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Father Allan MacDonald (Scottish Gaelic Maighstir Ailein) (25 October 1859, Fort William, Scotland – 8 October 1905, Eriskay) was a Roman Catholic priest, poet, folklorist, and activist from the Scottish Gàidhealtachd. Since his death, the degree to which Fr. MacDonald's folklore and folksong research was plagiarized during his lifetime by other writers has been meticulously documented by John Lorne Campbell.[1] Furthermore, Ronald Black praised Fr. MacDonald in 2002 as, "a huge literary talent",[2] Black has also written that Fr. MacDonald's prophetic poem Ceum nam Mìltean ("The March of Thousands") deserves to be, "first in any anthology of the poetry of the First World War", and, "would not have been in any way out of place, with regard to style or substance", in Sorley MacLean's groundbreaking 1943 Symbolist poetry collection Dàin do Eimhir.[3] Black concluded by commenting that had Fr. Allan MacDonald not died prematurely at the age of only 45, "then the map of Gaelic literature in the twentieth century might have looked very different."[4]

Ancestry

Although born in humble circumstances, the future poet, similarly to Iain Lom, Sìleas na Ceapaich, and Allan The Ridge MacDonald, could trace his descent back to Somerled, King Robert the Bruce, and Raghnall Mòr (d. 1547), 7th Chief (Scottish Gaelic: Mac Mhic Raonuill) of Clan MacDonald of Keppoch (Scottish Gaelic: Clann Dòmhnaill na Ceapaich).

Raghnall Mòr's illegitimate son and the poet's ancestor, Iain Dubh MacDhòmhnaill, became the first Keppoch tacksman (Scottish Gaelic: Fear-Taic) of Bohuntine (Scottish Gaelic: Both Fhionndain).[5][6] Fr. Allan's kinsman and fellow Gaelic poet Allan The Ridge MacDonald famously celebrated the proud warrior history of their ancestors in the Gaelic poem Sliochd an Taighe ("The Family of the Household"), which he set to the air Mìos deireannach an Fhoghair.[7]

In commenting on their shared lineage, literary historian Effie Rankin has argued that Fr. Allan MacDonald and Ailean a' Ridse MacDhòmhnaill, "may rightfully be regarded as the foremost Keppoch bard's of the nineteenth century."[8]

The poet's father, John MacDonald (Scottish Gaelic: Iain Ailein Òg) (1821-1873), was born into a family of carters near Grantown-on-Spey (Scottish Gaelic: Baile nan Granndach) and was employed for many years by the General Post Office as a heavily armed guard dressed in maroon and gold livery, whose orders were to defend the "Breadalbane" Royal Mail Coach from highwaymen along the route between Fort William, Glencoe, Blackmount, and Glasgow.[9][10]

A Skyeman later recalled that Iain Ailein Òg, "was closely aquatinted with everyone whom he would meet along the long and difficult road that used to wend it's way through those bounds at that time, and many a person was regaled by him with old lore and tales that lightened their journey for them."[11]

After marrying Margaret MacPherson, a Strathspey shepherd's daughter and descendant of Clan MacPherson (Scottish Gaelic: Clann Mac a' Phearsain), in Fort William on 21 November 1852, John MacDonald saved enough money to buy an inn and a pub at 179 High Street in Fort William (Scottish Gaelic: An Gearasdan), formerly (Scottish Gaelic: Baile Mairi), Lochaber, Scotland.[12]

Early life

Fr. Allan MacDonald, the third surviving child of his parents, was born in an upper room of his father's inn on 25 October 1859. He was named after his recently deceased paternal grandfather, Allan MacDonald (Scottish Gaelic: Ailein Òg) (1782-1859).[13]

Fr. MacDonald later recalled how, during his early life, both the town of Fort William and the surrounding countryside had undergone a language shift from Gaelic to Scottish English. He accordingly described the Fort William of his childhood as, "half Lowland and half Highland."[14]

He later told Amy Murray that he considered his loss, in having grown up without the oral literature and bardic poetry taught in the Ceilidh houses of the Gàidhealtachd, to be irreparable. Despite being repeatedly told otherwise, he considered himself to be permanently crippled as both a seanchaidh and a traditional singer. He concluded, "I would give anything if I had been born fifteen miles to the westward."[15][16]

According to Roger Hutchinson, Fr. MacDonald's later statements about the complete Anglicisation of Fort William during his childhood were an exaggeration. Census records from the era reveal that 70% of Fort William's population reported the ability to speak both the English and Gaelic languages. At the same time, however, English was the language of commerce and was seen as a means of future advancement. For these reasons, John and Margaret MacDonald, being innkeepers, had made a choice to teach only English to their children.[17]

