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78-688: Clan Keith is a Highland and Lowland Scottish clan , whose Chief historically held the hereditary title of Marischal, then Great Marischal, then Earl Marischal of Scotland . The placename Keith comes from a Cumbric form of the Modern Welsh coed ("wood"). A warrior of the Chatti tribe is said to have killed the Danish General, Camus , at the Battle of Barrie in 1010. For this valour Malcolm II of Scotland dipped three fingers into

156-603: A Gaelic-speaking point of view, includes both the Western Isles and the Highlands. The area is very sparsely populated, with many mountain ranges dominating the region, and includes the highest mountain in the British Isles , Ben Nevis . During the 18th and early 19th centuries the population of the Highlands rose to around 300,000, but from c. 1841 and for the next 160 years, the natural increase in population

234-619: A Universal Service Obligation to charge a uniform tariff across the UK. This, however, applies only to mail items and not larger packages which are dealt with by its Parcelforce division. The Highlands lie to the north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault , which runs from Arran to Stonehaven . This part of Scotland is largely composed of ancient rocks from the Cambrian and Precambrian periods which were uplifted during

312-503: A list compiled by D.C. Stewart from Wilsons of Bannockburn letters is 1838. Also recorded in Wilson's of Bannockburn, 1819 pattern book as No. 75 or Austin. D.W. Stewart writes in 'Old and Rare..'in 1893, "that it is included in every early collection." The Keiths were a powerful Celtic family, who held the hereditary office of Great Marischal of Scotland . They are associated with Dunottar Castle , near Stonehaven '. Wilsons of Bannockburn

390-634: A manuscript from the time of King James VI of Scotland (1566–1625): About the year of God 1478, there was some dissention in Caithness betwixt the Keiths and the Clan Gunn. A meeting was appointed for their reconciliation, at the Chapel of St. Tayre, in Caithness, hard by Girnigo, with twelve horse on either side. The Crowner (chieftain of Clan Gunn) with the most part of his sons and chief kinsmen came to

468-442: A number of his tribe, afterwards intercepted George Keith of Ackergill, accompanied by his son and twelve of their followers, on their journey from Inverguey to Caithness, and killed them all in revenge of the above massacre. This William was surnamed Mackamish, i.e. son of James; and thenceforward the chieften of the clan Gunn has always been titled Mackamissh. By the 1970s, with North American members of both clans on friendly terms,

546-560: A separate whisky producing region.) This massive area has over 30 distilleries, or 47 when the Islands sub-region is included in the count. According to one source, the top five are Macallan , Glenfiddich , Aberlour , Glenfarclas , and Balvenie . While Speyside is geographically within the Highlands, that region is specified as distinct in terms of whisky productions. Speyside single malt whiskies are produced by about 50 distilleries. According to Visit Scotland , Highlands whisky

624-628: A weaving firm founded c1770 near Stirling . The Pattern books are in the National Museum of Antiquities , Edinburgh. Copys of the Pattern books and letters in the Scottish Tartans Society archive The clan crest is a roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) also known as the roe, western roe deer or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The Keith Clan Motto: Veritas Vincit

702-598: Is "fruity, sweet, spicy, malty". Another review states that Northern Highlands single malt is "sweet and full-bodied", the Eastern Highlands and Southern Highlands whiskies tend to be "lighter in texture" while the distilleries in the Western Highlands produce single malts with a "much peatier influence". The Scottish Reformation achieved partial success in the Highlands. Roman Catholicism remained strong in some areas, owing to remote locations and

780-409: Is confusion and consternation over the scale of the fees charged and the effectiveness of their communication, and the use of the word Mainland in their justification. Since the charges are often based on postcode areas, many far less remote areas, including some which are traditionally considered part of the lowlands, are also subject to these charges. Royal Mail is the only delivery network bound by

858-689: Is formed along a transform fault which divides the Grampian Mountains to the southeast from the Northwest Highlands . The entire region was covered by ice sheets during the Pleistocene ice ages, save perhaps for a few nunataks . The complex geomorphology includes incised valleys and lochs carved by the action of mountain streams and ice, and a topography of irregularly distributed mountains whose summits have similar heights above sea-level, but whose bases depend upon

