Editing Cuillin (section)

==History==
[[File:Isle Of Skye A863 The Cuillins.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Views of the Cuillin Mountains on the [[A863 road|A863]] towards [[Sligachan]] on the Isle of [[Skye]], Scotland.]]
{{See also|Skye#History}}
Due to the rocky nature of the Cuillin they have historically been of little use for agriculture: this contrasts with the majority of the highlands, where the hills were used to provide [[transhumance|seasonal grazing]] for [[cattle]] and [[sheep]]. Despite the lack of earlier human presence in the hills themselves, there is much evidence of historic settlement in the surrounding glens, with prehistoric hut circles found in Glenbrittle,<ref>{{Canmore|num=11238|desc=Skye, Glen Brittle|access-date=27 February 2018}}</ref> and a [[stone circle]] identified in Glen Sligachan.<ref>{{Canmore|num=150648|desc=Skye, River Sligachan|fewer-links=yes|access-date=27 February 2018}}</ref> [[Rubha an Dùnain]], an uninhabited peninsula to the south of the main ridge, has a variety of archaeological sites dating from the [[Neolithic]] onwards. There is a 2nd or 3rd millennium BC [[chambered cairn]], an [[Iron Age]] promontory fort and the remains of another prehistoric settlement dating from the [[Bronze Age]] nearby. Loch na h-Airde on the peninsula is linked to the sea by an artificial "Viking" canal that may date from the later period of [[Norsemen|Norse]] settlement.<ref>[http://www.arcl.ed.ac.uk/arch/annrept/skyesurv.htm "Skye survey"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928060223/http://www.arcl.ed.ac.uk/arch/annrept/skyesurv.htm |date=28 September 2011}}. University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 15 March 2008.</ref><ref>{{Canmore|num=11028|desc=Skye, Rubh' An Dunain, 'Viking Canal'|fewer-links=yes|access-date=3 January 2013}}</ref>

The Norse held sway throughout the Hebrides from the 9th century until after the [[Treaty of Perth]] in 1266. In the post–Norse period the most powerful clans on Skye were [[Clan MacLeod]], originally based in [[Trotternish]], and [[Clan Macdonald of Sleat]]. Following the disintegration of the [[Lord of the Isles|Lordship of the Isles]], the Mackinnons also emerged as an independent clan, whose substantial landholdings in Skye were centred on Strathaird.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mackinnon.org/mackinnon-short-history.html#Beginnings |title=The Clan Mackinnon: a short history |last=Mackinnon |first=C. R. |year=1958 |access-date=30 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527071109/http://www.mackinnon.org/mackinnon-short-history.html |archive-date=27 May 2010}}</ref> The MacDonalds and the MacLeods were bitter rivals, and two major battles of this period were fought between the clans at Harta Corrie and Coire Na Creich in the Cuillin:

*In 1395 a force of [[clan MacDonald|MacDonald]] clansmen landed at Loch Eynort, and headed north along Glen Sligachan, intending to invade [[Clan MacLeod|MacLeod]] land.<ref>T. Marsh. ''The Isle of Skye'', p. 170. Published 2012.</ref> They were met by a force of MacLeods at Harta Corrie, below [[Sgùrr nan Gillean]] at the head of Glen Sligachan.<ref name="RCAHMS-2">{{Canmore|num=11235|desc=Skye, Bloody Stone, Harta Corrie|fewer-links=yes|access-date=26 February 2018}}</ref> The battle was a victory for the MacDonalds, who "fought the entire day till not one Macleod was left, and the bodies of the slain were piled round the base of a huge rock, topped by a [[Rowan]] tree and still called the 'Bloody Stone'" according to [[Mary Ethel Muir Donaldson|MEM Donaldson]].<ref>MEM Donaldson. ''Wanderings in the Western Highlands and Islands'', Revision. 2nd. Paisley. p. 147 RCAHMS Shelf Number: D.6.DON</ref>
*The [[Battle of Coire Na Creiche]], the last [[Scottish clan]] battle fought on Skye, was fought on the slopes below [[Bruach na Frìthe]], near the head of [[Glenbrittle]] in 1601. The MacDonalds of Sleat defeated the MacLeods after a bitter feud.<ref name="RCAHMS-1">{{Canmore|num=11233|desc=Skye, Coire Na Creiche|fewer-links=yes|access-date=11 November 2021}}</ref>

