We spent a quiet week in Fort William, which is the second largest settlement in the Scottish Highlands next to Iverness. Below are a few images of the area in and around Fort William, including the 13th century Inverlochy Castle and the Duncansburgh Church.
We next took a train further west to the tiny highland village of Glenfinnan. It was here that Prince Charles Edward Stewart, or Bonnie Prince Charles, began the Jacobite Rising of 1745. Bonnie Prince Charles spearheaded the Jacobite cause, which sought to return the British throne to the House of Stewart. Charles’ father, King James (Jacob) VII, ‘forfeited’ the throne for the House of Stewart after he went into exile during the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Charles eventually captured Edinburgh, but was turned back as he attempted to invade further into England in 1746. The final result was a decisive defeat, and the end of Jacobitism as a significant political force. King James VII was the last Roman Catholic Monarch in the United Kingdom.
Here are a few photos from Glenfinnan which highlight the beautiful Loch Shiel; the Jacobite Monument and the Glenfinnan Viaduct. The viaduct was built in 1889 and is featured prominently in most of the Potter films.