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936-555: Is not specified and the tartan was registered prior to the establishment of the Scottish Register of Tartans (SRT). Registration notes: Jack Dalgety notes of June 1963 state: 'This sett is the same as Falconer, Austin and Marshall and derives from Lord Falconer who took over the entailed lands of the Keith, Earl Marischal in the early 1800's. There is a family Keith-Falconer who wear this tartan' The earliest known date from

1014-419: Is recorded that the feud began when Dugald, Chieftain of the Keiths, abducted Helen of Braemore, daughter of Lachlan Gunn, when he discovered that she was betrothed to Alexander Gunn. The attack occurred on the night before the wedding, and Alexander was one of those slain by the Keiths. Helen subsequently committed suicide by throwing herself off Ackergill Tower. Subsequent conflicts between the two clans were for

1092-767: Is the most mountainous part of the United Kingdom . Between the 15th century and the mid-20th century, the area differed from most of the Lowlands in terms of language. In Scottish Gaelic, the region is known as the Gàidhealtachd , because it was traditionally the Gaelic-speaking part of Scotland, although the language is now largely confined to The Hebrides . The terms are sometimes used interchangeably but have different meanings in their respective languages. Scottish English (in its Highland form )

1170-528: Is the predominant language of the area today, though Highland English has been influenced by Gaelic speech to a significant extent. Historically, the "Highland line" distinguished the two Scottish cultures. While the Highland line broadly followed the geography of the Grampians in the south, it continued in the north, cutting off the north-eastern areas, that is Eastern Caithness , Orkney and Shetland , from

1248-631: Is translated as Truth Conquers. Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( Scots : the Hielands ; Scottish Gaelic : a' Ghàidhealtachd [ə ˈɣɛːəl̪ˠt̪ʰəxk] , lit.   ' the place of the Gaels ' ) is a historical region of Scotland . Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period , when Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of

1326-895: Is used in elections to the Scottish Parliament : this area includes Orkney and Shetland , as well as the Highland Council local government area, the Western Isles and most of the Argyll and Bute and Moray local government areas. Highlands and Islands has, however, different meanings in different contexts. It means Highland (the local government area), Orkney, Shetland, and the Western Isles in Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service . Northern , as in Northern Constabulary , refers to

1404-661: The Cairngorms and the Cuillin of Skye . A significant exception to the above are the fossil-bearing beds of Old Red Sandstone found principally along the Moray Firth coast and partially down the Highland Boundary Fault. The Jurassic beds found in isolated locations on Skye and Applecross reflect the complex underlying geology. They are the original source of much North Sea oil . The Great Glen

1482-811: The Church of Scotland . In contrast to the Catholic southern islands, the northern Outer Hebrides islands (Lewis, Harris and North Uist) have an exceptionally high proportion of their population belonging to the Protestant Free Church of Scotland or the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland . The Outer Hebrides have been described as the last bastion of Calvinism in Britain and the Sabbath remains widely observed. Inverness and

1560-597: The Irish Land War underway at the same time, where the Irish were intensely politicised through roots in Irish nationalism, while political dimensions were limited. In 1885 three Independent Crofter candidates were elected to Parliament, which listened to their pleas. The results included explicit security for the Scottish smallholders in the "crofting counties"; the legal right to bequeath tenancies to descendants; and

1638-567: The kilt were adopted by members of the social elite, not just in Scotland, but across Europe. The international craze for tartan, and for idealising a romanticised Highlands, was set off by the Ossian cycle, and further popularised by the works of Walter Scott . His "staging" of the visit of King George IV to Scotland in 1822 and the king's wearing of tartan resulted in a massive upsurge in demand for kilts and tartans that could not be met by

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1716-629: The Cheyne heiress which brought the Keiths massive estates in Inverugie as well as Inverugie Castle , which later became the seat of the clan chiefs. Three of Sir William Keith's children married children of Robert II of Scotland , while another daughter married Sir Adam Gordon, ancestor of the Earls of Huntly . Circa 1458, the heir of the Marischal or Great Marischal was made 1st Earl Marischal and

