Scottish History Book - The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers

The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers By Alistair Moffat

Only one period in history is immediately, indelibly and uniquely linked to the whole area of the Scottish and English Border country, and that is the time of the Reivers. Whenever anyone mentions 'Reiver', no-one hesitates to add 'Border'. It is an inextricable association, and rightly so. Nowhere else in Britain in the modern era, or indeed in Europe, did civil order break down over such a wide area, or for such a long time. For more than a century, the hoof-beats of countless raiding parties drummed over the border. From Dumfriesshire to the high wastes of East Cumbria, from Roxburghshire to Redesdale, from the lonely valley of Liddesdale to the fortress city of Carlisle, swords and spears spoke while the law remained silent.

Fierce family loyalty counted for everything while the rules of nationality counted for nothing. The whole range of the Cheviot Hills, its watershed ridges and the river valleys which flowed out of them became the landscape of larceny while Maxwells, Grahams, Fenwicks, Carletons, Armstrongs and Elliots rode hard and often for plunder. These were the Riding Times and in modern European history, they have no parallel. This book tells the remarkable story of the Reivers and how they made the Borders.

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Scottish History book - Scottish Queens 1034-1714

Scottish Queens 1034-1714 By Rosalind K. Marshall

The lives of the Scottish queens, both those who ruled in their own right, and also the consorts, have largely been obscured and neglected. Rosalind K. Marshall addresses this oversight with a collection of mini-biographies, illuminating the fascinating lives of these unusual women, who all found themselves at the helm of a kingdom, and reacted in very different ways.

One of the earliest known Scottish queens was none other than the notorious Lady MacBeth. Was she really the wicked woman depicted in Shakespeare's famous play? Was St Margaret a demure and obedient wife? Why did Margaret Logie exercise such an influence over her husband, David II, and have we underestimated James VI's consort, Anne of Denmark, frequently written off as a stupid and wilful woman? These are just a few of the questions addressed by Dr Marshall in her entertaining, scholarly study.

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Scottish History book - Companion to Scottish History

Companion to Scottish History By Ian Donnachie; George R. Hewitt

This is a fully updated, revised and extended edition of an authoritative and comprehensive survey of Scottish history from the tenth century to the present day. As well as fully referenced entries and suggestions for further reading, there are also key articles on major themes and issues. An easy-to-use reference work that will also satisfy the browser, this is the perfect source for anyone wishing to understand and explore Scottish history.

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Scottish History book - I Crossed the Minch

I Crossed the Minch By Louis MacNeice

In 1937 Louis MacNeice and his wife Nancy visited the Hebrides in 1937. Following loosely in the footsteps of Johnson and Boswell, MacNeice describes with distinctive candour the people, customs and landscapes of the Hebrides. Alienated from the way of life he encountered in the islands yet utterly fascinated by it, Louis MacNeice provides a unique insight into a now vanished culture and, as such, the book is a fascinating social historical document of Scottish rural life in the late 1930s.

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Book - The Hidden Places of Scotland

The Hidden Places of Scotland has been extensively updated and
contains a wealth of interesting information on the history, the
countryside, the towns and villages and the many places of interest such as
churches, castles, monuments and great mansions. The guide is beautifully
illustrated and explores Scotland in a relaxed narrative style.

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Book - The Battle of Prestonpans 1745

This is the first history of the Jacobite battle fought on 21st September 1745 between the forces of the Hanoverian regime and Prince Charles Edward Stuart, better known as 'Bonnie Prince Charles'. Lieutenant-General Sir John Cope, the leader of the English army, has been ridiculed, in song and in history books, for losing the Battle of Prestonpans - the first major battle of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. His defeat led to the invasion of England, in which the Jacobites almost drove King George II from the throne. But was Cope really to blame? The Jacobite Risings occurred after Parliament ousted King James Stuart in 1688 and installed a new dynasty. Stuart loyalists, many of them based in Scotland, took up arms repeatedly in futile attempts to restore James' descendants. The 1745 Rising, led by Bonnie Prince Charlie, was the last. Martin Margulies traces Scottish history up to 'the '45', describes the sharply contrasting weapons and tactics of the opposing armies, and follows the Prestonpans campaign from the time Charlie landed, almost alone, on the remote Isle of Eriskay through the moment his tiny force destroyed Cope's regulars in an early morning highland charge.

