EARLS OF ROSS AND LORDS OF THE ISLES. 81 



of the Isles. It has been held by Mr. Gregory and others, 

 that Godfrey was the elder of the two surviving sons by 

 the heiress of the Macruaries. In this view, they are sup- 

 ported by the Sleat seanachie, who states that Godfrey, the 

 elder son, received from his father lands in North Uist 

 and Benbecula, one half of South Uist, Boisdale, Canna, 

 Sleat, and Knoydart ; while Ranald was allotted the rest 

 of South Uist, Eigg, Rum, Moidart, Morar, and Arisaig. 

 Their mother, a pious woman, built Trinity Church in 

 North Uist, the castle at Borve in Benbecula, and an 

 oratory in Grimsay ; all at the expense of her husband, 

 who mortified eight merklands in North Uist to the church 

 and two farms in Benbecula. In the next sentence, the 

 seanachie tells us that " at last he (John of the Isles) 

 abandoned Algive (his wife) by the advice of his Council 

 and familiar friends." He adds that Godfrey left four sons, 

 Ranald, John, Angus, and Archibald, but that Ranald, their 

 uncle, took hold of all their share of South Uist. 



So much for the version of the Sleat historian, to whom 

 accuracy was of less importance than success in be-littling 

 the Clan Ranald. The only support, however, which his 

 account receives from unimpeachable sources is a charter 

 granted in 1388 to the Monastery of Inchaffray, in which 

 the donor, Godfrey, is designated Godfridus de Insula, 

 Dominus de Uist* But this assumption of lordship by 

 Godfrey is explained by the fact that after the death of 

 Ranald, his children were dispossessed of Uist by their 

 uncle. 



On the other side, we have the version of MacVurich, 

 who was as desirous of magnifying the importance of the 

 Clan Ranald and, incidentally, of Ranald its progenitor 

 as Hugh Macdonald was of humbling its pride. Accord- 

 ing to MacVurich, as set forth in the Red Book of Clan 

 Ranald, the " men of the isles " regarded Ranald as the 

 legitimate heir to the Lordship of the Isles, and therefore 

 the eldest son of John. When we turn to indisputable 



* Registrum de Inchaffery^ p. 51. 



