Fearchar of Ross

• Preferred Name: Fearchar of Ross ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26]}
  
• Alternate Name: Farquhar O'Beolan
  
• Alternate Name: Ferquhard MacSaggart
  
• Gender: M
  
• Residence: Received royal grant, the lands and title of Mormaer (Earl)BET 1223 AND 1251 in Scotland
  
• Birth: 1170 in Applecross, Ross-shire, Scotland at LATI: N7.4167 LONG: E5.8167 with note: Standardized place name
  
• +Established+St+Duthac+chapel+at+Tain: with note: Description: St Duthac chapel at Tain, Scotland: Saint Duthac (or Duthus or Duthak) (1000–1065) is the patron saint of Tain in Scotland. According to the Breviary of Aberdeen, Duthac was a native Scot. Tradition has it that Duthac was educated in Ireland and died in Tain. A chapel was built in his honour and a sanctuary established at Tain by the great Ferchar mac in tSagairt, first Earl or Mormaer of Ross in the thirteenth century, and was ministered by the Norbertine canons of Fearn Abbey...
  
• http://familysearch.org/v1/TitleOfNobility: 1st Earl of Ross
  
• Burial: 1251 in Fearn, Cromartyshire, Scotland at LATI: N7.8389 LONG: E4.9054
  
• FSID: ML3W-NPD
  
• Death: 1251 in Delny Castle, Kilmuir,Alba at LATI: N7.4333 LONG: E6.55
  
• Knighted,+granted+land+in+Galloway: in Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland, United Kingdom at LATI: N4.8405 LONG: E4.0466 with note: Description: I located a further reference pertaining to the earliest Earls of Ross in CLANS, SEPTS AND REGIMENTS OF THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS by Frank Adam, 1970. "During the Royal campaign in Galloway, material aid was rendered to the king by Farquhar Macintagart (sic), SECOND Earl of Ross. In recognition of the Earl's services he received a grant of land in Galloway ...." Fearchar/Farquhar seemed more than willing to toss out the ancient clan system in favour of a feudal system, for which his price was a Norman Knighthood, the first in the Highlands. His knighthood was also a reward for cutting off the heads of the king's enemies during the Galloway uprising and presenting them as new gifts to the new king. Fearchar's feudal attitudes would eventually erode the relationship between the ordinary clansperson and the chiefs, who became increasingly arrogant and indifferent. Descended from the fourth Earl of Ross in the O'Beolan line (i.e. the fifth Earl of Ross), the Balnagowan chiefs were more inclined to be chiefs of the land rather than of the clan. They gradually frittered away clan wealth when, as absentee landlords, they appointed Factors. During the clearances, these Factors were empowered to get rid of cotters in favour of sheep or to create larger tracts of land for "improved" farms by evicting cotters from their smaller run-rig fields (after they had been cleared of trees and large stones). site well sourced: https://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/ntor/ross5.htm
  
• http://familysearch.org/v1/TitleOfNobility: Chief of Clan Ross in Scotland
  
• http://familysearch.org/v1/TitleOfNobility: Earl of Ross
  
• http://familysearch.org/v1/TitleOfNobility: 1st Earl of Ross in Scotland
  
• Children: with note: Description: 4 Children Update
  
• http://familysearch.org/v1/TitleOfNobility: Chief of Clan Ross
  
• Religion: Abbot of Applecross
  
• Notes:

  === Life Sketch ===
  Fearchar of Ross or Ferchar mac in tSagairt (Fearchar mac an t-sagairt, often anglicized as Farquhar MacTaggart), was the first of the Scottish Ó Beólláin (O'Beolan, Beolan) family who received by Royal Grant the lands and Title of Mormaer or Earl of Ross (1223-1251) we know of from the thirteenth century, whose career brought Ross into the fold of the Scottish kings for the first time, and who is remembered as the founder of the Earldom of Ross.
  
  «b»Origins«/b»
  The traditional story is that goes back to the work of the great William F. Skene, and indeed, even before him, with William Reeves, whom Skene cited. The historian Alexander Grant has recently challenged this theory, arguing that the evidence for this origin is far too thin to contradict the intuitive and well attested idea that he came from Easter Ross. Grant takes up the idea instead that mac an t-Sacairt (= Son of the Priest') probably refers to a background as keeper of the shrine to St Duthac, at Tain, Scotland.
  
  However, despite "Ross" being a word describing the land the Earls managed (hence the Earl of Ross), Sir Robert Gordon (Earldom of Sutherland, P.36) states the Earls of Ross were first of the surname Ó Beólláin, and then were Leslies…) and continues on page 46 they are called by the surname Ó Beólláin through 1333 when "Hugh Beolan, Earl of Ross" is recorded as one of the slain at the battle of Halidon Hill. The surname remains as the surname of the Earls of Ross from Uilleam Ó Beólláin I, Earl of Ross until the death of Uilleam Ó Beólláin III, Earl of Ross in 1372 when his daughter, Euphemia I, Countess of Ross married to Sir Walter Leslie. Ross became the surname of the Earls of Ross much later in the history of the Earldom (much like the name "Windsor" is also used as the 20th century surname for the Royal Family).
  
