National Library of Scotland Purchases 16th Century Chronicle of Fortingall

The Chronicle of Fortingall is a Highland Perthshire manuscript written in Latin, Scots and Gaelic. It was compiled between 1554 and 1579 and includes poetry, short texts, and records of contemporary events. The contents include lists of Scottish kings and notes on their reigns, a Gaelic poem in a writing system based on Middle Scots, a chronicle recording the deaths of prominent men and women within the Highlands from 1390 to 1579 and a list of battles from Bannockburn (1314) to Flodden (1513). The Chronicle has now been secured for the Scottish nation.

The Chronicle of Fortingall was bought by the National Library of Scotland last month for £25,000. The manuscript gets its name from the village of Fortingall (Scottish Gaelic: Fartairchill) which is in Glen Lyon, Perthshire, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Gleann Lìomhann, Siorrachd Pheairt, Alba). It is said to be the work of several scribes and was complied in Fortigall. The scribes belonged to the MacGregor family who also compiled the slightly earlier Book of the Dean of Lismore, the earliest surviving collection of Gaelic poetry compiled in Scotland.

Image: The Chronicle of Fortingall courtesy of the National Library of Scotland.