Duncan MacGillechriost now naturally felt that he had some claim to the governorship of the castle, but being considered "a man more bold and rash than prudent and politick," Mackenzie decided to pass him over. Duncan then put in a claim for his brother Farquhar, but it was thought best, to avoid local quarrels and bitterness between the respective claimants, to supersede them both and appoint another, John MacMhurchaidh Dhuibh, priest of Kintail, to the Constableship. Duncan was so much offended at such treatment in return for his valiant services that he left Kintail in disgust, and went to the country of Lord Lovat, who received him kindly, and gave him the lands of Crochel and others in Strathglass, where he lived for several years, until Lovat's death. Mackenzie, however, often visited him and finally prevailed upon him to return to Kintail, and Duncan, who always retained a lingering affection for his native country, ultimately became reconciled to the chief, who gave him the quarterland of Little Inverinate and Dorisduan, where he lived the remainder of his days, and which his descendants continued to possess for generations after his death.
For this service against the Macdonalds, James V. gave Mackenzie Kinchullidrum, Achilty, and Comery in feu, with Meikle Scatwell, under the Great Seal, in 1528. The lands of Laggan Achidrom, being four merks, the three merks of Killianan, and the four merk lands of Invergarry, being in the King's hands, were disposed by him to John Mackenzie, after the King's minority and revocation, in 1540, with a precept, under the Great Seal, and sasine thereupon by Sir John Robertson in January 1541. But before this, in 1521, he acquired the lands of Fodderty and mill thereof from Mr John Cadell, which James V. confirmed to him at Linlithgow in September, 1522. In 1541 he feued Brahan from the King to himself and his heirs male, which failing, to his eldest daughter. In 1542 he obtained the waste lands and forest of Neid and Monar from James V. for which sasine is granted in the same year by Sir John Robertson. In January 1547 he acquired a wadset of the half of Culteleod (Castle Leod) and Drynie from Denoon of Davidston. In September of the same year, old as he was, he went in defence of his Sovereign, young Mary of Scots, to the Battle of Pinkie, where he was taken prisoner; and the Laird of Kilravock meeting him advised him that they should own themselves among the commons, Mackenzie passing off as a bowman. While Kilravock would pass himself off as a miller, which plan succeeded so well as to secure Kilravock his release; but the Earl of Huntly, who was also a prisoner, having been conveyed by the Duke of Somerset to view the prisoners, espying his old friend Mackenzie among the common prisoners, and ignorant of the plot, called him by his name, desiring that he might shake hands with him, which civility two English officers noticed to Mackenzie's disadvantage; for thenceforward he was placed and guarded along with the other prisoners of quality, but afterwards released for a considerable sum, to which all his people contributed without burdening his own estate with it, ["He was ransomed by cows that was raised through all his lands." - Letterform MS.] so returning home to set himself to arrange his private affairs, and in the year 1556 he acquired the heritage of Culteleod and Drynie from Denoon, which was confirmed to him by Queen Mary under the Great Seal, at Inverness 13th July the same year. He had previously, in 1544, acquired the other half of Culteleod and Drynie from Magnus Mowat, and Patrick Mowat of Bugholly. In 1543 John Mackenzie acquired Kildins, part of Lochbroom, to himself and Elizabeth Grant, his wife, holding blench for a penny, and confirmed in the same year by Queen Mary. [MS. History by the Earl of Cromartie.]
In 1540 Mackenzie with his followers joined King James at Loch Duich, while on his way with a large fleet to secure the good government of the West Highlands and Isles, upon which occasion many of the suspected and refractory leaders were carried south and placed in confinement. His Majesty died soon after, in 1542. Queen Mary succeeded, and, being a minor, the country generally, but particularly the northern parts, was thrown into a state of anarchy and confusion.
