[2] In 1231 Maurice Macgeil witnessed a charter of Maldouen, Earl of Lennox to the church of St Thomas the Martyr of Arbroath.

[2] He supported the reformed religion and the eldest of his two sons, Sir James Makgill, purchased the estate of Nether Rankeillour in Fife.

[2] In 1561 when Mary, Queen of Scots returned to Scotland from widowhood in France, Makgill became one of her Privy Councillors.

[2] However he was also heavily implicated in the murder of the queen's secretary David Rizzio and as a result was deprived of his judicial rank and was forced to flee from Edinburgh.

[2] He was also later an ambassador to the court of Elizabeth I of England in 1571 and 1572, however while he was absent his house in Edinburgh was attacked by supporters of Queen Mary and his wife was killed.

[2] It was a member of this family who established the right to the chiefship of the Clan Crichton in 1980 and abandoned his additional surnames as required by the Lord Lyon King of Arms.