BRITAIN Scotland Guide 2017

Scotland 2017 GUIDE

A supplement from the publishers of

magazine

STANDING STONES & RUINED CASTLES

Celebrate the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology

GREAT SCOTS

From Rob Roy to Mary, Queen of Scots

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CONTENTS

WELCOME!

For anyone not privileged enough to live in Scotland, the country can sometimes feel as though it exists only as the product of a particularly vivid imagination; a thistle-bound confection of dramatic lochs and historic architecture, clan wars and Highland flings, remote islands and wild festivals.

Pay a visit to the country and you'll soon discover that the truth is even more fanciful and captivating than this imagined nation. To celebrate the beginning of the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology 2017, we are digging back to the roots of Scotland in this supplement.

Over the next 32 pages, we will look at the people, places, events and culture that have shaped modern Scotland, from ancient dwellings and the Jacobite Risings through to iconic figures such as John Muir, Rob Roy and Mary, Queen of Scots.

We hope it provides an extra little motivation to make your tartan dreams a reality and explore the more unexpected corners of this unceasingly beautiful, historic and varied country.

4

WILD AT HEART Discover the life and work of the East Lothian-born naturalist and explorer John Muir, godfather of America's National Parks

10

BEAUTIFUL RUINS Explore some of Scotland's most remote, romantic and ruined heritage sites, from the islands of Orkney to the banks of Loch Ness

10

16

THE BIRTH OF BONNIE SCOTLAND The Jacobite Risings came at a turbulent time in Scottish history, paving the way for Bonnie Prince Charlie's failed bid for the throne, shaping the country we know today

20

LAP OF THE GODS The North Coast 500 is more than just Scotland's answer to Route 66. We explore the many castles, natural wonders and heritage sites worth visiting along the way

24

16

GREAT SCOTS From William Wallace and Charles Rennie Mackintosh to Mary, Queen of Scots, we celebrate the most dynamic Scots in history

30

Steve Pill, Editor

Scotland 2017 GUIDE

PHOTOS: © DEREK CROUCHER/THE PRINT COLLECTOR/ALAMY/PAUL TOMKINS/VISITSCOTLAND

A supplement from the publishers of

DISTILLED TO PERFECTION Join us on a tour of the Scotland to sample the best Scotch whisky direct from the historic distilleries that create them

magazine

STANDING STONES & RUINED CASTLES

Celebrate the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology

34

HOGMANAY

GREAT SCOTS

From Rob Roy to Mary, Queen of Scots

European Regional Development Fund Investing in a Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Future

OFC_scottishSupp final.indd 1

Cover image: Dunnottar Castle © Angus Clyne/Getty Images

27/09/2016 09:48

30 The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd, Jubilee House, 2 Jubilee Place, London SW3 3TQ Tel: 020 7349 3700 Fax: 020 7901 3701 Email: info@chelseamagazines.com

www.britain-magazine.com

The spectacular fireworks in Edinburgh aren't the only great way to see in the new year in true Scottish style Editor and Publisher Steve Pill Deputy Editor Sally Hales Art Editor Clare White Managing Director Paul Dobson Deputy Managing Director Steve Ross Advertisement Manager Natasha Syed Printed in England by William Gibbons Production All Points Media With thanks to Vineet Lal at VisitScotland

© The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd, 2016.

All rights reserved.

Text and pictures are copyright restricted and must not be reproduced without permission of the publishers.

The information contained in this supplement has been published in good faith and every effort has been made to ensure its accuracy. However, where appropriate, you are strongly advised to check opening times, dates, etc before making final arrangements. All liability for loss, disappointment, negligence or damage caused by reliance on the information contained within this publication is hereby excluded.

The opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher or VisitScotland.

Scotland 2017 Guide 3

JOHN MUIR

WILD AT HEART

East Lothian-born John Muir is the father of America’s National Parks, a naturalist and explorer with a rich, romantic legacy and a life story worthy of Hollywood, as Chris Beanland discovers 4 Scotland 2017 Guide

www.britain-magazine.com

JOHN MUIR The Bridge to Nowhere at Belhaven Bay near Dunbar, naturalist John Muir’s home town in Scotland Below left: Muir’s love of wild places inspired the National Parks movement Below right: The Old Man of Hoy sea stack in Orkney

W

PHOTOS: © FRAME FOCUS CAPTURE PHOTOGRAPHY/ ARCHIVE PICS/DEREK CROUCHER/ALAMY

hether you’re standing on the floor of the Yosemite Valley looking up at El Capitan monolith, or in Orkney marvelling at the Old Man of Hoy sea stack, the feeling is the same – an awestruck reaction to the might and majesty of nature; a universal feeling of smallness in the face of things much older and bigger than ourselves.

Today, we have a language for those strange sensations, and an appreciation of the beauty and fragility of the planet we all call home.

For both of those things, we have one man more than any other to thank – John Muir. www.britain-magazine.com

Scotland 2017 Guide 5

JOHN MUIR

Although born in the Scottish county of East Lothian, Muir lived the American dream. His was an immigrant story of facing challenges, of conquering, surviving and prospering in the bizarre new world. In fact, his is such a compelling story that it’s a wonder there hasn’t been a major Hollywood biopic of his life. Muir’s 1,000-mile trek from Indiana to Florida, his beating of malaria and his years spent living in Yosemite and climbing multiple snow-capped mountains without even a coat or a rope are as worthy of the big screen as Leonardo DiCaprio’s Oscar-winning portrayal of frontiersman Hugh Glass in The Revenant.

But before all those American adventures came Muir’s formative upbringing in East Lothian. Muir was born on 21 April 1838 and his birthplace on Dunbar’s High Street, next to his childhood home and later the Lorne Hotel, is today an interpretative centre telling of his achievements. It’s the perfect place to explore the man’s life and legacy.

The family, despite eventually having eight children, were not poor, but there was a poverty of the soul in the strict, sometime violent, Christian 6 Scotland 2017 Guide

upbringing insisted upon by his God-fearing father Daniel – who believed that America would allow for a more liberal environment in which to worship.

The most sinful temptation in today’s Dunbar is the Tunnock’s Teacakes stocked in the supermarkets, and the birthplace paints a gloriously varied picture of John Muir’s life. You can look at his sketches of plants and animals and read journal extracts, and the centre aims to bring children in on Muir’s life and achievements with family-friendly displays.

The centre also explores Muir’s own childhood, which he fondly remembered as a time when he would roam the fields and listen to birdsong, comb the craggy Lothian coast for seaweed and shells, collect crabs in rock pools, and, best of all, “watch the waves in awful storms thundering on the black headlands and craggy ruins of old Dunbar Castle”.

