104-579: Braemar / b r eɪ ˈ m ɑːr / is a village in Aberdeenshire , Scotland, around 58 miles (93 km) west of Aberdeen in the Highlands . It is the closest significantly-sized settlement to the upper course of the River Dee , sitting at an elevation of 339 metres (1,112 ft). The Gaelic Bràigh Mhàrr properly refers to the area of upper Marr (as it literally means), i.e.
208-550: A Roman Catholic Mass house was built on the high-ground to the west of Auchendryne, giving the name to Chapel Brae, which was used as a school. Until the 20th century, Braemar was largely owned by one of the adjoining Mar Estates , with Auchendryne and Invercauld on one side, Castleton on the other. Allegedly, inter-estate rivalry was a factor in each having its own pub , the Fife Arms Hotel in Auchendryne, and
312-500: A buffer zone north of Hadrian's Wall. It also facilitated troop movements between east and west, but its main purpose may not have been primarily military. It enabled Rome to control and tax trade and may have prevented potentially disloyal new subjects of Roman rule from communicating with their independent brethren to the north and coordinating revolts. Urbicus achieved an impressive series of military successes, but like Agricola's they were short-lived. Having taken twelve years to build,
416-481: A few purposes, namely land registration and lieutenancy . Aberdeenshire Council is headquartered at Woodhill House in Aberdeen , making it the only Scottish council whose headquarters are located outside its jurisdiction. Aberdeen itself forms a different council area (Aberdeen City). Aberdeenshire borders onto Angus and Perth and Kinross to the south, Highland and Moray to the west and Aberdeen City to
520-479: A fort at Finavon Hill near Forfar in Angus , using a variety of techniques, suggest dates for the destruction of the site in either the last two centuries BC or the mid-first millennium. The lack of Roman artefacts (common in local souterrain sites) suggests that many sites were abandoned before the arrival of the legions. Unlike the earlier Neolithic and Bronze Ages , which have provided massive monuments to
624-569: A legionary fortress at Inchtuthil . In 2019, GUARD Archaeology team led by Iraia Arabaolaza uncovered a marching camp dating to the first century AD in Ayr, used by Roman legions during the invasion of Roman General Agricola . According to Arabaolaza, the fire pits were split 30 metres apart into two parallel lines. The findings also included clay-domed ovens and 26 fire pits dated to between 77- 86 AD and 90 AD loaded with burn and charcoal contents. Archaeologists suggested that this site had been chosen as
728-686: A line of Glenblocker forts to the north and west of the Gask Ridge which marked a frontier between the Venicones to the south and the Caledonians to the north. In the summer of AD 78 Gnaeus Julius Agricola arrived in Britain to take up his appointment as the new governor. Two years later his legions constructed a substantial fort at Trimontium near Melrose . Excavations in the twentieth century produced significant finds including
832-565: A prior connection between Rome and Orkney, although no evidence of this has been found and the contrast with later Caledonian resistance is striking. The apparently cordial beginnings recorded in Colchester did not last. We know nothing of the foreign policies of the senior leaders in mainland Scotland in the first century, but by AD 71 the Roman governor Quintus Petillius Cerialis had launched an invasion. The Votadini , who occupied
936-509: A rich prehistoric and historical heritage. It is the locus of a large number of Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeological sites, including Longman Hill , Kempstone Hill , Catto Long Barrow and Cairn Lee . The area was settled in the Bronze Age by the Beaker culture , who arrived from the south around 2000–1800 BC. Stone circles and cairns were constructed predominantly in this era. In
1040-591: A significant victory was fraudulent. The fortress at Inchtuthil was dismantled before its completion and the other fortifications of the Gask Ridge (erected to consolidate the Roman presence in Scotland in the aftermath of Mons Graupius) were abandoned within the space of a few years. It is possible that the costs of a drawn-out war outweighed any economic or political benefit and it was deemed more profitable to leave
1144-521: A strategic location for the Roman conquest of Ayrshire. In the summer of AD 84, the Romans faced the massed armies of the Caledonians at the Battle of Mons Graupius . Agricola, whose forces included a fleet, arrived at the site with light infantry bolstered with British auxiliaries . It is estimated that a total of 20,000 Romans faced 30,000 Caledonian warriors . Agricola put his auxiliaries in