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Book - The Wallace Book

Through his personality, ingenuity and ability, he initiated a resistance movement which ultimately secured the nation's freedom and independence. Yet, Wallace was reviled, opposed and eventually betrayed by the nobility in his own day to re-surface in the epic poetry of the fifteenth century as a champion and liberator. Eventually, his legend overtook the historical reality, a process which has continued for centuries as manifested in modern media and film. A team of leading historians and critics from both Scotland and England investigate what is known of the medieval warrior's career from contemporary sources, most of which, unusually for a national hero, were created by his enemies. His reputation, from the time of his horrendous execution to the present, is examined to ascertain what the figure of Wallace meant to different generations of Scots. Too dangerous perhaps for his own era, he became the supreme Scottish hero of all time; the archetypal Scot who would teach kings and nobles where their duty lay, and who would live free or freely die for the liberty of his nation.

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Book - Clyde Built: The Blockade Runners of the American Civil War

The Blockade of the US's Southern ports during the American Civil War is well known and thoroughly documented, the conflict defined as a massive game of chess between two steely opponents - the aggressive Navy of the Federation and the determined Confederate States. However, this black-and-white interpretation of events neglects the role of Scotland in this historical siege, sidelining the Scots to mere shipbuilders and suppliers. In reality, their role in the Blockade was much more pronounced. The Blockade Runners illuminates the events of the Blockade as viewed and
experienced from Scotland. The shipbuilding industry was overwhelmed at the scale of profit available, and these financial rewards stimulated much ship building activity in the Clyde. Aside from being the principal provider of steamers and armed cruisers to both sides of the American Civil War, the Scots saw further opportunity in promoting private ventures, both on the water and off, as they sent privately owned Blockade runners into the stand-off, and also provided a location for secret agency activity from both sides. The ideological conflict unfolding between American anti-slavery supporters and anti-abolitionists also spread to the other side of the Atlantic and forced the Scots to examine their own values, polarising opinions and forcing the individual to reassess their position on the most basic human rights.

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Book - Hugh Miller: Stonemason, Geologist, Writer

Hugh Miller was born in 1802 in Cromarty, Ross-shire. He started his working life as a stonemason's apprentice; he later became a social commentator and crusader. His was a household name in his lifetime, not only in Scotland but across the English-speaking world. With the benefit of recent research for the 2002 conferences, this biography does full justice to the self-educated man, a figure of renown in the 19th century, whose literary genius and scientific acumen still resonates in the 21st.

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Book - The Scottish Mountains

The Scottish Mountains
by Hamish Brown (Author), Alan Gordon (Illustrator)

Scotland's Mountain landscapes are among the most striking and fragile in northern Europe. Their magic casts a spell over all who come to behold them. This astonishing collection of panoramic photography captures the physical power of Scotland's mountains, and their ever-changing beauty. Veteran mountaineer Hamish Brown provides introductory texts to each of the mountain regions.

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Book - In Famed Breadalbane

This is a history of a district of the Grampian Mountains in western Perthshire, bordered by Lochaber and Atholl on the north and Strathearn and Menteith on the south. We long have been in pursuit of this elusive regional history, which begins with an account of the region in earliest times and proceeds through the coming of the Scots, the Celtic church, the coming of the Campbells, the establishment of the Campbells of Breadalbane, down into the 20th century. It is of particular relevance for the Campbell, MacNab, Buchanan, Cameron, Dewar, Drummond, MacDonald, MacDougall, MacEwen, MacFarlane, MacGregor, MacIntyre, Mackay, Mackenzie, MacNaughton, and Menzies families, as well as many others. A wealth of local history!