1794-716: The Clan Keith. Most the Gunns, including the chief of the clan, were killed. However, Keith of Ackergill was soon after killed by the Gunns in a revenge attack. William Keith, 3rd Earl Marischal, along with the Earl of Glencairn invited John Knox the religious reformer back to Scotland in 1559. William Keith, 4th Earl Marischal , founded the Marischal College in Aberdeen . George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal , undertook

1872-693: The Gaelic by renaming it "Erse" a play on Eire. Following the Union of the Crowns , James VI had the military strength to back up any attempts to impose some control. The result was, in 1609, the Statutes of Iona which started the process of integrating clan leaders into Scottish society. The gradual changes continued into the 19th century, as clan chiefs thought of themselves less as patriarchal leaders of their people and more as commercial landlords. The first effect on

1950-459: The Hebrides. In traditional Scottish geography , the Highlands refers to that part of Scotland north-west of the Highland Boundary Fault , which crosses mainland Scotland in a near-straight line from Helensburgh to Stonehaven . However the flat coastal lands that occupy parts of the counties of Nairnshire , Morayshire, Banffshire and Aberdeenshire are often excluded as they do not share

2028-464: The Highlands for much of its history, with significant instances as late as 1817 in the Eastern Highlands and the early 1850s in the West. Over the 18th century, the region had developed a trade of black cattle into Lowland markets, and this was balanced by imports of meal into the area. There was a critical reliance on this trade to provide sufficient food, and it is seen as an essential prerequisite for

2106-550: The Highlands is geographically on the British mainland, it is somewhat less accessible than the rest of Britain; thus most UK couriers categorise it separately, alongside Northern Ireland , the Isle of Man , and other offshore islands. They thus charge additional fees for delivery to the Highlands, or exclude the area entirely. While the physical remoteness from the largest population centres inevitably leads to higher transit cost, there

2184-506: The Highlands, with its administrative centre at Inverness . However, the Highlands also includes parts of the council areas of Aberdeenshire , Angus , Argyll and Bute , Moray , North Ayrshire , Perth and Kinross , Stirling and West Dunbartonshire . The Scottish Highlands is the only area in the British Isles to have the taiga biome as it features concentrated populations of Scots pine forest: see Caledonian Forest . It

2262-418: The Highlands. Lowland distillers (who were not able to avoid the heavy taxation of this product) complained that Highland whisky made up more than half the market. The development of the cattle trade is taken as evidence that the pre-improvement Highlands was not an immutable system, but did exploit the economic opportunities that came its way. The illicit whisky trade demonstrates the entrepreneurial ability of

2340-674: The Keiths had not arrived, they employed the intermediate time in devotion. At length the Keiths appeared on twelve horses, but with double riders on each, and immediately set upon the Guns, and killed ever man of them, but with the loss of the greater part of their own number. Sir Robert who relates to the tragedy, says their blood was seen on the walls of the chapel in his time.The chieften or coroner's son, James Gunn, then left Caithness with his clan, and settled in Sutherland, where they became wardens of that district. William, son of this James, and

2418-507: The Lowlands. The term is also used for the area north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault , although the exact boundaries are not clearly defined, particularly to the east. The Great Glen divides the Grampian Mountains to the southeast from the Northwest Highlands . The Scottish Gaelic name of A' Ghàidhealtachd literally means "the place of the Gaels" and traditionally, from

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2496-433: The Lowlands. When the potato famine ceased in 1856, this established a pattern of more extensive working away from the Highlands. The unequal concentration of land ownership remained an emotional and controversial subject, of enormous importance to the Highland economy, and eventually became a cornerstone of liberal radicalism. The poor crofters were politically powerless, and many of them turned to religion. They embraced

2574-601: The Marischal Keiths and his nephew was dubbed Knight Marischal in 1822 for George IV 's visit to Edinburgh that year. Algernon Hawkins Thomond Keith-Falconer, 9th Earl of Kintore and 9th Lord Keith Inverurie and Keith Hall , was flamboyant and decimated the Kintore estates. However, Sir James Ian Baird of Urie then Keith of Urie, 12th Earl of Kintore, 12th Lord Keith of Inverurie and Keith Hall, 2nd Viscount Stonehaven, 2nd Baron Stonehaven and 3rd Baronet , promoted

