 In 1772, as a consequence of the Jacobite Rebellion, Macdonald's paternal grandfather, John MacDonald of Glenaladale, the 8th laird of Glenaladale (of the MacDonalds of Clan Ranald), purchased more than of land in Prince Edward Island for settlement by more than 200 members of his Roman Catholic clan.Known today as the Glenaladale Settlers, in Canada the family name had been recorded as McDonald, which he maintained until 1898, when he began using the historical Scottish spelling but without capitalizing the "d".As a youth, Macdonald rebelled against the authoritarian rule of his father and his Roman Catholic upbringing.