Niall Odhar
I was telling you last week about
Neil MacLeod of Lewis. He was a
murderer. But he stood against the
Fifers who were trying to take Lewis
over. To some he was a hero. In the
government’s opinion he was a
criminal.
Now he was in front of a gibbet
in Edinburgh. He was hoping that
an order of clemency was coming.
But it wasn’t. Neil was hanged. And
his head was cut off.
But he took a secret with him.
He had a big store of treasure. He
got that from the English pirate,
Peter Love. Love was hanged in
Leith. That was three years before,
in 1610. MacLeod kept the
Englishman’s treasure. There were
jewels, and gold and silver. There
was no sign of the treasure after
Love’s death. MacLeod didn’t say
what he did with it. And there is no
sign of it to this day. Nobody knows
what happened to the treasure. Do
you think it might be – like the Lewis
Chessmen – under the sand in Uig
[parish in Lewis]?!
The Fifers tried to establish a
colony in Lewis. They failed. Nearly
a hundred years after that, Scots
tried to create a colony in Darien.
That was in Central America. They
also failed.
And, more than a hundred
years after Darien, a Scotsman
came home from Central America.
He was full of stories about a
country that was rich and favourable. He was Gregor MacGregor.
He was as full of himself as the egg
is of food [Gaelic saying]. And he
was full of lies.
He told people in Britain that
he had a title – His Serene Highness
Gregor I, Prince of Poyais. There
wasn’t a country like Poyais. It was
full of forests. It was fertile. It was
waiting for Scots to go and live
there. Aye – Scots who were too
willing to believe lies. I’ll tell you
more about the matter next week.
Niall Odhar
Bha mi ag innse dhuibh an t-seachdain
sa chaidh mu Niall MacLeòid à Leòdhas.
’S e murtair a bha ann. Ach sheas e an
aghaidh nam Fìobhach a bha a’
feuchainn ri Leòdhas a ghabhail thairis.
Do chuid bha e na ghaisgeach. Ann am
beachd an riaghaltais ’s e eucoireach a
bha ann.
A-nise, bha e air beulaibh croiche
ann an Dùn Èideann. Bha e an dòchas
gun robh òrdugh maitheanais a’ tighinn.
Ach cha robh. Bha Niall air a chrochadh.
Agus chaidh a cheann a ghearradh dheth.
Ach thug e rùn-dìomhair leis. Bha
stòras mòr aige de dh’ionmhas. Fhuair e
sin bhon spùinneadair Shasannach, Peter
Love. Chaidh Love a chrochadh ann an
Lìte. Bha sin trì bliadhna roimhe, ann an
sia ceud deug is deich (1610). Chùm
MacLeòid ionmhas an t-Sasannaich. Bha
seudan ann, agus òr is airgead. Cha robh
sgeul air an ionmhas às dèidh bàs Love.
Cha do dh’inns MacLeòid dè rinn e leis.
Agus chan eil sgeul air chun an latha an-diugh. Chan eil fios aig duine dè
thachair don ionmhas. Saoil a bheil e – cleas nam Fear-tàilisg – fon ghainmhich
ann an Sgìre Ùige?!
Dh’fheuch na Fìobhaich ri tuineachas a dhèanamh ann an Leòdhas.
Dh’fhàilnich orra. Faisg air ceud bliadhna às dèidh sin, dh’fheuch Albannaich
ri tuineachas a dhèanamh ann an Darien.
Bha sin ann am Meadhan Ameireagaidh.
Dh’fhàilnich orrasan cuideachd.
Agus, còrr is ceud bliadhna às
dèidh Darien, thàinig fear Albannach
dhachaigh à Meadhan Ameireagaidh.
Bha e làn stòiridhean mu dhùthaich a
bha beartach is fàbharach. B’ esan
Griogair MacGriogair. Bha e cho làn
dheth fhèin ’s a tha an t-ugh de bhiadh.
Agus bha e làn bhreugan.
Dh’inns e do dhaoine ann am
Breatainn gun robh tiotal aige – His
Serene Highness Gregor I, Prince of
Poyais. Cha robh dùthaich coltach ri
Poyais. Bha i làn choilltean. Bha i
torrach. Bha i a’ feitheamh ri Albannaich
a dhol a dh’fhuireach innte. Seadh –
Albannaich a bha ro dheònach a bhith a’
creidsinn bhreugan. Innsidh mi tuilleadh
mun ghnothach an-ath-sheachdain.