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Take a Pride in Perthshire - Aberfeldy win 3rd place

Aberfeldy flower power. Thanks to a fantastic effort by the committee of Aberfeldy's Move2Improve, volunteers, local community and local businesses the town won third place in the large village category in this years Take a Pride in Perthshire competition.

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Childrens Activities - Victoria Park - Aberfeldy

Victoria Park in Aberfeldy has a recently upgraded fantastic play area. It includes safety surfacing, earth mounding and natural play logs, boulders and planting, challenging rope climbs, various swings, slide and a silicon-glass shade sail (7mx7m) which will provide some much needed shelter in the park along with a wide range of seating. This new area adjoins the existing skate park.

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Book - Highland Reflections by Donald Fraser(Aberfeldy)

Donald Fraser’s book Highland Reflections is a fascinating insight into a lifetime spent in and around forestry. It is also an account of life in the Highlands, and offers a very personal reflection on the often radical changes seen and experienced by that society over recent generations.

Highland Reflections is the story of a Perthshire man brought up on a highland estate in the 1930’s, who spent the majority of his life working for the Forestry Commission based in a variety of locations in central and highland Scotland.

As well as being the story of a forester, the book charts Donald’s life and is populated by an array of lively characters encountered over his period of service and beyond. Highland Reflections also includes accounts of general and historical interest directly related to forestry life. It unfolds at a gentle, conversational pace and will reinforce the views held by many on the nature of rural life and its qualities.


Highland Reflections takes readers on a lifetime’s journey starting in Blair Atholl, and includes life in Fife, Inverness, Angus and Lochtayside. The story also takes in visits to Avoch in the Black Isle, Islay, and RAF national service in the 1950s England.

This is the diverse narrative of a career in and around forestry and it offers readers an often lighthearted insight into a highland man’s life spent in a very specialised industry.

Highland Reflections by Donald Fraser (Wm Culross & Son, Coupar Angus)ISBN 1 873891 80 6

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Loch Tay - Perthshire

A truly picturesque loch, Loch Tay is 15 miles in length with an average width of about 0.9 miles. The shores of Loch Tay were at one time the home to many small farming communities but these were largely destroyed in the times of the 'Highland Clearances'. Many remains of these small communities can still be seen on the lochsides and on the hills above the loch, and noteably in the remains of the old village of Lawers on the shore south of the modern Lawers village, and hillside shielings used by the farming communities during the summer.

Signs of earlier communities may also be observed in the shape of ancient stone circles, standing stones and carver 'ring and cup' markings on the rocks, noteably on the northern shores.

There were a number of Crannogs in the loch (dwellings on stilts or atrificial islands.) Remains of one of these may be seen near the old Killin Pier, and more spectacularly, one has been re-created and is open to the public at Acharn close to Kenmore(The Scottish Crannog Centre).

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St Mary's Chapel - Grandtully, Perthshire

This chapel served the small settlement of Pitcairn, which extended around the walls of the castle of Grandtully, and which was within the parish of Dull. It was probably built around 1533, when Alexander Stewart, who lived in the castle, provided endowments for a priest to serve here. It was enlarged and refitted in 1636 by Sir William Stewart, who was the Sheriff-Principal of Perth under Charles I. In 1883 it briefly became a parish church, but nine years later was abandonded for worship when a new church was built elsewhere, and for a while it was partly used as a byre and farm store.