The places the young Muir explored are yours for the taking: within the John Muir Country Park there’s a clifftop trail – from where you can see the Bass Rock, the beach of Belhaven Bay, the Tyne Estuary, and plentiful saltmarsh and coniferous woods. www.britain-magazine.com

JOHN MUIR

More Muir Five of the best places in Scotland to celebrate the explorer’s adventurous spirit John Muir's Birthplace A family-friendly interpretative centre housed within the naturalist’s birthplace on Dunbar’s High Street presents a fascinating look at Muir's achievements. www.jmbt.org.uk The John Muir Way This route winds symbolically coast to coast from Helensburgh to Muir’s hometown of Dunbar.

The newly created 134-mile path takes in castles, coasts and national parks. Download route maps from the website. www.johnmuirway.org Ben Nevis The UK’s highest peak is one of seven areas managed by the John Muir Trust, which aims to protect wildlife, land and natural habitats while encouraging people to engage with the wilderness. www.johnmuirtrust.org

Isle of Skye Three estates on the island – Torrin, Strathaird and Sconser – make up another of the areas managed by the John Muir Trust.

Comprising mountains, woodland and coast, you won’t fail to appreciate Muir’s love of nature. www.johnmuirtrust.org

Clockwise from far right: Land on the Isle of Skye is managed by the John Muir Trust; the pretty harbour in Dunbar, East Lothian; the River Lochy and Ben Nevis; a statue to John Muir stands in his home town www.britain-magazine.com

Scotland 2017 Guide 7

PHOTOS: © HELEN HOTSON/ALAMY/KENNY LAM/AIRBORNE LENS/VISIT SCOTLAND

Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park Scotland’s first National Park was created in 2002. Muir visited the area on his one return trip to Scotland in the summer of 1893 when he sailed on the loch from Inversnaid to Ardlui. www.lochlomond-trossachs.org

Top to bottom: Ben Arthur, better known as The Cobbler, in the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park; John Muir with his fellow naturalist John Burroughs

8 Scotland 2017 Guide

These landscapes would stay with Muir vividly when the family emigrated to Wisconsin in 1849. Muir explored the countryside around the family farm with vigour, later recalling how frogs in particular fascinated him.

Enrolling at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, he studied a mixture of subjects, including chemistry, maths and physics, as well as a little Greek, Latin, botany and geology, before exploring the wildernesses of Ontario and working in a wood mill. Finally he settled down to an engineering job in a wagon wheel factory in Indianapolis. It was here that, in 1867, Muir had an industrial accident and the resulting injury would change his life. With a slip of the hand, Muir pierced the cornea in his left eye. Doctors ordered him to sit in a darkened room for weeks and he feared he would go blind. It was during this time that he made an important resolution: if his sight ever came back, he would see all of nature’s bounty.

Incredibly, Muir’s sight returned. He promptly abandoned his job and packed a bag containing just a towel, soap, a comb, a brush, a change of underwear and three books: a New Testament, Milton’s Paradise

Lost, and an edition of Robert Burns’ poems.

With this, he set off on a 1,000-mile long walk to Florida, revelling in the natural beauty he found along the way. Muir had evolved into an explorer.

In many ways, this was no surprise: Scots had been the backbone of the exploration of the New World for centuries. From the daring but ultimately calamitous Darien scheme for a ‘new Caledonia’ in Panama at the turn of the 18th century, to the colonisation of Australia and the fur trade and railways in Canada, and David Livingstone’s exploration of Africa, Scottish explorers were often at the forefront of things, tramping across unfamiliar territory, taking risks as they went. Muir was the last in line of these great explorers before the modern world began in earnest.

After Florida, his plan was to head to South America but a severe bout of malaria changed that and instead he went to San Francisco and eventually Yosemite.

The Scotsman felt at home among Yosemite’s snowy peaks. He was spellbound by the beauty of the mountains and spent years here, working in a sawmill to fund his modest existence, living in a cabin, climbing the peaks without any safety gear. He kept meticulous journals that evolved into magazine articles and books. Through books such as The Yosemite and Travels in Alaska, Muir gave the public a taste for the wild outdoors. Where once Americans had been afraid and saw the Donner Party’s wagon train that set out for California in 1846 turning to disaster in the mountains, now they saw beauty – Muir practically invented the idea of wilderness tourism and his lobbying led to the creation of several National Parks and the US National Park Service which celebrates its Centennial this year. That idea spread around the world – and back to his native Scotland. In 2002 a new National Park was created – Loch Lomond and The Trossachs – through which the 134-mile long John Muir Way now passes on its coast-to-coast route.

At 40, Muir married Louisa Strentzel, settling in the Alhambra Valley, northern California, and working on her father’s fruit farm. The couple had two daughters and, after a brief period of domestic stability, he soon returned to writing and exploring, including seven trips to Alaska and a 40,000-mile trip to South America and Africa in 1911-12. Muir even had the President’s ear and took Teddy Roosevelt camping in Yosemite in 1903.

Nevertheless, Muir’s views were often seen as controversial – environmentalism was at odds with America’s economic expansion, and pitted him against a powerful and rich cadre of industrialists including Andrew Carnegie, a Fife-born steel baron who saw untapped potential in the American wilderness.

Muir lost his final fight – to prevent the damming of the Hetch Hetchy valley for a San Francisco reservoir – but he had created a movement and his legacy is huge.

He gave us nothing less than new eyes with which to see the natural world; eyes which he nearly lost. Muir’s story then is a reminder, surely, to appreciate the potency of our surroundings at every opportunity. S www.discoverjohnmuir.com www.britain-magazine.com

PHOTOS: © PAUL TOMKINS/VISIT SCOTLAND/RGB VENTURES/SUPERSTOCK/ALAMY

JOHN MUIR

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BEAUTIFUL RUINS

BEAUTIFUL RUINS

Celebrate Scotland’s Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology 2017 with a visit to one of these romantic ruined castles and mystical prehistoric sites

RING OF BRODGAR It may sound like a long-lost JRR Tolkien novel, but there is nothing fictional about this Neolithic stone circle. Believed to have been erected between 2,500 and 2,000BC, the 27 remaining standing stones are arranged in a 104-metre wide circle – one of only a few truly circular stone arrangements that survive today.

The exact purpose of the site has been contested by historians over the years and speculation often centres on the celestial.

Ninth-century Scandinavian invaders referred to the ring as “the Temple of the Sun”, while the nearby Comet Stone, a 1.75-metre monolith, is thought to mark the perfect observation point for the setting sun during spring and autumn equinoxes.

Stenness, Orkney KW16 3JZ. www.historicenvironment.scot 10 Scotland 2017 Guide

www.britain-magazine.com

BEAUTIFUL RUINS

The Neolithic village at Skara Brae in Orkney Below: Ring of Brodgar

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Part of the same Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site as the Ring of Brodgar, the village of Skara Brae dates back around 5,000 years, yet only revealed itself to a (relatively) modern audience in 1850.

