Broadsword

by R. W. Hughes

Riavach, following George’s instructions, had contacted all the senior members of the clans that made up the MacKays to inform them his brother had decided to hold a meeting that would take place after the funeral of the young boy who had died in the chapel with the Reverend.

  On the morning of the funeral he took Riavach aside and sat him down at the great table in the Great Hall of Tongue House, taking a seat opposite.

  ‘Riavach you have grown over the last few months from a shy nervous young man into a confident mature member of the MacKay family. You have made sensible and logical decisions and have earned the respect of all the senior members and leaders of the families that make up our great clan.’

  Riavach looked quizzically at his older brother, wondering what warranted this amount of praise coming suddenly from out of the blue.

  ‘I have spoken to Fiona, and she has come to the same conclusions as I have, and she is, at this moment, putting the same proposition to our sister Ailie, which I am now putting to you. I have decided to attempt to free Douglas and the others from that hell hole of a prison ship and the hanging that awaits him. If I am successful there could be consequences that may be detrimental to the clan and its members, but if my plan works that may not be the case. But either way, Fiona and I have decided to take up General Oglethorpe’s offer and I will enlist again in the Highland Regiment of Foot of the colony of Georgia which includes free land for the men and their families who wish to participate. I intend putting this to the senior members of the clan at the meeting after the funeral, but I will not disclose my intentions or plans I have in mind for the release of Douglas, which will be for the ears of just a few well-chosen people.

  ‘Some of the French gold will be used to purchase good quality livestock, supplies and equipment which will be loaded aboard a sister ship, which will be on charter to and accompany us. The remaining gold will remain here to be used for the betterment of the members of the clan not wishing to follow us, for I feel after the recent proclamation of the English military occupation forces, there are hard times ahead for those who decide to remain.

  ‘You, Riavach, have the choice of joining us or staying, but if you stay it could mean taking over the position of leader of the clan MacKay, or you could still stay and leave the position open for the senior members council to appoint someone; there are several that could fill that position.’

  Riavach stared at George in shock, absorbing what he had said and the implications to the clan and to him if his brother carried out his present intentions.

  ‘This is quite a surprise, George, you intend splitting the clan in two! If you help Douglas and the rest to escape, can they not leave for the Americas on their own? Why do you have to leave, and possibly take many families with you? The clan has survived major problems before, and they will also overcome this occupation by the English and their foreign forces.’

  George half-filled two tumblers with whisky from a nearby glass decanter, handing one to Riavach and then taking a sip from his own before replying.

  ‘You are aware as well as I am that the old clan system is changing. It started before the war and has been a thorn in the side of the English aspirations of occupying Scotland for hundreds of years, and now that the English have occupied the country and imposed all these new punitive laws, the process will move much faster. They are here with their troops to stay; they do not intend to allow any future uprisings or the previous situation to occur again. We are under their yoke and they intend to wield the whip for the foreseeable future, and that bears ill for all the clans, whether they are Jacobite’s or those who supported the Royalist, I feel the outlook is very bleak indeed. Fiona and I do not want to bring our first child and any of our future children into this terrible climate of uncertainty, when I know we can have more freedom and a brighter existence in the Americas.’

  George stopped and took another sip from his tumbler before continuing.

  ‘Since I have taken over the position of leader of the clan MacKay, many of the menfolk who have young families have indicated that if I ever contemplated returning to Georgia that they and their families would be interested in joining me. That time is now upon us. We have been fortunate. Circumstances have provided us with the capital to fund our dreams and also provided us with the transport necessary to reach our objective.’

  Riavach had listened to George without interrupting and now sat looking into his glass of whisky, deep in thought. ‘You have left me much to ponder over, brother; it is a life-changing decision, not only for me, but also for all the families that make up the clan to whom you are offering this opportunity. Many I feel will not take your offer; they are too deeply involved with their family ties and communities, plus the many generations of occupation of their present properties gives them a deep feeling of belonging. And you realise your ship could be stopped by any English Man-of-War and searched, and you could all end up in chains.’

  ‘Not so Riavach!’ he replied, a smile beginning to crease his face. ‘I am at this moment awaiting the delivery from General Oglethorpe of a document signed and with the seal of the English Parliament that will give us uninterrupted passage to the Americas, and the assistance if it his required from any English ship we encounter.’

  George leaned back in his chair and Riavach leaned forward clinking his brother’s glass with his own, shaking his head as he did so as a big smile also appeared on his face. The brothers sat in silence for a long while, each deep in their own thoughts until George with a deep sigh finished the last of his whisky and rose from his chair.

  ‘I have many things to attend to, brother. I will see you later and if you wish we can discuss this situation further.’

  Riavach just nodded in reply as George left the room to go about his business.

  After his brother had left, Riavach leant forward and poured another half glass of whisky in his now empty tumbler. He sat holding the tumbler in both hands as he analysed sentence by sentence what George had said.

