Dunkeld

Although Dunkeld is a small town it can boast more than 1000 years of recorded history, due to it's situation at the heartland of the Pictish kingdom and it being the home of the Caledonian kings. Kenneth MacAlpine, who united the Kingdoms of Picts and Scots in AD 844, made Dunkeld and Scone his joint capitals. The majestic medieval cathedral took almost two centuries to build, yet within sixty years it was in roofless ruin as a result of the Reformation. The town suffered greatly in the Battle of Dunkeld 1689, following the rout of King William III's army by Claverhouse's Jacobite Highlanders at Killiecrankie. The Jacobite Army, commanded by Colonel Cannon, went into battle with a government regiment - the Cameronians - raised from extreme Covenanters in south west Scotland. The Jacobites were at first successful but the Cameronians managed to set fire to all of the town in an attempt to flush out the Highlanders. At one point the Cameronians were forced to strip the lead from the roofs of Dunkeld House and the Cathedral to make more bullets! Those Jacobites who managed to escape the flames fled into the surrounding hills. It was Wednesday 21st August 1689 and the battle, which raged on for four hours, was over. The row of houses to the north of Catherdral Street, built after the battle, was presented to the National Trust for Scotland by the Atholl Estates in 1954. They have been beautifully restored and attract visitors from far and wide. © The Perfect Solution Last updated November 1999