In 1544 the Earl of Huntly, holding a commission as Lieutenant of the North from the Queen Regent, Mary of Guise, commanded Kenneth Mackenzie, younger of Kintail (his father, from his advanced age, being unable to take the field), to raise his vassals and lead an expedition against the Clan Ranald of Moidart, who, at that time, held lands from Mackenzie on the West Coast; but Kenneth, in these circumstances, thought it would be much against his personal interest to attack Donald Glas of Moidart, and refused to comply with Huntly's orders. To punish him, the Earl ordered his whole army, consisting of three thousand men, to proceed against both Moidart and Mackenzie with fire and sword, but he had not sufficiently calculated on the constitution of his force, which was chiefly composed of Grants, Rosses, Mackintoshes, and Chisholms; and Kenneth's mother being a daughter of John, then laird of Grant, and three of his daughters having married, respectively, Ross of Balnagown, Lachlan Mackintosh of Mackintosh, and Alexander Chisholm of Comar, Huntly found his followers as little disposed to molest Mackenzie as he had been to attack Donald Glas of Moidart. In addition to the friendly feelings of the other chiefs towards young Kintail, fostered by these family alliances, Huntly was not at all popular with his own followers, or with the Highlanders generally. He had incurred such odium for having some time before executed the Laird of Mackintosh, contrary to his solemn pledge, that it required little excuse on the part of the exasperated kindred tribes to counteract his plans, and on the slightest pretext to refuse to follow him. He was therefore obliged to retire from the West without effecting any substantial service; was ultimately disgraced; committed to Edinburgh Castle; compelled to renounce the Earldom of Moray and all his other possessions in the north; and sentenced to banishment in France for five years.
On the 13th of December 1545, at Dingwall, the Earl of Sutherland entered into a bond of manrent with John Mackenzie of Kintail for mutual defence against all enemies, reserving only their allegiance to their youthful Queen, Mary Stuart. [Sir Robert Gordon, p. 112.] Two years later the Earl of Arran sent the fiery cross over the nation calling upon all between the ages of sixteen and sixty to meet him at Musselburgh for the protection of the infant Queen. Mackenzie of Kintail, then between sixty and seventy years of age, when he might fairly consider himself exempt from further military service, duly appeared with all the followers he could muster, prudently leaving Kenneth, his only son, at home and when remonstrated with for taking part in such a perilous journey at his time of life, especially as he was far past the stipulated age for active service, the old chief patriotically remarked that one of his age could not possibly die more decorously than in the defence of his country. In the same year (1547) he fought bravely, at the head of his clan, with all the enthusiasm and gallantry of his younger days, at the battle of Pinkie, where he was wounded in the head and taken prisoner, but was soon afterwards released, through the influence of the Earl of Huntly, who had meanwhile again got into favour received a full pardon, and was appointed Chancellor for Scotland.
The Earl of Huntly some time after this paid a visit to Ross, intending, if he were kindly received by the great chiefs, to feu a part of the earldom of Ross, still in the King's hands, and to live in the district for some period of the year. Mackenzie, although friendly disposed towards the Earl, had no desire to have him residing in his immediate neighbourhood, and he arranged a plan which had the effect of deciding Huntly to give up any idea of remaining or feuing any lands in Ross. The Earl, having obtained a commission from the Regent to hold courts in the county, came to the castle of Dingwall, where he invited the principal chiefs to meet him. John of Killin, though very advanced in years, was the first to arrive, and he was very kindly received by Huntly. Mackenzie in return made a pretence of heartily welcoming and congratulating his lordship on his coming to Ross, and trusted that he would be the means of protecting him and his friends from the violence of his son, Kenneth, who, taking advantage of his frailty and advanced years, was behaving most unjustly towards him. John, indeed, expressed the hope that the Earl would punish Kenneth for his illegal and unnatural rebellion against him, his aged father. While they were thus speaking, a message came in that a large number of armed men, three or four hundred strong, with banners flying and pipes playing, were just in sight on the hill above Dingwall. The Earl became alarmed, not knowing whom they might be or what their object was, whereupon Mackenzie said that it could be no other than Kenneth and his rebellious followers coming to punish him for paying his lordship this visit without his consent and he advised the Earl to leave at once, as he was not strong enough to resist the enemy, and to take him (the old chief) along with him in order to protect him from his son's violence, which would now, in consequence of this visit he directed against him more than ever. The Earl and his retinue at once withdrew to Easter Ross. Kenneth ordered his men to pursue them. He overtook them as they were crossing the bridge of Dingwall and killed several of them; but having attained his object of frightening Huntly out of Ross, he ordered his men to desist. This skirmish is known as the "affair of Dingwall Bridge." [Ardintoul MS.]
