Exclusive:'Betrayal, tragedy, sadness' as a Scottish clan stunned as island castle and land sold off

Feelings are running high in Sleat on the Isle of Skye as land and property of the ancestors are sold off.

The chief of Clan Donald - the largest clan in the world - said he was “deeply saddened” by the sudden sale of his ancestors’ castle and lands on the Isle of Skye, with the move leaving a mood of “betrayal” among the community and clan members both at home and abroad.

Lord Godfrey Macdonald, High Chief of Clan Donald, has spoken out after the shock announcement of the sale of Armadale Castle and gardens and 22,000 acres of the Sleat Peninsula, both which were in the hold of the Macdonalds of Sleat for hundreds of years.

He said he was not told of the sale by the Clan Donald Lands Trust (CDLT), which took on the assets following the death of Lord Macdonald’s father, Alexander, in 1970 .

He said he was “personally deeply saddened the trustees had felt the need to pursue such a drastic course”, although he understood the “financial imperatives” that drove the “difficult decision”.

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Lord Godfrey Macdonald, 8th Baron Macdonald and High Chief of Clan Donald said he was "devastated" over parts of the sale. PIC: CC. | CC

Lord Macdonald added: “I am hugely disappointed that this course has been adopted in the manner it has, without prior notice or consultation with the clan or the community.”

Lord Macdonald said he was “supportive in principle” of the trust selling some assets. But he said he was “devastated” about the sale of the Clan Donald Centre, which sits in the grounds of the castle and serves as a museum and archive of hundreds of years of the clan’s history and its rule of the powerful Lordship of the Isles dynasty.

He said: “This, to me, is the Crown Jewels, the corner stone around which the principal objectives of the CDLT as a charitable foundation was established in 1971.

“I believe the proposed sale of the Clan Donald Centre would be both a tragedy for the clan and for the local community. I pray that there will be is a change of heart on the part of the trustees and I implore them to take the time to consult with the clan and the community and to consider all other alternatives for addressing the financial issues facing the trust.”

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The trust has been supported by millions of dollars of funding from a benefactor in the US over the decades, but the decline in overall income and rising costs of running and maintaining Armadale Castle led the trust to announce the building’s sale on March 25

The clan chief was told of the sale when a friend phoned him in Edinburgh with the news on March 25 after a statement appeared on the trust’s website.

“I took no part in this decision and had no prior warning of this announcement: it was news as much to me as it was to everyone else,” Lord Macdonald said.

The sudden news has stunned the clan faithful, both at home and abroad, as well as parts of the local community where roughly 200 people, mostly crofters, live on the South Sleat Estate.

Sleat Community Council has urged for the sale to be paused so it can have time to discuss the sale and consider its options. A public meeting is due to be held at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on Monday.

The Scottish Land Commission and Community Land Scotland has also urged the sale to be put on hold so that all options for future ownership of the assets can be considered.

The land is being marketed by Strutt & Parker for £6.7 million, with its potential for wind power, carbon sequestration and nature restoration highlighted by the agents.

The trust said “legal obligations” prevented a pause on the sale with a community liaison group now being set up to include islanders in discussions going forward.

The Clan Donald Lands Trust said Lord Macdonald was not informed of the sale before it was made public given the chairman, Ranald Macdonald of Boisdale and Younger of Clanranald, owner of the Boisdale restaurants in London, was overseas and unable to make the call due to lack of signal.

Alex Stoddart, chief executive of Clan Donald Lands Trust, said: “We did not know the call had not taken place until the next day.

“That said, the announcement should not have been a surprise given his previous close involvement in and firm support for a sale of the estate, where he was present in many related meetings over the last months looking at this and other reasonable options, and latterly, as grant funding issues worsened, discussions on a sale of Armadale itself.

“This was an exceptionally difficult decision for the trustees, having committed so much energy, money and time to the charity. We look forward to working with the local community on the sale to enable the best possible local outcome and welcome the support received so far.

“We also look forward to a stronger and more viable future for the charity in our work for the heritage and culture of the Gàidhealtachd.”

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Lord Macdonald, whose wife, Lady Claire, is a regarded chef who runs Kinloch Lodge hotel in Sleat, said he had been in contact with Clan Donald hierarchy, chiefly in the US, and “numerous members and adherents” since the news broke.

A statement said: “I would describe the reaction from the vast majority as one of incredulity. They cannot believe that a decision as important as this could have been announced in what they consider to be such an offhand and dismissive fashion, without any prior consultation with either the clan or the local community

“The overwhelming sentiment from overseas concerning the proposed sale of the Clan Centre, which I know is shared widely in the local community, is a strong feeling of betrayal.

“These are individuals and families who, since the inception of CDLT, have treasured their connection with Armadale and the Clan Centre.

“Although most have never been able to contribute in a financial sense, they have all felt a common bond unique to those of Highland descent, that clanship is a family matter transcending national boundaries, centred here at Armadale in Skye.”