Church of Scotland Rector (this was prior to the Scottish Episcopal Church splitting from "The Kirk") of Ardnamurchan () and lived as a tacksman () at Dalilea () in Moidart (). The Bard's father was a native of South Uist. Through his older brother, Ranald MacDonald, the Tacksman of Milton and Balivanich, Maighstir Alasdair was the uncle of the famous Flora MacDonald. He was also distantly related to The Captain of Clanranald (). He graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1674 and shortly afterwards was assigned to the parish in Ardnamurchan. The poet's mother was a Maclachlan from Glencripesdale and the two came to reside at Dalilea at about the end of the 17th century. At the time, the majority of Ardnamurchan was composed of Roman Catholics and the Episcopalians and Presbyterians who made up Maighstir Alasdair's parishioners were evenly spread over the whole district. The only Protestant church was located at Kilchoan (), which was nearly thirty miles from the Minister's home at Dalilea. According to the local oral tradition, the minister would always leave at an early hour on Sundays, travel the whole distance on foot, and reach Kilchoan at noon. He would then preach, perform divine services for his congregation, and then return home on foot, arriving near midnight. The route taken in his journey is also preserved in the oral tradition. After the overthrow of King James II in 1688, the Covenanters toppled the High Church Episcopalian leadership of the Church of Scotland and took complete and permanent control over the denomination. As a result, Presbyterianism became the established and only tolerated form of both Sunday service and church government within the Kingdom of Scotland. Maighstir Alasdair MacDhòmhnaill, however, refused to conform. In consequence he was declared deposed from his parish by the synod. However, the Rector was very popular and the presbytery of Lorne never succeeded in establishing a new minister in his place. It is said, however, that Rev. Colin Campbell, the Presbyterian minister of Ardchattan, came to Kilchoan upon the Christian Sabbath wearing a kilt and armed with a drawn claymore and a cocked pistol. Rev. Campbell then announced the Synod's deposition of Maighstir Alasdair MacDhòmhnaill with his back to the wall. Although both the Protestants and Catholics of the district intensely hated Rev. Campbell for being a ministeir na cuigse, or "Minister of the Whigs", he was allowed to deliver his