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Ron Bhan
(Gaelic for White Seal)
Built 1939 by James Silver in Greenock. Designed by John Bain.
The boats produced by the James Silver yard were widely regarded as the Rolls Royce of Gentleman's Yachts and John Bain was the premier yacht designer of his generation. They were designed as coastal sea going boats, carvel construction, teak on oak with mahogany topsides. As a consequence Silver boats are generally narrower of beam than other similar craft and have a yachts profile.
This boat was commissioned by Ronald McDonald Douglas in 1938 and was launched by him and his daughter in February 1939.
Ronald McDonald Douglas was a famous and consequently wealthy Scottish author, best known for his book 'A Scots Story' which was a book compiling a combination of Scottish history, fables myths and legends. This book now commands high prices in Antiquarian bookshops from Sydney to New York.
However, Douglas was also a fervent Scottish nationalist and in 1935 he was picked up by British Intelligence in Geneva trying to buy weapons from the Germans in order to start a Scottish insurrection. He was transported back to Britain where he was charged with High Treason (a hanging offence). It is also reputed that the English broke the fingers in his hands claiming “try shooting a gun now, you love child!”
Douglas was incarcerated awaiting trial, however, with the Second World War looming and half the British Army made up of Scottish Regiments, it was decided that to hang a Scottish nationalist at this time was not a good idea.
Eventually it was decided that Douglas was to be offered either, hanging, or exile in the Irish Free State. Being a sensible chap he opted for exile. He was released from prison, presumably under house arrest, with no publicity and he commissioned Ron Bhan in order to sail to Ireland.
In September 1939 Ron Bhan slipped quietly into Waterford Bay, informing the Irish authorities that he and his family had been heading for France when war broke out. The Irish thought they were a well-to-do English family and took little notice. Douglas purchased a cottage near the boat and there they stayed for the duration of the war, indeed until 1965, when Douglas finally returned to Scotland, a free man.
But there is a twist to the tale in that Douglas had been an ardent student of the Irish rebellion in 1916 and was aware that the Irish dissidents had initially received their weapons by boat from France. The Aurora, the boat in question, being famous in Irish history. He had therefore contrived the commissioning of Ron Bhan with the intention of running guns from Ireland to Scotland.
Whether this actually materialised is unclear. After the failure of the first Scottish referendum in 1974 he was approached by some young Scotsmen who asked for his weapons in order to fight. He responded that he was an old man now and didn't want the death of young men on his conscience so he refused, which begs the question as to whether or not he actually did possess weapons. It will be of interest what still may lie in the keel of Ron Bhan as ballast!
Ronald McDonald Douglas has a plaque on a bench in Princess Street Edinburgh, stating he was a 'Scottish author and patriot.'
