Tired and weary, as Robert the Bruce’s depleted army retreated from the Battle of Dalrigh in 1306, its soldiers hastily discarded their weapons into a nearby lochan as they fled for their lives, earning this stretch of water its name, Lochan nan Arm, which translates to ‘Lochan of the Weapons’. According to local legend, Robert the Bruce's own sword still lies beneath the surface.
By rights, it should have been the end of The Bruce’s hopes of power; it was certainly his darkest hour. His army had already been hammered by a sneak attack in the night from English troops at the Battle of Methven earlier in the summer, so when the MacDougalls cornered what was left of the Bruce’s forces, they all but wiped them out.
What followed — the tale of the cave, and the spider, and Robert the Bruce resolving to try, try and try again — has entered folklore. Bruce pulled himself back together, raised a new force with the help of the MacDonalds, routed the MacDougalls, then eventually went on to defeat the English at Bannockburn and secure Scotland’s independence.
History buffs, then, will be thrilled that the site of the Battle of Dalrigh is currently for sale as part of the extensive Auchreoch estate. Consisting of 1,520 acres in the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park, it is on the market with Galbraith for offers over £2 million as a whole or in two lots.
Almost three miles to the north-west of the village of Crianlarich, Perthshire, Auchreoch is mostly Grade 6.3 agricultural land with dramatic topography, ranging from 170m (558ft) to 650m (2,133ft) above sea level and incorporating a 320-acre, SSSI native pine forest named Coille Coire Chuilc, which contains a tributary to the River Tay.
‘The woodland at Auchreoch, together with the extensive hill ground, offers a superb position and great opportunity for potential enhancement and diversification projects with a Natural Capital focus,’ says Galbraith’s Iain Paterson, who suggests it could lend itself to, ‘woodland creation, ecotourism related enterprises, rewilding, conservation and biodiversity-enhancement orientated projects or such similar focused interests, all subject to obtaining the required permissions.’
‘Auchreoch also offers the potential for sporting interests, with the possibility of red- and roe-deer stalking and grouse shooting’.
-
Rock stars and the country house: Liam Gallagher's life in the Cotswolds is in the finest tradition of music A-listers, from the Beatles to BeyoncéWhat is it about the British countryside that draws A-listers from every walk of life? With Liam Gallagher's Cotswold former home on the market, Toby Keel takes a look.
-
‘Activities are of the derring-do variety, and the weather is unreliable year round, so it’s useful to be a good sport’: A memorable road trip to the tidal island in Scotland where J. M. Barrie liked to holidayThe opening of three new hotels in Scotland was all it took to convince Jo Rodgers to journey northwards on a road trip with her husband and three young children in tow.