2652-414: The Scottish woollen industry. Individual clan tartans were largely designated in this period and they became a major symbol of Scottish identity. This "Highlandism", by which all of Scotland was identified with the culture of the Highlands, was cemented by Queen Victoria's interest in the country, her adoption of Balmoral as a major royal retreat, and her interest in "tartenry". Recurrent famine affected

2730-698: The amount of denudation to which the plateau has been subjected in various places. The region is much warmer than other areas at similar latitudes (such as Kamchatka in Russia , or Labrador in Canada ) because of the Gulf Stream making it cool, damp and temperate. The Köppen climate classification is " Cfb " at low elevations, then becoming " Cfc ", " Dfc " and " ET " at higher elevations. 57°07′N 4°43′W  /  57.12°N 4.71°W  / 57.12; -4.71 Battle of Champions It

2808-662: The banks of the River Dee to end their 600-year feud. The current Chief of Clan Keith is Sir James William Falconer Keith of Urie, 14th Earl of Kintore , 14th Lord Keith of Inverurie and Keith Hall, 4th Viscount Stonehaven , 4th Baron Stonehaven, 5th Baronet, 6th of Ury (b. 15 April 1976). The Keith clan tartan is registered with the Scottish Register of Tartans with a date of 1 January 1838. The Scottish Tartans Authority (STA) and Scottish Tartans World Register (STWR) reference numbers are both 253. The designer

2886-593: The battle in his book the History of the House and Clan of the Name Mackay (1829), quoting from historian Sir Robert Gordon (1580–1656): After long quarreling between the Keiths and Guns, it was agreed that riders on twelve horses each side should meet at the Chapel of St Tayr, near Ackergill, to adjust all their differences. At the time appointed the chieften of the Guns with eleven men of his tribe attended; and as

2964-470: The blood of the dead and drew them down the warrior's shield. The warrior was thereafter named Marbhachair Chamuis which meant the Camus Slayer . The chief of the Clan Keith has borne the same three lines on his shield ever since. It can be found as early as 1316 on the seal of Sir Robert de Keith . King Malcolm's victory at the Battle of Carham in 1018 brought him into possession of Lothian , and

3042-571: The chapel, to the number of twelve; and, as they were within the chapel at their prayers, the Laird of Inverugie and Ackergill arrived there with twelve horse, and two men upon every horse; thinking it no breach of trust to come with twenty-four men, seeing they had but twelve horses as was appointed. So the twenty-four gentlemen rushed in at the door of the chapel, and invaded the Crowner and his company unawares; who, nevertheless, made great resistance. In

3120-620: The clan internationally and appointed a Seanchaí to preserve their history and traditions. In 1978, the Chief of Clan Keith and the Commander of Clan Gunn signed a peace treaty at the site of the Chapel of St. Tayrs , ending the feud between the two clans which began in 1478. In 2002, the 13th Earl of Kintore , who was the previous Chief of Clan Keith, entered into a peace treaty the previous Chief of Clan Irvine, with at an elaborate ceremony on

3198-526: The clansmen who were their tenants was the change to rents being payable in money rather than in kind. Later, rents were increased as Highland landowners sought to increase their income. This was followed, mostly in the period 1760–1850, by agricultural improvement that often (particularly in the Western Highlands) involved clearance of the population to make way for large scale sheep farms. Displaced tenants were set up in crofting communities in

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3276-550: The collapse of the clan system to the aftermath of the Jacobite risings. This is now thought less influential by historians. Following the Jacobite rising of 1745 the British government enacted a series of laws to try to suppress the clan system , including bans on the bearing of arms and the wearing of tartan , and limitations on the activities of the Scottish Episcopal Church . Most of this legislation

3354-607: The creation of a Crofting Commission. The Crofters as a political movement faded away by 1892, and the Liberal Party gained their votes. Today, the Highlands are the largest of Scotland's whisky producing regions; the relevant area runs from Orkney to the Isle of Arran in the south and includes the northern isles and much of Inner and Outer Hebrides, Argyll, Stirlingshire, Arran, as well as sections of Perthshire and Aberdeenshire. (Other sources treat The Islands, except Islay , as

