William McGregor

Scottish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Griogair or Mac Greagair ‘son of Griogar’, Gaelic form of the personal name Gregory . Compare Grierson .

History: The Scottish Highland clan McGregor claims descent from the king of Picts and Scots Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpín; 810–858 AD ). The origins of the clan are unclear. In the 13th century it was established on lands on the shores of Loch Awe and already in conflict with its neighbors of Clan Campbell. By the 16th century the McGregors had retreated deep into Glen Strae and acquired the nickname ‘Children of the Mist’. In 1603 the clan was abolished by royal edict and many members of the clan changed their surname. A year later, the chief of Clan McGregor and eleven of his followers were hanged in Edinburgh. Despite the proscription, the clan survived and supported the king in the Scottish Civil War (1644–51). The exploits of the Jacobite leader Rob Roy McGregor (1671–1734) were romanticized in a novel by Sir Walter Scott. The proscription was eventually repealed in 1774.