Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
b: ABT 1177
d: 21 MAY 1237
Biography
!CAVEAT: The descendancy from Olaf the Black described in Sir Robert Douglas of Glenbervie (see next note) while true and verifiable for the Kings of Man and the Isles, is not so certain for the descendants via his
third wife, Christina, daughter of the Earl of Ross. See <A HREF=”matheson1.html”>William Matheson, &quot;The Ancestry of the MacLeods&quot;,</A> TRANSACTIONS OF THE GAELIC SOCIETY OF INVERNESS, Vol. LI (1978-1980), The Gaelic Society of Inverness, 1998, pp. 68-80. See <A HREF=”sellar.html”>W. D. H. Sellar, &quot;The Ancestry
of the MacLeods Reconsidered&quot;,</A> TRANSACTIONS OF THE GAELIC SOCIETY OF INVERNESS, Vol. LX (1997-1998), The Gaelic Society of Inverness, 2000, pp. 233-258. See also <A HREF=”APMacLeod.html”>Andrew P. MacLeod, &quot;The Ancestry of Leod&quot;,</A> CLAN MACLEOD MAGAZINE, No. 91, 2000.  !SOURCE: Sir Robert Douglas of Glenbervie, Baronet, THE BARONAGE OF SCOTLAND, Edinburgh, 1798, pp. 374, 375.  “IV. Olaus, sirnamed [sic] the Black, was then about ten years of age;  the nobles therefore cast their eyes upon Reginald, his natural brother, who was indeed a brave man; but he no sooner got the reigns of government into his hands, than he usurped the crown, of which he kept possession 38 years, and gave his brother Olave, the righteous heir, the island of Lewes for his subsistence.  “Olave however, after encountering many dangers and difficulties (with the assistance of Paul, sheriff of Sky, who will be mentioned hereafter), recovered possession of his kingdom of Man and the Isles, anno 1226, and enjoyed it till he died, anno 1237, having been thrice married; 1st. to a daughter of one of the nobles of Kintyre, by whom he had three sons,
“1. Harold.
“2. Reginald.
“3. Magnus.
“All successively kings of Man and the isles. But that dominion terminated when Magnus king Norway, the superior, made a surrender of Man and the western isles to king Alexander III, anno 1265; and Magnus
the last king died without issue at the castle of Ross, anno 1266.  “King Olave, father of the three last kings, appears to have had no children by his second wife; but he married, 3dly, Christina, daughter of
Ferquhar earl of Ross, by whom he had three sons, “1. Leoid, Loyd or Leod, the undoubted progenitor of the clan Macleod, of whom afterwards.  “2. Guin, of whom the clan Gun in Sutherland are descended.
“3. Leaundres, of whom the clan Leaundres in Ross-shire.  “Having thus, from the chronicle of Man, finished the succession of the sovereigns of that kingdom of the Norvegian race, and as the clan Macleod, or the descendants of Leoid, are the only people now subsisting we can connect with that royal family, we proceed to deduce their descent from the above Leoid, or Leod.”  !SOURCE: John Burke, Esq., A GENEALOGICAL AND HERALDIC HISTORY OF THE COMMONERS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND, Vol. II, Baltimore, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1977, pp. 175-178.  The three elder sons became in succession Kings of Man and the Isles,
but that dominion terminated when Magnus, King of Norway, made a surrender of Man, and the western isles to Alexander III. King of Scotland, in 1265. Magnus, the youngest of the three sons, and last king, died without issue, at the castle Ross, anno 1266, and thus terminated the Norwegian race of sovereigns; we now proceed with the eldest of the three younger sons, Leod.  !SOURCE: Rev. Dr. Donald MacKinnon, MACLEOD CHIEFS OF HARRIS AND DUNVEGAN, Edinburgh, The Clan MacLeod Society, 1969, pp. 6-7. !SOURCE: Alick Morrison, THE CHIEFS OF CLAN MACLEOD, East Kilbride, Scotland, Associate Clan MacLeod Societies,1986, p. 20. “Godred Donn, King Reginald”s son now left for Norway to plead his claim and was so far successful that it was agreed by Olaf that they should divide the Kingdom between them. Just when Olaf was on the point of proceeding to Norway to pay his ”scat”, King Hakon, tired of the divisions in the Isles, decided to bestow the Kingdom on Husbac, whom he renamed Hakon, son of Owmund, a Hebridean. Husbac accompanied by Godred Donn sailed south to the Sudreys to deal with a Scottish invasion of the Isles, and they were joined off Islay by Olaf the Black. Here a naval engagement was fought, Arran was captured and a siege was laid to the strong castle of Rothesay in the Isle of Bute. The defenders hurled down huge stones and poured boiling pitch and lead on the besiegers. Olaf, however, caused his men to build wooden sheds for protection while they were busily undermining the walls. King Husbac was hurt by a stone, from the effect of which he died and was later
buried in Iona. After three desperate days and the loss of 390 men, the fortress was taken.  “Olaf the Black and Godred Donn now proceeded to divide the island kingdom between them. Godred Donn received Lodhus, where obviously Olaf the Black still had considerable influence. In 1231, Godred Donn, to settle old scores, decided to kill Pol, son of Boke (Paul MacBhaic), who was the foster father of Olaf”s son, Leoid. Immediately, the people of Lodhus rose in revolt and Godred Donn was slain. The whole kingdom now fell into the hands of King Olaf once again and he continued to rule it until he died in 1237. His three sons, Harold, Reginald and Magnus, succeeded him on the throne in that order. Magnus, the last king of Man and the Isles, took part in Haco”s expedition against Scotland, which ended disastrously at the Battle of Largs in 1263. He died in 1265 and in the following year, by the Treaty of Perth, Man and the Isles were ceded to Alexander III, king of Scotland.
Facts
  • ABT 1177 – Birth –
  • 21 MAY 1237 – Death – ; Isle of,St. Patrick
  • Nobility Title – The Black
Ancestors
Family Group Sheet – Child
PARENT (M) Ochraidh Godred_II The_Black Olafson
Birth BEF 1154
Death 1187
Marriage to Phingola (Fionghuala) MacLochlan
Father Olaf_I The_Red Godredson
Mother Elfrica
PARENT (F) Phingola (Fionghuala) MacLochlan
Birth
Death
Marriage to Ochraidh Godred_II The_Black Olafson
Father Maclotten
Mother ?
CHILDREN
M Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Birth ABT 1177
Death 21 MAY 1237 Isle of,St. Patrick
Marriage to Lyaoan
Marriage to Joan
Marriage to Christina Ross
M Reginald [Rogn-wald] Godredson
Birth 1187
Death 7 FEB 1228 Tynwald Hill,Isle of Man
Marriage to ?
M Ivar Godredson
Birth
Death
F Aufrica
Birth
Death
Marriage to Somerled MacGHILLEBRIGHDE
Family Group Sheet – Spouse
PARENT (M) Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Birth ABT 1177
Death 21 MAY 1237 Isle of,St. Patrick
Marriage to Lyaoan
Marriage to Joan
Marriage to Christina Ross
Father Ochraidh Godred_II The_Black Olafson
Mother Phingola (Fionghuala) MacLochlan
PARENT (F) Lyaoan
Birth
Death
Marriage to Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Father ?
Mother ?
CHILDREN
M Harold Olafson
Birth
Death
M Reginald Olafson
Birth
Death
M Magnus Olafson
Birth BEF 1237
Death 1266
Marriage to ?
Family Group Sheet – Spouse
PARENT (M) Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Birth ABT 1177
Death 21 MAY 1237 Isle of,St. Patrick
Marriage to Lyaoan
Marriage to Joan
Marriage to Christina Ross
Father Ochraidh Godred_II The_Black Olafson
Mother Phingola (Fionghuala) MacLochlan
PARENT (F) Joan
Birth
Death
Marriage to Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Father ?
Mother ?
CHILDREN
Family Group Sheet – Spouse
PARENT (M) Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Birth ABT 1177
Death 21 MAY 1237 Isle of,St. Patrick
Marriage to Lyaoan
Marriage to Joan
Marriage to Christina Ross
Father Ochraidh Godred_II The_Black Olafson
Mother Phingola (Fionghuala) MacLochlan
PARENT (F) Christina Ross
Birth
Death
Marriage to Ollaghair Olaf_or_Olaus Odhar Godredson (The Black)
Father Farquhar Earl_of_Ross
Mother ?
CHILDREN
M Leod I Chief MacGillemuire Olafson
Birth ABT 1200
Death ABT 1280
Marriage to Heiress_of Armuin MacRaild
M Guin Olafson
Birth
Death
M Leandruis Olafson
Birth
Death
Descendancy Chart