Gairloch
See also: Ironworks in Gairloch
It was in Gairloch that the Mackenzies obtained their first important footing outside of Kintail. At that time they were only a small clan, and the struggle which led to the conquest of Gairloch taxed all their strength, and was both fierce and prolonged.
See The Connection of the Macraes with the House of Gairloch
About 1480 Allan Macleod, laird of Gairloch, with his two young sons, was barbarously murdered by his own two brothers.
See The Connection of the Macraes with the House of Gairloch
One of the Gairloch Macraes, called Domhnull Odhar (Sallow Donald), who was a contemporary of John Roy, is represented as the crest of the Gairloch coat-of-arms. The Macraes were also very renowned archers, and the scene and range of some of their famous shots are still pointed out, both in Gairloch and Kintail.
See The Connection of the Macraes with the House of Gairloch
The Macraes were mainly instrumental in establishing the family of Gairloch. About 1480 Allan Macleod, laird of Gairloch, with his two young sons, was barbarously murdered by his own two brothers. His wife was a daughter of Alexander Ionraic (Alexander the Just), sixth Baron of Kintail, who died about 1490, and sister of Hector Roy Mackenzie, a younger son, who became progenitor of the lairds of Gairloch. Hector Roy took up the cause of his sister, and obtained from the King a commission of fire and sword for the destruction of the Macleods of Gairloch.