  It was true that he had become more involved in the decision-making and felt more confident in the company of the more senior members of the clan, as they in turn were prepared to listen to his logical suggestions, especially now that his uncle was no longer there, it was as if he had slipped into the slot once occupied by the Reverend Alistair Monroe. But was he ready to take the position that had been offered to him? He was comfortable at present on the outer fringe assessing suggestions of other senior members at the meetings, and then voicing his opinion of their possible outcome. But to take sole charge as head of the clan MacKay, and be held responsible for the result of all the major decisions, that would take a tremendous amount of confidence and nerve which he wasn’t sure he possessed.

  He was not a man of action like his brother, but like George had said, those days of inter-clan fighting were gone, the Highlands, whether it was liked or not by the population, were being policed by the Sassenach army. And logical decisions and debate would be the order of the day and not the power of the musket or the broadsword.

  His thoughts were interrupted by a shout from his sister from the bottom of the stairs announcing dinner was about to be served in the Great Hall. Riavach had been so engrossed in his thoughts that he had not noticed how dark it had become, so he lit a lantern and made his way down the narrow staircase.

  Several days later all the rubble had been removed from the chapel which just left the bare stone skeleton of the building remaining. It was now possible that the Alanson family had a venue for their son Bailoch’s burial service which would take place early in the morning.

  As was the custom, the service was attended by all the residents of the village and the surrounding area. It was a very sombre affair with much wailing from the female relations of the Alanson family with Bailoch’s mother having to be supported by her husband and brother as the smaller than usual coffin was lowered into the grave. And after the short service, the family and supporting mou
rners slowly departed to the wake held in the barn that several months earlier had been the venue for the New Year celebrations and George and Fiona’s marriage, just leaving several men from the village to fill in the grave.

  As the main group of mourners made their way to the wake, the senior members of the clan MacKay slowly made their way into the Great Hall of Tongue House, they were met by Sithig holding a tray in his still bandaged hands of whisky filled tumblers. Riavach was one of the last to enter having overseen the filling of the young Bailoch’s grave. He threaded his way slowly through the large throng of men now filling the hall, making his way in the general direction to where George was with a small group near the large stone fireplace. As Riavach came closer to his brother, he recognised several of the men standing beside him. There was Branan Macghee, Paul Aberach and his son, Ian, along with John McKay and their cousin, Hugh MacKay. Riavach also noticed standing close by the group were three cousins of Douglas Polson.

  All these men had proved themselves in battle over the last few months, and he assumed that these were the men that his brother George had approached to help him in his attempt to release Douglas and his stock keeper, who were being held at present in the prison ship docked at Thurso. And most likely they had also indicated that they and their families be placed on the list to take up the option of leaving Scotland to join the Highland Regiment of Georgia.

  As Riavach joined the group, George gave his brother a brief nod of recognition, before he moved away and stood on a nearby stool that lifted him above the heads of the gathered men.

  ‘Gentlemen!’ he shouted, at the same time clapping his hands loudly to gain their attention, looking around at the crowd of men until the murmur of conversation slowly ceased.

  ‘Some of you here today may already know the reason for the calling of this meeting.’ He stopped at this point to compose himself before continuing.

  ‘As you have visited the markets and towns of our area, you have seen with your own eyes the effect on the population of the foreign forces that now occupy our land. Under the command of the Duke of Cumberland, his army, after their atrocities on injured Highlanders at Culloden, are continuing to tighten the screw on the population of Scotland. You have all read the proclamation, the laws that have been forced upon us, and the discrimination that those of you face for continuing to communicate using our native language. I have concluded that this English Parliament intends to break the spirit of the Scottish people once and for all, and their forces will occupy our lands for many generations to come.’ He paused here for his words to be absorbed by the gathering before continuing.

  ‘My wife Fiona and I do not wish our unborn child to grow up under the yoke of this foreign occupying force.’

  He stopped to take a sip from his tumbler, the men in the room remained deathly silent.

  ‘As you all know,’ he continued, ‘several years ago I served under General Oglethorpe in the Americas with the Scottish Independent Highland regiment, protecting the colonies in Georgia against the expansive ambitions of the Spanish. All those soldiers who volunteered had the option to take their families and in return were granted good fertile land, more than they would ever possibly need to feed their families. There you can grow Indian corn and potatoes and collect wild oranges There is game in abundance: wild turkey, buffalo and deer. And there is a freedom of spirit that it is not possible for any one of you here to ever imagine. I have recently received correspondence from General Oglethorpe, who has now been appointed governor of the colony. He has requested that I raise further experienced troops to serve in that Highland regiment. I will be volunteering along with several others who I have approached who have also decided to volunteer their services, and take the offer of transport for them and their families. I am now making this offer first to the rest of you to make the quota available on the ship, before approaching and making the offer to the other clans that border our lands.’

  He stopped and took a large drink from his tumbler as he looked at the assembled men, who seemed to have been struck dumb by his intentions to leave the clan, the country and to take many of its members and their families along with him.

  ‘If we decide to go, when will we need to leave’? The shout came from the body of the hall, which all at once had suddenly started talking to one another about the position and the life changing decision that had been sprung upon them.