  «b»Career«/b»
  Scholarly work on Fearchar has led to the conclusion that Fearchar was a native nobleman who benefitted by upholding the interests of the King of Scots. Fearchar emerges from nothingness in 1215, as the local warlord who crushed a large-scale revolt against the Scottish king, Alexander II. The Chronicle of Melrose reported that:
  
  "Machentagar attacked them and mightily overthrew the king's enemies; and he cut off their heads and presented them as gifts to the new king ... And because of this, the lord king appointed him a new knight."
  
  Fearchar's ability to defeat the proven might of the Meic Uilleim and MacHeths together suggests that Fearchar could command large military resources, and as McDonald points out, this can hardly be entirely explained by his background as a hereditary priest from Tain. However, the Scottish kings themselves were hardly without authority in Ross, and their position could command social power even in this distant land, something proved by the MacWilliams, whose authority depended on their descent from a Scottish king. Fearchar's power then is not so mysterious.
  
  «b»Promotion to Mormaer«/b»
  It is possible that Fearchar was made Mormaer when the grateful King Alexander II visited Inverness in 1221. Macdonald, however, gives some reasons why this might be a little early; around 1226 is a more likely date, but he was almost certainly Mormaer by 1230, and definitely by 1232, the year in which Fearchar's initial (as the father of his son Uilleam) appears in a charter, with the style Comes de Ross (i.e. Mormaer of Ross). Fearchar's initial and comital style also appear in a charter granting some lands to Walter de Moravia, a charter dating somewhere between 1224 and 1231.
  
  So did Fearchar appear from nowhere as a "novus homo"? The facts are that we do not know what happened to the Mormaerdom of Ross after the death, in 1168, of the last known Mormaer, Malcolm MacHeth. We might compare Ross with other Mormaerdoms, such as Lennox and Carrick, in which these apparently new Mormaerdoms were merely de iure royal grants to native lords who already possessed kinship leadership and de facto status as provincial rulers. In this view, conferring this style was simply an act of harnessing organic Gaelic power structures to the political, terminological and ideological framework of the regnum Scottorum.
  
  «b»Fearchar & Scotland«/b»
  In 1235, it is reported that Fearchar was active in Galloway. The Revolt of Gille Ruadh in Galloway in 1234/5 required a large-scale levying by the Scottish king. King Alexander invaded Galloway, and Gille Ruadh ambushed the royal army, almost bringing it to destruction. However the Scottish King was saved by Fearchar, who appeared to the rescue with the Men of Ross.
  
  The defeat of the rebellious Galwegians by another peripheral Gaelic lord in the service of the Scottish King had been paralled in 1187, when Lochlann, Lord of Galloway defeated the rebellious Domnall mac Uilleim, claimant of the Scottish throne, at the Battle of Mam Garvia, somewhere near Dingwall. In fact, one historian has linked the two events as revenge.
  
  Fearchar was also recorded as being present at the negotiations which led to the Treaty of York, signed in 1237
  
  «b»Marriages & Family«/b»
  One of Fearchar's daughters, called Euphemia, was married to Walter de Moravia, a magnate who ruled Duffus. Walter's family were of Flemish origin, and had been planted in Moray by the Scottish crown as agents of royal authority, but were steadily building an independent power-base. Christina, another of Fearchar's daughters, was married to Amlaibh, the King of Mann and the Isles. If we are to use the chronology of the Chronicles of Mann, this happened sometime before 1223, but after 1188. Such a move is not surprising, as the Manx king ruled over the isle of Skye. This reminds us that Fearchar was not merely a slavish Scottish magnate with narrow local aspirations, but an ambitious Gaelic warlord with greater regional goals in the Norse-Gaelic world of the Irish Sea, the world of Alan, Lord of Galloway and the Manx kings.
  
  «b»Church Patronage«/b»
  Fearchar's wider connections are further illustrated by his religious patronage. In the 1220s he granted the Premonstratensian Order (perhaps the most modern one about) of Whithorn in Galloway a new monastery at Mid Fearn in Ross, moving it a decade later to New Fearn. They brought with them some relics of St Ninian too, which is why to this day Fearn Abbey is associated with that saint. Such a move was hardly surprising, since all aspiring magnates needed their own monastery.
  
  «b»Death«/b»
  We do not know the precise year in which Fearchar died. The traditional date, 1251, is based on the date given in the spurious Ane Breve Cronicle of the Erllis of Ross. The latter gives his birthplace as Tain. Despite the unreliability of this source and date, he was certainly dead by the 1250s, when his son appears as Mormaer in his own right.
  
  Fearchar of Ross
  Fearchar of Ross or Ferchar mac in tSagairt (Fearchar mac an t-sagairt, often anglicized as Farquhar MacTaggart), was the first of the Scottish Ó Beólláin (O'Beolan, Beolan) family who received by Roy
  
  === Ferchair Mac an t'Sagairt descended from Earl Gillandrys/Gillandres, 1160 ===
  http://www.fullbooks.com/History-Of-The-Mackenzies1.html
  