When huge winter storms battered Scotland, Orkney’s west coast was particularly badly hit and a high dune in the Bay of Skaill collapsed to reveal the immaculately preserved ruins of this Stone Age settlement.

While the survival of the nine drystone houses alone would be impressive enough, it is their contents that really help bring this prehistoric site to life. The visitor centre contains a selection of household objects, including jewellery and tools, which came to light during archaeological digs at the site in the 1970s, while a full reconstruction shows how the various animal skins and crude items of stone furniture may have been utilised in a prehistoric home.

From there you can head out onto the dunes where markers provide a spatial demonstration of how far back in time you are stepping. And having seen the recreation, the surviving buildings provide a hugely vivid experience, with stone dressers, hearths and box beds all visible in situ as you wander the single-room houses set deep into the midden.

Sandwick, Orkney KW16 3LR. www.historicenvironment.scot

PHOTO: Š ECOLIN KELDIE/VISITSCOTLAND

SKARA BRAE

TANTALLON CASTLE When movie star Scarlett Johansson spent several months on location filming 2013 horror film Under the Skin at Tantallon Castle, she was suitably impressed. “Scotland’s so incredibly special,” said the Hollywood A-lister at the time. “It’s so pristine and gorgeous.”

Visit the partially ruined 14th-century castle today and it is hard not to concur. The red sandstone curtain wall may have been besieged by everyone from a teenage King James V to Oliver Cromwell (the latter sending thousands of troops to attack a small group of just 91 Royalists here in 1651), but the vast site is immaculately maintained today and still cuts an imposing figure from its perch overlooking the Firth of Forth facing the Bass Rock.

North Berwick, East Lothian EH39 5PN. www.historicenvironment.scot

ST ANDREWS CATHEDRAL It is the mark of a truly great piece of architecture when even the remaining ruins can leave visitors in a state of wonder. Large parts of Scotland’s largest medieval church were left to crumble centuries ago, yet the east façade, with its imposing twin spires, still casts a dramatic shadow over the entire site. Meanwhile, the adjacent 33-metre high St Rule’s Tower allows for a fantastic aerial perspective.

In fact, St Andrews Cathedral has been attracting wide-eyed visitors for almost 900 years. The site began with the founding of St Rule’s Tower in the 12th century, designed as a first place of worship for the new Augustinian canons and serving as a national shrine.

The 50-metre long vaulted nave would have been brightly painted and filled with relics that pilgrims sought out for their healing powers or to help speed the passage of deceased relatives through purgatory.

Many of these artefacts can now be found in the cathedral’s museum, situated in the stone-vaulted undercroft of the original cloister building.

The Pends, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9QL. www.historicenvironment.scot 12 Scotland 2017 Guide

www.britain-magazine.com

BEAUTIFUL RUINS Clockwise from left: Tantallon Castle overlooks the Firth of Forth; Dunnottar Castle is one of the most romantic spots in Britain; the evocative ruins of St Andrews Cathedral

PHOTOS: © PAUL TOMKINS/KENNY LAM/VISITSCOTLAND

DUNNOTTAR CASTLE Situated along Scotland’s east coast just 20 miles south of Aberdeen, the country’s third largest city, Dunnottar Castle nevertheless has one of the most remote and romantic settings of all Britain’s ruined castles. Looking along the rocky cliffs to the vast outcrop, which appears to emerge out of the North Sea like a giant birthday cake, one can only marvel at the feats of primitive engineering and human endeavour that were required to establish a fortress at this location in the 13th century.

For many years, Dunnottar was home to the Earls Marischal and many of Scotland’s most important historic figures have also had associations with the place. William Wallace – famously depicted

by Mel Gibson in the 1995 movie Braveheart – captured the castle in 1297 during the Scottish uprising, while Mary, Queen of Scots made several visits here in the 1560s. www.britain-magazine.com

Dunnottar’s greatest achievement came in 1651 when the Honours of Scotland – the country’s crown jewels – were kept at the castle.

Having been used to crown King Charles II at Scone Palace, the Honours’ route back to Edinburgh was blocked, and the decision was taken to hide the precious jewels in sacks of wool and transfer them to Dunnottar. Oliver Cromwell’s invading troops laid siege to the castle, but the Honours remained safe for eight months before being smuggled out to Kinneff Old Church where they were held until the restoration of the monarchy in 1660.

Falling into a period of decline following the Jacobite Rising of 1715, the castle was eventually bought by the Pearson family in 1925 and lovingly restored by the 1st Viscountess Cowdray. Today it remains a vivid and photogenic monument to Scotland’s rich history.

Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire AB39 2TL. www.dunnottarcastle.co.uk Scotland 2017 Guide 13

BEAUTIFUL RUINS

URQUHART CASTLE

Urquhart Castle sits dramatically on the banks of Loch Ness Below: Bronze Age Clava Cairns by Culloden

A visit to Urquhart Castle is something of a buy-one-get-one-free deal when it comes to attractions. There is not only the chance to enjoy the spectacular medieval ruins themselves, but also the location on the banks of Loch Ness – home, if legend can be believed, to the famous lake monster, Nessie.

Archaeological digs have revealed that a fortress existed on this site as far back as the 5th century, but the current ruins date from the late 1200s. Over the course of the next 400 years, the castle changed hands regularly during the Wars of Scottish Independence and on through a series of clan raids.

Soldiers blew up the gatehouse following the Glorious Revolution in 1688-89, rather than allowing the castle to fall into Jacobite control. It has remained in a semi-ruinous state ever since, though that hasn’t prevented it becoming a popular destination, particularly for artists of a Romantic persuasion – look out for Hugh William Williams’ epic Urquhart Castle, Loch Ness in the permanent collection of the National Galleries of Scotland.

Drumnadrochit, Inverness IV63 6XJ. www.urquhart-castle.co.uk

The south banks of the Moray Firth to the east of Inverness are rich in history and intrigue. It was here on Drumossie Moor that the final skirmish in the Jacobite Risings, the Battle of Culloden, took place in 1746, while in neighbouring Forres, the 16th-century Brodie Castle is packed with classical paintings, clan history and secret passageways.

The area’s biggest draw remains Clava Cairns, an outdoor complex comprised of the Balnuaran of Clava (two Bronze Age graves, cairns and standing stones in a small wooded enclave) and the Milton of Clava (more cairns, standing stones and a medieval chapel).

