Iain mac Mhurchaidh facts for kids

Iain mac Mhurchaidh, also known as John MacRae, was a Scottish poet and an early immigrant to North Carolina. He came from Kintail, Scotland, and was a member of the MacRae family. Many people consider MacRae one of the first Scottish Gaelic poets in North America whose work we know about.

MacRae fought as a Loyalist soldier during the American Revolution. He took part in battles like Moore's Creek Bridge and King's Mountain. His war poems, which supported the British side, are an important part of Scottish Gaelic literature. They are still popular among people who speak Canadian Gaelic today. According to Michael Newton, MacRae's poems inspired Scottish people living near the Cape Fear River to fight for King George III. Because of this, American Patriots treated him very harshly.

Early Life in Scotland

Iain mac Mhurchaidh was born in a place called Lianag a’ Chùl Doire in Kintail, Scotland. His family was part of the Clan Macrae, a well-known Scottish clan. His great-grandfather, Alasdair MacRae, was the 8th Chief of Clan Macrae of Inverinate.

The MacRaes of Inverinate were famous for being very loyal to the Chief of Clan MacKenzie. Because of their strong and helpful service, Clan Macrae of Kintail was even called Clan MacKenzie's "shirt of mail," like a protective armor.

Even though the MacKenzie Chief decided to support the British government during the Jacobite rising of 1745, the MacRae clan was divided. Some MacRaes fought for Prince Charles Edward Stuart, who wanted to restore the old royal family. Others joined the government's forces.

Members of Clan Macrae of Kintail were also known for making high-quality illegal alcohol, called "peatreek" in Scotland. They used special pots to make it.

Iain mac Mhurchaidh came from a wealthy Scottish family. This meant he had a much easier life than most other Scottish people after the Battle of Culloden in 1746. He worked for Kenneth Mackenzie, the Chief of Clan MacKenzie. His jobs included being a ground-officer, a deer stalker, and a forester in Kintail and Lochalsh. These were good jobs that paid well. MacRae was also very witty, and people loved having him around. No fancy party or village gathering was complete without him.

Why He Moved to America

Around 1773, MacRae received a letter from Reverend John Bethune. Bethune was a minister from Glenelg, Scotland, who had moved to North Carolina. He was the minister of the Barbecue Presbyterian Church in what is now Harnett County. We don't know exactly what the letter said. But experts believe it likely mentioned how much wild game there was in the New World.

In Scottish culture, hunting deer was a traditional activity for important people and warriors. Eating fish or seafood was seen as a sign of lower status. However, by this time, landlords from England and Scotland were starting to treat hunting as illegal poaching. Iain mac Mhurchaidh had already written a poem complaining that his hunting rights were being limited. For this reason, and others, he decided to follow the minister's advice and move to North Carolina.

When news spread about Iain Mac Mhuirchaidh's plans, his friends and family were very upset. Three wealthy noblemen offered him any farm he wanted on their large estates. But MacRae had made up his mind.

MacRae didn't want to go alone. He wrote many Gaelic poems and songs asking his friends and family to join him. In these poems, he complained that warriors were no longer valued. He also said that greed had become more important to the clan chiefs than family ties. Iain mac Mhurchaidh always ended his poems by saying that Scottish people should move to the New World. He believed they should leave behind the corrupted nobility in Scotland.

Before he left, Iain hosted the ship's captain for dinner. The captain saw that MacRae had plenty of good food. He asked if MacRae could always eat so well. When MacRae said yes, the captain told him he wouldn't have such meals in America. He advised MacRae to stay home. MacRae's wife and many friends also urged him to stay. He felt unsure about what to do. But his friend Ardintoul told him that if he went back on his word after all he had said and sung, people would see him as a weak coward. The thought of being dishonored made him decide to go.

Revolutionary War Poet

Iain mac Mhuirchaidh arrived in North Carolina in 1774. By 1775, he had earned enough money to buy 150 acres of land. This land was along McLendons Creek, in what is now Moore County, North Carolina.