  It is established to the satisfaction of all reasonable men that
  the Applecross and O'Beolan Earls of Ross were one and the same,
  and that they were descended from Gilleoin na h' Airde, corrupted
  in the Norse Sagas into "Beolan," the general designation by which
  they were known, until Earl William, the last of his line, died
  without surviving male issue on the 9th of February, 1372, when the
  title devolved upon his daughter, Euphemia, Countess of Ross in her
  own right, whose daughter, Mary, or Margaret, by Sir Walter Leslie,
  carried the earldom to Donald of Harlaw, second Lord of the Isles.
  That the O'Beolan Earls of Ross, of whom Ferquhard Mac an t'Sagairt
  was the first, descended from the same ancestor, Gilleoin na h' Airde,
  as the older "Gillandres" earl of 1160, is equally certain. Earl
  Gillandres as probably forfeited for the part he took against
  Malcolm IV. on that occasion, and Ferquhard having rendered such
  important services to Alexander II. was restored probably quite as
  much in virtue of his ancient rights as the grandson of Ferquhard as
  on account of his valiant conduct in support of the crown in Moray,
  in Argyle, and in Galloway, in 1215, 1222, and 1235.
  
  http://www.fullbooks.com/History-Of-The-Mackenzies1.html
  
  The district then known as North Argyle consisted chiefly of the
  possessions of this ancient monastery of Appercrossan or Applecross.
  Its inhabitants had hitherto - along with those of South Argyle,
  which extended from Lochcarron to the Firth of Clyde - maintained
  a kind of semi-independence, but in 1222 they were, by their
  lay possessor, Ferchair Mac an t'Sagairt, who was apparently the
  grandson or great-grandson of Gillandres, one of the six earls
  who besieged Malcolm IV. at Perth in 1160, brought into closer
  connection with the crown. The lay Abbots of which Ferquhard
  was the head were the hereditary possessors of all the extensive
  territories which had for centuries been ruled and owned by this
  old and powerful Celtic monastery. As a reward for his services
  against the men of Moray in 1215 and for the great services which,
  in 1222, he again rendered to the King in the subjugation of the
  whole district then known as Argyle, extending from the Clyde to
  Lochbroom, he received additional honours. In that campaign known
  as "the Conquest of Argyle," Ferquhard led most of the western
  tribes, and for his prowess, the Celtic earldom, which was then finally
  annexed to the Crown and made a feudal appanage, was conferred on
  him with the title of Earl of Ross, and he is so designated in a
  charter dated 1234.
  
  === Ferquhard, first Earl of Ross, who is sa ===
  Ferquhard, first Earl of Ross, who is said to have been Ferquhard Macintagart, son of the lay parson of the territory of the monastery of Applecross, which had passed into the hands of a family of lay abbots called Sagarts of Priests of Applecross, and he was therefore a powerful Highland chief. When Alexander II, soon after his accession, was forced, in 1215, to suppress an insurrection in Moray and Ross, Ferquhard, siding with him, seized the insurgent leaders, beheaded them, and presented their heads to the King, 15 June 1215, and was knighted by him. He was, at a later date, created Earl of Ross, appearing as such in a writ dated probably after June 1226. The charter was at one time upon record, but the roll is now lost. He may have been Earl in 1225, but his is not certain. He founded the Abbey of Ferne, in the parish of Edderton, some time before 1230, the first Abbot being installed in that year. In 1235 he greatly assisted King Alexander II in supressing the insurrection at Galloway. In 1237 he was witness to an agreement between the Kings of England and Scotland, in presence of Odo, the Legate. Dominus Fercardus, Comes de Ross, is a witness to a composition between Andrew, Bishop of Murray, and Walter Cumyn, Earl of Menteith, concerning the lands of Kincardine in 1234, to a composition between the Chapter of Moray and Alexander de Stryvelene concerning the half davach of land in Devath in 1234; and in 1244 he was one of those who informed the Pope of the treaty of peace made with the King of England. He died about 1251, and was buried in the Abbey he had founded, where the stone effigy of a warrior is said to mark his grave. [The Scots Peerage VII:231-232]
  
  ________________________________
  
  FERQUHARD MAC TAGGART, EARL OF ROSS [SCT], is traditionally said to have been lay priest or abbott of Applecross, co. Ross. In 1215 "Machentagar" defeated an incursion into Moray under Donald Bane and others, and on 15 June delivered the leaders' heads, in token of his success, to the new king Alexander II, who knighted him. Later, possibly before 12 December 1225, as Ferquhard Ros, he was created EARL OF ROSS. Some time before 1230, he founded the Abbey of Fearn, in Mid-Fearn, parish of Edderton, later removed to the parish of Fearn. In 1235 Comes Rossensis nomine Mackintagart again rendered notable service to the King in Galloway, by taking a force of rebels in the rear, and putting them to flight. In 1237 he witnessed the agreement between Henry III and Alexander II at York; and in 1244 was one of the magnates [SCT] who, with the King, notified the Pope of their treaty with England. He died in January 1250/1, at Tain, and is said to have been buried in the abbey of Fearn. [Complete Peerage XI:142-3, (transcribed by Dave Utzinger)]
  
  === Farquhar, First Earl of Ross of the O'Beolan dynesty ===
  He was not the first official and active Earl. That was Malcom MacHeth on the female line, by his daughter married to an O'Beolan Priest, see sources. And the name of the place predates the times of Ross-shire, with Nordic
  Earls.
  But he was first of the Applecross O'Beolans. MacTaggart/Saggart was the name Farquhar called himself as was customary of the time, Mac meaning son of the Priest.
  
