Flat Susan goes to Inverness and Culloden

Afternoon Everyone,

Here's a few lot more photos from Flat Susan's holiday adventures. Warning - what follows is a photo-heavy post.

The day after we all arrived at the cottage, self-catering, we took a trip to Inverness to make a quick visit to a supermarket to stock up on food. And low and behold, wasn't there a Hobby Craft right next door - what luck!

After spending much too much time taking in all that was to be seen there, and buying a few crafty bits and bobs, we made our way through Inverness to Culloden, site of the Battle of Culloden that put an end to the Jacobite Rising.

Now owned and managed by the the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) the battlefield is a place of pilgrimage for people from Scotland and throughout the world.

Just a few of the gravestones found around the site. The first is for the English buried there, the second for mixed clans and last for named clans - who presumably fought in the Atholl Highlanders, the Duke of Atholl's private infantry regiment - the UK's only legal private army!

The 20 feet (6.1 m) tall memorial cairn, erected by Duncan Forbes in 1881 - the same year he erected the headstones to mark the mass graves of the clans.

The site is now covered in shrubs, wild flowers and heather - here you can see a wild orchid, a thistle and yellow gorse -  but during the time of the rebellion the area was used a common grazing ground, mainly for tenants of the Culloden estate, so would have looked quite different then.

This is Leanach Cottage, an tiny farmhouse that survived the battle, although it has been restored several times since. The roof is heather thatched, a traditional Highland craft. The planting of the Rowan tree (Mountain Ash) nearby is also traditional here in Scotland - it's said to ward off evil spirits! 

Just a couple of the exhibits inside the Exhibition in the Visitor Centre. The painting depicts the battle between the Highlanders (the Jacobites) and the English (actually a mix of Lowlander Scots and English). 

Here, after watching the daily Living History presentation, which brings the battle to life, you can see some  visitors from the US having a giggle being photographed with reproduction weapons of the time. 

The ceiling of the restaurant has a fantastic record all the names of people who have donated to the building and upkeep of Culloden. 

And finally, just a sample of the fine food to be had in the restaurant - haggis with oatcakes, beetroot chutney and salad. Flat Susan was impressed with this tasty Scottish dish.

I've pared down the masses of photos taken at Culloden but I hope you can see from those posted here what an amazing experience it is to visit and to walk through the Culloden Battlefield and then view the results of recent archaeological and historical research in the Exhibition Centre. 

And after such a busy day Flat Susan was only too happy to join her travelling companions on the drive back to the cottage :)

More adventures from Flat Susan soon.