First Earl of Breadalbane.
From Original Painting in possession of
Lady Elizabeth Pringle.

Not much appears to have resulted from the meeting which Breadalbane had with the chiefs at Achallader; indeed, he showed very little of an earnest desire for conciliation, as his threatening conduct induced Alexander Macdonald, or MacIan, of Glencoe, to leave the meeting abruptly for his own safety. Between Breadalbane, who was a Campbell, and Macdonald much bad blood appears to have existed; indeed, nothing but the bitterest hatred was cherished by the whole tribe of the Macdonalds to the Campbells, as the latter had from time to time, oftener by foul than by fair means, ousted the former from their once extensive possessions. The Macdonalds of Glencoe especially, still considered the lands and property of the Campbells as their own, and without hesitation supplied their wants out of the numerous herds of the latter. It was some recent raid of this sort which roused the wrath of Breadalbane; and on poor Macdonald’s head lighted all the blame and the punishment of the ineffectual negotiation. What became of the money has never been clearly ascertained; but much can be inferred from Breadalbane’s answer when asked afterwards by Lord Nottingham to account for it, “The money is spent, the Highlands are quiet, and this is the only way of accounting among friends.”

Like many of his contemporaries, Breadalbane attached himself openly to King William’s government only because it was for the time the winning side; while at the same time he professed secretly to be attached to the interest of the exiled King James. He told the Highland chiefs that in urging them to enter into terms with the government, he had their own interests and those of King James at heart; for there being then “no other appearance of relief, he thought they could not do better than sue for a cessation, which would be a breathing to them, and give them time to represent their circumstances to King James.”[636] A contemporary characterises him as being “cunning as a fox; wise as a serpent; but as slippery as an eel. No government can trust him but where his own private interest is in view.”[637]

As the chiefs did not seem in any hurry to come to terms, a proclamation was issued, in August 1691, requiring them to take the oath of allegiance before the 1st of January 1692, threatening all those who did not comply with “letters of fire and sword.” This had the proper effect, as, one by one, the chiefs swore fealty to the government, Macdonald of Glencoe, from pride or some other reason, being the last to comply with the terms of the proclamation. The difficulty in getting the chiefs to come to terms, and thus allowing the government to pursue its other schemes without anxiety, seems at last to have irritated Sir John Dalrymple so much against them, that latterly he eagerly desired that some, and especially the various tribes of Macdonalds, might hold out beyond the time, in order that an example might be made of them by putting into execution the penalty attached to the non-fulfilment of the terms of the proclamation. In a letter to Breadalbane of Dec. 2d, he thinks “the clan Donald must be rooted out and Lochiel,” and is doubtful whether the money “had been better employed to settle the Highlands, or to ravage them.” In another written on the following day he mentions with approval Breadalbane’s “mauling scheme,” artfully rousing the latter’s indignation by speaking of the chiefs’ ungratefulness to him, using at the same time the significant phrase delenda est Carthago. He and Breadalbane seemed however likely to be cheated of their vengeance, for even the obstinate and hated Mac Ian himself, after holding out to the very last day, hastened to fulfil the requirements of the proclamation, and thus place himself beyond the power of the strong arm of the law.

On the 31st of December, 1691, Glencoe made his way to Fort-William, and presented himself to Colonel Hill the governor, asking him to administer the required oath of allegiance. The Colonel, however, declined to act, on the ground, that according to the proclamation, the civil magistrate alone could administer them. Glencoe remonstrated with Hill on account of the exigency of the case, as there was not any magistrate whom he could reach before the expiration of that day, but Hill persisted in asserting that it was out of his power to act in the matter. He, however advised Glencoe to proceed instantly to Inverary, giving him at the same time a letter to Sir Colin Campbell of Ardkinglass, sheriff of Argyleshire, begging him to receive Glencoe as “a lost sheep,” and to administer to him the necessary oaths. Hill also gave Glencoe a letter of protection, and an assurance that no proceedings should be instituted against him under the proclamation, till he should have an opportunity of laying his case before the king or the privy council.