At the same time, Fr. Allan's lifelong fascination with the Scottish folklore of the Highlands and Islands, an interest his father also shared, began as a child in Fort William. He later told Amy Murray about how deeply he believed as a child in local stories about the each-uisge, or "water horse", of nearby Loch Linnhe, whose back could magically expand in order to accommodate all the children who wished to ride him. But then, the water-horse would gallop off into the nearest lake to drown and eat the children on his back. Fr. Allan later recalled, "Many's the horse I wouldn't get on as a child for fear it would be the each-uisge."[18]

Seminary studies

Blair's College

On 15 August, 1871, 12-year old Allan MacDonald entered the minor seminary at Blair's College in Aberdeen, which had been founded in 1829 to rebuild the Catholic Church in Scotland after Catholic Emancipation ended centuries of persecution.[19] At the time he arrived, the future Gaelic poet and scholar spoke only English.[20]

According to the 1871 national census, which was taken only a few months before Allan MacDonald's arrival, Blair's College consisted of 49 seminarians, a Rector, a Procurator, three professors, a housekeeper, a cook, and twelve maids recruited from nearby villages.[21]

According to John Lorne Campbell, both living conditions and discipline were very spartan at Blair's College during the 1870s. So much so, that Fr. MacDonald often said in later years that, after what he had experienced at Blair's College, all the hardships of being a priest in the Outer Hebrides looked luxurious by comparison.[22][23]

According to his biographer Roger Hutchinson, Fr. Allan MacDonald would maintain, "a cordial dislike", of the Blair's College Rector, Fr. Peter Joseph Grant, for the remainder of his life.[24] For example, in a Gaelic poem Rannan do Mgr Mac an Tòisich ("Verses to Fr John MacIntosh of Bornish"), addressed three decades later to a seminary friend, Fr. MacDonald recalled the Blair's College Rector as, "that ghastly man called Grant" (Scottish Gaelic: riaghladh a' Ghranndaich ghrànda). Fr. MacDonald further expressed disgust at how Fr. Grant used, "to make our pens scratch hard", every Tuesday and Wednesday evening before feeding his desperately hungry students their porridge. Fr. MacDonald added, "All the same to him were Latin, English, or a thousand lines of that monster Homer!" (Scottish Gaelic: "'S bu choingeis leis Laideann, no Beurla, No mìle rann na béist' ud Hòmar!")[25]

His other instructors included Fr. James A. Smith, the future Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh. The main linguistic focus was upon the study of Ecclesiastical Latin. Seminarians who wished to also learn Gaelic, which was a necessity for priests wishing to serve in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Argyll and the Isles, were given Fr. Ewen MacEachen's Gaelic dictionary and his literary translation of Thomas a Kempis's Imitatio Christi as textbooks. They were then encouraged to pursue their studiy of Gaelic on their own time. According to John Lorne Campbell, however, the careful study of Latin and Koine Greek had already well prepared the seminarians of Blair's College to acquire additional languages and many were very successful at learning Gaelic using this method.[26]

Other languages that were taught included French, Spanish, and Italian, which were intended to prepare the seminarians at Blair's for further studies at the Scots Colleges in Paris, Douai, Rome, and Valladolid. Geography was also taught using a globe, as were, "philosophy in all it's branches", and theology. While Fr. MacDonald, according to a seminary friend, understood the necessity for learning Latin, he intensely disliked both Greek and philosophy, for which his friend blamed their professors.[27]

At the same time, though, both of Allan MacDonald's parents died during his studies at Blair's College. Iain Ailein Òg died at his Fort William hotel of tuberculosis and chronic gastritis on 25 March 1873. He was only 58 years old.[28] His widow, 45-year old Margaret MacPherson MacDonald, also died at Fort William of pulmonary congestion on 20 December 1875.[29]

Valladolid

In September 1876, Allan MacDonald was advised by his professors to continue his priestly training at the Royal Scots College in Valladolid. He began the journey to Spain shortly before his seventeenth birthday.[30]

He was ordained to the priesthood at St Andrew's Cathedral, Glasgow by Archbishop Charles Eyre on 9 July 1884.

Priestly ministry

He served as a priest in Oban before being assigned to Daliburgh, South Uist, in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Argyll and the Isles. The island of Eriskay, located across the bay, was also in his care. When sick calls on Eriskay were required, MacDonald would trudge down to the beach and light a bonfire as a signal to the Eriskay fisherman to come and ferry him across.

This era also saw the agitation of the Crofter's Commission and the Highland Land League. Therefore, MacDonald was active in demanding greater rights for the impoverished Crofters who were his parishioners. At the time, the island's government and school board were dominated by members of the Church of Scotland. Therefore, MacDonald also began urging his parishioners to vote against the candidates of the landlord. This was a task which required great tact and, according to John Lorne Campbell, it is very telling that the Protestants of South Uist still speak very highly of MacDonald.

