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McARTHUR
MODERN TARTAN background
CLAN HISTORY:- PAGE 1, PAGE 2,
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Modern history
In 1771 Patrick MacArthur, chief of Clan Arthur, died in Jamaica
without a male heir. With his death, the official title of Chief of
Clan Arthur ceased to exist. In 1986 senior members of Clan Arthur
hired a genealogist to trace back through the last chief's family tree
to find a living representative with a common ancestor to the chiefs of
Clan Arthur.[7] Genealogical research concluded that the chiefly line
of the MacArthurs, the MacArthurs of Tirivadich could be traced as far
back as 1495, to a John MacArthur of Tirivadich. The MacArthur chiefly
line was traced nine generations down from this John MacArthur of
Tirivadich, through his eldest grandson: Duncan MacArthur of
Tirivadich; and three generations through John MacArthur of
Tirivadich's younger grandsons: Niall MacArthur of Querlane and John
MacArthur of Drissaig. Research showed that the main line had become
extinct, however a living descendant through John MacArthur of Drissaig
was found – a Canadian born man named James Edward Moir MacArthur.
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This man traced his descent from a Margaret MacArthur Moir, who died
about 1775. A great nephew of hers, Archibald MacArthur Stewart,
recorded Arms in 1775 and traced his descent from John MacArthur of
Milton, who died in 1674. The genealogical research conducted on behalf
of Clan Arthur linked this John MacArthur of Milton back to John
MacArthur of Drissaig.
In 1991 a derbfine was organised by armigers of the clan. There it was
determined that James Edward Moir MacArthur of Milton should petition
the Lord Lyon to be appointed Clan Commander of Clan Arthur. Ten years
later, James Edward Moir MacArthur of Milton successfully petitioned
the Lord Lyon to appointed chief of the clan. In August 2002, the Lord
Lyon recognised James Edward Moir MacArthur of that Ilk as the rightful
heir to the arms of MacArthur of Tirivadich, and that he was entitled
to the chiefship of Clan Arthur. Later in April 2003, he was officially
inaugurated by clan members as Chief of Clan Arthur. He was the first
official chief of the clan in about 230 years.
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Upon his death in 2004, he was succeeded as chief by his son, John
Alexander MacArthur of that Ilk.
The current chief of Clan Arthur
represents the clan as a member of the Standing Council of Scottish
Chiefs
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The reluctant chief of Clan MacArthur [The Scotsman Newspaper 7th Feb.2002]
As missing persons cases go, the disappearance of the
title of chief of the Clan Arthur is in a class of its own. Last seen
in India in the 1780s, the title vanished with the death of one Charles
MacArthur of Tirivadich. Childless and with no obvious male heir, his
death appeared to have consigned the hereditary chiefdom to history.
But now, an heir apparent has been found after a genealogist spent 15
years tracing the clan’s family tree. More than 220 years after the
disappearance of the chiefly line, the Clan Arthur stands on the verge
of having a leader once more. The man they have placed their faith in
is James Edward Moir MacArthur of Tirivadich and Milton, 87, a former
Coal Board employee living in Edinburgh.
Mr MacArthur, however, is something of a reluctant standard bearer,
anxious no-one should think he is putting himself forward for the
title. Yesterday, he said: "I must stress this, it is not for me, it is
for the clan. I am only a cog in the wheel. But a clan has got to have
a chief to be a real clan." It was the senior members of the clan who
set the search in motion in 1986, hiring highly-respected genealogist
Hugh Peskett to delve back through 12 generations of MacArthurs to find
a common ancestor for the last chief, Charles MacArthur of Tirivadich,
and the man their hopes now rest on. Mr Peskett found his man back in
the 16th century in the shape of another Charles MacArthur, the 12
times great-grandfather of James MacArthur.
That Charles MacArthur died in 1525 and the chiefly line continued
through his eldest son, eventually dying out with the final Charles
sometime between 1786 and 1788. His ancestor, however, had two more
sons, and the current James MacArthur is descended from the third one.
The discovery provided the common ancestry the clan needed to present
its claim to Robin Blair, the Lord Lyon King of Arms. Mr MacArthur was
appointed commander of the clan - one step down from chief - ten years
ago after Mr Peskett presented his initial findings to the senior
members of the clan, but it will be up to the Lord Lyon, who is
appointed by the Queen and whose office dates back to at least 1318, to
decide whether to recognise him as the rightful chief.
Mr MacArthur explained: "I was popped in as makeshift commander and the
clan became a clan once again having had no leadership for several
hundred years. "It took Mr Peskett more than ten years to find the
connection between the house of Milton, which I am, and the house of
Tirivadich, which is the chiefly line, because the chiefly line
appeared to have died out. "Now that Mr Peskett has investigated and
found the connection back to the Tirivadich family, the clan wished to
put forward a chiefship. I am simply there to obey instructions."
Married with a son, John, and two grandsons, Mr MacArthur spent time in
the Far East after the Second World War before returning to Britain to
work for the Coal Board. Despite his reluctance to press his case for
the chiefship, he admitted he first discovered he had a claim in 1922.
"My father told me on a Sunday walk in the country that our family was
the leader of the Clan MacArthur," he said. "But he said the family had
never bothered about it."
Even then, nothing might have come of it had it not been for the
interest of the overseas members of the clan, which has branches in New
Zealand, Australia, Southern Africa, Canada and the United States. It
was the Americans in particular who decided they needed a chief. Bob
McArthor, the editor of the clan magazine Round Table, explained they
had been actively seeking a chief for at least the last 20 years after
turning up for a clan gathering in Scotland. He said: "I guess it is
our fault. We sent a letter to the court of the Lord Lyon inquiring
what we should do to restore our kinship. "Someone recommended James
and at first he was reluctant because he is a very modest man, but we
persuaded him he was the best person to fill this post and he agreed to
go through with this. "As a result we held a derbh-fine [conclave] in
Scotland and by popular vote elected James. "We in the States are
responsible for pushing him. I think he is afraid of offending the Lord
Lyon but we love him and he really is our hope." Mr Peskett said there
was little doubt about the claim, adding: "It took me a long time and a
lot of work but I am satisfied that James MacArthur is the rightful
heir. "Other people might try, and they often do, but I am satisfied
that he is the right man." Yesterday, the Lord Lyon’s secretary said a
petition had been received and an advert had been published to allow
anyone else with an interest in the chiefship to come forward. Unless
someone else emerges in the next 40 days, it will be deemed there is
no-one with a better claim. If the Lord Lyon is happy with the
information before him, the MacArthurs will have their first chief for
more than 220 years.
Source: http://www.scotsman.com/news/the-reluctant-chief-of-clan-macarthur-1-596384
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| t....the
Clan Line cargo vessel Clan MacArthur
was launched in
October 1935.
It was torpedoed and sunk by U-181 off Madagascar on
12th August 1943
with the loss of 53 crew members. |
McARTHUR
MODERN TARTAN
SEE SHOP HOUSE of TARTAN
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