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#17327872942971248-500: A substantial amount of both Roman and native artefacts has been recovered there. Both structures were built in the late first century and were evidently high-status buildings. The inhabitants raised sheep, cattle and pigs, and benefited from a range of wild game, including red deer and wild boar . Edin's Hall Broch in Berwickshire is the best-preserved southern broch and, although the ruins are superficially similar to some of
1352-536: Is believed by most historians to have taken place. Marching camps may have been constructed along the southern shores of the Moray Firth , although their existence is questioned. Pinnata Castra , the location of which is uncertain, was identified by Ptolemy as the northernmost polis in Britain and may mark the limit of the Agricola's advance by land. The total size of the Roman garrison in Scotland during
1456-533: Is dedicated to Saint Andrew and, following Catholic Emancipation , it was built in 1839. Catholicism has traditionally been strong in the Braemar area, and the bones of Saint Andrew rested in Braemar before being taken to the place now known as St Andrews. St Ninian's Chapel, Braemar , completed in 1898, is the Scottish Episcopal Church place of worship. Johann von Lamont (1805–1879),
1560-457: Is estimated at £3,496M (2011), representing 5.2% of the Scottish total. Aberdeenshire's economy is closely linked to Aberdeen City's (GDP £7,906M), and in 2011, the region as a whole was calculated to contribute 16.8% of Scotland's GDP. Between 2012 and 2014, the combined Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen City economic forecast GDP growth rate is 8.6%, the highest growth rate of any local council area in
1664-664: Is held at Braemar on the first Saturday in September and is traditionally attended by the British royal family . In 1746, the Act of Proscription stopped all clan gatherings, but following its repeal in 1782, the old enthusiasms for such events returned. In 1815, the Braemar Highland Society was created and officially constituted in 1817; the first modern-day games taking place in 1832 with cash prizes being awarded to
1768-462: Is much higher, at £741.90, as many people commute out of Aberdeenshire, principally into Aberdeen City. Total employment (excluding farm data) in Aberdeenshire is estimated at 93,700 employees (Business Register and Employment Survey 2009). The majority of employees work within the service sector, predominantly in public administration, education and health. Almost 19% of employment is within
1872-429: Is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland . It takes its name from the historic county of Aberdeenshire , which had substantially different boundaries. The Aberdeenshire Council area includes all of the areas of the historic counties of Aberdeenshire and Kincardineshire except the area making up Aberdeen City Council area, as well as part of Banffshire . The historic county boundaries are still officially used for
1976-479: Is shared with Altnaharra in the Scottish Highlands . Braemar has an annual average of 102 days of air frost and 153 days with 1 mm or more of rainfall. Snowfall can be heavy in winter and early spring, and often accumulates to depths of 30 cm (12 in) or more. 70 cm (28 in) was recorded by weather watcher Chris Booth on 9 February 2021. On 30 September 2015, Braemar had one of
2080-466: Is some evidence that these campaigns are coincident with the wholesale destruction and abandonment of souterrains in southern Scotland. This may have been due either to Roman military aggression or the collapse of local grain markets in the wake of Roman withdrawal. By 210, Severus' campaigning had made significant gains, but his campaign was cut short when he fell fatally ill, dying at Eboracum in 211. Although his son Caracalla continued campaigning
2184-612: The Limes Britannicus ) on the Tyne-Solway line, where it remained until c. AD 139. It was a stone and turf fortification built across the width of what is now northern England and was roughly 4 metres (13 ft) or more high along its length. The vallum Aelii , as the Romans called it, may have taken six years to construct. Small guard posts called milecastles were built at mile intervals with an additional two fortified observation points between them. The wall