Some experts believe that after he moved, Iain mac Mhuirchaidh wrote a Gaelic lullaby. Its title means "Go to sleep peacefully, little beloved one."

Marcus Tanner said that Iain mac Mhurchaidh's arrival in the New World was "bad timing." He had barely settled before he was fighting against other Americans.

When the American Revolution began, British officers came to North Carolina. They asked all Scottish people in the colony to join the British side. They sent out messages saying that all loyal subjects should gather to join the King's Army. Those who didn't would face serious consequences, like being treated as rebels. Scottish Highlanders understood this as a threat of land loss and harsh treatment, similar to what happened after the Battle of Culloden in 1746. That time is still called "The Year of the Pillaging" in Scotland.

On February 1, 1776, a British general raised the Royal Standard (a flag) in Cross Creek. This started what was called "The Insurrection of Clan Donald." Parties were held to encourage people to join the army. Iain mac Mhuirchaidh was one of the first Scottish people in North Carolina to enlist.

When Loyalist forces gathered on February 15, 1776, there were about 3,500 men. Highlanders came from all over, carrying swords and wearing tartan clothes. They marched to the sound of bagpipes. Clans like MacDonald, MacLeod, MacKenzie, Macrae, and others were there. Not everyone joined, as some did not want to fight for a cause they didn't believe in. Many hid in swamps and forests.

It is said that Flora MacDonald, a famous Scottish heroine, spoke to the Loyalist Scottish people in Gaelic. She encouraged them to fight with great enthusiasm. This kind of speech was known as an "incitement to battle" among the Highland clans.

As the Loyalists marched towards the coast, American militiamen followed them. The Americans then ambushed them at a crossing of Moore's Creek. On February 27, 1776, Iain mac Mhuirchaidh fought in the famous Highland charge at the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge. He survived the battle but was taken prisoner. His son, Murdo Macrae, fought beside him and was badly wounded, later dying from his injuries.

While he was a prisoner of war in Philadelphia, Iain mac Mhurchaidh felt deep regret about moving to America. He wrote a song called "I am weary of this exile."

As the war continued, the strong loyalty of Scottish people to King George III began to weaken. Many Highland soldiers left their Loyalist regiments and joined the American Continental Army. One officer noted that Highland immigrants were even more against the British than native Americans.

Iain mac Mhurchaidh paid a high price for his loyalty to the King. In 1780, the North Carolina government taxed his property at three times its real value. This unfair tax, along with the Highland idea of family honor and the duty to avenge fallen relatives, explains why MacRae kept fighting. The death of his son, Murdo, at Moore's Creek Bridge was a main reason he refused to give up.

His Death

Iain mac Mhurchaidh must have been released or escaped from prison in Philadelphia. This is because he fought again as a Loyalist soldier at the Battle of King's Mountain on October 7, 1780.

This battle is often seen as a fight between Loyalist Highlanders and Scotch-Irish revolutionaries. However, many Gaelic speakers fought on both sides. It is said that Iain mac Mhurchaidh, like ancient Celtic poets, walked between the two armies during the battle. He tried to convince his fellow Gaelic speakers among the American Patriots to join the Loyalist side. He sang a song that meant "Even if the upper hand were gained against the Redcoats."

In this poem, which is believed to have cost him dearly, Iain mac Mhurchaidh said that the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution were wrong. He compared them to disrespecting one's father. He also warned that Patriots who did not submit to the British King would be treated like suspected rebels were after the Battle of Culloden in 1746.

Iain mac Mhuirchaidh is believed to have died during or soon after the Battle of King's Mountain. Some sources say he died in prison. Others believe he was "probably killed by the American Patriots." One story says he "suffered an excruciating death" at the hands of Patriots. Still other accounts claim he was taken prisoner but escaped. These stories say he hid in the forests until after the war and lived long enough to ask the British Crown for money for his lost properties in North Carolina.