  === Farquhar, Chief Abbot, "MacKensie History," Alexander MacKenzie, 1879 ===
  In 'Celtic Scotland,' Vol. II, p.412, it is stated that the
  hereditary lay priests of which he was the chief "according to
  tradition, bore the name of O'Beollan"; and MacVuirich, in the Black
  Book of Clanranald, says that from Ferquhard was descended
  Gillapatrick the Red, son of Roderick, and known traditionally as the
  Red Priest, whose daughter, at a later date, married and carried the
  monastery lands of Lochalsh and Lochcarron to the Macdonalds of the
  Isles.
  
  === Connection to Malcolm MacHeth is by his daughter who married an O'Beolan Priest ===
  Greatclanross.org:
  THE O'BEOLAN EARLS OF ROSS
  
  In the ancient Celtic tongue, a ros became defined as a promontory, such as the fertile land between the Cromarty and Dornoch Firths. Easter Ross emerged as the stronghold of Clan Ross, and it is believed that the first Earl, Malcolm Macbeth, who lived in the early twelfth century, allied his family to O'Beolan of the great Irish royal house of Tara, by the marriage of his daughter to an O'Beolan priest. The clan was sometimes also referred to as Clan Anrias, alluding to Anrias or Andrew, supposedly a distinguished O'Beolan ancestor. However, a charter from William O'Beolan (fifth Earl of Ross in that line) to a cousin Paul MacTire, is mentioned in a manuscript of 1450 and it indicates that both the O'Beolans (the progenitors 0f Clan Ross) and Clan Gilleanrias (Servant of Andrew, commencing with Paul MacTire) are traced back to Gilleon na h'Airde (Collin of Aird) who lived in the tenth century. Even the latter origin might more truthfully be said about the O'Beolan earls rather than the general clan members. Thus, the O'Beolans, Gillanders and Rosses came to be associated with an ancestor who was a follower/servant of St. Andrew, Scotland's patron saint.
  
  Note: Does not refer to generation of daughter of MacHeth who married an O'Beolan Priest.
  
  === Norbertine canons overseers of St Duthac chapel at Tain ===
  St Duthac chapel at Tain, Scotland:
  Saint Duthac (or Duthus or Duthak) (1000–1065) is the patron saint of Tain in Scotland. According to the Breviary of Aberdeen, Duthac was a native Scot. Tradition has it that Duthac was educated in Ireland and died in Tain. A chapel was built in his honour and a sanctuary established at Tain by the great Ferchar mac in tSagairt, first Earl or Mormaer of Ross in the thirteenth century, and was ministered by the Norbertine canons of Fearn Abbey. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Duthac).
  
  Norbertine canons:
  The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (Latin: Candidus et Canonicus Ordo Praemonstratensis), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), are a religious order of Canons regular of the Catholic Church founded in Prémontré [France] near Laon [France] in 1120 by Norbert of Xanten [born in Germany], who later became Archbishop of Magdeburg. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premonstratensians). (Wikipedia) [ ] added.
  
  Note: Earl of Ross was a secular position not an ecclesiastical one.
  
  === Ferquhard, first Earl of Ross, lay abbot of Applecross, son of lay parson of Applecross ===
  Ferquhard, first Earl of Ross, who is said to have been Ferquhard Macintagart, son of the lay parson of the territory of the monastery of Applecross, which had passed into the hands of a family of lay abbots called Sagarts of Priests of Applecross, and he was therefore a powerful Highland chief. When Alexander II, soon after his accession, was forced, in 1215, to suppress an insurrection in Moray and Ross, Ferquhard, siding with him, seized the insurgent leaders, beheaded them, and presented their heads to the King, 15 June 1215, and was knighted by him. He was, at a later date, created Earl of Ross, appearing as such in a writ dated probably after June 1226. The charter was at one time upon record, but the roll is now lost. He may have been Earl in 1225, but his is not certain. He founded the Abbey of Ferne, in the parish of Edderton, some time before 1230, the first Abbot being installed in that year. In 1235 he greatly assisted King Alexander II in supressing the insurrection at Galloway. In 1237 he was witness to an agreement between the Kings of England and Scotland, in presence of Odo, the Legate. Dominus Fercardus, Comes de Ross, is a witness to a composition between Andrew, Bishop of Murray, and Walter Cumyn, Earl of Menteith, concerning the lands of Kincardine in 1234, to a composition between the Chapter of Moray and Alexander de Stryvelene concerning the half davach of land in Devath in 1234; and in 1244 he was one of those who informed the Pope of the treaty of peace made with the King of England. He died about 1251, and was buried in the Abbey he had founded, where the stone effigy of a warrior is said to mark his grave. [The Scots Peerage VII:231-232]
  
  ________________________________
  
  FERQUHARD MAC TAGGART, EARL OF ROSS [SCT], is traditionally said to have been lay priest or abbott of Applecross, co. Ross. In 1215 "Machentagar" defeated an incursion into Moray under Donald Bane and others, and on 15 June delivered the leaders' heads, in token of his success, to the new king Alexander II, who knighted him. Later, possibly before 12 December 1225, as Ferquhard Ros, he was created EARL OF ROSS. Some time before 1230, he founded the Abbey of Fearn, in Mid-Fearn, parish of Edderton, later removed to the parish of Fearn. In 1235 Comes Rossensis nomine Mackintagart again rendered notable service to the King in Galloway, by taking a force of rebels in the rear, and putting them to flight. In 1237 he witnessed the agreement between Henry III and Alexander II at York; and in 1244 was one of the magnates [SCT] who, with the King, notified the Pope of their treaty with England. He died in January 1250/1, at Tain, and is said to have been buried in the abbey of Fearn. [Complete Peerage XI:142-3, (transcribed by Dave Utzinger)]

