Battlefields›Battle of Blar Na Pairce
Medieval

Battle of Blar Na Pairce

1480
Scotland
Era
Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Scotland
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Clan Donald (MacDonald islanders)
VS
Victor
Clan Mackenzie
Forces involved

Clan Donald (MacDonald islanders) led by Gillespick MacDonald

Clan Mackenzie led by Kenneth Mackenzie

Outcome
Victory for Clan Mackenzie; the MacDonald islanders were defeated with many men drowned in the River Conon.
The Battle

History & Significance

The Battle of Blar na Pairce (Scottish Gaelic: Blàr na Pàirce "Battle of the Park") was a Scottish clan battle that took place just outside Strathpeffer some time between 1485 and 1491. It was fought between men of the Clan Donald or MacDonald and the Clan Mackenzie (led by Kenneth Mackenzie).

The chief of Clan Donald, Lord of the Isles, had resigned the title of Earl of Ross to the king in 1477. After this the province of Ross was constantly invaded by the MacDonald islanders. As a result, a battle was fought between the Clan Donald islanders, led by Gillespick MacDonald against the Clan MacKenzie. The MacDonald islanders were defeated with many men being drowned in the River Conon.

Dagg, C (2007). Blar na Pairce, Highland (Contin parish), desk-based assessment and metal detecting survey, Discovery Excav Scot. Vol. 8. Wiltshire, England: Cathedral Communications Limited. p. 109.

Mackenzie, Alexander (1894). History of the Mackenzies, with genealogies of the principal families of the name. Inverness: A. & W. Mackenzie. pp. 88-96. Retrieved 15 September 2019.

The ground

The ground they fought on

The site of Battle of Blar Na Pairce lies on Lower Old Red Sandstone, bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.

Buried history

The MacDonald islanders, who had repeatedly invaded the province of Ross following their chief's resignation of the earldom in 1477, were led into battle by Gillespick MacDonald against the forces of Clan Mackenzie under Kenneth Mackenzie just outside Strathpeffer; the assault ended in a decisive defeat for the islanders, with many men losing their lives by drowning in the River Conon.

Casualties & Losses
  • Many MacDonald men drowned in the River Conon
Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Battle of Blar Na Pairce

This page covers Battle of Blar Na Pairce. A full Aubrey report for the area pulls together this battle alongside scheduled monuments and everything else the record holds within a few miles:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Stat Accounts
The parish Statistical Accounts of the 1790s and 1830s, describing life, work and population here.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Battle of Blar Na Pairce report
Or see a real report first
Protected heritage nearby

Scheduled Monuments near Battle of Blar Na Pairce

Loch Kinellan,crannog
Loch Kinellan,crannog
Scheduled monument · Iron Age–Medieval · ~0.4 mi

Loch Kinellan crannog is an Iron Age to medieval settlement site constructed on the bed of a freshwater loch in Ross-shire. Crannogs were artificial or semi-artificial islands built from timber, stone and brushwood, providing defensive settlements and refuge in times of unrest. This example was c…

Brahan Wood, chambered cairn 835m NW of Brahan House
Brahan Wood, chambered cairn 835m NW of Brahan House
Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~2.2 mi

Brahan Wood chambered cairn is a Neolithic funerary monument sited 835 metres north-west of Brahan House in Ross-shire, northern Scotland. Like other chambered cairns of the Neolithic period, it would have served as a communal burial place for the dead, its internal chamber constructed from stone…

Henge, 135m SW of Fiodh Mhor
Henge, 135m SW of Fiodh Mhor
Scheduled monument · ~2.4 mi

Henge, 135m SW of Fiodh Mhor is a Neolithic or Early Bronze Age ceremonial monument located in Ross-shire, Scotland. It stands on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone, a conglomerate deposit formed during the Middle Devonian period, which underlies much of this Highland landscape. The site is prot…

Whiteleys, chambered cairn 300m SW of Craig Ruadh
Whiteleys, chambered cairn 300m SW of Craig Ruadh
Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~3.5 mi

Whiteleys is a Neolithic chambered cairn located 300 metres south-west of Craig Ruadh in Ross-shire, Scotland. The monument sits on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone, a mixture of conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone deposited during the Middle Devonian period. This solid foundation…

Heights of Brae, chambered cairn 375m NNW of Firth View
Heights of Brae, chambered cairn 375m NNW of Firth View
Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~3.8 mi

Heights of Brae is a Neolithic chambered cairn located in Ross-shire, standing 375 metres north-north-west of Firth View. Built during the Neolithic period, this stone monument represents one of Scotland's earliest substantial architectural achievements, constructed by farming communities who set…

Carn Na Buaile fort, 780m NNW of Comrie
Carn Na Buaile fort, 780m NNW of Comrie
Scheduled monument · ~3.9 mi

Carn Na Buaile fort is a hillfort situated 780 metres north-north-west of Comrie in Ross-shire, in the northern Highlands of Scotland. The monument occupies ground underlain by psammite bedrock of the Loch Eil Group, a Neoproterozoic geological formation that gives this landscape its characterist…

Clachan Corrach, chambered cairn 375m E of Beallach Farm
Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~0.9 miles
Preas Mairi,chambered cairn
Scheduled monument · Neolithic · ~1.1 miles
More from this era

Other Medieval Battles

Sack of York (1069)
1069
North Yorkshire, England
Battle of Mechain
1069
Wales
Siege of Durham Castle 1069
1069
Durham, England
Battle site (Shivey)
1068
northern_ireland
In the same landscape

Battles near Battle of Blar Na Pairce

Battle of the James River (1667)
1667
~0.3 miles away
Blar Nan Ceann
~0.5 miles away
Battle of Drumchatt (1497)
1497
~1.4 miles away
Siege of Brahan
1715
~2.8 miles away
Aubrey Research

Explore the landscape around this battlefield

Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any location in the UK — drawing on Domesday records, scheduled monuments, Victorian OS maps, geological data and archaeological archives to tell the full story of a place.

Research a location near this battlefieldView a sample report
Sources
All Battlefields