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Clan MacEwen MacEwan (Tartans, Crest) and The Story Behind

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MacEwan / MacEwen

Gaelic Name: MacEoghainn

Clan Crest: A trunk of an oak tree sprouting, Proper

Clan Motto: Reviresco (I grow strong again)

Origin of Name: Son of Ewen

Lands: Cowal, Lennox, Galloway

Clan Chief: None, armigerous clan

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MacEwan Clan History

Ewen of Otter, descendants of the original Scots of Dalriada, was born around 1200 on the shores of Loch Fyne in Argyll. The clan uses a variety of alternative spellings.

Sween MacEwen was granted the Barony of Otter by James I in 1432, with the remainder going to the heir of Duncan Campbell of Loch Aure. Following that, clan Ewen was without a chief and appeared only as dependants of the Campbells or as broken (clanless men).

In 1602 an Act of Parliament names them as vassals of the Earl of Argyll, who is responsible for their actions, alongside the MacLachlans and McNeils.

The MacEwens were bards and poets, as well as patrons of the Campbells and MacDougals, who contributed to Highland civilisation. Neil MacEwen wrote a poem about the death of Campbell of Glenorchy in 1630.

The MacEwens are said to have supported the 1715 Jacobite uprising as individuals. Sir Alexander MacEwen, the Scottish Nationalist and Provost of Inverness, the Highland capital, was one of the century's most notable figures.

MacEwan Places & People

People of Clan MacEwen

MacEwan, William (1827-1913)

Alloa is known for its beer, and William MacEwan worked for his uncle at the Heriot Brewery before leaving in 1856 to brew for himself at the Fountain Brewery in Edinburgh. He made a fortune selling his product throughout the British Empire by the 1880s.

He served in the Scottish Parliament as a Liberal until the turn of the century. He delegated the management of the brewery to his nephew, William Younger, and concentrated on his other investments, bestowing philanthropic generosity on his favorite city, Edinburgh.

Macewen, Sir William

Sir William Macewen (1848-1924).

With a medical degree from Glasgow University, Rothesay-born Sir William MacEwan embraced Lister's antiseptic discoveries and became the first person to remove a brain tumor in 1879. He devised a surgical method for treating and curing rickets.

MacEwan, John (1887-1992)

MacEwan grew up a radical socialist after witnessing how landowners treated his father while working on their estates.

Working as a forester in Edinburgh's Royal Botanical Gardens and with the new Forestry Commission allowed him to avoid the ill-treatment of private landowners. In 1922, he organized a foresters' union and helped found the Society of Foresters of Great Britain.

In 1960, he received the OBE for his contributions to forestry. His 1971 book "The Acreocracy of Perthshire-Who Owns Our Land?" revealed that 31 people owned nearly half of Perthshire's land.

In 1977, he co-produced "Who Owns Scotland?" with his wife, exposing the heinous behavior of landlords. He passed away just two days before his 105th birthday.

MacEwan Tartans

MacEwen Ancient

MacEwen Modern

MacEwan Crest & Coats of Arms

Clan MacEwen Crest:

Crest Description: A sprouting oak tree trunk, Proper

Coats of Arms of MacEwen

A word about Coats of Arms:

A coat of arms is granted to an individual under Scottish heraldic law (with the exception of civic or corporate arms). A 'family coat of arms' does not exist. With the exceptions noted above, the arms depicted below are personal arms. Only the person who has been granted these weapons has the right to use them.