Somerled’s marriage to Ragnhild appears in the Chronicle of Man, as well as the Orkneyinga Saga. Legend tells the story that he was madly in love with the young princess and tricked her father into allowing the marriage. I am deeply suspicious of dynastic marriages that are later overlaid with romance. Besides, Somerled’s oldest son, named as Gillecolm, is recorded in some traditions as dying next to him at Renfrew – pointing to an earlier significant relationship. Eimhear, and her story, are my invention.
The Island of Women does lie next to Iona, and is believed by some to have fulfilled the function I ascribe to it.
The Battle of Epiphany is in the records, as is Somerled’s further excursion into Man in 1158. I am indebted to Wallace Clark for his book about recreating a voyage in a Highland galley, Aileach: The Lord of the Isles Voyage. I have accepted Mr Clark’s hypothesis for the siting of the Battle of Epiphany, as well as drawing inspiration from his vivid recreation of galley sailing.
Somerled’s descendants include, among others, the MacDonald clan, as well as the MacDougalls and MacAllisters. The Donald in question is his grandson, Ranald’s son. On Somerled’s death, his sons by Ragnhild fought bitterly amongst themselves over the Lordship of the Isles. Legend foretells this fraternal warfare with the story of the swimming race; although in the legendary version one of the brothers hacks off his own hand and chucks it at the shore in order to win.
Somerled ultimately failed in pushing back the Anglo-Norman influenced Canmore Kings, with their push towards feudalism, monasticism and urbanization. History is full of fascinating counter-factuals, but the what ifs here are fascinating. How different would Scotland have been, had Somerled and his horde of Gaels and Manx and Dublin Norse won at Renfrew, pushing the Anglo-Normans back to the Borders?
A question to mull over a whisky. Those to whom I owe many drams include my agent Andrew Gordon who believed in this book, and gave utterly invaluable advice. Thank you. Sara O’Keeffe and Louise Cullen at Corvus have been fabulous and supportive. My copy-editor Jane Selley was meticulous and put-upon. Thanks too to Maddie West, who among many other moments of greatness, came up with the title.
Thanks to my wonderful girls who have tramped much heather without too much whining and bribery. Lara, Romilly and Claudia – I love you beyond measure. Much love, too, to Dad, Glencora, Elishna and Hector. The Skippers, the Roes, the Moores and the Talyarkhans – you can all be in my clan, any time. Thanks to my Mother, whose wisdom and determination to laugh at fate provided my template for Gaelic womanhood. Thanks and love to my Scottish clan-in-law, particularly Bill and Sarah West.
This book is for Colin, with whom I hope to stand on many a wild shore, with a fog rising and a dram waiting.
Antonia Senior is a former staff writer for The Times. She is now a freelance journalist, and her columns, features and book reviews have appeared in a number of national newspapers. Antonia lives in London with her family. She has travelled extensively through Scotland’s Highlands and Islands.
Published in hardback in Great Britain in 2015 by Corvus, an imprint of Atlantic Books Ltd.
Copyright © Antonia Senior, 2015
The moral right of Antonia Senior to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities, is entirely coincidental.
‘We Will Walk’, New Collected Poems by Iain Crichton Smith, reprinted by permission of Carcanet.
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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Hardback ISBN: 978 1 78239 658 1
Trade paperback ISBN: 978 1 78239 681 9
E-book ISBN: 978 1 78239 659 8
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Table of Contents
Part 1
Part 2
The Winter Isles Page 32