| |
Home >
Travel
>
Travel
>
4Hotels.co.uk: Inverness: Home Of Nessie MacBeth
4Hotels.co.uk: Inverness: Home Of Nessie MacBeth
It may be tucked away in the remote terrain of the Scottish Highlands, but Inverness is a city steeped in history, bloody battles, and sheaves of tragedy and romance to make any visit a memorable and invigorating experience.
Cheltenham,
Gloucestershire,
United Kingdom
(pr4links.com)
11/03/2011
It may be tucked away in the remote terrain of the Scottish Highlands, but Inverness is a city steeped in history, bloody battles, and sheaves of tragedy and romance to make any visit a memorable and invigorating experience.
Home to the fabled Loch Ness Monster and backdrop to MacBeth, one of William Shakespeare’s most famous plays, the former fort that has been around since 565AD is also scene of the Battle of Culloden, Bonnie Prince Charlie’s heroic, but ultimately doomed attempt, to seize the British throne in 1745.
Situated in north-east Scotland, Inverness (meaning ‘Mouth of the River Ness’) is the administrative centre for the Highland Council area and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland. Culturally distinguishable from the Scottish Lowlands where English is spoken instead of Scottish Gaelic, the Highlands are dominated by the Grampian Mountains, as well as Ben Nevis (the highest mountain in Britain) and the Great Glen which stretches 100 kilometres from Inverness to Fort William in the west.
Before the 19th century the Highlands was a well-populated region, but the Jacobite Rising of 1745, the notorious Highland Clearances and mass migration to urban areas during ghee Industrial Revolution has meant the area is now one of the most sparsely populated in Europe with the average density lower than that of Sweden, Norway, Papua New Guinea and Argentina.
It is the Highland Clearances of the 18th and 19th centuries, though, that were the most brutal acts of enforced displacement that saw many of the local clans shoved south by government law, or to the coasts, or to the Americas. The Year of the Sheep in 1792 for instance witnessed the mass emigration of Highlanders to crofts or small farms in coastal areas. But farming could not sustain the communities and they were expected to take up fishing. Conditions were so awful that women had to tether their children and livestock to the rocks to prevent them being blown over the cliffs!
That was then, but the Inverness of today is vastly different with some 57,000 people (or one quarter of the Highland population) now residing in what is one of the fast-growing cities in Britain. Ranked fifth out of 189 British cities for its quality of life, it is the highest of any Scottish city, and is centre for the University of the Highlands and Islands which has 8,500 students attaining higher education at 13 colleges and research institutions.
However, it has to be said, that the most notable “residents” of Inverness are still the lead character in one of the greatest theatre dramas of all time and an iconic monster that is perhaps the most famous mythical creature of all time. They are of course MacBeth and Nessie, with both perhaps laying claims to the crown of modern day “king” in terms of public fame.
The large deep freshwater Loch Ness is 23 miles southwest of Inverness and is reputedly home to the legendary Nessie, a long-surviving plesiosaur (or carnivorous aquatic reptile), that was allegedly first “spotted” in the 7th century by Saint Columba. Countless sightings have been declared ever since making The Loch Ness Monster one of the most celebrated cryptids (a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but that is unrecognized by scientific consensus) known to man. Some hotels near Inverness even overlook the loch.
The story of MacBeth, meanwhile, is a little different from Shakespeare’s famous play which is thought to feature Inverness Castle as MacBeth’s stronghold, but it is true that MacBeth was a real king, defeated Duncan in 1040, and ruled until his death in 1057. The Inverness Castle of today was constructed in 1836 on the site overlooking the River Ness, where a castle is said to have stood since c.1100.
So, whether you want to take in the fresh invigorating air when hill walking in the Highlands, take a step into history at the scene of the last great pitched battle on British soil, go monster-spotting at Loch Ness or visit the legendary home of MacBeth, a visit to the Scottish city of Inverness will always be nothing less than thrilling, bracing and guaranteed to come with a true Scottish clan welcome and you can choose your Inverness hotel at http://www.4hotels.co.uk/uk/inverness.html
###
About
Indeed, as famous Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson once remarked, “Edinburgh is what Paris ought to be,” which is saying something given we all know about the magic of that famous city!
|