A Legacy of Leadership

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24th Chief's Leadership

Norman MacLeod of MacLeod, 24th Chief, succeeded his father and remodeled the castle extensively, adding the pepperpot towers on the corners.

During the potato famine of the late 1840s, he remained in Skye and fed more than 8,000 people on his estates. The effort crippled him financially, and he was forced to hand over the estate to trustees. He went south to London and took employment at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The castle was let for summer visitors. Norman MacLeod of MacLeod left three sons and died in 1895.

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26th Chief's Military Service

Norman Magnus MacLeod of MacLeod, 26th Chief, entered the Army and served in India. On the outbreak of the Zulu War in 1878, he was appointed political...

Norman Magnus MacLeod of MacLeod, 26th Chief, entered the Army and served in India. On the outbreak of the Zulu War in 1878, he was appointed political agent on the Transvaal border and led a Swazi army in the defeat of the Pedis. The entail of the estate stipulated that the castle would pass on to a male, and failing the male line, the daughter of the last surviving son. Ian Breac MacLeod, the only male heir and son of Canon Roderick, Norman Magnus's youngest brother, had been killed in 1915. Norman Magnus died in 1929 and was succeeded by his brother, Reginald.

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27th Chief's Modernization

Sir Reginald MacLeod of MacLeod, 27th Chief, led a distinguished public service and business career in London and Edinburgh. He modernized the...

Sir Reginald MacLeod of MacLeod, 27th Chief, led a distinguished public service and business career in London and Edinburgh. He modernized the castle by bringing electricity, heating, and plumbing to the rooms. He was the first president of the Clan MacLeod Society. When his younger brother, Canon Roderick, died in March 1934, Sir Reginald's eldest daughter, Flora became his heir.

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28th Chief's Legacy

Dame Flora MacLeod of MacLeod was born in 1878 at 10 Downing Street, London, the home of her grandfather, Lord Northcote, Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Dame Flora MacLeod of MacLeod was born in 1878 at 10 Downing Street, London, the home of her grandfather, Lord Northcote, Chancellor of the Exchequer. In 1901, she married Hubert Walter of the Times and had two daughters, Alice and Joan. When her father became Chief, Flora was elected President of the Clan MacLeod Society. Always active in politics, she went to live with her father in Skye and became a County Councillor. In 1935, the Clan MacLeod Magazine was first published.

Becoming Clan Chief

On the death of her father, Sir Reginald, in August 1835, Flora inherited Dunvegan Castle and the MacLeod estate. She was granted arms by Lord Lyon King of Arms and was recognized as Chief of the Clan by the Clan MacLeod Society.

Global Clan Leadership

During the Second World War, she met and entertained many overseas MacLeods and, from 1947, traveled widely around the world, establishing Clan MacLeod Societies in the USA, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Flora MacLeod was honored with the D.B.E. for her work.

First Clan Parliament

In 1956, Dame Flora instituted the first Clan MacLeod Parliament on the occasion of the coming of age of her grandson and heir, John MacLeod, the second son of Joan Walter and Robert Wolrige Gordon. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited Dunvegan Castle that day. Dame Flora died in her 98th year in 1976.

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29th Chief's Legacy

John MacLeod of MacLeod, 29th Chief, was born in 1935, the second son and eldest of twins, to Robert WolrigeGordon and Joan Walters, the younger...

John MacLeod of MacLeod, 29th Chief, was born in 1935, the second son and eldest of twins, to Robert WolrigeGordon and Joan Walters, the younger daughter of Dame Flora. While his elder brother inherited the WolrigeGordon estate, John changed his name to MacLeod of MacLeod and became heir to his grandmother's MacLeod estate. He did much to modernize the castle and estate and has traveled to the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, and South Africa to visit Clansfolk. Chief John died suddenly in February 2007.

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30th Chief of Dunvegan

Hugh MacLeod of MacLeod, 30th Chief, succeeded his father. He is a film producer with his wife, Frederique. They have a son, Vincent, born in 2000.

Hugh MacLeod of MacLeod, 30th Chief, succeeded his father. He is a film producer with his wife, Frederique. They have a son, Vincent, born in 2000. Chief divides his time between his work in London and Dunvegan Castle in Skye.

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17th Chief of Raasay

Torquil Roderick MacLeod, 17th of Raasay, was the grandson of Loudoun Hector MacLeod. He served in the Second World War and was a farmer in Tasmania...

Torquil Roderick MacLeod, 17th of Raasay, was the grandson of Loudoun Hector MacLeod. He served in the Second World War and was a farmer in Tasmania. He took an interest in the clan and matriculated arms at the Lyon Court as MacLeod of Raasay. Torquil Roderick attended several Clan Parliaments at Dunvegan.

In 1988, Torquil Roderick MacLeod, 17th of Raasay, was officially recognized by Lord Lyon King of Arms as Torquil Roderick MacLeod of the Lewes and Chief and Head of the baronial House of MacLeod of the Lewes.

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Succession of the Lewes Chiefs

Chief Roderick died in 2001 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Torquil Donald MacLeod, Chief of the Lewes, and by his younger son, Roderick John MacLeod, 18th Chief of the MacLeods of Raasay.

Honor Clan Traditions