Little can be said for sure about the origins of the site, but experts have deduced that the size of the cairns means they housed important people, and also that their shadows at sunset indicates midwinter was important to prehistoric settlers. One of the sheer joys of an enigmatic site such as this is drawing your own conclusions and imagining a way of life far removed from our own. S Near Inverness IV2 5EU. www.historicenvironment.scot 14 Scotland 2017 Guide

www.britain-magazine.com

PHOTOS: © PAUL TOMKINS/VISITSCOTL AND

CLAVA CAIRNS

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HOME OF THE CHIEFS OF CLAN MACLEOD FOR 800 YEARS HOME OF THE CHIEFS OF CLAN MACLEOD FOR 800 YEARS

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The Birth of Bonnie Scotland

A story of bloodshed, rebellion and royalty, the Jacobite Risings were a turbulent period of Scottish history that has shaped the country we know today, as Steve Pill explains

L

ove, loss and legend; royalty, rebellion and redemption – the surprise is not that the Outlander TV series was a success, but rather that it took so long to recognise the Jacobite Risings as ripe for drama.

In 1603, Stuart heir King James VI of Scotland also became king of England and Ireland provoking an unprecedented period of upheaval as all sides fought to retain their separate churches and governments.

By 1685, King James VII of Scotland (James II elsewhere) had succeeded his brother, King Charles II, and attempted to 16 Scotland 2017 Guide

promote Catholicism at the height of Covenanter persecution. This angered the Anglican establishment and when his son, James Francis Edward Stuart, was baptised a Catholic the nobility were forced to act.

James VII was overthrown in the Glorious Revolution, resulting in his daughter Mary and her Protestant Dutch husband William of Orange being invited by Parliament to jointly ascend the throne on 13 February 1689.

The couple’s followers suffered a major defeat to the Jacobites at the Battle of Killiecrankie (the site of a major NTS visitor centre today), though that uprising petered out.

More than half a century of attempts to reclaim the British throne for James VII and the exiled Stuart dynasty followed – Jacobite derives from the Latin form of James.

Jacobites believed James VII was illegally dethroned, as it wasn’t parliament’s place to interfere with succession. In Scotland, the Jacobites were happy to recognise a monarch as king or queen of Great Britain, yet vehemently opposed the 1707 Act of Union with England.

Jacobitism soon became a place of solace for those with a grudge against the government and new monarchy. The failed www.britain-magazine.com

PHOTOS: © THE PRINT COLLECTOR/GL ARCHIVE/THE ART ARCHIVE/ALAMY/PAUL TOMKINS/VISITSCOTLAND

THE JACOBITES

THE JACOBITES

Clockwise from left: The Battle of Culloden was the death knell of the Jacobite Risings; the Young Pretender, Bonnie Prince Charlie; the Old Pretender; Hanoverian King George I

Darien Scheme – an attempt to establish a Scottish colony in Panama, which had bankrupted many of the aristocracy – became symptomatic of the misguided leadership and served to curb Scotland’s quest for independence.

Jacobite ideology soon spread and, after another aborted rising in 1708, these tensions simmered under the surface for much of the next decade. It took Queen Anne I’s death and the subsequent coronation of King George I on 20 October 1714 for things to really boil over. Anne had dozens of Catholic relatives with greater claims to being the rightful heir, but the 1701 Act of Settlement, passed by the English Parliament in the wake of William of Orange’s failures, prohibited a Catholic from ascending the British throne.

Hanover-born King George I didn’t help his cause by having the new Whig regime prosecute a number of leading Tory MPs, www.britain-magazine.com

A memorial stone marks the site of the vicious battle on Culloden Moor

Scotland 2017 Guide 17

THE JACOBITES

18 Scotland 2017 Guide

Clockwise from above left: Bonnie Prince Charlie’s canteen; his dress targe; the Young Pretender landing at Loch nan Uamh on Eriskay prior to the Forty-Five

PHOTOS: © NATIONAL MUSEUMS SCOTLAND/THE ART ARCHIVE/ALAMY

among them John Erskine, the Earl of Mar, one of Scotland’s most influential politicians.

James Francis Edward Stuart, nicknamed “the Old Pretender”, had already appealed to the Pope to support a Jacobite uprising, but it was Mar’s decision to sail to Braemar and raise the standard on 27 August 1715 in front of 600 supporters which solidified the movement. By October, Mar’s Jacobite forces had captured much of northern Scotland.

Moving south, they fought the Duke of Argyll’s army in the inconclusive Battle of Sheriffmuir on 13 November, a conflict immortalised in Robert Burns’ song.

Despite suffering far fewer casualties, Mar’s reticence in the battle allowed Argyll to withdraw and demoralised his supporters.

By the time the Old Pretender arrived in Peterhead from exile in France, the Jacobite army had lost momentum. Argyll acquired heavy artillery and regained many cities, forcing the Old Pretender to set sail from Scotland on 5 February 1716, bringing the uprising to an unsatisfactory end.

This became known as the “Fifteen” and it would be another 30 years before the next major uprising, the “Forty-Five”. The Old Pretender named as Prince Regent his son, the extensively named Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart, giving him the chance to lead a new rising in his father’s name. A storm prevented him joining a French invasion of England, so the Young Pretender turned his attentions to Scotland. Highland clan chiefs notified him of their intended support and he set sail for the Outer Hebrides in July 1745.

This time the standard was raised at Glenfinnan in the Highlands (a site commemorated with a tower and visitor centre today) and the Jacobite army advanced through England to Derby, meeting only

token resistance, yet clansmen were anxious to return to their lands for the harvest, there was little popular support in England and there were worries about the government forces ahead.

The conflict would pivot on the Battle of Culloden, a final encounter entrenched in Scottish history for its brevity and severity.

More than 1,200 Jacobites were killed in a single hour on 16 April 1746, pushed back by the might of the Duke of Cumberland’s men.

Today, Culloden Moor is home to an award-winning visitor centre, while clan graves can be seen on the battlefield.

In the aftermath of the battle, Charles allowed his remaining men to disperse and the government set about dismantling

the clans and depriving the chiefs of their political power. “Bonnie Prince Charlie” (as he became known) briefly disguised himself as a maid before fleeing to France, yet his exploits saw him return to the continent as a hero.

He duly embarked on a string of affairs with French mistresses before dying of a stroke in Rome at the age of 67. With him died the last hopes of a return to a Stuart dynasty, but the legacy of this turbulent period lives long in the history books on both sides of the channel. S An exhibition, Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites, runs from 23 June to 12 November 2017 at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh. www.nms.ac.uk www.britain-magazine.com

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August 13-27, 2017 • 14 Nights • $5,995

2017 Tours Haunted Scotland

Scotland’s most haunted places! Rosslyn Chapel, Fyvie Castle, Elgin Cathedral, Wardlaw Mausoleum, Culloden Battlefield, Clava Cairns, Eilean Donan Castle, Kilmartin Glen, and private luncheon at Scotland’s most haunted castle, Glamis, in the 16th-century castle keep!

October 29-November 6 • 8 Nights • $3,595

Hogmanay Celebration

Ring in the New Year with a traditional Highland celebration at the award-winning 18th-century Culloden House. A five-star experience!

