Understanding the MacKenzie family tree before Outlander: Blood of My Blood

Outlander: Blood of My Blood is a prequel series set in two time periods. One of those time periods is early 18th century Scotland, as we follow the epic love story of Brian and Ellen.

That means Ellen’s family is included in the story. We have already met three of Ellen’s siblings, Colum, Dougal, and Jocasta. There were two other siblings, with one of them included in Outlander: Blood of My Blood. It’s time to break down the family tree to see how everyone fits in.

Ellen MacKenzie was the eldest of the siblings

Ellen MacKenzie was certainly a clear favorite of Red Jacob. If Ellen didn’t want to marry a man, he wasn’t going to force her. Of course, that doesn’t mean he was going to let her marry anyone she wanted. It had to be the right move for the clan.

Ellen was the eldest child of Jacob MacKenzie and Anne Grant. Daughters were used to arrange marriages that would tie together clans and gain support in various parts of Scotland when needed.

Colum and Dougal come next in Outlander: Blood of My Blood

Jacob and Anne had two boys after Ellen. Colum was the eldest, and we get to meet him as the Laird of Castle Leoch in Outlander. At the age of 18, he fell from his horse. Many at the time connected that to his eventual disability, but Claire notes that this is a hereditary problem.

Dougal was the second eldest son, and we met him as War Chief of Clan MacKenzie in Outlander. He wants to be Laird, and we know that he is actually Hamish’s biological father. He will do anything he can to be Laird, short of killing his own brother.

Janet and Flora MacKenzie follow

There are two MacKenzie siblings that we haven’t met in Outlander. The first is Janet, who is Jenny Fraser Murray’s namesake. We will get to meet her in Outlander: Blood of My Blood. All we know is that she was the first of the MacKenzie siblings to die in adulthood.

Flora MacKenzie is listed in the family tree. She died in infancy, which is why she isn’t mentioned. It’s not clear if she will be mentioned in Outlander: Blood of My Blood considering Janet is billed as the “final” MacKenzie sibling.

Jocasta MacKenzie is the youngest of the siblings

Jacob and Anne had Jocasta as their last child. We meet her in the Colonies, but she has a tragic backstory before then. Jocasta married John Cameron and then his brother Hugh Cameron, having a daughter with each man and being widowed by them both. She would go on to marry Hector Cameron and they would flee Scotland after Culloden and get to America.

Hector would also die, leaving Jocasta as a widow—albeit it, this time rather wealthy. She would then marry Duncan Innes, and we know that Jocasta and Duncan eventually had to sell as much as they could of their lands and flee to Nova Scotia due to their stance as Loyalists in the Revolutionary War.

We’ll meet a younger version of Jocasta in Outlander: Blood of My Blood.