Tour Scotland photograph of the James Farquharson Monument near Braemar, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. To the memory of James Farquharson of Invercauld who died in 1862, " by his tenants and servants, to whom he was greatly attached." The Farquharsons of Invercauld are the descendants of the Clan Chattan who settled on the banks of the River Dee around 1371. The Farquhar from whom they derive their name was made Bailie and Chamberlain of Mar by King Robert II. The estate was passed on through generations of the family and through notoriously times of warfare. In 1679 a new house was built and additions were made by William and Francis Gordon. The Braemar estate was bought into Invercauld by John Farquharson the 9th Laird. It had belonged to the Earl of Mar until after the 1715 rising when it was attainted. It was subsequently purchased from the Government by Lord Dun and Lord Grange, both of them Erskines and kinsmen of the Earl of Mar, and they sold it to John Farquharson in 1732. The Farquharsons had also supported the Jacobite cause in 1715, but the 9th Laird refused to support the 1745 and his lands were plundered by the Jacobite army. In 1748 he leased Braemar Castle to the Government on a 99-year lease. The repairs and reconstruction undertaken on behalf of the Government were carried out by John Adam. The 10th Laird, James, inherited in 1750 and altered and enlarged Invercauld House and carried out many improvements to his estates. In 1792 he was presented with a medal for planting some 14 million trees up to that date. By the time he died in 1805 he had planted 19 million trees on his 135,000 acre estates. His daughter Catherine succeeded him; she had married James Ross, second son of Admiral Lockhart Ross of Balnagown. Additions were made to the house in 1820 and 1847, and the picturesque clumps of trees in the parks were put in during her lifetime. She was succeeded in 1862 by her son James Ross Farquharson, as 12th Laird, and he was responsible for restoring Braemar Castle to be lived in as a family home. Further additions were made to Invercauld House in 1875 in the Baronial style by J.T. Wimperis, a London architect. The present laird, Captain Alwynne Compton Farquharson, succeeded his aunt as 16th Laird of Invercauld.
Tour Scotland video of old photographs of Braemar, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The village is situated in the Scottish Highlands at the upper end of the historic Earldom of Mar or literally the Braes o' Mar. King Malcolm III with his first Queen came to the area in around 1059, and according to legend held a great gathering at the original settlement of Doldencha, situated under the present day graveyard. These days an annual Highland Games Gathering is held at Braemar on the first Saturday in September and is traditionally attended by the British Royal Family who visit from nearby Balmoral Castle
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
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