Tour Scotland Video Walking Tour Cairngorms Highlands

Tour Scotland wee travel video of photographs of a small group walking tour on ancestry, history visit and trip to the Cairngorms in the Highlands of Scotland. The Cairngorms are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain of the same name, Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms feature the highest, coldest and snowiest plateaux in the British Isles and are home to five of the six highest mountains in Scotland including; Ben Macdhui, Braeriach, Cairn Toul, Sgor an Lochain Uaine, Cairn Gorm. These mountains are all Munros, and there are a further 13 mountains with this categorisation across the area, of which another five are among the twenty highest peaks in the country.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Tour Scotland Video Celtic Cross Island Of Islay

Tour Scotland video of Kildalton Celtic Cross on ancestry visit to the Island Of Islay, Scotland. It was carved probably in the second half of the 8th century AD, and is closely related to crosses of similar date on Iona. It is often considered the finest surviving Celtic cross in Scotland, and is certainly one of the most perfect monuments of its date to survive on western Europe.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Tour Scotland Video Walking Tour Glen Mallie Highlands

Tour Scotland wee travel video of photographs of a small group walking tour to Glen Mallie on ancestry, genealogy, history visit and trip to Lochaber in the Scottish Highlands of Scotland. Glen Mallie carries the waters of the River Mallie east, through the Locheil Forest, before it heads north east to Loch Arkaig.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Tour Scotland Photograph James Farquharson Monument Braemar

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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Tour Scotland Photograph Highland Ponies Glen Mallie

Tour Scotland photograph of Highland Ponies in Glen Mallie, a large glen branching off about two and a half miles from the East end of Loch Arkaig in the Highlands of Scotland. The Highland Pony is a native Scottish pony, and is one of the largest of the mountain and moorland pony breeds of the British Isles. Its pedigree dates back to the 1880s. It was once a workhorse in the Scottish mainland and Highlands and Islands, but today is used for driving, trekking and general riding. They are very hardy and tough, they rarely require shoeing, and are very economical to keep. The Highland Pony is one of the three native breeds of the Scottish Highlands and Islands, the others are the Shetland pony and the Eriskay pony.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

View the most recent Tour Scotland photographs.