• m. ABT 1194 in Alba

1. William Earl of Ross I, b. 1203 in Fearn, Ross-shire, Scotland     d. 5 MAY 1274 in Fearn, Ross-shire, Scotland

1. Title: Legacy NFS Source: Ferquard Macintagart Earl of Ross -
   Author: Stirnet.com, Peter Barns-Graham, Chairman, Name: http://www.stirnet.com;, Page number: Ross01, Murray01
   Note: Peter Barns-Graham, Chairman, Stirnet.com (http://www.stirnet.com).
   Page: Migrated from user-supplied source citation: urn:familysearch:source:3246398939
   
2. Title: Possible Mother of Ferquhard identified, Ross webclans, "Electric Scotland.com"
   Author: http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/ntor/ross5.htm
   Publication: Name: http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/ntor/ross5.htm;
   Note: Article states that Fearcher was of the O'Bealain line, but earned his right to the Earldom of Ross by way of his mother. Article quotes William, 3rd Earl of Ross as saying the (O'Beolain) Earls were not of the same ancestry as the local clansman after a certain point.
   Page: family
   
3. Title: Name O'Beolan said to be Nordic from Bjolan, "MccutcheonsfromDonaghadee, Wordpress...Obeolans-of-old-Applecross"
   Author: https://mccutcheonsfromdonaghadee.wordpress.com/2012/05/09/hugh-macdonald-of-sleat-and-the-obeolans-of-old-applecross-abbey/
   Publication: Name: https://mccutcheonsfromdonaghadee.wordpress.com/2012/05/09/hugh-macdonald-of-sleat-and-the-obeolans-of-old-applecross-abbey/;
   Page: Family site with wonderful information.
   
4. Title: Chiefs of Clan Ross, "Wikipedia"
   Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiefs_of_Clan_Ross;
   Page: Wikipedia Chiefs
   
5. Title: Earls of Ross, "Wikipedia.com"
   Author: Wikipedia, Earl of Ross
   Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earl_of_Ross;
   Note: Contains a description of and list of the Earls of Ross. See link.
   Page: family
   
6. Title: Chiefs of Clan Ross, "Wikipedia"
   Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiefs_of_Clan_Ross;
   Page: family
   
7. Title: Legacy NFS Source: Earl Ferquhard MacTaggart De Ross -
   Author: Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom; GE Cokayne, Sutton Publishing Ltd, Page number: XI:142-3
   Note: Source Media Type: Book
   Page: Migrated from user-supplied source citation: urn:familysearch:source:2736741118
   
8. Title: Possible Grandparents of Farquhar, Earl of Ross
   Author: http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/ross/10494/.
   Publication: Name: http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/ross/10494/;
   Note: This source by the Ross researcher Charles Brashear says that the Obeolan Priest married to the daughter of Malcolm MacHeth was the Grandfather of Farquhard, Earl of Ross. Gives citation.
   Page: Possible Grandparents
   
9. Title: Possible Mother of Ferquhard Earl of Ross, "Obeolan Earls of Ross, Great Clan Ross.org"
   Author: http://www.greatclanross.org/htext5.html
   Publication: Name: http://www.greatclanross.org/htext5.html;
   Note: Record states that a daughter of Malcolm McHeth married an O'Beolan Priest. Source also states that Ferquhard O'Beolan had claim to the Earldom of Ross due to his mother.
   Page: family
   
10. Title: Original O'Beolains and Mac Saigarts (Taggarts), "Clans and Families of Ireland and Scotland"
    Author: Clans and Families of Ireland and Scotland Part 2 (This work can also be found in other places including ElectricScotland.com, under Clan Ross.)
    Publication: Name: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mallorybrody/Eire/Clans_and_Families_of_Ireland_and_Scotland_pt_2.html;
    Note: "The earlier Pictish abbots of Applecross were probably "co-arbs" (bloodrelated successors) of St. Maelrubha in the Pictish mode of matrilineal descent. Since Applecross, as a Celtic tribal abbey, was continuously active throughout the Viking period, we can infer a similar continuity of co-arbial succession among its abbots. Therefore the O’Beolains, despite a patrilineal connection to Helgi Bjolan (which would have served them well at the time), represent continuity with the old line. Surnames in the earlier "0" form came into use in Ireland in the tenth century: The name of Domnall O’Neill, High King of Ireland, refers to a "Niall" who died fighting against the forces of Helgi Bjolan’s kin. In the same way, the name of 0 Beolain was applied to a tenth-century abbot at Applecross, who despite his Picto-Norse descent, was considered to be connected with Bangor and the Cineal Eoghan, and with the Columban church in Sligo, where a branch of the O’Beolains settled as eranachs (hereditary priests). The O’Beolains, as hereditary abbots of Applecross, possessed princely authority over the district connected with the abbey, the lands of which spanned the coast of Ross from Glenelg to Lochbroom, extending a considerable distance inland. That they were Pictish co-arbs of St. Maelrubha, with dynastic connections to Norse power in the area, is a natural conclusion, for leadership at the clan level was a tribal office, as was the position of abbot itself. Their connection with the Cineal Eoghan is also suggested by the fact that they did not adopt some form of the Norse galley in their arms. The O’Beolains of Ross (the name shows up later as "MacBeolain") were also known by the Gaelic epithet Mac GiolIa Aindreis: "descendants of the servant of St. Andrew." Likewise, the tribe that inhabited their abbey lands in western Ross were known as the Clann Aindreis, or "the race of Andrew." The main line of the co-arbial abbots of Applecross later became vested in the earldom of Ross under the Normanized Scottish kings, and while known by the Anglo-Norman style epithet of "de Ross" (later the surname "Ross"), they were nonetheless known in their native tongue under the Gaelic patronymic of Mac Giolla Aindreis" or "Giolla Aindreis" (Gillanders). They were the only Gaelic tribal family to be known by such designations, and their significance to the Pictish church is thus aptly implied. It was Fearchar Mac an tSagairt (significantly, "the son of the priest") who became Earl of Ross about the year 1226. He was the first of the O’Beolain line to become a purely secular ruler (a "Gillanders" does appear with the earls who besieged Malcolm IV at Perth in 1160 because of his northern policies). His career is indicative of the vitality of the Celtic church, for it shows that even as late as the thirteenth century the princely status of the church was secure enough to facilitate the smooth transition of Mac an tSagairt from spiritual to temporal authority, as the old Celtic princely abbacies were discontinued under the Normanizing Robert I."
    Page: family
    