December 29-January 4 • 6 Nights • $3,195

Deluxe escorted tours• 18-guest maximum• E-mail Judy@celticjourneys.us for more information

Call us at 703.941.6455 • www.CelticJourneys.us

GREAT SCOTS

LAP OF THE GODS

A circuitous trip around the North Coast 500 – Scotland’s answer to Route 66 – is one of the most exhilarating ways to experience the country. Steve Pill picks out the best places to visit en route

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GREAT SCOTS

The Kylesku Bridge in Sutherland forms part of the North Coast 500

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Scotland 2017 Guide 21

I

t is well known that you can get your kicks on Route 66, but a trip around the North Coast 500 – Scotland’s answer to the famed US highway – is every bit as awe-inspiring and varied. Whether you complete a full lap or just trace part of the 516-mile route, it is a simple means of discovering many of the highlights of northern Scotland.

INVERNESS TO APPLECROSS The North Coast 500 begins in the northeast coastal city of Inverness, which sits on the mouth of the river leading to Loch Ness – home, if you believe the legend, to the famous monster. Before setting off, be sure to take in the views from Inverness Castle, a Victorian structure built on the site of several previous castles.

As the route wends its way west, take a nice detour to the pretty spa village of Strathpeffer. The pride of the village is the Strathpeffer Pavilion, commissioned in 1881 by Queen Victoria’s Mistress of the Robes, the Countess of Cromartie. It served as a society venue and, during the First World War, a military hospital, while today it hosts a programme of cultural events.

Also in Strathpeffer, look out for the Castle Leod – as the seat of the Clan Mackenzie, it is the former home of the Countess of Cromartie and played a key role in the final Jacobite Rising.

Driving west via Achnasheen and Strathcarron onto the Applecross peninsula takes you into the shadow of the Beinn Bhàn, or ‘White Mountain’, an 896-metre peak resplendent with fluted corries that make for dramatic photo opportunities. From here one can pick up the Bealach na Bà, a historic pass that is littered with hairpin bends and rises 625 metres at a 1-in-5 gradient in places, making it the UK’s steepest ascent.

PHOTOS: © IAIN MASTERTON/JOHN MCKENNA/ALAMY/PAUL TOMKINS/VISITSCOTLAND

APPLECROSS TO CAPE WRATH When you’ve finished admiring the views across Applecross Bay to the Isle of Skye, the North Coast 500 heads along the west coast via Beinn Eighe, the UK’s first National Nature Reserve. The pale scree slopes are home to golden eagles, red deer and wide-crowned ‘granny’ pinewoods.

Further north in the town of Ullapool, Ceilidh Place is an ideal stopover for literary lovers, with a small library rather than a television in every room.

An on-site bookshop, café and traditional music venue add to the charm. The Ullapool Museum, meanwhile, hosts an impressive programme of temporary exhibitions, alongside a Genealogy Research Service that allows you to explore your Scottish heritage.

About 4km south of Inchnadamph on the A837 lies the beginning of the Bone Cave circuit, a walking route that takes you into the limestone caves under the northern crags of Beinn an Fhuarain; the remains of polar bears, arctic foxes and reindeer were discovered here, many dating back more than 45,000 years.

The wild landscape on the road to Durness is breathtaking. Great photo opportunities along the route include the Hermit’s Castle at Achmelvich Bay (a 1950s concrete folly that is reputedly the smallest castle in Europe), the Old Man of Stoer sea stack and 22 Scotland 2017 Guide

the fantastically named Cape Wrath, Britain’s most north-westerly mainland point, which is marked by a 20-metre lighthouse that dates back to 1828.

CAPE WRATH TO JOHN O’GROATS From Cape Wrath, the next leg bounces its way along the length of Scotland’s north coast through the county of Sutherland. The thriving town of Durness is worth exploring, not least for Balnakeil Bay and the 60-metre deep Smoo Cave. The latter is a geological marvel and, so legend has it, where the devil tried to lure clan chief Donald Mackay to his demise. The Mackays also built the Bighouse Lodge in nearby Melvich. The settlement is notable for its 19th-century, grade B listed Ice House, a sort of primitive refrigerator set into the hillside.

From Thurso along to John O’Groats, the landscape becomes lusher and flatter, affording widescreen views across to the Orkney Isles. It is here you will find the Castle and Gardens of Mey, the summer home of the Queen Mother, who bought it in 1952 while mourning her husband’s death. Gifted to a trust in 1996, the property opens from May to September every year, allowing the chance to explore gardens Prince Charles continues to visit today. One can even rent the Captain’s House, an adjacent holiday let, outside which the Queen Mother often ate a picnic lunch.

JOHN O’GROATS TO INVERNESS If you have distant family connections to Scotland, the east coast leg of the North Coast 500 provides ample chances for interested visitors to explore their genealogy. The Caithness Archive Centre at Wick allows you to trace local ancestors with records going back as far as 1589, while the Clan Gunn Heritage Centre and Museum in Latheron tells the story of one of Scotland’s oldest clans while also exploring the impact they had on their Highland surroundings.

One local man who is well connected to his family history is Alistair Sutherland, Lord Strathnaver.

He lives at Dunrobin Castle, which has been home to the Earls and Dukes of Sutherland for more than 700 years. Today, select rooms in the castle are open to the public, as well as the formal landscape gardens which were modelled on those at the Palace of Versailles.

The final 50-mile drive from Dunrobin back to Inverness takes in the famous Glenmorangie whisky distillery, while a detour around the Black Isle offers the chance to visit Hugh Miller’s Birthplace Cottage and Museum, a fascinating insight into the 19thcentury geologist and writer’s life and work in the coastal village of Cromarty. One final highlight as you loop back around the shore of the Moray Firth is the 13th-century Fortrose Cathedral. Some of the building’s red stone was removed in the 1650s to help construct Oliver Cromwell’s citadel at Inverness, but what remains is a beautiful yet fragmented structure just off the town’s High Street. It is an appropriately contemplative way to end a beautiful and exhilarating tour of all northern Scotland has to offer. S www.northcoast500.com www.britain-magazine.com

Clockwise from top left: Inverness Castle; Ullapool in Ross-shire; Smoo Cave, at Durness; Dunrobin Castle in Sutherland; the beautiful Castle of Mey; the Clan Gunn Heritage Centre and Museum in Latheron, Caithness

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Scotland 2017 Guide 23

GREAT SCOTS

GREAT SCOTS PHOTOS: © BRIAN JANNSEN/LIFESTYLE PICTURES/ALAMY/KENNY LAM/VISITSCOTLAND

From a great monarch to a cattle-rustler, Sally Hales celebrates the most dynamic Scots in history

T

he story of Scotland has been shaped by its creative, bold and adventurous people. Over the next five pages, we go in search of an insight into the country’s famously pioneering spirit in the places and spaces where Scotland’s greatest achievers lived, worked and battled to create the dynamic nation we know – and love – today.