3432-466: The distinctive geographical and cultural features of the rest of the Highlands. The north-east of Caithness , as well as Orkney and Shetland , are also often excluded from the Highlands, although the Hebrides are usually included. The Highland area, as so defined, differed from the Lowlands in language and tradition, having preserved Gaelic speech and customs centuries after the anglicisation of

3510-578: The east of this point. A much wider definition of the Highlands is that used by the Scotch whisky industry. Highland single malts are produced at distilleries north of an imaginary line between Dundee and Greenock , thus including all of Aberdeenshire and Angus . Inverness is regarded as the Capital of the Highlands, although less so in the Highland parts of Aberdeenshire , Angus , Perthshire and Stirlingshire which look more to Aberdeen , Dundee, Perth , and Stirling as their commercial centres. The Highland Council area, created as one of

3588-473: The efforts of Franciscan missionaries from Ireland, who regularly came to celebrate Mass . There remain significant Catholic strongholds within the Highlands and Islands such as Moidart and Morar on the mainland and South Uist and Barra in the southern Outer Hebrides. The remoteness of the region and the lack of a Gaelic-speaking clergy undermined the missionary efforts of the established church. The later 18th century saw somewhat greater success, owing to

3666-409: The efforts of the SSPCK missionaries and to the disruption of traditional society after the Battle of Culloden in 1746. In the 19th century, the evangelical Free Churches, which were more accepting of Gaelic language and culture, grew rapidly, appealing much more strongly than did the established church. For the most part, however, the Highlands are considered predominantly Protestant, belonging to

3744-458: The embassy to Denmark which resulted in the marriage of James VI of Scotland to Anne of Denmark . A clansmen, William Keith of Delny (died 1599), was a Scottish courtier and Master of the Royal Wardrobe. He also served as ambassador for James VI to various countries. He was an important intermediary between George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal and the king, the king and courtiers, and the king and foreign governments. After Charles II of England

3822-442: The end eight the Clan Gunn were slain, with most of the Keiths. Their blood may be seen to this day upon the walls within the Chapel at St. Tyre, where they were slain. Afterwards William Mackames (the Crowner's grandchild) in revenge of his grandfather, killed George Keith of Ackergill and his son, with ten of their men, at Drummuny in Sutherland, as they were travelling from Inverugie into Caithness. Robert Mackay wrote an account of

3900-469: The family the hereditary office of marischal by a charter of 1324 and Sir Robert de Keith had commanded the Scottish cavalry at the Battle of Bannockburn . The office was held upon the condition that they bore the ancient arms that they had inherited from Marbhachair Chamuis . Sir Robert Keith, the Marishchal , escorted the young David II of Scotland when he fled to France to escape the usurpation Edward Balliol . The Clan Keith were often at feud with

3978-422: The former Northern Constabulary . These former bodies both covered the Highland council area and the island council areas of Orkney , Shetland and the Western Isles. Highland Council signs in the Pass of Drumochter , between Glen Garry and Dalwhinnie , say "Welcome to the Highlands". Much of the Highlands area overlaps the Highlands and Islands area. An electoral region called Highlands and Islands

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4056-419: The income from their land. In the East and South the resulting change was similar to that in the Lowlands, with the creation of larger farms with single tenants, enclosure of the old run rig fields, introduction of new crops (such as turnips ), land drainage and, as a consequence of all this, eviction, as part of the Highland clearances , of many tenants and cottars. Some of those cleared found employment on

4134-416: The landlords in the 1880s through the Highland Land League . Violence erupted, starting on the Isle of Skye , when Highland landlords cleared their lands for sheep and deer parks. It was quietened when the government stepped in, passing the Crofters' Holdings (Scotland) Act, 1886 to reduce rents, guarantee fixity of tenure, and break up large estates to provide crofts for the homeless. This contrasted with

4212-422: The landowners were new purchasers who had not owned Highland property before 1800. More landlords were obliged to sell due to the cost of famine relief. Those who were protected from the worst of the crisis were those with extensive rental income from sheep farms. Government loans were made available for drainage works, road building and other improvements and many crofters became temporary migrants – taking work in