Glencoe left Fort-William immediately, and so great was his anxiety to reach Inverary with as little delay as possible, that although his way lay through mountains almost impassable, and although the country was deeply covered with snow, he proceeded on his journey without even stopping to see his family, though he passed within half a mile of his own house. On arriving at Inverary, Sir Colin Campbell was absent, and he had to wait three days till his return, Sir Colin having been prevented from reaching Inverary sooner, on account of the badness of the weather. As the time allowed by the proclamation for taking the oaths had expired, Sir Colin declined at first to swear Glencoe, alleging that it would be of no use to take the oaths; but Glencoe having first importuned him with tears to receive from him the oath of allegiance, and having thereafter threatened to protest against the sheriff should he refuse to act, Sir Colin yielded, and administered the oaths to Glencoe and his attendants on the 6th of January. Glencoe, thereupon, returned home in perfect reliance that having done his utmost to comply with the injunction of the government, he was free from danger.

Shortly after this, Campbell transmitted to Colin Campbell, sheriff-clerk of Argyle, who was then in Edinburgh, the certificate of Glencoe’s oath on the same paper with other certificates, sending at the same time the letter which he had received from Hill. Campbell showed this paper with Hill’s letter to several privy councillors, among whom was the Earl of Stair, all of whom were of opinion that the certificate could not be received without a warrant from the king. Instead, however, of laying the matter before the privy council, or informing Glencoe of the rejection of the certificate, that he might petition the king, Campbell gave in the paper to the clerks of the council with Glencoe’s certificate “delete and obliterate.”

Whether this was done at the instigation of Secretary Dalrymple, it is impossible to say; but it is not improbable that this man—who, a few weeks before, had exulted[638] that as the winter was the only season in which the Highlanders could not escape, they could easily be destroyed “in the cold long nights”—was not an indifferent spectator to Campbell’s proceedings. In fact, it appears that the secretary contemplated the total extirpation of the clans, for, in a letter to Sir Thomas Livingston, commander of the forces in Scotland, dated January 7th, he says, “You know in general that these troops posted at Inverness and Inverlochie, will be ordered to take in the house of Innergarie, and to destroy entirely the country of Lochaber, Lochiel’s lands, Keppoch’s, Glengarie’s, and Glencoe,” and he adds, “I assure you your power shall be full enough, and I hope the soldiers will not trouble the government with prisoners.” The Macdonalds were chiefly marked out by him for destruction, and after saying, in a letter of the 9th, that he could have wished that they “had not divided” on the question of taking the oath of indemnity, he expresses his regret to find that Keppoch and Glencoe were safe. When he heard two days after from Argyle, that Glencoe had not managed to take the oaths within the time prescribed, he expressed a joy which might be called fiendish, and set himself busily to take proper advantage of the opportunity.[639] Delenda est Carthago.

That no time might be lost in enforcing the penalties in the proclamation, now that the time allowed for taking the oath of allegiance had expired, instructions of rather an equivocal nature, signed and countersigned by the king on the 11th of January, were sent down by young Stair to Sir Thomas Livingston, enclosed in a letter from the secretary of same date. By the instructions, Livingston was ordered “to march the troops against the rebels who had not taken the benefit of the indemnity, and to destroy them by fire and sword;” but lest such a course might render them desperate, he was allowed to “give terms and quarters, but in this manner only, that chieftains and heritors, or leaders, be prisoners of war, their lives only safe, and all other things in mercy, they taking the oath of allegiance, and the community taking the oath of allegiance, and rendering their arms, and submitting to the government, are to have quarters, and indemnity for their lives and fortunes, and to be protected from the soldiers.” As a hint to Livingston how to act under the discretionary power with which these instructions vested him, Dalrymple says in his letter containing them, “I have no great kindness to Keppoch nor Glencoe, and it is well that people are in mercy, and then just now my Lord Argyle tells me that Glencoe hath not taken the oath, at which I rejoice. It is a great work of charity to be exact in rooting out that damnable sect, the worst of the Highlands.”