Scottishness and memories from years back I’m away from the usual blog/story/interview here, to drivel on about some memories you may wish to share – or not. Casting my mind back several years – well many in fact – now and then I hung oot with a Priest, a good Celtic supporter. One day we [...]
The Battle of Glen Trool was an engagement in the Rebellion, fought in April 1307. Glen Trool is a narrow glen in the southern uplands of Galloway, Scotland. Loch Trool is aligned on an east west axis and is flanked on both sides by steep rising hills, making it ideal for an ambush. Robert [...]
You never know when you need saving! Here at MCLEANSCOTLAND we know what it means to be safe and sound, like many of us do but our tours cover all Scotland and Ireland, especially the coastal regions where mishaps can happen. This is why we support the RNLI – the lifeboats. The crews do NOT get [...]
Wallace & the Battle of Black Earnside - Perthshire One of the lesser known battles of the War of Independance (Scotland against the English aggressors) took place in the neighbourhood of Newburgh/Lindores Abbey (approx. 11 miles from Perth where I live just now), within the 'Forest of Irnsyde'. Historians find difficulty in reconciling the [...]
Bonnie lad beats English at Culloden What if? Battle of Culloden The Scottish people (Scots: Scots Fowk; Scottish Gaelic: Albannaich) or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically, they emerged from an amalgamation of two Celtic-speaking peoples, the Picts and Gaels, who founded the Kingdom of Scotland (or Alba) in [...]
Who is Scotland’s greatest hero? With many tours under my belt over 20 odd years, it’s a question I have been asked many times. Here I list a few of the main contenders; in no particular order. I have a shortlist of my own, but how about you? All these are SCOTS. King Alexander [...]
Blood & Guts – Spartans of the North Who are the Macleans? Clan Maclean Scottish Gaelic: Clann MhicIllEathain is a Highland Scottish clan. They are one of the oldest clans in the Highlands and owned large tracts of land in Argyll as well as the Inner Hebrides. Many early MacLeans became famous for their [...]
Kintyre: castles and history speak volumes Kintyre extends 40 miles from Mull of Kintyre in the south, to Tarbert in the north. The peninsula is no more than ten miles wide, at Tarbert it’s just a mile. The name in the Gaelic Tairbeart, literally translated as "draw-boat" and as "isthmus", Tarbert was important for the [...]
PAUL GOES TO AM PLOC - PLOCKTON One of my favourite places in Scotland; the picture skew harbour settlement of Plockton on the west coast of the stunning Scottish highlands. Plockton is a truly unique village, on the North Atlantic drift (or, when I was at school it was called the Mexican Drift), palm [...]
Born near the Little Bay Oban OH-bən; not oh-BAN which a lot of people pronounce it as. An t-Òban in Scottish Gaelic meaning The Little Bay, is a town in Argyll and Bute. Despite its' small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William. During the tourist season, the town can hold [...]
