Ewan Cameron of Lochiel
Sir Ewan Cameron of Lochiel | |
|---|---|
 Sir Ewan Cameron of Lochiel | |
| Nickname(s) | “Wolf of Lochaber” |
| Born | February 1629 Tor Castle, Lochaber, Scotland |
| Died | 12 June 1719 (aged 90) Achnacarry, Lochaber, Scotland |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance |  Kingdom of Scotland  Jacobites |
| Battles/wars | Wars of the Three Kingdoms |
| Relations | John Cameron of Lochiel (son) Donald Cameron of Lochiel (grandson) |
Sir Ewan Cameron of Lochiel (also spelt as Ewen) (February 1629 – June 1719[1]) was a Scottish highland chief, soldier and Carolean courtier. Lochiel was hereditary chief of Clan Cameron - the 17th Lochiel, and was noted for his participation in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (1650-1654), the early Jacobite Rebellions (from 1689-1719). Lochiel was also known for being a fervent Stuart loyalist and one of the most formidable clan chiefs of his time.
Lord Macaulay described Sir Ewan as the "Ulysses of the Highlands", being a man of enormous strength and size. An incident showing his strength and ferocity in single combat, when he viscously bit out the throat of an enemy is used by Sir Walter Scott in Lady of the Lake (canto v.).[2] According to legend, Ewan was believed to have killed the last wolf in the British Isles c.1680, supposedly with his bare hands, whilst on a hunting expedition in Killiecrankie. Lochiel would later became known as the “Wolf of Lochaber”.[3]
Early years[]
Sir Ewan Cameron of Lochiel was the eldest son of John Cameron and the grandson of Allan Cameron of Lochiel, 16th Chief (c. 1567/68 – c. 1647; son of John Cameron and Margaret MacIntosh).[4] His father having predeceased him in infancy, Ewan Cameron spent much of his youth under the guardianship of the 1st Marquess of Argyll at Inveraray. In 1647 he succeeded his grandfather as Chief of Cameron, being one of the most important Highland clans.[2]
The Camerons were always strong supporters of the Royal Stuarts and as The Lochiel he joined William Cunningham, 9th Earl of Glencairn in the Royalist rising of 1651 to 1654, being defeated at the Battle of Tullich in 1652. However, Sir Ewan also won several minor skirmishes; after the defeat of this attempt he served the royalist cause by harassing the Parliamentarian general and military governor of Scotland General George Monck. He then built a new base at Achnacarry Castle in 1655, to keep his men further away from the government troops. It was only upon the death of Oliver Cromwell in 1658 did he submit to general Monck and was received warmly for his chivalrous conduct during the Civil War. Soon after he accompanied Monck to London where the General called a meeting of Parliament to discuss the new status quo. After lengthy discussion and debate it was decided that the King would be invited back from exile and that the Royal House of Stuart would be restored to the throne after a Republican Interregnum of 12 years. For his loyal service during the Civil War, the Lochiel was received warmly by the King and was allowed soon after to return to his estates.
On 20 September 1665, Lochiel ended the 360-year feud with Clan MacIntosh after the stand-off at the Fords of Arkaig near Achnacarry.[5] From that point, Ewan Cameron was responsible for keeping the peace between his clansmen and their former enemies. However in 1668, whilst he was away at the court of Charles II, a feud broke out between Clan Donald and hostile elements of Clan MacIntosh, who headed the confederation of clans known as Clan Chattan. Being absent he was unable to constrain some of his clansmen and they made a contribution to the MacDonald victory over the MacIntosh’ at the Battle of Maol Ruadh (Mulroy).[6]
In another dispute, Lochiel was on his way to talk to the Duke of Atholl about a border between Lochaber and Perthshire when he met Gormshuil Mhòr na Maighe. She was married to a Cameron and was known for her supernatural powers.. At first he ignored Gormshuil but she told him to return home to get his men. He should take them with him and keep them hidden and if he needed them he was to turn his coat inside out. Lochiel took her advice and although Atholl too had men lying in wait, he was able to defeat them. This dispute between Lochiel and Atholl led to the Cameron clan's motto 'Sons of the hounds, come here and get flesh.' It's also said that this came from the tune Lochiel's piper was playing at the time, 'Thigibh an seo, chlanna nan con, is gheibh sibh feoil, (Come hither, children of the hounds, and you'll get flesh).
In 1681, Sir Ewan was knighted by Charles II, and his son, John Cameron made Lord Lochiel. Charles held high regard for the Lochiel, and Ewan was reputed to have been a courtier of the king, having previously fought alongside him. After the Glorious Revolution in 1688 when the House of Stuart was replaced by a foreign dynasty, the Hanoverians, he became one of the principal commanders in the Jacobite rising of 1689 where he fought under John Graham of Claverhouse, Viscount Dundee, at the Battle of Killiecrankie, a victory marred by Claverhouse's death. After this the Jacobite rebellion soon collapsed because of arguments among the remaining leaders. By this time Sir Ewan Cameron, nearly sixty years old, had started to give his son, the Master of Lochiel, greater responsibilities. The Lochiel felt he was now too old to participate physically in military action thus designated his son John Cameron to lead his clan in battle, most notably in the second Jacobite rising of 1715 and 1719. Lochiel would still be present at these battles, most notably at Glen Shiel where it is fought he was somehow mortally wounded, despite not engaging in the battle. Lochiel died a few days later at Achnacarry.