His Legacy

After the war ended, many areas in North Carolina and other parts of the new United States became almost empty. This was because many Scottish people who spoke Gaelic and were Loyalists moved north to what remained of British North America.

Among these Loyalists was Iain mac Mhurchaidh's close friend, Reverend John Bethune. Like MacRae, Rev. Bethune fought as a Loyalist chaplain and was captured after the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge. Interestingly, even though their former minister was a Loyalist, the Gaelic-speaking church in Barbecue, North Carolina, was known as "an island of Patriots in a sea of Loyalists" for the rest of the war.

After being released in a prisoner exchange, Rev. Bethune served as a chaplain. He then ministered to his fellow Scottish people in Montreal and Williamstown, Ontario. He also worked in many Canadian Gaelic-speaking settlements in Glengarry County, Ontario. Rev. Bethune is known for organizing the first Presbyterian churches in Canada. His many descendants include the famous actor Christopher Plummer.

According to Marcus Tanner, Iain Mac Mhurchaidh's "poems were brought back to Scotland years later by others who had learned them." Another Loyalist named John MacRae, who lost his arm in the war, is especially credited with memorizing Iain mac Mhurchaidh's poems. He brought them back to his home area of Kintail in Scotland.

Michael Newton says that people often remembered Iain mac Mhurchaidh for decades after his death. This was true for Scottish people in both Scotland and Canada. They often mentioned him when talking about the mass evictions known as the Highland Clearances. Iain mac Mhurchaidh was used as an example to show the loyalty of Highland soldiers to the British royal family after Culloden. Their suffering and sacrifices were contrasted with the lack of gratitude shown by the British government and landlords towards these veterans and their families.

Even though many Scottish people moved to Canada after the Revolution, a large Gaelic-speaking community remained in North Carolina. Many pioneer families carried their Gaelic Bibles and psalm books with them as they moved west.

According to Michael Newton, "Many Highlanders remained in North Carolina, certainly enough to retain a distinctive community that continued to thrive and speak Gaelic." There is also evidence of more Scottish people moving to North Carolina between 1791 and 1820. Some Gaelic colonists from the Caribbean also moved to the Carolinas in the 1820s.

However, unlike Nova Scotia, where a unique Canadian dialect of Scottish Gaelic is still spoken, the Gaelic community in North Carolina did not last. Marcus Tanner says it was "well and truly disrupted" by the American Civil War. This is why, even though there were likely pro-Patriot Gaelic poems and poets in North Carolina, almost nothing was written down. The local Gaelic dialect died out after the Civil War.

It is ironic that one of the only surviving pro-Patriot Gaelic poems from the American Revolution was written in Scotland, not the United States. This Patriot poet cleverly used the idea of a bad clan chief, who raises rents and spends money on luxuries. He then applied these ideas to the Scottish nobility and King George III.

The poem, "The Lament of the North," was written in 1783. This was the year the American Revolution ended and the Highland Clearances began in the poet's home area. The author was Kenneth MacKenzie, a poet from Clan MacKenzie. In his poem, he criticized the Scottish clan chiefs for becoming absentee landlords. He said they unfairly raised rents and evicted their clansmen to make way for sheep. He also accused them of "spending their wealth uselessly" in London. He blamed King George III for being a tyrant, for being too greedy, and for wasting taxpayer money on fancy clothes. MacKenzie argued that truth was on the side of George Washington and the Continental Army. He said that Scottish people should move from the Highlands to the United States before the King and landlords took all their money.

Today, people in North Carolina are still very proud of their Scottish Highland heritage. One of North America's largest Highland games events, the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, is held there every year. It attracts visitors from all over the world. These games are called "the best" in the United States because of the beautiful scenery and the large number of people who attend wearing kilts and other Scottish clan clothing. It is also thought to be the largest "gathering of clans" in North America, with more family lines represented than at any other similar event.

Images for kids

• Battle of King's Mountain.jpg

  The Battle of King's Mountain, where Iain mac Mhurchaidh may have fought his last battle.