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GREAT SCOTS

Mary, Queen of Scots gave birth to a son, James, at Edinburgh Castle. Inset: Mary, Queen of Scots. Below left: She was born at Linlithgow Palace in West Lothian

MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS 1542-1587 Mary, Queen of Scots came into the world in 1542 at West Lothian’s Linlithgow Palace, where today you can walk among the ruins of a once-superb Renaissance ‘pleasure palace’.

She was born to rule becoming Queen at just six days old during a century engulfed by the Renaissance and Reformation, and her life was destined to follow its dramatic course.

Dynastically important, Mary was sent to France where she married Francis, the Dauphin, becoming Queen of France in 1559, only to be widowed at the age of 18.

When she returned to Scotland, she married her cousin Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, but the union www.britain-magazine.com

failed and Darnley had Mary’s Italian private secretary David Rizzio murdered in her presence at the palace in 1566. Mary’s former rooms are open to the public as the Historic Apartments at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of Her Majesty The Queen, in Edinburgh.

Estranged from her husband, Mary gave birth to a son, James, in Edinburgh Castle, where you can still see the tiny bed-closet where the difficult birth took place in 1566 on a tour of the city’s crowning glory.

The Queen soon befriended James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell and, when Darnley was murdered in 1567, suspicion fell on the pair.

Mary and James would marry a month later.

Furious, the Lords forced her abdication in

favour of her son and she was imprisoned at Loch Leven Castle, from where she would escape to seek the protection of her relative, Queen Elizabeth I of England.

But Mary’s strong claim to the English throne made her a threat to Elizabeth and so she found herself living for 19 years as a prisoner, before being beheaded for treason at Fotheringhay Castle in 1587. Although her life ended tragically, in a sense her desire for the thrones came to fruition after her death: her son would succeed the childless Elizabeth I becoming James VI of Scotland, and later James I of England, meaning all British monarchs are in fact descended from her. www.historicenvironment.scot www.royalcollection.org.uk Scotland 2017 Guide 25

GREAT SCOTS

The country’s first national hero, William Wallace has been immortalised for inflicting a major defeat on the invading English King, Edward I, in 1297.

Born in the 1270s in Elderslie in Renfrewshire, Wallace turned the unrest provoked by Edward I declaring himself ruler of Scotland into open rebellion against the monarch. First attacking Lanark before driving the English out of Fife and Perthshire, his famous victory came on 11 September 1297 when he defeated a larger English force at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. In thanks for his victory, Wallace was knighted and appointed ‘Guardian of the Kingdom’.

At the world-famous Wallace Monument, on the site of the Battle of Stirling Bridge, you can touch and feel the drama of the hero’s campaign for freedom. Explore the tactical brilliance of the victory in the Hall of Arms, discover Wallace’s inspirational life in the Hall of Heroes and marvel at the huge 1.67m Wallace Sword, a powerful symbol of the man’s courage and skill.

The view from the Monument’s crown is also one of the finest in Scotland, taking in Ben Lomond and the Trossachs in the west, and the Forth Valley past the city of Stirling to the Pentland Hills in the east. www.nationalwallacemonument.com 26 Scotland 2017 Guide

PHOTOS: © PAUL TOMKINS/KENNY LAM/VISITSCOTLAND/PHOTO/ART COLLECTION (PAC)/ALAMY/MARY EVANS PICTURE LIBRARY

WILLIAM WALLACE C. 1270-1305

Clockwise from this image: Folk hero Rob Roy was born near Loch Katrine; William Wallace, the first national hero; the National Wallace Monument on the site of the Battle of Stirling Bridge; Sir Walter Scott’s Abbotsford; Scott was the most famous Scot alive; the writer created the legend of Rob Roy

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SIR WALTER SCOTT 1771-1832 A man of law by trade, but also a poet, novelist, ballad-collector, critic and man of letters, Sir Walter Scott is celebrated as the founder of the genre of the historical novel involving tales of gallantry, romance, chivalry and, in the case of his most famous creation, Rob Roy, banditry. One of the country’s most famous literary exports, Scott helped to build an image of Scottish identity across the globe.

Born in 1771 and raised in Edinburgh, his long visits to his grandfather Robert Scott’s farm in Tweeddale in the Borders fuelled his passion for history and Borders culture. The ‘Waverley’ novels, of which Rob Roy forms part, appeared from 1814 to 1832, quickly made him the most famous Scot alive.

Already enshrined in the literary establishment by the 1820s, he poured his creative energy into his other masterpiece: his Borders house, Abbotsford – named after a nearby ford where the abbots crossed the river. This lifetime project became a monument to his tastes, talents and achievements: his ‘flibbertigibbet of a house’.

Sir Walter built into the mansion’s walls sculptured stones from ruined castles and abbeys, and gathered a large library, a collection of ancient furniture, arms and armour, as well as other relics and curiosities, connected with Scottish history.

Visit to explore rooms such as Scott’s study, library and armoury to experience a treasure trove of objects and artefacts, some of which inspired Scott’s greatest poems and novels, in what is today an iconic house. www.scottsabbotsford.co.uk

ROB ROY 1671-1734 The flame-haired folk hero Rob Roy and Sir Walter Scott are inextricably linked, for it was the latter’s 1817 novel that created much of the myth surrounding the legendary outlaw.

The real Rob Roy MacGregor was born in 1671 at Glengyle on the shore of Loch Katrine in what is now the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. Get a taste of the place and the origins of the man with a stay in the ‘bothy’ where he was born, now home to the Glengyle Steadings holiday cottages.

A soldier in the Jacobite Risings, a businessman and a cattle-rustler, Rob Roy became renowned after he waged a private feud against James Graham, 1st Duke of Montrose.

When MacGregor defaulted on a debt, the Duke declared him an outlaw and exacted a hasty revenge, burning his house and seizing his lands around Craigrostan on Loch Lomond.

His legend springs from these outlaw years as he raided the Duke’s land and cattle in retribution, being by turns captured and escaping. He was immortalised in his own lifetime with the publication of Daniel Defoe’s Highland Rogue, which no doubt helped him receive a royal pardon on the point of being transported in 1727.

He lived the rest of his life in peace and is buried at Balquhidder village, at the foot of Loch Voil in central Scotland, where his grave can still be seen today. www.lochlomond-trossachs.org www.glengyle-steadings.com

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Scotland 2017 Guide 27

GREAT SCOTS

ROBERT BURNS 1759-1796 The national bard is much more than the country’s biggest literary star: his cultural impact has echoed down the centuries and is still fiercely felt today. It’s because of him people promise, every Hogmanay, to “tak’ a cup o’ kindness” and his birthday is celebrated worldwide as Burns Night. For many, his is the global face of Scottishness.

