Editing Coll (section)

==History==
===Early history===
[[File:Dùn Beic (photo, c.1900).jpg|300px|thumb|Dùn Beic (in about 1900), one of several Dùn on Coll traditionally claimed to have been Norse strongholds.]]
In the 6th century, an Irish invasion led to the establishment of the [[Gaels|Gaelic]] kingdom of [[Dál Riata]], which included Coll. Dál Riata was divided into four kin-groups, of which the [[Cenél Loairn]] ruled Coll, [[Isle of Mull|Mull]], and the adjacent mainland, which together consequently became known as ''[[Lorne, Scotland|Lorn]]'', after them. Coll shared the history of Lorn for the next 1000 years, becoming part of the [[Kingdom of the Isles]] under Norwegian dominion, then the [[Clan MacDougall|MacDougall]] subdivision of that kingdom after [[Somerled]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}

Coll, like other Hebridean islands, has several ''[[crannóg]]s'' (artificial islands) located in some of its [[loch]]s, dating from this early period. It is difficult to estimate the exact age of these islands, but several are thought to date to the Norse period; local traditions describe three – [[Dùn Anlaimh]], [[Dùn an Achaidh]], [[Dùn Dubh]] – as having been Norse strongholds which survived until they were attacked by the Macleans.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}

The 1266 [[Treaty of Perth]] transferred the [[Norway|Norwegian]] crown dependency to the Scottish king{{refn|group="note"|rather than Scotland; they remained a crown dependency, like the [[Isle of Man]] (which had itself once been part of the Kingdom of the Isles)}}. Following the MacDougall defeat in the dispute between king [[John Balliol]] and [[Robert I of Scotland|Robert de Bruys]] (they had backed the former), the position of ''[[sheriff of Argyll]]'' was created to have [[sheriffdom|shrieval]] authority over Lorn{{refn|group="note"|Over Lorn only. Authority was only extended to the rest of the region now known as ''Argyll'' by a gradual process over the following centuries. [[Kintyre]], for example, was dealt with by the [[Tarbertshire|sheriff of Tarbert]] for many centuries after this.}}, and the MacDougall lands were merged into the [[Lordship of the Isles]]. Though MacDougall authority was restored in 1357, by king [[David II, King of Scotland|David II]], [[John Gallda MacDougall|the MacDougall heir]] had 3 years previously{{refn|group="note"|1354}}, quitclaimed any rights to [[Isle of Mull|Mull]] (including Coll), which therefore remained with the Lord of the Isles.

In 1549 [[Dean Monro]] wrote of Coll that it was:
:"''ane mane fertile Ile inhabite and manurit, with an castell and ane paroch kirk in it, gude for fishing and fowlers, with ane utter fine Falcons nest in it''".<ref name="Munro 1961 p. 66">Munro (1961) p. 66</ref>
He wrote of Rum:
:''"It pertains to McKenabrey of Coll".<ref name="Munro 1961 p. 66"/>''

In the 15th century, the island came under the ownership of the ''MacLeans of Coll'' who constructed [[Breachacha Castle]].<ref name="Historic">{{Historic Environment Scotland|num=LB4708|desc=Old Breachacha Castle including Battery Wall and Outbuildings (also known as Breacachadh Castle)|cat=A|access-date=29 September 2024}}</ref> The MacLeans exercised baronial control of the island until 1848.<ref name="n387">{{cite web | title=Information about the Isle of Coll | website=Explore and discover the Isle of Coll | url=https://visitcoll.co.uk/about/ | access-date=2024-09-29}}</ref> The Maclean ownership of the castle was sold in 1851.<ref name="Historic"/>

=== Departure ===
[[File:Derelict house at Sorisdale - geograph.org.uk - 808271.jpg|thumb|Derelict house at Sorisdale]]
[[File:Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland (1899) (14598330869).jpg|thumb|Map of [[Tiree]] (bottom, southwest) and Coll (top, northeast), 1899.]]
In the late 18th century there were about 1,000 people supported by agriculture and fishing.<ref name=Smith/> However, the collapse in the [[kelp]] market after the end of the [[Napoleonic Wars]], followed by the [[Highland Potato Famine]], caused a great deal of hardship on the island. By the mid 19th century, much of the population had chosen to leave, many of them moving to Australia, Canada, or South Africa in a process referred to as the [[Scottish diaspora]]. One source indicates that 23% of the island's population relocated.<ref name="Bueltmann">{{cite book | last=Bueltmann | first=Tanja | title=Scottish Diaspora | publisher=Edinburgh University Press | publication-place=Edinburgh | date=2013-11-20 | isbn=978-0-7486-5062-0 | page=}}</ref> The process took place alongside the [[Highland Clearances|clearances]] where many were removed from their land. In Coll, overpopulation was cited as a factor.<ref name="t893">{{cite book | last=Richards | first=Eric | title=A History of the Highland Clearances | publisher=Routledge | date=2023-01-09 | isbn=978-0-367-51450-1 | page=104}}</ref>

===Present day===

In the [[2011 United Kingdom census|2011 census]], the island's population was recorded as 195, representing an increase over the previous decade of nearly 19%<ref name="NRS" /><ref>{{GRO10}}</ref> During the same period [[List of Scottish islands|Scottish island]] populations as a whole grew by 4% (to 103,702).<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-23711202 "Scotland's 2011 census: Island living on the rise"]. BBC News. Retrieved 18 August 2013.</ref>

In December 2013, Coll secured '[[Dark-sky movement|dark skies]]' status, the second location in Scotland.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-25300740 |title= Isle of Coll secures 'dark isle' status|publisher=BBC News |date=9 December 2013 |access-date=9 December 2013}}</ref> The island has no street lights and little other [[light pollution]], allowing unobstructed views of the night sky on clear nights. In winter the [[Aurora (astronomy)|Northern Lights]] are often visible.<ref>{{cite news|last=Thomson |first=Andrew |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-17893195 |title=Residents of Coll in bid for first 'dark isle' status |date= 2012-04-30|access-date=2012-04-30|publisher=BBC News }}</ref>

In January 2024, Coll experienced a 3.3 magnitude [[earthquake]] according to the [[British Geological Survey]].<ref name="i389">{{cite web | last=Grant | first=Rachel | title=Earthquake on Mull felt like a 'car hit house' | website=BBC News | date=2024-01-30 | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cge72grq1wjo | access-date=2024-09-29}}</ref>