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Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 4 views | comments
Major Weir - The Wizard of the West Bow The narrow winding streets and dark cavernous closes of Edinburgh can feel eerie enough at night as you walk alone. But listen out for the wrap of a cane on the cobbles and look out for a dark shadowy figure for it may be the ghost of Major Weir -The Wizard ...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 9 views | 1 comments
Living around the same time as the legendary Nostradamus was a farm labourer called Coinneach Odhar. His prophesies are maybe not as well known as his contemporary but the alarming accuracy of his predictions has added to the sense of mystery that still exists around the Black Isle. Indeed many of...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 6 views | comments
During the 1300s two dominant branches of the same Clan existed. MacLean of Duart and MacLaine of Lochbuie were headed by two brothers; Eachann Reaganach (Hector the stern) controlled the MacLain of Lochbuie and Lachainn Lubanach (Lachlan the Wily) controlled the stonger Macleans of Duart. Hecto...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 5 views | comments
Its a dark evening and you find yourself wandering in the gathering gloom along the side of a small highland stream. You are alerted by some movement down near the water and spot an old woman apparently washing clothes in the stream. You may be tempted to wander down to the side of the stream and ...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 2 views | comments
Scotland has a fantastic reputation as a tourist destination, the dark rolling mountains, the crystal clear lochs and misty glens. Every year thousands of visitors flock to Scotland from America, Japan, Europe and um err Outer Space! But strangely our little green backpackers don’t pour up the A9...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 2 views | comments
After the success of the Referendum in 1997 the First Minister Donald Dewar announced a competition for the design of Scotland's new parliament building. The winner was the design of Catalan architect, Enric Miralles. His adventurous design with leaf shaped buildings and upturned boat style skyli...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 1 views | comments
In 1997 after nearly 20 years of Conservative rule a labour government swept to power with a landslide victory over largely disorganised opposition. The party had campaigned successfully on the issue of major constitutional reform and among these reforms was devolution for Scotland. The controver...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 2 views | comments
Wednesday 13th March 1996 should have been a normal school day for the children of Dunblane Primary School. Tragically it was not. On that morning unemployed former shopkeeper Thomas Hamilton walked unchallenged into the school armed with two 9mm Browning HP pistols and two Smith and Wesson .357 ...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 0 views | comments
The car ferry making the five minute journey between Kyleakin and Kyle of Lochalsh was finally made redundant in 1995 with the opening of the Skye Bridge. The reasons for and against a large, modern construction in an area of stunning natural beauty, little changed since King Haakon anchored his ...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 1 views | comments
From the Mid 1970's onwards there had been building political pressure towards separate parliaments in both Scotland and Wales. Labour's majority had been whittled down in 1974 and after a series of disastrous by-elections had virtually no majority at all. The Scottish National Party was gaining m...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 1 views | comments
On Thursday 25 May 1967 Celtic Football Club became the first ever british side to lift the coveted European Cup after beating Internacionale of Milan 2-1 at the Estadio Nacionale in Lisbon. The feat itself was great but made even more incredible by the fact that this side was made up, not from in...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 2 views | comments
Sorley MacLean (Scottish Gaelic: Somhairle MacGill-Eain, sometimes "MacGilleathain" in earlier publications) was born at Osgaig on the island of Raasay on 26 October 1911. At that time on Raasay, which lies between the Isle of Skye and the Scottsih Mainland, Gaelic was the first language. His gra...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 0 views | comments
It is regarded by some as Man’s greatest invention, possibly more life-sustaining than fire and certainly more entertaining than the wheel; it is regarded by others as the Anti-Christ; and it began with Helensburgh-born John Logie Baird. The very first television picture was transmitted by him in...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 0 views | comments
On the 22nd May 1915 Three trains; a special troop train, a local train and the night express coming north from Euston Station, London crashed at Quintinshill Junction near Gretna on the Scottish border causing one of Britain's worst rail disasters. The troop train was one of two carrying the Lei...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 0 views | comments
Descibed as Scotland’s Eiffel Tower, the breathtaking Forth Railway Bridge stands at Queensferry Narrows, nine miles west of Edinburgh, where it carries trains for a mile and a half over the Firth of Forth. The cantilever structure, with three 340ft high towers, holding the double railway 150ft a...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 1 views | comments
After a century of being treated worse than the cattle they lost their lands to, the government finally acknowledged that the victims of the Clearances were still being victimised and needed protective legislation. The Napier Commission studied the situation and put forward recommendations. Ignor...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 3 views | comments
Designed by Sir Thomas Bouch, the Tay Railway Bridge was opened in 1878. The single-track bridge was a box construction with numerous box-section legs, up to 230ft apart, supporting the steam trains up to 88ft in the air as they snaked for almost two miles over the Tay and Perth-bound shipping. B...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 0 views | comments
Born on March 3, 1847 in Edinburgh, Bell is best known for his invention of the telephone however he was a remarkable character and brilliant inventor who came up with many inventions such as an air-cooling system, a way of desalinating sea-water and a sorting machine for punch-coded census cards....
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 0 views | comments
The second visit of a United Kingdom monarch to Scotland was in 1842 when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert disembarked at Leith. Their exploration of Perthshire, walking, reading and deer-stalking, was so pleasurable that they returned annually. In 1852 they bought Balmoral and had the castle bui...
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King George IV made a royal visit to Edinburgh in 1822. It was the first time a monarch had come to Scotland since 1641 and his tour was stage-managed by Sir Walter Scott. Scott engineered an image of Scotland similar to the country in his romantic novels for the visit. Highland Games were re-in...
Posted on February 6, 2013 by | 2 views | comments
The clan system regarded the land as belonging to their community, worked areas being passed down through the family while additional lands could be rented. As the generations passed, the clan chiefs became more wealthy and detached from their kinsmen, regarding them as their effects rather than t...
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