Robert Burns was born on 25 January 1759 to tenant farmers in the “auld cley biggin” – now known as Burns Cottage – in the village of Alloway, two miles south of Ayr. Today, it forms part of the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, where you can experience the sights, sounds and even smells of the cosy three-room cottage where Burns lived until the age of seven. At the on-site museum you can listen to his words and handle objects connected to the man.

In 1784 Robert Burns moved to Mossgiel Farm, near Mauchline, where he lived until 1788: a period considered to be the most formative creative years of his life when he began to publish his verse.

The Burns House Museum in Mossgiel, housed in rooms where he later lodged with his wife, displays original manuscripts and objects, including poems, letters and an original ‘Kilmarnock edition’ (the informal name for his first published collection of verse, actually titled Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect), the sensational success of which set him on the path to being the country’s biggest literary phenomenon. www.burnsmuseum.org.uk www.museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk

CHARLES RENNIE MACKINTOSH 1868-1928 The beautiful and lasting legacy of architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s instantly recognisable ‘Glasgow Style’ can be seen across the city of his birth.

Born in 1868, he served an architecture apprenticeship while taking evening classes at Glasgow School of Art. His simple and stylish Art Nouveau designs informed everything from exquisite pieces of furniture to timelessly elegant buildings. Among the most famous of his creations is the now iconic Glasgow School of Art where today you can discover the history of this Mackintosh masterwork on a fascinating student-led tour of the building.

28 Scotland 2017 Guide

The Lighthouse, one of Mackintosh’s earliest buildings, was designed as the Glasgow Herald newspaper offices but now forms Scotland’s Centre for Design and Architecture, housing the Mackintosh Interpretation Centre, while another of his finest works is the Scotland Street School Museum of Education, designed as school between 1903 and 1906.

And for a sense of the man behind the style visit the University of Glasgow’s Hunterian Art Gallery where, astonishingly, the home Mackintosh shared with his wife at 6 Florentine Terrace has been meticulously reassembled and even features the couple’s original furniture. S www.gsa.ac.uk www.thelighthouse.co.uk www.gla.ac.uk www.britain-magazine.com

PHOTOS: © KENNY LAM/PAUL TOMKINS/VISITSCOTLAND/GL ARCHIVE/ALAMY

Robert Burns Birthplace Museum in Alloway. Inset: Burns became the national bard. Below left: Mackintosh’s Scotland Street School Museum in Glasgow.

Below right: Charles Rennie Mackintosh

YO U R P E R F E CT G O L F TO U R I S M D E ST I N AT I O N AT T H E YO U R P E R F E CT G O L F TO U R I S M D E ST I N AT I O N AT T H E G AT E W AY TO E A ST LOT H I A N - S COT L A N D ’ S W O R L D YO UTREPWEARYF TE O C TE G GA A SOTL FL OT TOHUIRAINS M- SDCEOS T LI N AA NTDI’OSNWAOTR TL H DE RENOWNED GOLF COAST G A T E W A Y T O REEANS O TW LO AN OATSL TA N D ’ S W O R L D N TE H DIG O L- FSCCO RENOWNED GOLF COAST

DINING, DWELLING, RELAXING DINING, DWELLING, RELAXING DINING, DWELLING, RELAXING

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WHISKY

Distilled to perfection

Scotch whisky is famous the world over. A tour of the many historic distilleries is the perfect way to sample a wee dram of Scotland’s finest says Adrian Mourby

PHOTOS: © PAUL TOMKINS/VISITSCOTLAND/ANGUS BREMNER

W

hen the blossoms are out in Glenkinchie, this lowland distillery near the village of Pencaitland is a beautiful destination, set in a farming valley with the Kinchie Burn running through it.

Glenkinchie was founded in the 1820s but, like so many Scottish distilleries, its history has been chequered. In 1853 the owners were bankrupted and the distillery was converted into a sawmill.

Whisky-making recommenced in 1881 under Major James Grey, and today its 12-year-old single malt is typical of the lowlands: fresh and light in character with just a hint of peat.

For keen whisky drinkers, the atmosphere inside distilleries is something special: those big, hyper-clean old rooms with just a hint of damp and the smell of aged wooden casks. At Glenkinchie, there are even special Amontillado sherry casks, which are used for “double-maturing” the 14-year-old Distiller’s Edition.

Such temptations can make it very difficult to resist buying a sample bottle or two at the end of a tour.

What else is your car boot for?

30 Scotland 2017 Guide

Glenkinchie is the ideal first stop on a distillery tour that involves a quick drive past Edinburgh up to Stirling before joining the A84 towards Glen Coe through the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park. You will quickly find yourself in a very different part of whisky country: the Highlands.

Eight miles out of Stirling is Deanston, a single-malt distillery on the banks of the River Teith that featured in director Ken Loach’s affectionate 2012 comedy drama, The Angels’ Share. This distillery actually started life in 1785 as a cotton mill designed by Sir Richard Arkwright, inventor of the water-powered spinning frame. In 1966 the purity of its water supply prompted the decision to turn the mill over to whisky production. Today, Deanston’s Highland single malt is handmade by 10 local craftsmen using bourbon barrels imported from the US. It makes for a taste that is sweet, almost honeyed with none of the smokiness you get with some Highland whiskies.

Aficionados should book a stay at The Airds Hotel, a small-yet-luxurious converted ferry inn on the shores of Loch Linnhe. Shaun and Jenny McKivragan have www.britain-magazine.com

WHISKY

Clockwise from far left: Get a taste of whisky history at Glenkinchie; Strathisla is the oldest continuously working distillery in Scotland; Oban is one of the smallest; whisky has been made at Tomatin since the 16th century

www.britain-magazine.com

Scotland 2017 Guide 31

Top to bottom: Glen Ord is the last distillery in the Black Isle; it produces great single malts and bourbons; The Airds Hotel on Loch Linnhe; Coul House Hotel is a great spot for visiting Glen Ord distillery

been running The Airds for 14 years and the couple always put a decanter of Whisky Mac in every room – made to the hotel’s own recipe, the cocktail combines Scotch whisky and ginger wine for a fine digestif.

From The Airds, it is just a short day trip to Oban.

This distillery was built on the west coast of Scotland in 1794 and the modern port town grew up around it.

The building itself, rebuilt in the late 19th century, is now home to a visitor centre and faces down a steep slope to the harbour. In its long history it has fallen silent twice and today is run by Diageo, the multinational drinks company that also owns the likes of Guinness, Smirnoff and more than 20 other Scotch whisky brands. All this despite the fact that Oban operates with only two pot stills, making it one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland.