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#17327872942972288-923: The A93 from Glen Clunie and the Cairnwell Pass and from the East also on the A93 from Deeside . Braemar can be approached on foot from the west through Glen Tilt , Glen Feshie , Glen Dee (by the Lairig Ghru ), and Glen Derry (by the Lairig an Laoigh ). Braemar is within a one-and-a-half-hour drive of Aberdeen , Dundee , and Perth . The village is overlooked from roughly northwest by Carn na Drochaide (818 m), from roughly northeast by Creag Choinneach (538 m), from roughly southwest by Carn na Sgliat (690 m), and from roughly southwest by Morrone (859 m). Like most of
2392-630: The Anglo-Norman penetration, other families arrive, such as House of Balliol , Clan Bruce , and Clan Cumming (Comyn). During the Scottish Wars of Independence , the King of England Edward I travelled across the area twice with his invading army, in 1296 and 1303. In 1307, Robert the Bruce was victorious near Inverurie . These new families set the stage for the upcoming rivalries during
2496-539: The Antonine Wall 's western terminus. Today, the sward -covered wall is the remains of a defensive line made of turf circa 7 metres (23 feet) high, with nineteen forts. It was constructed after AD 139 and extended for 60 km (37 mi). The Roman frontier became Hadrian's Wall again, although Roman incursions into Scotland continued. Initially, outpost forts were occupied in the south-west and Trimontium remained in use but they too were abandoned after
2600-625: The Black Isle near the Beauly Firth concluded that "the site appears to conform to the morphology of a Roman camp or fort." Construction of a new limes between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde commenced. Contingents from at least one British legion are known to have assisted in the erection of the new turf barrier, as evidenced by an inscription from the fort at Old Kilpatrick ,
2704-627: The Clunie Water , a strategically important crossing on the Elsick Mounth , an ancient trackway used by Picts and Romans . It is located in the upper end of the historical Earldom of Mar , literally the Braes o' Mar . The Scottish Gaelic name Bràigh Mhàrr ('Upland of Mar') was originally applied to the general area; using Braemar for the village dates to around 1870. Before the 11th century, there were separate hamlets on each bank of
2808-455: The Elsick Mounth , an ancient trackway used by Romans and Caledonians for military manoeuvres. Other suggestions include the hill of Bennachie in Aberdeenshire , the Gask Ridge not far from Perth and Sutherland . It has also been suggested that in the absence of any archaeological evidence and Tacitus' low estimates of Roman casualties, that the battle was simply fabricated. The first resident of Scotland to appear in history by name
2912-767: The Epidii in Argyll , the Venicones in Fife , the Vacomagi centred near Strathmore , the Caledonians in the central Highlands . The earliest written record of a formal connection between Rome and Scotland is the attendance of the "King of Orkney" who was one of 11 British kings who submitted to the emperor Claudius at Colchester in AD ;43 following the invasion of southern Britain three months earlier. The long distances and short period of time involved strongly suggest
3016-570: The Flavian period of occupation is thought to have been some 25,000 troops, requiring 16–19,000 tons of grain per annum. In addition, the material to construct the forts was substantial, estimated at 1 million cubic feet (28,315 m ) of timber during the first century. Ten tons of buried nails were discovered at the Inchtuthil site, which may have had a garrison of up to 6,000 men and which itself consumed 30 linear kilometres of wood for
3120-755: The Great Conspiracy that overran Roman Britannia in 367. The era saw the emergence of the earliest historical accounts of the natives. The most enduring legacies of Rome, however, were Christianity and literacy , both of which arrived indirectly via Irish missionaries . Ptolemy's tribes located north of the Forth-Clyde isthmus include the Cornovii in Caithness , the Caereni , Smertae , Carnonacae , Decantae , Lugi , and Creones also north of
3224-729: The Great Glen , the Taexali in the north-east, the Epidii in Argyll , the Venicones in Fife , the Caledonians in the central Highlands and the Vacomagi centred near Strathmore . It is likely that all of these cultures spoke a form of Celtic language known as Common Brittonic . The occupants of southern Scotland were the Damnonii in the Clyde valley, the Novantae in Galloway,
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3328-659: The Hebudes ( The Hebrides ), Dumna (probably the Outer Hebrides ), the Caledonian Forest , and the Caledonians . A traveller called Demetrius of Tarsus related to Plutarch the tale of an expedition to the west coast in or shortly before AD 83. He stated that it was "a gloomy journey amongst uninhabited islands" but that he had visited one which was the retreat of holy men. He mentioned neither