11. Title: Possible Mother of Ferquhard mentioned, Ross webclans, "Electric Scotland.com"
    Author: http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/ntor/ross5.htm.
    Publication: Name: http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/ntor/ross5.htm;
    Note: Article states that Fearcher was of the O'Bealain line, but earned his right to the Earldom of Ross by way of his mother. Article quotes William, 3rd Earl of Ross as saying the (O'Beolain) Earls were not of the same ancestry as the local clansman after a certain point. Comment: In an article by the same Ross scholar Douglas Ross, O'Beolan Earls of Ross, greatclanross.org, he identifies the daughter of MacHeth but is less specific about the generation.
    Page: Possible Mother
    
12. Title: O'Beolan Earls of Ross, "GreatClanRoss,com"
    Author: GreatClanRoss.com (of Canada).
    Publication: Name: http://www.greatclanross.org/htext5.html;
    Note: Contains an outlined description of the O'Beolan Earls of Ross. None of the Earls actually used the name Ross, which name Ross was first adopted by Chief Hugh Ross, 1st Laird of Balnagowan, Chief of the Clan Ross.
    Page: O'Beolan Earls
    
13. Title: The Abbot of Applecross, his son Farquhard, Abbot, son Malcohm, Abbot, no heir. "Applecross History"
    Author: Online article by Ian MacKenzie, Director, Applecross Historical Society. chrome-extension://bpmcpldpdmajfigpchkicefoigmkfalc/views/app.html
    Publication: Name: https://www.google.com/search?q=applecross+history+of+the+penninsula&rlz=1CALOEI_enUS684US684&oq=applecross+history+of+the+penninsula&aqs=chrome..69i57.79346j0j9&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#q=abbots+of+applecross+ian+mackenzie+1996;
    Note: "In 1215 Ferchair Mac an t Sagairt, son of the lay abbot of the time, took on and defeated descendants of Malcolm Canmore and of the MacEth Earl of Ross. He was knighted by the King. He also subdued Argyll and Galloway and was further rewarded with the Earldom of Ross. He had two sons. William became Earl of Ross and Malcolm was given Applecross. THE HERMIT ABBOT Unlike his predecessors from the time of MacBeolan, Malcolm took Holy Orders and apparently lived the life of a hermit at Cnoc Dubh an t Strath, above Hartfield. He is remembered in the name of the glen there, Srath Maolchaluim, and although the cave above Hartfield is today referred to as Maelrubha's cave, this is part of the general confusion of oral tradition. As Malcolm left no heir, the succession went to the Earls of Ross. Malcolm's nephew, the Ab Uaine or Green Abbot took over and reverted to the role of the Lay Abbot. He married and was succeeded by his son Ruairidh. The Green Abbot's brother, another William Earl of Ross fought at Bannockburn and his force included men from Applecross. THE LAST LAY ABBOT Ruairidh's son was GiUaphadrick, the Sagart Ruadh or Red Priest of Applecross. He appears to have aligned himself with Donald, Lord of the Isles during the latter's claim to the Earldom of Ross and he died at Harlaw in 1411. That indecisive battle was a major turning point for Highland culture leading, as it did, to the reduction and eventual extinction of the Macdonald lordship. With the demise of that Kingship went many aspects of Gaelic culture including a structured bardic tradition. With it also went the Applecross lay abbots. The men carried their commander home to burial close to the grave of Maelrubha. GiUaphadrick, the Sagart Ruadh, entered into the folklore of Applecross."
    Page: family
    
14. Title: Clan Ross, "Wikipedia"
    Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Ross;
    Note: "The first recorded chief of the Clan Ross was "Fearcher Mac an t-Sagirt" which in English meant "son of the priest" alluding to his Ó Beólláin descent from the hereditary Abbots of Applecross.[4] Fearchar helped King Alexander II of Scotland (1214–1249) crush a rebellion by Donald Bane, a rival claimant to the Scottish throne.[4] Fearchar was knighted by the king and by 1234 he was officially recognized with the title of Earl of Ross."
    
