Hector Mor Maclean, 12th Chief

Eachann Mór Maclean (1497–1568) or Hector Mor Maclean, or Hector Maclean the Great, was the 12th Chief of Maclean. Mór or Mor translates as great when added to a name in Scottish Gaelic.^[1] He was the 8th laird of Duart Castle.

Hector Mor Maclean, 12th Chief
Hector Mor Maclean, 12th Chief wax seal from 1545
12th Chief of Clan Maclean 8th Laird of Duart
In office 1523-1568 (45 years)
Preceded by	Lachlan Cattanach Maclean, 11th Chief, father
Succeeded by	Hector Og Maclean, 13th Chief, son
Personal details
Born	1497 Duart Castle
Died	1568

Biography

He was born in 1497 in Scotland.

Lachlan Cattanach Maclean, 11th Chief was succeeded as Chieftain and Laird of Duart by his son Eachann, better known as Hector Mor Maclean, or Hector the Great, in 1527. In 1533 his Scottish galleys captured a large English ship, the Mary Willoughby, which then joined the navy of James V of Scotland.^[2]

He is described by the seanachaidhs as being good, kind, affectionate, and brave, an accomplished politician and an approved warrior; and that in him the clan realized all it desired in a noble chieftain. To most of his vassals he granted extended leases, by way of encouragement in the improvement of lands and the building of more comfortable dwellings. He lived altogether, while permitted to do so by his troublesome neighbors with which he was surrounded, more like a noble of modern times than a feudal baron. He made many improvements on the demesne of Duard; and was the founder of that noble addition, the Great Tower, to Duart Castle. His alliance was courted by many of the powerful lords; and the king thought it of importance to secure his loyalty by calling him into his council. Hence, we find him taking his seat in parliament as one of the lords of the kingdom. In private life his character was above reproach, and in his warlike pursuits he acted upon that system which had legal sanction.^[3]

Hector Mor Maclean died about the year 1568.^[3]

Marriage and children

Hector Mor Maclean married Mary MacDonald of Islay and the Glens, daughter of Alexander MacDonald, 5th of Dunnyveg, by whom he had two sons and seven daughters:^[3]

• Hector Og Maclean, 13th Chief, his heir and successor.
• John Dubh Maclean of Morvern, predecessor of the family of Kinlochaline Castle.
• Marian Maclean, married to Norman MacLeod of Harris.
• Mary Maclean, married to Donald MacDonald of Sleat.
• Catherine Maclean I, died unmarried.
• Catherine Maclean II, was married four times: firstly to Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll; secondly to Calvagh O'Donnell, Lord of Tyrconnell;^[4] thirdly to Shane O'Neill, Prince of Ulster; and fourthly to John Stewart of Appin.^[5] Catherine was a high-spirited woman, and was distinguished for her beauty and culture
• Giles (or Silis) Maclean, married to Tormod MacLeod, 13th Chief (c.1510 - c.1585). She died in 1568.
• Una Maclean, married to Cameron of Lochiel.
• Janet Maclean, married to Allan MacDonald, 9th of Clanranald.

References

 This article incorporates text from A history of the clan Mac Lean from its first settlement at Duard Castle, in the Isle of Mull, to the present period: including a genealogical account of some of the principal families together with their heraldry, legends, superstitions, etc, by John Patterson MacLean, a publication from 1889, now in the public domain in the United States.

1. "Mór". MacBain's Dictionary. Retrieved 17 April 2009. great, Irish mór, Old Irish mór, már, Welsh mawr, Old Welsh, Cornish maur, Breton meur, Gaulish -mârós; Greek @G-mwros, great, famed ( @Ge@'ghesí-mwros) in spear-throw; Gothic -mêrs, famed, mêrian, proclaim, Old High German mâri, famed, -mar in Germanic names German märchen, a tale, Norse m@oerr, famous; Slavonic -meru (Vladimir, etc.); Latin merus, English mere. A shorter form of the stem (*mâro-) appears in mò, greater (mâ), q.v.
2. C. S. Knighton & David Loades, Navy of Edward VI and Mary I (Navy Records Society, 2011), p. 495.
3. MacLean, John Patterson (1889). A History of the Clan MacLean from Its First Settlement at Duard Castle, in the Isle of Mull, to the Present Period: Including a Genealogical Account of Some of the Principal Families Together with Their Heraldry, Legends, Superstitions, Etc. R. Clarke & Company. p. 224. Hector Mor married Mary, daughter of Alexander MacDonald of Islay and the Glens, by whom he had two sons and seven daughters : Eachann Og, his heir and successor, and John Dubh, predecessor of the family of Kinlochaline ; Marian, married to Norman MacLeod of Harris; Mary, to Donald MacDonald of Sleat; Catherine, died unmarried; the second Catherine, first to Archibald Campbell, fourth Earl of Argyle, and secondly to John Stewart of Appin — Catherine was a high-spirited woman, and was distinguished for her beauty and culture; Julian, married first to Calvagh O'Donnell of Tirconnell, and secondly to the great O'Neill, in Ireland; Una, to Cameron of Lochiel; and Janet, to MacDonald of Keppoch. Hector Mor died about the year 1568.
4. By 30 May 1561, Calvagh had married, as his last wife, Catherine Maclean, widow of the 4th Earl of Argyll. Popular accounts of this family's genealogy sometimes mistakenly refer to Calvagh's wife as Julian Maclean, a supposed sister of this Catherine. However, Calvagh's wife is frequently referred to as the Countess or former Countess of Argyll in contemporary English government correspondence. "Calendar of the State Papers Relating to Ireland of the Reign(s) of Henry VIII., Edward VI., Mary and Elizabeth", originally published 1860, Vol. 1, page 591. Accessed here through Google Books 17 Dec. 2107.
5. "Mercenaries and Paid Men: the Mercenary Identity in the Middle Ages", by John France, published 2008. Page 377. Accessed here 17 Dec. 2017 through Google Books.