Clach an Airmīefore the battle the stories say that Clan Chattan gathered to sharpen their swords at the Clach an Airm, an ancient stone which rested near the battlefield. MacGillivray was a strong choice as he was a respected leader and fearsome warrior, standing some 6ft 5in tall. She herself could not lead the men in battle and so she appointed Alexander MacGillivray of Dunmaglass, the chief of Clan MacGillivray to help lead the men of Clan Chattan at Culloden. Thus it was left to his wife, Lady Anne Mackintosh to raise Mackintosh’s for Prince Charles. ![]() However, an interesting exception to this was the chief of Clan Mackintosh who was serving with the Black Watch in 1745 and thus was unable to raise his men for the Jacobites. In 1745 Clan Chattan the majority of Clan Chattan followed Prince Charles Edward Stuart in his cause. They are a part of Clan Chattan, which was essential an alliance between several clans including MacGillivray, Mackintosh and Macpherson. The MacGillivray’s were strong followers of the Jacobites and came out to support the cause in both the 1715 and the 1745 Risings. This small spot on the battlefield stands at the point where the Chief of the MacGillivray clan supposedly fell during the battle and, as we are often asked about this spot, we thought we’d take this chance to look a little at the MacGillivray’s during the time of Culloden. We hope you enjoyed this very short look at mottos and as always please like, share, tweet, comment and let us know of any stories you’d like to know more about.Īs you walk the battlefield here at Culloden you pass the memorial cairn and many clan graves, but you also pass the ‘Well of the Dead’. These are only a few example of clan mottos but each clan has its own and during fighting these may have been yelled out by the fighting soldiers to strike fear into the opposition and rally the clans to join together to fight. One of the gorgeous pieces from Brodies dining set Now of course it serves as an excellent story for the tour guides! With just two letters the creators have completely altered the meaning of the ancient clans motto. Each piece of the set has the clan motto delicately portrayed in its centre right underneath the coat of arms. Unfortunately though on two of the pieces the word has been misspelled and instead of ‘unite’ the pieces read ‘untie’. When you visit the castle you can enter the dining room with its gorgeous plaster work ceiling and see the elegant dining set. The Brodie clan, whose home, Brodie Castle, is just down the road from Culloden, has the simple motto ‘Unite’ which is nice and easy to understand. Brodie Clan Mottoįor a good story regarding mottos it is nice to look at Clan Brodie. Indeed some believe the name Fraser stems from the French word ‘Fraisier’ meaning strawberry which incidentally is the clans plant badge. The motto is in French as the clan originates from France. One of the most famous mottos now is that of the Fraser of Lovat clan, which is ‘Je suis prest’, or ‘I am ready’ in English, and is well known thanks to the popularity of Outlander. ![]() Therefore the motto is a warning to others not to tackle a MacGillivray when their claws are showing. A cat is said to be without a glove when its claws are extended. The MacGillivray motto has existed for some 300 years or more and in its full version is ‘Touch not the cat bot a glove.’ Often people can mistake this as meaning ‘don’t touch the cat unless you are wearing a glove’, however, the true interpretation is ‘touch not the cat without a glove’. Today we thought we’d pick a few of our favourite clan mottos and stories to share with you.įirstly, the motto of Clan MacGillivray which is ‘Touch not this cat’. Every clan has their own motto and whilst some have simple or clear meanings, others can be more complicated, and some have great stories connected to them. One area of interest is the mottos of clans. One of the most popular questions we get asked is for information about clans and visitors own family connections to their clan heritage. ![]() Many people who come to Culloden are interested in their own family history and the ties they may have with Scottish culture.
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