Castle Leod On Visit Near Strathpeffer In Ross and Cromarty In The Highlands Of Scotland

Tour Scotland travel video clip, with Scottish music, of Castle Leod on ancestry visit near Strathpeffer in Ross and Cromarty in the Highlands. This Scottish castle is currently the seat of the Chief of the Clan MacKenzie, although the lands belonged to the Chief of the Clan MacLeod of Lewis until the 17th century. In the early seventeenth century the main chieftainship line of the Clan MacLeod of Lewis became extinct, and the chieftainship passed to the MacLeods of Raasay. Later the Lewis MacLeod clansmen were forced to accept the ascendancy of their cousins at Dunvegan and the two MacLeod clans became one. As a result the Barony of Lewis fell into the hands of the chief of the Clan MacKenzie. The last chief of the MacLeods of Lewis had married a daughter of the MacKenzie chief. The MacKenzie chief thereby claimed the barony of Lewis as his own. However, the MacLeod clansmen prospered under the chieftainship of the Clan MacLeod of Skye. The castle was granted to John of Killin, 10th Chief of Clan MacKenzie, born 1485, died 1561 after he fought at the Battle of Flodden. The castle was passed to his great grandson Kenneth Mackenzie, 1st Lord Mackenzie of Kintail, who granted it in 1608 to his brother Sir Roderick "Rorie" Mackenzie. In 1605 Sir Roderick married Margaret MacLeod, heiress of Torquil MacLeod of Lewis, bringing her immense wealth into the family and also settling the feud between the MacLeods and the Mackenzies over the Barony of Coigach, which thus passed into the Mackenzie family. Castle Leod is widely considered to be the inspiration behind Castle Leoch, the seat and home of the laird of Clan Mackenzie, in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander historical fiction series. It was considered as a filming location for the TV series, yet Doune Castle was selected, due to its ease of location. This may be surprising to viewers who know Castle Leod as the seat of the Clan Mackenzie and accurately represents the historical period which Diana Gabaldon seeks to portray. All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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