[[James Boswell|Boswell]] and [[Samuel Johnson|Johnson]] visited Skye during their [[A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland|tour of the Western Isles]] in 1773, and observed snow falling on the summits of the range in September.<ref name=b&j>S. Johnson & J. Boswell (ed. R. Black). ''To the Hebrides: "Journey to the Western Isles of Scotland" and "Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides"'', pp. 257–258. Published by Birlinn, 2007.</ref> Boswell described the Cuillin as "a prodigious range of mountains, capped with rocks like pinnacles in a strange variety of shapes".<ref name="b&j"/>

Uniquely for a group of Scottish mountains there are no records of the majority of the Cuillin summits having been climbed prior to the start of [[mountaineering]] as a leisure activity in the [[Victorian era]],<ref name=mitchell>Ian R Mitchell, ''Scotland's Mountains Before the Mountaineers'', p. 159. Published 2013, Luath Press.</ref> a situation reflected in the fact that around half the summits had no recorded name prior to this period, although names for corries and other features were in existence.<ref name=mitchell2>Ian R Mitchell. ''Scotland's Mountains Before the Mountaineers'', p. 171. Published 2013, Luath Press.</ref> Many of the summits are thus named after early climbers such as [[John MacKenzie (mountain guide)|John MacKenzie]] ([[Sgùrr MhicChoinnich]]), [[Alexander Nicolson]] ([[Sgùrr Alasdair]]), and [[J. Norman Collie|Norman Collie]] (Sgùrr Thormaid).<ref name="munros"/>

===Ownership===
The Cuillin now consists of two estates divided by Glen Sligachan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.whoownsscotland.org.uk/geo/index.htm#zoom=11&lat=57.24719&lon=-5.96644&layers=B0TT |title=Map Search |publisher=Who Owns Scotland |access-date=21 February 2018 |archive-date=7 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307193717/http://whoownsscotland.org.uk/geo/index.htm#zoom=11&lat=57.24719&lon=-5.96644&layers=B0TT |url-status=dead}}</ref> The hills on the west side of Glen Sligachan (the Black Cuillin) remained the property of Clan MacLeod despite the long history of conflict between them and Clan MacDonald. The earliest formal record of MacLeod ownership was in a land grant from [[the Crown]] in 1611.<ref name=scotsman2017>{{cite web |url=https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/when-the-black-cuillin-mountains-went-on-the-market-for-10m-1-4585259 |title=When the Black Cuillin mountains went on the market for £10m |publisher=[[The Scotsman]] |date=12 October 2017 |access-date=20 February 2018}}</ref> In 2000 the Cuillin were put on sale for £10&nbsp;million by the clan chief, [[John MacLeod of MacLeod]], in a scheme of land in exchange for repairs to [[Dunvegan Castle]],<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web |url=http://news.scotsman.com/cuillinhills/Black-Cuillin-may-be-gifted.2526927.jp |title=Black Cuillin may be gifted to nation in clan castle deal |work=[[The Scotsman]] |date=8 May 2004 |access-date=30 April 2012}}</ref> however there was a dispute over ownership, as opponents of the sale argued that the charter referred to the MacLeod's Tables which stand across the loch from Dunvegan Castle and not to the Cuillin themselves. A deal was cut for the property to be gifted in return for repairs to the clan castle,<ref name="autogenerated1"/> although it later fell through, with opponents arguing that the cost was out of proportion compared to other equivalent land sales.<ref name="scotsman2017"/> Following the death of John MacLeod in 2007 his successor, [[Hugh Magnus MacLeod of MacLeod]], found alternative funding sources, and as of 2017 ownership of the main range remains in the MacLeod family.<ref name="scotsman2017"/>

The ''[[Strathaird]], [[Torrin]] and [[Sconser]] Estate'' lies on the eastern side of Glen Sligachan, encompassing the Red Cuillin and [[Bla Bheinn]]: it is owned by the [[John Muir Trust]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.johnmuirtrust.org/assets/000/000/195/v746-aw-02-skye-sm_lr_original.pdf?1432221438 |title=Introducing Sconser, Strathaird and, Torrin |publisher=John Muir Trust |year=2012 |access-date=21 February 2018}}</ref> a charity that seeks to protect and enhance wild places.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.johnmuirtrust.org/ |title=Homepage |publisher=John Muir Trust |access-date=21 February 2018}}</ref> Strathaird Estate was formerly owned by musician [[Ian Anderson]], the frontman for [[Jethro Tull (band)|Jethro Tull]], who sold the estate to the trust in 1994, for around £750,000.<ref>{{cite news |title=Pop singer sells Skye estate to trust |author=Elizabeth Buie |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/pop-singer-sells-skye-estate-to-trust-1.477052 |newspaper=[[The Herald (Glasgow)|The Herald]] |access-date=22 February 2011}}</ref>