15. Title: Malcolm MacHeth, 1st Earl of Ross/Farquhard, 1st O'Beolan Earl of Ross, "Greatclanross.org"
    Author: See link
    Publication: Name: https://www.greatclanross.org/cra~can3.html;
    Note: MALCOLM MACBETH, THE FIRST EARL OF ROSS In the summaries of Clan Ross history, there are many inconsistencies in its origins. As with many origin myths, one source is quoted by the next until even the most recent texts begin to quote each other's inaccuracies. Most, however, do not repeat a couple of particular errors found in some Clan Ross histories concerning the very first Earl of Ross. Only a few claim that Fearchar Mac an t'Sagairt (Farquhar MacTaggart), "son of the priest", was the first Earl of Ross and that he was was a direct descendant of Anrias (Andrew), who was supposedly the eldest son of Gilleon na h'Airde. There is, however, a charter from William O'Beolan (fifth Earl of Ross in that line) to a cousin Paul MacTire, which is mentioned in a manuscript of 1450 and indicates that both the O'Beolans (the progenitors 0f Clan Ross) and Clan Gilleanrias (Servant of Andrew, commencing with Paul MacTire) are traced back to Gilleon na h'Airde (Collin of Aird) who lived in the tenth century. Actually, Fearchar was only the first Earl of Ross in the O'Beolan line from Wester Ross. Comment: "Actually, Fearchar was only the first Earl of Ross in the O'Beolan line from Wester Ross." This quote from the above article means Malcohn MacHeth was not related to Ferquhard on the male line.
    Page: Malcohm MacHerh has been submitted as parent of Farquhard Earl of Ross on Familysearch. This site does not have him as an O'Beolan Earl.
    
16. Title: Fearchar, Earl of Ross - Wikipedia
    Author: “Fearchar, Earl of Ross - Wikipedia.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearchar,_Earl_of_Ross. Accessed 4 Oct. 2019.
    Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearchar,_Earl_of_Ross;
    Page: Created by http://RecordSeek.com
    
17. Title: Farquhar MacTaggart, lay Abbot of Applecross, "Celticradio.net, MacTaggart"
    Author: http://www.celticradio.net/php/heraldry/search.php?id=62&branch=MacTaggart
    Publication: Name: http://www.celticradio.net/php/heraldry/search.php?id=62&branch=MacTaggart;
    Note: This commercial site that provides heraldry products has it that Ferquhar (MacTaggart) was the lay Abbot of Applecoss.
    Page: Goes to lineage an place or origin
    
18. Title: The Abbot of Applecross, his son Farquhard, Abbot, son Malcohm, Abbot, "Applecross History"
    Author: Online article by Ian MacKenzie, Director, Applecross Historical Society, 1996 chrome-extension://bpmcpldpdmajfigpchkicefoigmkfalc/views/app.html.
    Publication: Name: http://imram.oac.ie/sites/default/files/APPLECROSS%20HISTORY.doc;
    Note: "In 1215 Ferchair Mac an t Sagairt, son of the lay abbot of the time, took on and defeated descendants of Malcolm Canmore and of the MacEth Earl of Ross. He was knighted by the King. He also subdued Argyll and Galloway and was further rewarded with the Earldom of Ross. He had two sons. William became Earl of Ross and Malcolm was given Applecross. THE HERMIT ABBOT Unlike his predecessors from the time of MacBeolan, Malcolm took Holy Orders and apparently lived the life of a hermit at Cnoc Dubh an t Strath, above Hartfield. He is remembered in the name of the glen there, Srath Maolchaluim, and although the cave above Hartfield is today referred to as Maelrubha's cave, this is part of the general confusion of oral tradition. As Malcolm left no heir, the succession went to the Earls of Ross. Malcolm's nephew, the Ab Uaine or Green Abbot took over and reverted to the role of the Lay Abbot. He married and was succeeded by his son Ruairidh. The Green Abbot's brother, another William Earl of Ross fought at Bannockburn and his force included men from Applecross. THE LAST LAY ABBOT Ruairidh's son was GiUaphadrick, the Sagart Ruadh or Red Priest of Applecross. He appears to have aligned himself with Donald, Lord of the Isles during the latter's claim to the Earldom of Ross and he died at Harlaw in 1411. That indecisive battle was a major turning point for Highland culture leading, as it did, to the reduction and eventual extinction of the Macdonald lordship. With the demise of that Kingship went many aspects of Gaelic culture including a structured bardic tradition. With it also went the Applecross lay abbots. The men carried their commander home to burial close to the grave of Maelrubha. GiUaphadrick, the Sagart Ruadh, entered into the folklore of Applecross."
    Page: The Abbot
    
19. Title: Legacy NFS Source: Earl Ferquhard MacTaggart De Ross -
    Author: The Scots Peerage; Sir James Balfour Paul {1904-1914, 2000 rev} with Addenda et Corrigenda {2000}, Page number: VII:231-232
    Note: Source Media Type: Book
    Page: Migrated from user-supplied source citation: urn:familysearch:source:2736741135
    