In 1556 Y Mackay of Farr, progenitor of the Lords of Reay, refused to appear before the Queen Regent at Inverness, to answer charges made against him for depredations committed in Sutherlandshire; and she issued a commission to John, fifth Earl of Sutherland, to lay Mackay's country waste. Mackay, satisfied that he could not successfully oppose the Earl's forces in the field, pillaged and plundered another district of Sutherland. The Earl conveyed intelligence of how matters stood to John of Kintail, who, in terms of the bond of manrent entered into between them in 1545, despatched his son Kenneth with an able body of the clan to arrest Mackay's progress, which duty he performed most effectually. Meeting at Brora, a severe contest ensued, which terminated in the defeat of Mackay, with the loss of Angus MacIain Mhoir, one of his chief commanders, and many of his clan. Kenneth was thereupon, conjointly with his father, appointed by the Earl of Sutherland - then the Queen's Lieutenant north of the Spey, and Chamberlain of the Earldom of Ross [Sir Robert Gordon, p. 134.] - his deputies in the management of this vast property, at the same time placing them in possession of Ardmeanoch, or Redcastle, which remained ever since, until within a recent period, in the possession of the family, becoming the property of Kenneth's third son, Ruairidh Mor, first of the house of Redcastle, and progenitor of the family of Kincraig and other well-known branches.
After this, Kintail seems to have lived in peace during the remainder of his long life. He died at his home at Inverchonan, in 1561, about eighty years of age. He was buried in the family aisle at Beauly. That he was a man of proved valour is fully established by the distinguished part he took in the battles of Flodden and Pinkie. The Earl of Cromarty informs us that, "in his time he purchased much of the Brae-lands of Ross, and secured both what he acquired and what his predecessors had, by well ordered and legal security, so that it is doubtful whether his predecessors' courage or his prudence contributed most to the rising of the family."
In illustration of the latter quality, we quote the following story: John Mackenzie of Kintail "was a very great courtier and counsellor of Queen Maries. Much of the lands of Brae Ross were acquired by him, which minds me how he entertained the Queen's Chamberlain who she sent north to learn the state and condition of the gentry of Ross, minding to feu her interest of that Earldome. Sir John, hearing of their coming to his house of Killin, he caused his servants put on a great fyre of ffresh arn wood newly cutt, which when they came in (sitting on great jests of wood which he caused sett there a purpose) made such a reek that they were almost blinded, and were it not the night was so ill they would rather goe than byde it. They had not long sitten when his servants came in with a great bull, which presently they brained on the floor, and or they well could look about, this fellow with his dirk, and that fellow with his, were cutting collops of him. Then comes in another sturdie lusty fellow with a great calderon in his hand, and ane axe in the other, and with its shaft stroak each of these that were cutting the collops, and then made Taylzies of it and put all in the kettle, sett it on the same tire before them all and helped the tire with more green wood. When all was ready as he had ordered, a long, large table was covered and the beef sett on in great scaills of dishes instead of pleats. They had scarcely sitten to supper when they let loose six or sevin great hounds to supp the broth, but before they made ane end of it, they made such a tulzie as made them all start at the table. The supper being ended, and longing for their bedds (but much more for day), there comes in 5 or 6 lustie women with windlings of strae (and white plaids) which they spread on each side of the house, whereon the gentlemen were forced to lye in their cloaths, thinking they had come to purgatory before hand; but they had no sooner seen day light than without stayeing dinner they made to the gett, down to Ross where they were most noblie entertained be Ffowlis, Belnagowin, Miltoun, and severall other gentlemen. But when they were come south the Queen asked who were the ablest men they saw there. They answered all they did see lived like princes, except Her Majesty's great courtier and counsellor Mackenzie. So tells her all their usage in his house, and that he slept with his doggs and sat with his hounds, wherat the Queen leugh mirrily (whatever her thoughts was of M'Kenzie) and said 'It were a pity of his poverty, ffor he is the best and honestest among them all.' The Queen thereafter having called all the gentry of Ross to hold their lands of the Crown in feu, Mackenzie got (by her favour and his pretended poverty) the easiest feu, and for his 1000 merks more than any of the rest had for three." [Ancient MS.]
John had a natural son named Dugall, who lived in Applecross, and married a niece of Macleod of Harris, by whom he had a son and one daughter. The son, also named Dugall, was a schoolmaster in Chanonry, and died without issue. The daughter was married to Duncan Mackenzie, Reraig, and after his death to Mackintosh of Strone. Dugall, the elder, was killed by the Mathesons at Kishorn. John had also a natural daughter, Janet, who married first Mackay of Reay, and secondly, Roderick Macleod, X. of Lewis, with issue - Torquil Cononach; and afterwards "Ian Mor na Tuaighe," brother of John MacGillechallum of Raasay, with whom she eloped.