JOIN IN THE CELEBRATION!
The 400th Anniversary of the signing of
the great Clan Chattan Bond of Union
Throughout the world,
clansmen and clanswoman that bear the names of the great clans,
septs and families that comprise the ’16 Hail Kin of the Clan
Chattan’ confederation will gather together from ‘all the airts’ to
Inverness, Scotland in early August 2009 to rejoice and celebrate
the 400th Anniversary of the signing of the great 1609
Clan Chattan Bond of Union.
This
unique 400th anniversary observance
will be a watershed event in modern-day Scottish clan initiatives.
The Clan Chattan Association will host a re-signing of the
Clan Chattan bond with wording suitable for our clan confederacy in
the 21st Century.
We
encourage as many clansfolk as possible from around the world to
take part in the celebrations and to add their name to the document.
As in
1609,
the signing of the 2009 Bond of Union will be headed by many Clan
Chiefs. The
first witness of the 1609 bond was the Provost
[Mayor] of Inverness. 400 years later, his modern-day counterpart,
the present Provost of Inverness will also be the first witness of
the bond.
Uniting
the modern clan Online,
the
bond will be available for clan members around the world to
sign online during the week of events. Interested parties can
register by e-mail via the Clan Chattan website portal prior to the
celebration and re-union.
If your
name is one below
you will be eligible to sign the Bond. Others with a Clan Chattan
ancestor or a local or Highland connection to Clan Chattan country
are also invited and encouraged to sign as witnesses. (For a full
list of the associated clans and septs, please go to
www.clanchattan.org.uk ):
MACKINTOSH, MACPHERSON, SHAW, MACBEAN, FARQUHARSON,
MACPHAIL, DAVIDSON, MACGILLIVRAY, MACQUEEN, MACTHOMAS, MACLEANS OF
THE NORTH, MACINTYRES FROM BADENOCH.
If you would like to be kept up to date
with the times and venue of this event, or how to sign the Bond at a
distance, please contact The Clan Chattan Association, PO Box 13817,
Penicuik, Midlothian, Scotland EH26 9HX or you can e-mail:
clanchattanassociation@btinternet.com
The
2009 Anniversary is an extraordinary event
that highlights the unbreakable ties to the history, land and
traditions of this unique tribal confederation. It is also a
testimony to the ancient and evergreen bonds of friendship and
family relationships that has allowed the Clan Chattan to survive
and thrive for over 800 years of Scottish history.
We urge
every member
of the
individual clans, septs and families of the great Clan Chattan to
join us in this unique opportunity to be a part of history in the
making.
2009 Anniversary Celebration Events will include:
WEDNESDAY 5TH AUGUST
-Welcome and Registration at the Lochardil House
Hotel, Inverness
-Visit to the Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre
(with an overview of the Clan Chattan’s pivotal role in the Battle
of Culloden at the new visitor’s centre)
-Laying of the Clan Chattan Association Wreath
-Scottish High Tea at the Lochardil House Hotel
THURSDAY 6TH AUGUST
-Unveiling of the Memorial at Termit
-March of the Clan Chattan through Inverness to Eden
Court
-Lunch
-Signing of the 2009 Bond of Union by the Chiefs and
Clan Members in the presence of and witnessed by the Provost of the
City of Inverness, at Eden Court
FRIDAY 7TH AUGUST
-Highland Field Sports at Moy
-Gathering at the Main Arena
-Storytelling by Ray Owens
-Invitation by Mrs Mackintosh of Mackintosh to lunch
in the Clan Tent
-Clan Chattan Association AGM
-Ceilidh at the Thistle Hotel, Inverness.
SATURDAY 8TH AUGUST
-Tour of the Clan Country, Strathnairn, Strathdearn
and Strathspey including a visit to the Clan Macpherson Museum at
Newtonmore
N.B.: Please note that events may change slightly. A full timetable
will be continually updated online.
Overview:
‘The Clan of the Cats' was a very
unique confederation in Highland history. The early Clan Chattan
confederation had its beginnings in the mists of the 12th century.
In 1291 its fortunes combined with that of the burgeoning Clan
Mackintosh with the marriage of Eva, heiress of the 6th
Chief of Clan Chattan with
Angus Mac Ferquhard,
the 6th Chief of Clan Mackintosh. This
pivotal union focused and grew the power of the now combined clans
towards the central Highlands. Other small clans and tribes soon
were
linked to the confederacy by marriage or joined
for mutual self-protection.
The Clan
Chattan soon comprised of a confederation of 16 clans, tribes and
families and was the second or third largest clan entity in the
Highlands. From Largs and Bannockburn to Culloden Moor, the Clan
Chattan was a collective military force to be reckoned with, taking
part in many of the significant battles fought throughout Scotland's
history. Originally centred in Lochaber, the Clan Chattan’s area of
hegemony encompassed the wide geographic areas of Strathdearn/Strathnairn, central
and upper Strathspey and parts of Deeside and upper Glenshee.
Today’s
Highlands-based Clan Chattan Association continues the ethos of its
ancestors and gathers its worldwide kin and clan in friendship and
celebrates our rich family and Celtic history, heritage and culture.
Primary
Contact:
Scotland:
The Hon. Membership/Correspondence Secretary Denise McIntosh:
the Clan Chattan Association, PO Box 13817, Penicuik,
Midlothian, Scotland EH26 9YR : e-mail
clanchattanassociation@btinternet.com
Secondary Contacts:
Canadian Overseas Member of Council: W. Rex Davidson: Thistle Down
House, 3910 Capilano Road, North Vancouver, British Columbia, V7R
4J2, Canada.
Australian Overseas Member of Council: Peter McGillivray:
1/27 Trafalgar Street, Mount Albert, Victoria, 3127, Australia.
United
States Overseas Member of Council: William Shaw of Easter Lair:
Wester Crathienaird, 260 Mount Pilchuck Ave. S.W., Issaquah, WA.
98027-3517, USA
shawofeasterlair@comcast.net
“..that
perpetual friendship, amity and kindness may remain and abide
betwixt them and their chief in times coming and amongst the saids
hail kin of the Clanchattan.”
-1609 Clan Chattan Bond of Union |