James Mor MacGregor
| James Mor MacGregor | |
|---|---|
| Born |
James MacGregor 1695 |
| Died | 1754 |
| Occupation | Soldier |
| Known for | the son of Rob Roy, his part during the rising of 1745 |
| Spouse(s) | Annabella MacNicol |
James Mor MacGregor or James Mohr (Gaelic: Seumas Mór MacGriogair) was the eldest son of the Scottish outlaw Rob Roy MacGregor. The nickname "Mor" comes from the Gaelic Mór meaning "big" or "mighty". He was a Major during the Jacobite rising of 1745 and he fought, it is said, with valour and honour alongside Prince Charles Edward Stuart at the Battle of Prestonpans when the Jacobite army defeated the Government Forces of Sir John Cope. He fought at Culloden where he was Captain of the Glengyle battallion. He arrived too late, however, to provide as much support as he would have liked to as he and the Glengyle battallion were in Sutherland confronting the Hanoverian Mackenzies and Mackays.[1] He was imprisoned in Edinburgh for being associated with his brother, Robert Óg's, abduction of Jean Keay. Robert Óg was hung but James promptly escaped from prison and died in Paris in 1754 aged 59.[2]
James Mor married Annabella MacNicol, and with her he had thirteen children. His sixth child, who was the third of his eight sons, was called James Roy MacGregor. The spelling of his name has been recorded as both Macgregor and MacGregor. James Roy dropped the name Macgregor and his posterity took Roy as their surname. "Roy" comes from Gaelic "Ruadh" which means "red haired". It was also a nickname given to people with a rugged complexion.