Oban’s single malt sits somewhere between the dry, smoky style of the Scottish islands whiskies and the lighter, sweeter malts of the true 32 Scotland 2017 Guide

Highlands. The 14-year-old Distiller’s Edition is the popular choice here – it is finished in sherry casks before bottling and is often served with crystallised ginger (a true taste sensation) at the end of a tour.

From Oban, the drive north along Loch Ness is very picturesque and leads to Glen Ord – a distillery north of Inverness in an area known as the “Black Isle”.

In the 19th century there were 10 distilleries on the Isle; now Glen Ord is the only one left. Making whisky has always been a precarious business.

The MacKenzies of Ord have held these lands from the 13th century and, in 1820, Thomas MacKenzie of Ord decided to lease the land for a distillery to be built in the middle of his barley fields. Within 27 years, the distillery went bankrupt. Nevertheless, Glen Ord continued to operate illegally until new owners were found and a new licence issued. By 1870, Glen Ord was so popular in the colonies it was being sold in places as far afield as Singapore and South Africa.

The distillery was temporarily closed during both world wars, as the government was keen to preserve barley for food supplies. Today it is owned by Diageo and produces a range of single malts in sherry and bourbon casks, some more than 30 years old.

An overnight stay at the nearby Coul House Hotel in Contin is recommended. The octagonal dining room was specially built to entertain Queen Victoria in 1888 and current owners Stuart and Susannah Macpherson are very hospitable – Stuart was proud to share some of his favourite malts during our stay.

From here it is a short drive east down the A9 to Tomatin, where whisky is thought to have been distilled on the same site since the 16th century. Cattle drovers were the main customers of a small village still on the banks of the River Findhorn until 1897, when the Tomatin Spey District Distillery Ltd was formed by three local men and made use of the steady source of soft Highland water.

Tomatin closed in 1986 but was then taken over by Japanese conglomerate Takara Shuzo. It’s now one of the largest distilleries in Scotland with a capacity of more than five million litres. The majority of Tomatin’s whisky is blended to create brands like Antiquary and Talisman but recently it has been producing its own single malt called Cù Bòcan named after a ghostly hound said to haunt Tomatin. You can taste both fruit and smoke in this unusual but satisfying whisky, which is made for just one week every year.

If you enjoy the Cù Bòcan, make a beeline to Speyside, another excellent whisky region, uniquely based around one river valley, the Spey. Strathisla, with its distinctive roofline, was opened in 1786 and is the oldest continuously operating distillery in Scotland.

Strathisla is the home of the super-smooth Chivas Regal blend, which was first bottled in 1801. It also produces its own classic single malt that is smooth with a slightly fruity finish.

Of course, all of this is just a taster. With more than 40 other distilleries in Speyside alone to explore, your Scottish whisky trail can run and run. S www.visitscotland.com/whisky www.britain-magazine.com

PHOTOS: © DIAGEO/YOUR REFLECTION STUDIO

WHISKY

PHOTOS: © SWNS/DAVID ROBERTSON/ALAMY

Edinburgh‘s Hogmanay is a spectacular celebration Below: Stonehaven’s Fireball Festival has ancient roots

HAPPY HOGMANAY Nowhere does New Year’s Eve quite like Scotland, so welcome in 2017 with one of these headline gatherings or unique historical traditions says Janice Hopper

1. Hogmanay, Edinburgh

3. Piperdam, Dundee

For the ultimate Hogmanay experience, one simply has to be in Edinburgh. The capital offers an epic Street Party, an Old Town Ceilidh, a concert in West Princes Street Gardens attracting international headline acts and an atmospheric Candlelit Concert in St Giles’ Cathedral. This is the place to be to bring in 2017 with a bang.

For a quiet, more intimate New Year’s Eve with a double dose of bubbles, pop a champagne cork in the privacy of your own hot tub at Piperdam Golf and Leisure Resort’s four-star self-catering lodges just outside Dundee. For those wishing to really celebrate in style, the resort also hosts a three-course Gala Hogmanay dinner with a piper and dancing until the wee small hours.

www.edinburghshogmanay.com

2. Stonehaven Fireball Festival, Aberdeenshire At this midnight event, with an added flourish of pagan history, locals parade up and down the town’s high street swinging flaming balls aloft before hurling them into the harbour. Legend has it the fire expelled bad spirits from the town, but nowadays it’s more of a celebratory spectacle in Stonehaven’s calendar. Other regular fiery Hogmanays include Perth’s Comrie Flambeaux festival, the Biggar Bonfire in the Borders and the Burning of the Clavie in Burghead, Moray. www.stonehavenfireballs.co.uk 34 Scotland 2017 Guide

www.piperdam.com

4. Bliadhna Mhath Ur-Hogmanay, Stornoway If experiencing the beauty of a Scottish island is an appealing way to begin 2017 then head to An Lanntair on the Isle of Lewis, where local musicians lift the rafters high at the annual Bliadhna Mhath Ur (which translates as

‘Happy New Year-Hogmanay’ in Gaelic). You can always blow away the previous year’s cobwebs with a blustery New Year’s Day ramble along the island’s epic Luskentyre beach, too. www.lanntair.com

5. Hogmanay Gala, Glasgow Join the magnificent Royal Scottish National Orchestra in the renowned Glasgow Royal Concert Hall for an evening of entertainment.

The Raymond Gubbay Christmas Festival/ Hogmanay Gala will include classics such as Debussy’s Clair de Lune and Strauss’s Die Fledermaus Overture, alongside local anthems such as Auld Lang Syne and Scotland the Brave.

It should make for a truly rousing start to 2017. S www.glasgowconcerthalls.com www.britain-magazine.com

TAILOR-MADE PRIVATE TOURS FOR THE DISCERNING www.bhctours.co.uk | info@bhctours.co.uk | +44 (0)1296 620173

We listen to what our clients want and then exceed their expectations.

We’ve been preparing for 2017 for

centuries.

Scotland’s Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology From magnificent castles to ancient monuments, unique traditions to captivating legends, 2017 is the perfect year to discover the best of Scotland’s historic sights and distinct culture. Relive Scotland’s fascinating past through a range of exciting events and activities taking place across the country.

For more information, go to visitscotland.com/hha2017

HIGHLIGHTS

Bonnie Prince Charlie and The Jacobites exhibition

Hebridean Celtic Festival on the isle of lewis

The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo ‘Splash of Tartan’

23 June - 12 November 2017

19 - 22 July 2017

4 - 26 august 2017

Visit the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh and discover the real story of Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites - a gripping tale of love, loss, exile, rebellion and retribution.

Head north for a slice of island life at the 21st annual HebCelt event, an award-winning festival of Celtic music and culture set against the backdrop of Lews Castle.

Enjoy an unforgettable evening of military pageantry, music and dance outside Edinburgh Castle as the Tattoo celebrates Scotland’s global family both near and far.

Caerlaverock Castle, Scotland