I always wondered why, given the creative invective available to our ancestors, we settled on Ard Choille (High wood) as our Clan battle-cry. I found an answer in the book THE HIGHLAND CLANS by Moncreiffe & Hicks.

Our clan war-cry came about because of one Duncan Ladasach (lordly) MacGregor of Ardchoille-- a.k.a. Lord Makgregour of ould. He was one very recalcitrant man (or so the Campbells found him to be), the headman of rightful branch of the MacGregors who strenuously objected to the Campbells championing of a junior branch of our Clan (Dughaill Ciar, admitted even by the Campbells to be "not (the) righteous heir to the MacGregors". Ardchoille's name was adopted by the other Gregarach as a cry of defiant challenge against this deposition of authority by the Campbells and this junior branch of the Clan.

Ardchoille, the leader of The Children of the Mist (a name that can also by translated from Gaelic as The Fog Folk) came to a bad end when he was captured, by treachery!, and beheaded along with two of his sons by Grey Colin Campbell in 1552 (The Campbells also managed to get Ardchoille's grandson at Bintorg in 1604 making a fairly good job of lopping several limbs off of the family tree without the help of official proscription).

The book THE BLACK BOOK OF TAYMOUTH gives us Grey Colin's opinion of our clan's coat of arms (the uprooted oak surrmounted by a sword bearing an ancient crown). If any proof was needed of the Campbell's hostility toward us, this little poetic essay would offer complete confirmation of their ill-will to all things MacGregor. Bear with me, the spelling is as villainous as Grey Colin.

Off the Mc'Grogoris Armes

The Sworde and firtree croceit beneath ane croun
Ar fatall signes appropriat to this race,
By sum foirseeing fellow weill set doun,
Meit for suche lymmaris spoilzeing euerie place.
The croun presentis the Kingis most royall grace,
Ane rychteous judge with skill quha dois decre
That thai and all such cutthrittis suld imbrace
His seueir censure for thair villanie,
To wit, gif ony fra his sworde goie frie
Onexecute, continewing in their wrang,
He will erect ane gallow of that trie
And thairopone thame in ane widdis hang.
Sa faris my wittis can serve, I can nocht ken
Ane better badge for such a sort of men.
Postscriptum,
One thing yet restis that sould their armes befit,
If with Sanct Johnstounes rubnis thai war knit. (St. Johnston's or Perth ribbons are hangmen's nooses)

For more information about this subject, and to see some wonderful photographs of our family relics, look for a copy of The Highland Clans by Sir Iain Moncreiffe (photographs by David Hicks). It was published in 1967 so you will probably need a book dealer to help track it down, but it is well worth the effort.

Unfortunately, the death of Ardchoille was just the beginning of the purging of MacGregor leaders (of course, the Proscription brought our family other horrors. See the MacGregor timeline). We suffered another terrible pre-proscription loss in 1570 when MacGregor of Glenstrae was executed. A moving oral account of the execution of MacGregor of Glenstrae can be had from The Celtic Lullabye from Ellipsis Arts (see the music page for details about this CD).

But our ancestors were an amazingly brave and protean people and thanks to that courage and adaptability, MacGregors despite them still flourish.

Ard choille!