Black Roderick
Black Roderick was the head of the illustrious MacNeil clan from the Isle of Barra and a champion of many knightly tournaments. He could have even been considered the foremost swordsman in Scotland, were it not for another renowned warrior—Rob Roy MacGregor.When Black Roderick first heard that there were people in Scotland who considered Rob Roy the best of the best warriors, he exclaimed:
"I shall challenge this MacGregor to a duel! Then we shall see who wields the sword better. Just tell me: where can I find him?"
One of Black Roderick's squires informed him that Rob Roy lived near Loch Lomond. And that very day, Black Roderick left the Hebrides and set off southward with his knights.
Upon arriving at Loch Lomond, he asked the first person he met where he could find Rob Roy and was told: at the fair in Killarney.
"To Killarney!" shouted Black Roderick, spurring his horse.
Before reaching Killarney, they encountered a group of riders. Black Roderick reined in his horse and addressed them:
"Greetings, noble knights! Tell me, are you perchance returning from the fair in Killarney?"
"You guessed right!" replied one of the knights. "This year's fair was splendid. Am I right, friends?" he turned to his companions, who all loudly agreed. "I advise you to go there as well!"
"Did you see a knight named Rob Roy MacGregor there?" asked Black Roderick.
"He was there," replied the same knight with a smile.
"Was? So he's no longer there?" Black Roderick said angrily and disappointedly.
The knight's companions laughed.
"He's not there now," the knight said, still smiling. "He's here, before you. I am Rob Roy MacGregor. How may I serve you?"
"I am the ruler of Barra!" declared Black Roderick. "I was told that you consider yourself a more skilled swordsman than I. And I have come here to prove in a fair duel that this is not so!"
"But I have no quarrel with you; why should we fight?" said Rob Roy.
"Quarrel or not, I still challenge you to a duel!" said Black Roderick, dismounting from his horse.
"I do not like to fight without a serious reason," said Rob Roy, but he too dismounted. "Yet I accept your challenge, and you will curse the day you issued it."
There was only one instance when Rob Roy refused to accept a duel challenge. It happened when Donald Bain challenged him. Rob Roy refused to fight him because Donald Bain was not of noble birth.
And so, a space was cleared for the duel, and the two knights clashed swords. Rob Roy had very long and strong arms, which made it easy for him to keep his opponent at a distance. No one had ever managed to even touch him with a sword. Within minutes, Black Roderick realized that he was far from Rob Roy's equal in swordsmanship.
He also realized that he should have stayed home in the Hebrides.
Rob Roy gripped his broadsword with both hands and struck Black Roderick's sword arm with all his might.
"I yield!" the ruler of Barra said with difficulty. "I yield..."
Rob Roy sheathed his sword and signaled to Black Roderick's men to help their master mount his horse.
"I hope this will dissuade you from picking fights with those who wish you no harm," Rob Roy said to his defeated opponent.
And he rode off with his knights.
But Black Roderick and his companions could not travel far: they had to stay in the village of Killarney for several months until his wounds healed. And he never troubled the illustrious Rob Roy again.
However, such was his nature that he could not rest until he had picked a fight with someone. And upon returning to his island, he did not rest until he found someone to vent his anger on.
Among Black Roderick's warriors was a fearless young rider, the son of a widow. Because he was young, handsome, and brave, Black Roderick despised him and devised a cunning plan to destroy the youth.
"We are setting off for Shetland!" he announced one day to his warriors. "To demand tribute from the ruler of the Shetland Isles."
An eight-oared galley was prepared, and Black Roderick sailed with his warriors to the Shetland Isles.
Without any obstacles or resistance, they landed in Shetland. The Shetland lord himself came down to the shore to greet the head of the MacNeil clan.
"Have you come in peace?" he asked MacNeil.
"No!" replied Black Roderick. "We have come for tribute and demand money, horses, and cattle from you!"
"You shall have no tribute until you defeat me in battle!" cried the Shetland lord. "I challenge you to a duel!"
Black Roderick, of course, agreed: this was precisely why he had come to the Shetland Isles. Before the duel began, he took the widow's son aside and said to him:
"When you see me take a step back from my opponent, know that I am losing strength. When I glance at you the first time, it means I am losing the battle. When I glance at you a second time, it means my strength is failing, and you must take my place. And if you win, we shall share the spoils. Do you agree?"
The young warrior had no choice but to obey his lord.
And so, the head of the MacNeil clan and the Shetland ruler began their duel. They circled the shore, issuing war cries and clashing broadswords. At first, it seemed that Black Roderick was gaining the upper hand. But then he took a step back, and the Shetland lord attacked him with redoubled force. Black Roderick glanced at the widow's son, but the opponent pressed him against the rocks. And Black Roderick glanced at the widow's son a second time, and the youth rushed into battle in his lord's stead.
Black Roderick hoped that the Shetland ruler would quickly dispatch the youth, giving him time to rest and then continue the duel with renewed strength. This was how he planned to rid himself of two hated enemies at once.
However, the widow's son proved to be an excellent warrior, and it soon became clear that the Shetland ruler was no match for him.
And then Black Roderick, as if forgetting his secret plans, shouted:
"Kill him, kill him! He deserves death!"
And in that instant, the head of the Shetland lord fell onto the sandy shore. Only then did the widow's son suddenly come to his senses. He was disgusted by the act he had committed in the heat of battle. He had never intended to kill his noble opponent: he had only meant to wound him in a fair duel.
In anger, he turned to his lord.
"O base MacNeil!" he exclaimed. "See what you have made me do! It is your fault that I have killed an innocent man. Begone from here, or I swear I will kill you! Now I am the Shetland lord, and you shall receive not a penny, not a blade of grass, nor the poorest sheep from my islands!"
Black Roderick turned to his warriors for help, but they too turned away from him. And he had no choice but to flee to his galley. Thus, he brought shame upon the illustrious name of the MacNeils.
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