4290-412: The lands of Keith in Lothian were subsequently held by the Camus Slayer. It is from these lands that his progeny took their name. A Norman adventurer named Hervey married the native heiress of Marbhachair and in about 1150 David I of Scotland granted her a charter for the lands of Keith . In a charter of 1176, their son was styled as Marischal of the King of Scots . The Marischal was charged with

4368-417: The later Caledonian Orogeny . Smaller formations of Lewisian gneiss in the northwest are up to 3 billion years old. The overlying rocks of the Torridon Sandstone form mountains in the Torridon Hills such as Liathach and Beinn Eighe in Wester Ross . These foundations are interspersed with many igneous intrusions of a more recent age, the remnants of which have formed mountain massifs such as

4446-444: The latter; this led to a growing perception of a divide, with the cultural distinction between Highlander and Lowlander first noted towards the end of the 14th century. In Aberdeenshire , the boundary between the Highlands and the Lowlands is not well defined. There is a stone beside the A93 road near the village of Dinnet on Royal Deeside which states 'You are now in the Highlands', although there are areas of Highland character to

4524-412: The local government regions of Scotland , has been a unitary council area since 1996. The council area excludes a large area of the southern and eastern Highlands, and the Western Isles , but includes Caithness . Highlands is sometimes used, however, as a name for the council area, as in the former Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service . Northern is also used to refer to the area, as in

4602-459: The more Gaelic Highlands and Hebrides. Historically, the major social unit of the Highlands was the clan . Scottish kings, particularly James VI , saw clans as a challenge to their authority; the Highlands was seen by many as a lawless region. The Scots of the Lowlands viewed the Highlanders as backward and more "Irish". The Highlands were seen as the overspill of Gaelic Ireland. They made this distinction by separating Germanic "Scots" English and

4680-404: The most part indecisive, and losses were numerous on both sides. After long quarreling between the Keiths and Gunns it was decided that a "battle of champions" would be fought between twelve men on horseback on either side but the Keiths arrived with two men on each horse. An account of the battle was written in the book Conflicts of the Clans , published by the Foulis Press in 1764, written from

4758-427: The neighbouring Clan Irvine and, in 1402, the Clan Irvine are said to have attacked and defeated an invading war party of the Clan Keith in what was known as the Battle of Drumoak . Sir William Keith the Marischal who died in 1407 married the heiress of Sir Alexander Fraser and in doing so added great estates in Buchan , Kincardine and Lothian to his existing patrimony. William's half-brother, John Keith, married

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4836-421: The new, larger farms, others moved to the accessible towns of the Lowlands. In the West and North, evicted tenants were usually given tenancies in newly created crofting communities, while their former holdings were converted into large sheep farms. Sheep farmers could pay substantially higher rents than the run rig farmers and were much less prone to falling into arrears. Each croft was limited in size so that

4914-418: The overcrowded crofting communities. As the famine struck, the government made clear to landlords that it was their responsibility to provide famine relief for their tenants. The result of the economic downturn had been that a large proportion of Highland estates were sold in the first half of the 19th century. T M Devine points out that in the region most affected by the potato famine, by 1846, 70 per cent of

4992-430: The peasant classes. Agricultural improvement reached the Highlands mostly over the period 1760 to 1850. Agricultural advisors, factors , land surveyors and others educated in the thinking of Adam Smith were keen to put into practice the new ideas taught in Scottish universities. Highland landowners, many of whom were burdened with chronic debts, were generally receptive to the advice they offered and keen to increase

5070-449: The popularly oriented, fervently evangelical Presbyterian revival after 1800. Most joined the breakaway "Free Church" after 1843. This evangelical movement was led by lay preachers who themselves came from the lower strata, and whose preaching was implicitly critical of the established order. The religious change energised the crofters and separated them from the landlords; it helped prepare them for their successful and violent challenge to

5148-405: The population growth that started in the 18th century. Most of the Highlands, particularly in the North and West, was short of the arable land that was essential for the mixed, run rig based, communal farming that existed before agricultural improvement was introduced into the region. Between the 1760s and the 1830s there was a substantial trade in unlicensed whisky that had been distilled in