20. Title: The Abbots of Applecross, Mac-an-T- Sagart, Earl of Ross, "Applecross Chronology, Googlesites, com"
    Author: https://sites.google.com/site/culduie/applecrosschronology.
    Publication: Name: https://sites.google.com/site/culduie/applecrosschronology;
    Note: This work online has a helpful date-by-date timeline of Applecross. One entry in 1215 has Malcolhm Ross, Abbot, son of Fearcher. A later entry has a descendant, daughter of Gillaphadrick, married to Alexander, Earl of Ross. From record in part as follows: 1215 Fearchar (?O’Beolan of Applecross) Mac-an-tsagairt, suppressed a rebellion against the King of Scotland. 1226 Fearchar Mac-an-tsagairt created Earl of Ross by King Alexander III of Scotland. c1251 Fearchar died, buried in Fearn Abbey, Easter Ross, (?succeeded as abbot of Applecross by his son Malcolm.) c1300 ?Malcolm succeeded by his son, known only as the ‘Green Abbot’, who was succeeded by his son Ruaridh, who was succeeded by his son Gillaphadrick c1400 Daughter of Gillaphadrick married Alexander, Lord of the Isles who became Earl of Ross 1411 Death of Gillaphadrick (Abbey lands of Applecross passed to crown?) 1515-1561 The Crown appointed various chaplains ‘of St Malrubha in Applecross’, divided into two chaplainries, recorded in the Register of the Privy Seal Note: The History of Applecross, 1996 by Ian MacKenzie, a Director of the Applecross Historical Society, says Malcolm, with no heir, was followed by his nephew as Abbot from the Earls of Ross.
    Page: Abbots of Applecross
    
21. Title: The Abbots of Applecross, Mac-an-T- Sagart, Earl of Ross, "Applecross Chronology, Googlesites, com"
    Author: https://sites.google.com/site/culduie/applecrosschronology
    Publication: Name: https://sites.google.com/site/culduie/applecrosschronology;
    Note: This work quoted online has a date-by-date timeline of Applecross. One entry in 1215 has Malcolhm Ross, son of Fearcher (Furquhard, De Ross succeeding him as Abbot of Applecoss. A later entry has a descendant, daughter Gillaphadrick, married to Alexander, Earl of Ross. From record in part as follows: 1215 Fearchar (?O’Beolan of Applecross) Mac-an-tsagairt, suppressed a rebellion against the King of Scotland. 1226 Fearchar Mac-an-tsagairt created Earl of Ross by King Alexander III of Scotland. c1251 Fearchar died, buried in Fearn Abbey, Easter Ross, (?succeeded as abbot of Applecross by his son Malcolm.) c1300 ?Malcolm succeeded by his son, known only as the ‘Green Abbot’, who was succeeded by his son Ruaridh, who was succeeded by his son Gillaphadrick c1400 Daughter of Gillaphadrick married Alexander, Lord of the Isles who became Earl of Ross 1411 Death of Gillaphadrick (Abbey lands of Applecross passed to crown?) 1515-1561 The Crown appointed various chaplains ‘of St Malrubha in Applecross’, divided into two chaplainries, recorded in the Register of the Privy Seal Note: The History of Applecross, 1966 by Ian MacKenzie, a Director of the Applecross Historical Society, says Furguhar, and his father, and his son Malcohm were all three Abbots. But is states Malcohm had no heir, and that he was followed by his nephew as Abbot from the Earls of Ross.
    Page: Source claims Fearchar Earl of Ross, and several of his sons were Abbots of Applecross. Included for research.
    
22. Title: Legacy NFS Source: Earl Ferquhard MacTaggart De Ross -
    Author: Burke's Peerage & Baronetage, 106th Edition, Charles Mosley {1999}, Page number: 2769
    Note: Source Media Type: Book
    Page: Migrated from user-supplied source citation: urn:familysearch:source:2736742367
    
23. Title: Earls of Ross, "Wikipedia.com"
    Author: Wikipedia, Earl of Ross.
    Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earl_of_Ross;
    Note: Contains a description of and list of the Earls of Ross. See link.
    Page: Wikipedia Earls
    
24. Title: O'Beolan Earls of Ross, "GreatClanRoss,com"
    Author: GreatClanRoss.com (of Canada)
    Publication: Name: http://www.greatclanross.org/htext5.html;
    Note: Contains an outlined description of the O'Beolan Earls of Ross. None of the Earls actually used the name Ross, which name Ross was first adopted by Chief Hugh Ross, 1st Laird of Balnagowan, Chief of the Clan Ross.
    Page: family
    
25. Title: Grandfather of Earl Farquhar married daughter of MacHeth, "Genealogy.com"
    Author: http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/ross/10494/
    Publication: Name: http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/ross/10494/;
    Note: This source by the Ross researcher Charles Brashear says that the Obeolan married to the daughter of Malcolm MacHeth was the Grandfather of Farquhard, Earl of Ross. Gives citation.
    Page: family
    
26. Title: Finnon O'Beolan, the Green Abbot, grandson Patrich O'Beolan, the Red Abbot, "History of the Outer Hebrides"
    Author: page 93
    Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=txBBAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA620&lpg=PA620&dq=patrick+the+red+o%27beolan&source=bl&ots=Lg47z7JDbO&sig=ACfU3U3zbZRMmMrDEOCz3NF8aQmtDmXf5g&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjM7cbHw_viAhW-Ap0JHbaUC3MQ6AEwBnoECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=patrick%20the%20red%20o'beolan&f=false;
    Page: Proof the Earls of Ross were O'Beolans of Wester Ross and not Easter Ross as some think. Also proof the Abbots were from the Earls of Ross although which William, Earl of Ross is contradicted by Applecross tradition.