Jonathan Tucker, a Clan member and historian who has made several presentations at our Reunions has agreed to periodically post articles here related to our specific McIntire history. Here is the first. 
8/30/2018

I have been asked to write a few articles on different aspects of Clan MacIntyre and on the life of Micum McIntire in particular. These are not scholarly articles, but I would be happy to provide references for specific questions.

While I have gathered information from many sources over the years, the most definitive and comprehensive current source for information on MacIntyres is the newly-published book, “Clan MacIntyre: A Journey Into the Past,” Martin L. MacIntyre, Regent Press, Berkeley, CA, 2018, second edition. Copies may be purchased from Martin at martin.macintyre@juno.com. 

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The Origin – The Scottish surname MacIntyre is the anglicized version of the Gaelic “Mac-an-t’Saoir”, which means “child of the wright.” This comes from the nickname—“The Wright” (specifically, the shipwright)—given to our clan’s progenitor, Murdoch or Muriach MacNeill. You will sometimes see his name given as “Maurice,” which is a Norman English version.

Murdoch MacNeill was a member of a semi-royal family from northern Ireland that had intermarried with Scandanavian raiders and had settled in and among the Islands west of the mainland of Scotland, particularly on the island of Sleat—a location that allowed them to pursue a life of raiding and conquest among other early clans. This was in the mid-1100s, prior to the formation of anything resembling a distinct nation or kingdom of Scotland. The region was referred to as Dalriada, and the blended peoples occupying it were referred to as Gaels—which is the origin of “Argyll” on the mainland, which means territory of the Gaels.

Murdoch received his nickname for using his skills as a shipwright to trick his foster brother Olav II (king of the Isle of Man) into allowing Murdoch’s maternal uncle Somerled to marry Olav’s daughter, Raghnilda (a very Norse name, and evidence of the degree to which early Celts and Vikings intermarried). Olav was a sometime ally and sometime adversary of Somerled’s, and a power unto himself as a seaborne warlord. Yes, it’s an early version of daytime soap operas. Here’s my version of how that came about.

The Oft-told Tale – Murdoch was a skilled shipwright. He may have been Olav’s principal shipwright, travelling with Olav and caring for his galley. On a summer raid together, OIav and Somerled’s galleys berthed for the night in a cove along the coast of Ardnamurchan, setting up camp along the shore. For some time, Somerled had been carefully lobbying Olav to allow a marriage with Olav’s daughter, but Olav kept rejecting Somerled’s offers. That night on the shores of Ardnamurchan, Somerled repeated his offer, and was once again rebuffed. After evening dining, Murdoch visited his uncle’s tent with a proposition—he thought he had a way to get Olav to agree to the marriage. Somerled accepted the offer. While the others slept, Murdoch went back aboard Olav’s galley (he was the shipwright, who was going to challenge him?) and carefully bored holes in the sides of the vessel close in along the thwarts and just above the waterline of the calm waters of the bay. He filled the holes with plugs made of tallow mixed with sawdust, and carved wooden plugs to have ready to take their place.

In the morning, the raiding party broke camp, and the galleys set sail. They rounded the mouth of the bay out into the rougher waters and waves of the Sound of Mull. Repeated battering of the waves knocked out the temporary plugs and Olav’s galley began to take on water. Murdoch played his part, running around the galley apparently trying to stop the leaks. When the galley began to list and wallow, Somerled had his galley row over and he called over to offer assistance. Olav probably refused it at first, believing that his skilled shipwright would solve the problem.

But when Murdoch seemed baffled, unable to fix the problem (he had caused) and the galley’s sinking seemed imminent, Somerled returned and repeated his offer. Faced with a cold watery death, Olav accepted the offer. But, wait, the offer came with a condition. Before Somerled would throw over the ropes with which to tow Olav’s galley back to the safety of the harbor, there was the little matter of a marriage with Raghnilda to resolve. We can imagine Olav’s language, but he acquiesced and the matter was probably formally resolved above decks before witnesses before the galley was towed to safety and bailed out. Below decks, Murdoch–still working furiously as the shipwright he was supposed to be—‘discovered’ the holes and hammered into place the wooden plugs he had previously carved.

Murdoch’s trickery made possible a dynastic marriage between Raghnilda and Somerled. It resulted in Somerled becoming the pre-eminent warlord in area of western Scotland and the Isles—he was the first Lord of the Isles. As a result, Murdoch “found high favor” with his uncle and was granted the lands that now represent the MacIntyre chiefs’ territory–Glenoe and its surroundings in Argyll in western Scotland. And he acquired the nickname/title of “The Wright” (An-t’Saoir). His children and descendants were thereafter “children of the Wright” (Mac-an-t’Saior).

For most Scottish MacIntyres (of whatever spelling), Wrights (the English version), and others, that is the historical origin of our name and our heritage.

Other Origins – There are other potential origins for MacIntyres of Scottish or Irish ancestry as well—ex., as a trade name (son of the wright) or from ecclesiastical origins (some of which appear in Ireland). A review of the historical record, however, seems to indicate that these other origins appear only infrequently. Many people leap to the conclusion that must be some connection between the MacIntyres and the peninsula of Kintyre in western Scotland, because in English they sound so much alike (thank you, Paul McCartney). But the Gaelic spelling and meaning of Kintyre are very different (“Cein-Teire” = headland).