5226-425: The process. The crofts were intended not to provide all the needs of their occupiers; they were expected to work in other industries such as kelping and fishing. Crofters came to rely substantially on seasonal migrant work, particularly in the Lowlands. This gave impetus to the learning of English, which was seen by many rural Gaelic speakers to be the essential "language of work". Older historiography attributes

5304-413: The return to a peacetime economy. The price of black cattle fell, nearly halving between 1810 and the 1830s. Kelp prices had peaked in 1810, but reduced from £9 a ton in 1823 to £3 13s 4d a ton in 1828. Wool prices were also badly affected. This worsened the financial problems of debt-encumbered landlords. Then, in 1846, potato blight arrived in the Highlands, wiping out the essential subsistence crop for

5382-432: The safety of the king's person within Parliament and was also custodian of the royal regalia. In 1308, Robert the Bruce granted the royal Halforest of Aberdeenshire to his friend, Robert de Keith . Here the Marischal built his castle. His nephew was William Keith of Galston who returned Bruce's heart to Melrose Abbey after the death of the Sir James Douglas at the Battle of Teba in Andalucia . Bruce confirmed to

5460-462: The same area as that covered by the fire and rescue service. There have been trackways from the Lowlands to the Highlands since prehistoric times. Many traverse the Mounth , a spur of mountainous land that extends from the higher inland range to the North Sea slightly north of Stonehaven . The most well-known and historically important trackways are the Causey Mounth , Elsick Mounth , Cryne Corse Mounth and Cairnamounth . Although most of

5538-401: The surrounding area has a majority Protestant population, with most locals belonging to either The Kirk or the Free Church of Scotland . The church maintains a noticeable presence within the area, with church attendance notably higher than in other parts of Scotland. Religion continues to play an important role in Highland culture, with Sabbath observance still widely practised, particularly in

5616-488: The tenants would have to find work elsewhere. The major alternatives were fishing and the kelp industry. Landlords took control of the kelp shores, deducting the wages earned by their tenants from the rent due and retaining the large profits that could be earned at the high prices paid for the processed product during the Napoleonic wars. When the Napoleonic wars finished in 1815, the Highland industries were affected by

5694-1068: The two Keith brothers played a part in Continental affairs during the 18th century with the earl being one of the very few Jacobite Knights of the Most Noble Order of the Garter . He also received the highest order in Prussia , the Order of the Black Eagle , while his brother was given Russia 's Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called . In 1801, the Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms recognised Keith of Ravelston and Dunnotter as representer of

5772-695: Was created Knight Marischal and Earl of Kintore . George Keith, 8th Earl Marischal, was appointed a Knight of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle by James Francis Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender ). During the Jacobite rising of 1715 , the Clan Keith supported the Jacobite cause. As a result, George Keith, 10th Earl Marischal , along with his brother, James Francis Edward Keith , forfeited their lands, castles and titles. However

5850-549: Was crowned in 1651, William Keith, 7th Earl Marischal , was captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London . He remained there until the Restoration when the king appointed him a Privy Councillor and later Lord Privy Seal as recompense for what he and his family had suffered in the royal cause. After Charles's coronation the Scottish crown jewels had been hidden on the Keith lands and as a result Marischal's brother, John Keith ,

5928-541: Was exceeded by emigration (mostly to Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand, and migration to the industrial cities of Scotland and England.) The area is now one of the most sparsely populated in Europe. At 9.1/km (24/sq mi) in 2012, the population density in the Highlands and Islands is less than one seventh of Scotland's as a whole. The Highland Council is the administrative body for much of

6006-531: Was repealed by the end of the 18th century as the Jacobite threat subsided. There was soon a rehabilitation of Highland culture. Tartan was adopted for Highland regiments in the British Army, which poor Highlanders joined in large numbers in the era of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars (1790–1815). Tartan had largely been abandoned by the ordinary people of the region, but in the 1820s, tartan and

6084-523: Was the only peer to be styled by his office of state. A branch of the Clan Keith who inhabited Caithness fought at the Battle of Tannach (probably 1464) where they assisted the Clan Mackay against the Clan Gunn . They later fought another battle against the Gunns, known as the Battle of Champions (probably 1478). This battle was fought between twelve men of the Clan Gunn and twenty four men of

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