Glenfinnan estate montage Photograph

Historical Glenfinnan

 

Glenfinnan is rooted in history as the place where Bonnie Prince Charlie rallied the Clans to start the 1745 Jacobite rising.

He was rowed up Loch Shiel on 19th August 1745 having spent the night at Glenaladale. There is now a monument on the spot acclaimed as being the location where the standard was raised. (The statue on the top is of a Highlander and not as many think, Prince Charlie! )

The Prince was to visit Glenfinnan again at the end of the rising when he was fleeing the Redcoats after the fatal battle of Culloden in 1746. This time he was forced to take to the heather and spent a chilly night on the top of Sgurr Thuilm at the head of Glenfinnan before moving on to Arisaig and leaving Scotland forever.

The other site of historical interest in Glenfinnan is the famous Viaduct on the West Highland railway which cuts through the lower end of the Estate.

The viaduct, which celebrated its centenary a few years ago, is a dramatic sweep of 21 arches. It was completed in 1898 by the famous Civil Engineer "Concrete Bob" MacAlpine.

The viaduct was the first mass concrete structure to be built in Britain. The decision to use mass concrete as opposed to stone is the reason that the West Highland line has survived the erosion of time and is still operating today.

 

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Glenfinnan monument at the head of Loch Shiel
The famous Glenfinnan Monument
Bonnie Prince Charlie and Flora MacDonald

The Glenfinnan viaduct with its 21 arches