, 6th of Borlum

Shaw Mackintosh sold Borlum to his cousin, William, son of John Mackintosh of Lynvulig and baillie of Inverness. He married Jean, daughter of Menzies of Woodend and left a son, Edward, and two daughters. Edward became lawless and was the leader of a band of robbers who infested the Great Highland road through

Inverness-shire Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populatio ...

. A warrant was issued for his arrest and he fled the country, taking up service in the French army, after which there is no trace of him.

Bagpipes

There is a

bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, Nor ...

tune called "Mackintosh of Borlum's Salute".

References

{{reflist Clan Mackintosh Scottish families