However, his health was broken in an epidemic during which MacDonald tirelessly provided the Sacraments to the dying. To assist his recovery, MacDonald was assigned to Eriskay which he immortalised in his poem, Eilein na h-Òige (Isle of Youth). He swiftly earned the love of his parishioners and oversaw the construction of a St Michael's Church and rectory, both of which still stand on Eriskay. Although he died of pneumonia in 1905, Maighstir Ailein is still fondly remembered on both South Uist and Eriskay.

Folklore collector

MacDonald began collecting folklore when he was assigned to Oban shortly after his ordination. From Donald MacLeod, a parishioner from the Isle of Eigg, Fr. MacDonald collected multiple Catholic hymns in Scottish Gaelic. He supplemented these with several of his own compositions and translations and anonymously published a Gaelic hymnal in 1893.[31]

MacDonald, a lifelong admirer of the Jacobite movement, was an expert in the history of the uprising in 1745. His manuscripts are still preserved and, although unpublished, remain a rich source of Highland folklore and history.

MacDonald supplied much material that was published by Ada Goodrich Freer who was commissioned to investigate second sight in the Scottish Highlands and Islands by the Society for Psychical Research in 1894-5.[32]

Poet

MacDonald's poetry is mainly Christian poetry, as would be expected from one of his calling. He composed hymns and verse in honour of the Blessed Virgin, the Christ Child, and the Blessed Sacrament. However, several secular poems and songs were also composed by him. In some of these, MacDonald praises the beauty of Eriskay and its people. However, several secular poems and songs were also composed by him. In some of these, Fr. MacDonald praises the beauty of Eriskay and its people, as in his iconic song poem Eilein na h-Òige ("Island of the Young").

In his comic verse drama, Parlamaid nan Cailleach ("The Parliament of Hags"), however, Fr. MacDonald lampoons the gossiping of his female parishioners and local courtship and marriage customs. Ronald Black has compared the play to similar works comic poetry from Irish literature in the Irish language, such as Domhnall Ó Colmáin's 1670 Párliament na mBan ("The Women's Parliament") and Brian Merriman's 1780 Cúirt an Mheán Oíche ("The Midnight Court").[33] In The Campbell Wedding, a poem composed for the marriage of his housekeeper but never read aloud, Father MacDonald irately skewers the Campbells over the Massacre of Glencoe and for repeatedly siding against the House of Stuart during the Jacobite risings.

MacDonald's secular verse, however, was written for his own amusement and, likely, was never meant to see publication.

The first collection of Fr. MacDonald's Gaelic verse was collected and self published by John Lorne Campbell in 1965. An expanded and bilingual anthology of the priest's Gaelic verse, both religious and secular, was edited by Ronald Black and was published in 2002 by Mungo Books, the Scottish imprint of Saint Austin Press.

Legacy

Detailed research about MacDonald's life, as well as his diary, was collected by John Lorne Campbell and are now housed at Canna, Scotland. In addition, South Uist vocalist Kathleen MacInnes performed Fr. MacDonald's literary translation of Fr. Frederick William Faber's Marian hymn "O Purest of Creatures", Reul Àlainn a' Chuain on YouTube, on her 2006 album Summer Dawn.

Quote

• Diary entry 22 February, 1898: "Read Rob Donn for vocabulary purposes. His vocabulary is more valuable than his poetry. His subjects are often enough coarse and treated coarsely. His reputation is greater than his merits. I should never dream of comparing him with W. Ross or Alasdair. Even Alein Dall is superior to him in rhyme, rhythm, and humour... Took up W. Ross and read pieces. His vocabulary has not so many strange words as Rob Donn's Reay Country Gaelic... He makes you feel with him and for him. Pity for the language that he died so young."[34]

Published works

• Collected by Fr. Allan MacDonald (1958), Gaelic Words from South Uist – Edited, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. Second edition with supplement, published by the Oxford University Press, N.D 1972. [CH2/1/1/13]
• Edited and transcribed by John Lorne Campbell (1965), Bardachd Mhgr Ailein: The Gaelic Poems of Fr Allan McDonald of Eriskay (1859–1905), Privately printed. [CH2/1/1/13]
• Eilein na h-Òige; The Poems of Fr. Allan MacDonald, Edited by Ronald Black, Mungo Books, Glasgow, 2002.

See also

• Taladh Chriosda

References

Further reading

• Campbell, John Lorne; Hall, Trevor H. (1968). Strange things: the story of Fr. Allan McDonald, Ada Goodrich Freer, and the Society for Psychical Research's enquiry into Highland second sight. Birlinn. ISBN 1-84158-458-4.
• Hall, Trevor H. (1980). The Strange Story of Ada Goodrich Freer. Gerald Duckworth and Company. ISBN 0-7156-1427-4.
• Hutchinson, Roger (2010). Father Allan : The Life and Legacy of a Hebridean Priest. Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-84158-548-2.

External links

• John Lorne Campbell's Biography of Fr. Allan MacDonald
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Argyll and the Isles

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