3432-596: The Iron Age , hill forts were built. Around the 1st century AD, the Taexali people, who left little history, were believed to have resided along the coast. The Picts were the next documented inhabitants of the area and were no later than 800–900 AD. The Romans also were in the area during this period, as they left signs at Kintore . Christianity influenced the inhabitants early on, and there were Celtic monasteries at Old Deer and Monymusk . Since medieval times, there have been many traditional paths that crossed
3536-487: The Jewish Rebellion (132–35), and then governing Germania Inferior . Antoninus Pius soon reversed the containment policy of his predecessor Hadrian, and Urbicus was ordered to begin the reconquest of Lowland Scotland by moving north. Between 139 and 140 he rebuilt the fort at Corbridge and by 142 or 143, commemorative coins were issued celebrating a victory in Britain. It is therefore likely that Urbicus led
3640-558: The Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 . It covers the combined area of the Banff and Buchan, Gordon, and Kincardine and Deeside districts that had been created in 1975. The present Aberdeenshire Council area therefore consists of all of the historic counties of Aberdeenshire and Kincardineshire (except the area of those two counties making up Aberdeen City), as well as the north-east portions of Banffshire. The population of
3744-704: The Mounth (a spur of mountainous land that extends from the higher inland range to the North Sea slightly north of Stonehaven ) through present-day Aberdeenshire from the Scottish Lowlands to the Highlands . Some of the most well known and historically important trackways are the Causey Mounth and Elsick Mounth . Aberdeenshire played an important role in the fighting between the Scottish dynasties . Macbeth fell at Lumphanan in 1057. During
3848-634: The North Sea such that coastal areas are typically cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter than inland locations. Coastal areas are also subject to haar , or coastal fog. Scotland during the Roman Empire Scotland during the Roman Empire refers to the protohistorical period during which the Roman Empire interacted within the area of modern Scotland . Despite sporadic attempts at conquest and government between
3952-609: The Novantae who inhabited the Dumfries and Galloway peninsula. The main lowland tribes, sandwiched as they were between Hadrian's Wall of stone to the south and the new turf wall to the north, later formed a confederation against Roman rule, collectively known as the Maeatae . The Antonine Wall had a variety of purposes. It provided a defensive line against the Caledonians. It cut off the Maeatae from their Caledonian allies and created
4056-534: The Rising of 1715 and the Rising of 1745 . The latter resulted in the end of the ascendancy of Episcopalianism and the feudal power of landowners. An era began of increased agricultural and industrial progress. The present council area is named after the historic county of Aberdeenshire , which has different boundaries and ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 . The pre-1975 territory of Aberdeenshire
4160-532: The Selgovae on the south coast and the Votadini to the east. These peoples may have spoken a form of Brittonic language although no one really knows for sure as there are no written records. Little is known about this alliance of Iron Age tribes. The exact location of "Caledonia" is unknown, and the boundaries are unlikely to have been fixed. The name itself is a Roman one, as used by Tacitus, Ptolemy, Pliny
4264-779: The University of Fraserburgh (1592). During the 17th century, Aberdeenshire was the location of more fighting, centred on the Marquess of Montrose and the Wars of the Three Kingdoms . This period also saw increased wealth due to the increase in trade with Germany , Poland , and the Low Countries . After the end of the Revolution of 1688 , an extended peaceful period was interrupted only by fleeting events such as
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4368-471: The druids nor the name of the island . Ptolemy , possibly drawing on earlier sources of information as well as more contemporary accounts from the Agricolan invasion, identified 18 tribes in Scotland in his Geography , but many of the names are obscure. His information becomes much less reliable in the north and west, suggesting early Roman knowledge of these areas were confined to observations from