Marriage and children[]
Sir Ewen married three times and had many children (17), six of which were sons, and eleven were daughters: His first wife was Mary Macdonald, daughter of Sir Donald Macdonald, 8th of Sleat, his second wife was Isobel MacLean, daughter of Sir Lachlan MacLean of Bart, and his third wife was Jenny Barclay, daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel David Barclay. Lochiel was also reputed to have had some illegitimate children, according to contemporaries. His children included:[7]
- Edward Cameron, 1st Lord Lochiel (d. 1685)[8]
- Major Donald Cameron of Lochiel (d. 1719)
- Sir John Cameron, 2nd Lord Lochiel (d. 1746/47), who succeeded as heir after the death of his elder brother, Edward, becoming the 18th Chief.
- Allan Cameron of Lochiel
- Lady Margaret Cameron
- Lady Anne Cameron (married Allan MacLean, 10th of Ardgour)
- Lady Janet Cameron (d. 9 Feb 1759) Married John Grant, Laird of Glenmoriston
- Lady Elizabeth Cameron
- Ludovick Cameron of Lochiel
- Robert Cameron of Lochiel
- Lady Christian Cameron
- Lady Joan Cameron, (married Ewan MacPherson Chief of Clan MacPherson)
- Lady Isobel Cameron
- Lady Catherine Cameron, married to John Campbell of Achalader
- Lady Lucia Cameron (married Patrick Campbell of Barcaldine).[4]
- Lady Marjory Cameron
- Lady Una Cameron, who married her cousin , 5th laird of Ury, b.1732–1797)[9])
Death[]
Sir Ewen died after the Battle of Glen Shiel in 1719 when Major Donald Cameron died too. His son John Cameron, Lord Lochiel succeeded him and died at Flanders in 1748.
Lord Lochiel's son, The Hon. Donald Cameron otherwise known as The Gentle Lochiel, joined the Young Pretender (Prince Charles Stuart) in 1745, was wounded at the Battle of Culloden before escaping to France.
See also[]
- Clan Cameron
- Gormshuil Mhòr na Maighe
Notes[]
- ^ Sir Ewen Cameron, of Lochiel, 17th Chief of Clan Cameron. Clan Cameron Australia (Robert Cameron). 1996–2004. Retrieved 8 April 2009.
- ^ a b Chisholm 1911.
- ^ "Wolves in Scotland". Highland Titles. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
- ^ a b "Person Page – 19954". thepeerage.com. Retrieved 1 February 2008.
- ^ MacKenzie (1883/2008) p156
- ^ The Battle of Mulroy
- ^ De la Caillemotte de Massue de Ruvigny, Melville Amadeus Henry Douglas Heddle (1904). The Jacobite Peerage, Baronetage, Knightage and Grants of Honour. T.C. & E.C. Jack. p. 97.
Cameron of Lochiel, by his second wife, Isabel, daughter of Sir Lauchlan MacLean. He had issue : # S/x William MacGregor, otherwise Drummond, his heir. # Ewen MacGregor, otherwise Drummond, died s.p. # John MacGregor, otherwise Drummond, author of the memoir of his grandfather, Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel. # Duncan MacGregor, otherwise Drummond, died s.p. # Alexander MacGregor, otherwise Drummond, died s.p. # Donald MacGregor, otherwise Drummond, a sailor, went to Nova Scotia; married Ann, daughter of [Herman] Groesbeck of New York, and had one son who died unmarried, and five daughters, of whom the third, Mary, married in 1781, as below, her cousin-german, Sir Alexander MacGregor, third Baronet.
- ^ Stewart Ardvolich, John (1974). A History of Clan Cameron. pp. 340–345.
- ^ "BARCLAY ALLARDICE, Robert (1732-97), of Urie, Kincardine. | History of Parliament Online". www.historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
References[]
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Cameron of Lochiel, Sir Ewen". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- MacKenzie, Alexander (2008). The History of the Camerons. The Celtic Magazine. Vol. IX. BiblioBazaar (reprint). ISBN 978-0-559-79382-0. Modern reprint of November 1883 article with a detailed account of Sir Ewen's life from 1654 to 1665.
- Henderson, Thomas Finlayson (1886). . In Stephen, Leslie (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 8. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
- Furgol, Edward M. "Cameron, Sir Ewen, of Lochiel (1629–1719)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/4440. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
Further reading[]
- Memoirs of Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel (Bannatyne Club, 1842)
External links[]
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- 1629 births
- 1719 deaths
- Scottish Jacobites
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- Scottish soldiers
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- Scottish clan chiefs
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