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Scone Palace - Perthshire

Scone is a place that breathes history like nowhere else in Scotland. Today, in the 21st century, it is the home of the Earls of Mansfield, and a major attraction to visitors from all over the world. Fifteen hundred years ago, it was the capital of the Pictish kingdom and the centre of the ancient Celtic church. In the intervening centuries, it has been the seat of parliaments and the crowning place of Kings. Scone Palace has housed the Stone of Destiny and been immortalised in Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Poised above the River Tay, the Palace overlooks the routes north to the Highlands and east through Strathmore to the coast. The Grampian mountains form a distant backdrop, and across the river stands the city of Perth. Two thousand years ago, the Romans camped here, at the very limit of their empire. They never defeated the warlike Picts, who later came to rule Scone, but the followers of St Columba had more success.

By the early 7th century, a group of early Christians, the Culdees or servants of God, had established themselves here. The early history of Scone as a centre of religion continued for many centuries. In 906, King Constantine proclaimed on the Hill of Credulity that the religious laws and customs of the Celtic or Culdee Church be established. Scone remained a College of the Culdee Church until 1114, when it was superceded by a monastery founded by Alexander I.

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Perthshire History - Dunfallandy Stone

At Dunfallandy, just south of Pitlochry, you will find the Dunfallandy Stone. This Pictish cross slab was probably carved around the 9th century. On the front is a cross divided into panels of interlaced ornament and flanked by angels and beasts. On the back, framed by two serpents, are seated figures to either side of a cross, a horseman, tools and five of the enigmatic Pictish symbols.

These stone slabs are the most enduring and distinctive legacy of the Picts. At a time when the rest of Britain used the Roman alphabet for memorials, the Picts preferred graphic symbols. The symbols were used and understood throughout Pictland: about 200 symbol stones have been found, some complete and others fragmentary. The earliest stones were rough slabs with the designs cut into the surface. Later the symbols were sculpted in relief on elaborate cross slabs.

The stones are difficult to date but seem to span the three centuries between about AD 550 and AD 850. Symbols were also carved on the walls of caves and on small objects including silver jewellery. It is impossible to know what some of these symbols meant to the Picts, for they have left no written records apart from a list of their kings. Many theories have been argued. The stones may have marked land boundaries or the graves of important people. The symbols may represent tribes or noble lineages and their messages record marriage alliances. Perhaps there is no single answer - the Picts may have set up stone monuments for as many reasons as does modern society.

The Picts were converted to Christianity during the late sixth and early seventh centuries, and thereafter the symbols were used on shaped cross-slabs as well as on rough stones. Usually one side was carved with the cross surrounded by clerics, angels and intricate patterns, while the other side might bear a medley of Pictish symbols, huntsmen and Biblical scenes: Pictish symbolism and Christian symbolism in harmony. Themes based on the Biblical stories of David were especially popular.

The use of Pictish symbols was abandoned in the ninth century under Scottish rule in central Scotland and as a result of Viking dominance in the north and west.

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Aberfeldy Bed and Breakfast

This comfortable, modern bungalow can be found in a peaceful location within minutes of the town centre of Aberfeldy, at the heart of Highland Perthshire, one of the most beautiful and scenic areas in Scotland.

A warm welcome is given to every guest by the host, Cathy Ross, ensuring a friendly and relaxed atmosphere. A large spacious lounge is available for all guests where you can watch TV or chat with the other guests. A large traditional Scottish breakfast is served at separate tables in the dining room or in the conservatory with picturesque views of the surrounding hills.

Aberfeldy is situated by the beautiful River Tay which flows from the picturesque Loch Tay. There is a fine selection of coffee shops, restaurants, gift shops and galleries along the main street which runs through the town.

From the town square you can walk the "Birks of Aberfeldy", originally known as the Den of Moness, made famous by the poem of the same name by Robert Burns. He wrote this poem while visiting Aberfeldy in 1787. The spot where he sat is now marked with a plaque. The Birks(birch trees) is now one of the most popular walks in Perthshire.

Aberfeldy is an excellent base for touring Highland Perthshire and the rest of Scotland as it is geographically placed almost in the very centre of the country which allows trips to Loch Ness, Glencoe, Oban, Edinburgh and the Trossachs to be undertaken in one day without the need for moving accommodation.

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