According to Bill Lawson, the Fergusons of North Uist claim descent from Robert the Bruce, who led the Scottish people during their First War of Independence against Edward I of England and who eventually became King of Scotland. While Lawson says that this is a claim that would normally be treated with skepticism, there is a gap in the Bruce's life around 1306, when he was on the run from the English and may have visited the Outer Hebrides, where the MacRuaris were among his main supporters. The name Robert also appears regularly among the Fergusons of North Uist, so the claim is by no means impossible.