  ‘There will be two ships,’ replied George. ‘One with all the livestock and seed you wish to take and supplies requested by the colonists already there, and one for all the families. The ships will leave as soon as we have fulfilled the general’s quota and they could take about eight weeks to reach their destination.’

  ‘If we decide to accept the general’s offer, what if we cannot sell our surplus livestock to buy seed, equipment and supplies before the ships depart?’ enquired another voice, and this was followed by murmurs of agreement by several of the men in the hall.

  ‘All goods purchased will be honoured by our family until the stock of those families that sign for the general’s regiment can be sold, and any surplus will be forwarded on to those families’ he answered.

  ‘And what happens to Douglas Poulson!’ The shout came from the centre of the hall.’

  George took a deep breath before replying he knew that this was one of the questions that he was dreading, but he knew he would have to answer as convincing as possible.

  ‘We have approached the commander of the English garrison in Thurso and with his assistance we have organised an appeal to the Army generals based in Edinburgh,’ he lied.

  ‘And if that appeal fails!’ Came back the shout from a member of the Polson clan from the rear of the hall.

  ‘We have every belief that our appeal will be favourably heard considering Douglas’s and our clan’s actions in support of the English Crown during the recent troubles,’ he replied. ‘Now, gentlemen, can I answer any further questions with regards to the offer from General Oglethorpe.’

  ‘Will we be allowed to take our own weapons on this voyage to the Americas?’ shouted George’s cousin, Hugh MacKay, thoughtfully steering the conversation away from the subject of Douglas, seeing that George was uncomfortable answering questions about his imprisoned friend, and not wishing to be forced into a corner, and make it common knowledge of his plans to release him.

  ‘All men who have signed to join the Highland regiment of Georgia will be allowed to retain their own personal weapons, plus being issued with a standard musket.’

  ‘Where will our loyalties lie if we sign to join the Highland regiment. Will they lie with you, as chief of the clan MacKay or with General Oglethorpe?’

  The slight mummer of conversation in the room stopped while everyone waited for his reply. For him to relinquish the bond that had been the excepted norm between clansmen and their chief for many hundreds of years was a giant step in a break with tradition of the Highland clans.

  ‘For those families that stay, the tradition will continue and their loyalties will be to whoever is elected by the senior members of the clans as their leader. But for how long these traditions continue under the yoke of the occupying English forces, with their enforcement of the proclamation that you are all aware of, remains to be seen.

  Those that decide to leave, your contract and your allegiance will be to whoever is in command of the Highland Regiment of Foot, and that commander’s orders are to defend the colony of Georgia. If I am fortunate to be offered a commission in that command then I would expect every man that signed to follow me as you have done in the past.’

  He looked around the room from his elevated position; the conversation had started again as the men discussed with their nearest neighbour what he had just said.

  ‘If you have no more questions on the transport that is to be provided, those wishing to partake in this eventful journey should take time to discuss this opportunity for a new and better life w
ith their families and relations as quickly as possible. For those that wish to join me and my wife on this journey to leave our beloved Scotland for a new life in the American colonies, I can only confirm that they will not be disappointed by what they will find in this new country that offers such great opportunities for the clan MacKay and its followers.

  ‘But you have not told us how long we have to discuss this offer with our families.’ Came another shout from the gathered men.

  ‘Gentlemen, time is of the essence. The ships will be in the Bay of Tongue within the next two or three weeks, and as soon as the cargo can be loaded, they will leave for the port of Thurso to fill its quota, that is if there are insufficient numbers from the MacKays and their followers. If the quota can be filled here, it will sail direct for Georgia.’

  There were gasps from George’s audience at this statement.

  ‘It his insufficient time for us to make a decision that will decide our families’ futures,’ shouted several of the men at once.

  He realised that he was creating difficulties by giving such short notice to his clansmen of the ship’s departure, being that General Oglethorpe had set no such deadline or departure date in his correspondence. The urgency was brought about by his planned attempt to release Douglas and the others, before his friend was taken to be hung on the gallows at Thurso alongside several captured Jacobites that had resisted arrest. From a shipping agent in Thurso that the clan used to transport cattle, he had received information that Douglas was now in the prison ship, also of the date that the English frigate would be leaving Thurso for Inverness to collect extra troops to guard against any unrest during the proposed hanging. He needed to put into operation his plan while the frigate was away and also be aboard the sailing ship with the escaped prisoners carrying the recruits and their families to Georgia, and well out to sea before the frigate could return and possibly give chase if they suspected the MacKays were involved.

  ‘It is the deadline that has been set by the General to catch the favourable winds,’ he lied, feeling he had no choice in deceiving his fellow clansmen if the end result was the saving of his friend’s life. ‘And’ he continued, ‘if any man requires further information or assistance, I am here at their disposal. The hall quickly cleared as the leaders of the families that made up the clan MacKay hurried off to the wake of young Bailoch Alanson and spread the word amongst their followers, that their chief George MacKay and his wife were leaving for the Americas, and there was an offer for any family who wished to join him.