4472-537: The prefect of the fleet to sail around the north of Scotland to confirm that Britain was an island and to receive the surrender of the Orcadians . It was proclaimed that Agricola had finally subdued all the tribes of Britain. However, the Roman historian Cassius Dio reports that this circumnavigation resulted in Titus receiving his fifteenth acclamation as emperor in AD 79. This is five years before Mons Graupius
4576-466: The 14th and 15th centuries. This rivalry grew worse during and after the Protestant Reformation when religion was another reason for conflict between the clans. The Gordon family adhered to Catholicism and the Forbeses to Protestantism . Aberdeenshire was the historic seat of the clan Dempster . Three universities were founded in the area prior to the 17th century, King's College in Old Aberdeen (1494), Marischal College in Aberdeen (1593), and
4680-518: The 70s and 80s. The Agricola , a biography of the Roman governor of Britannia by his son-in-law Tacitus mentions a Roman victory at " Mons Graupius " which became the namesake of the Grampian Mountains but whose identity has been questioned by modern scholarship. In 2023 a lost Roman road built by Julius Agricola was rediscovered in Drip close to Stirling: it has been described as "the most important road in Scottish history." Agricola then seems to have repeated an earlier Greek circumnavigation of
4784-420: The Caledonian side and roughly 360 on the Roman side. A number of authors have reckoned the battle to have occurred in the Grampian Mounth within sight of the North Sea . In particular, Roy, Surenne, Watt, Hogan and others have advanced notions that the site of the battle may have been Kempstone Hill , Megray Hill or other knolls near the Raedykes Roman camp . These points of high ground are proximate to
4888-410: The Caledonians to themselves. By AD 87 the occupation was limited to the Southern Uplands and by the end of the first century the northern limit of Roman expansion was the Stanegate road between the Tyne and Solway Firth . The construction of 118 kilometres (73 mi) long Hadrian's Wall in the early 120s on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian consolidated the Roman line of defence (called
4992-462: The Clunie, Auchendryne on the west and Castleton on the east, or Bail Chasteil . The names are clearly marked on the current Ordnance Survey maps, below 'Braemar'. 'Castleton' refers to Kindrochit Castle , located within the modern village, rather than Braemar Castle to the south, while Kindrochit means 'bridge end'. Kindrochit (or Kindrochit-Alian) was known as Doldauha before the mid-9th century. According to legend, Malcolm III came to
5096-429: The Elder and Lucan , but the name by which the Caledonians referred to themselves is unknown. It is likely that prior to the Roman invasions, political control in the region was highly decentralised and no evidence has emerged of any specific Caledonian military or political leadership. Despite the discovery of many hundreds of Iron Age sites in Scotland, there is still a great deal that remains to be explained about
5200-424: The Firth of Forth. Having secured an overland supply route for military personnel and equipment along Dere Street , Urbicus very likely set up a supply port at Carriden for the supply of grain and other foodstuffs before proceeding against the Damnonii; success was swift. It was possibly after the defences of the Antonine Wall were finished that Urbicus turned his attention upon the fourth lowland Scottish tribe,
5304-433: The Invercauld Arms Hotel in Castleton, built over the mound where the Earl of Mar raised the Jacobite standard in 1715. Auchindryne (to use the spelling by Wyness) from Ach' an Droighinn ('field of the thorn') belonged to a branch of the Farquharsons until it was forfeited in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising of 1745 . Later that century it was acquired by William Duff, 1st Earl Fife . The Catholic Church in Braemar
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#17327872942975408-444: The Orcadian chiefs whose positive relationship with Rome may have continued from the beginnings of Romano-British relations. It is also possible that their construction had little to do with Roman frontier policy and was simply the importation of a new style by southern elites, or it may have been a response by such elites to the growing threat of Rome prior to the invasion and an attempt to ally themselves, actually or symbolically, with
5512-416: The Roman geographer, recorded in his De Chorographia , written around AD 43, that there were 30 Orkney islands and seven Haemodae (possibly Shetland ). There is certainly evidence of an Orcadian connection with Rome prior to AD 60 from pottery found at the Broch of Gurness . By the time of Pliny the Elder ( d. AD 79), Roman knowledge of the geography of Scotland had extended to
5616-523: The Scottish-German astronomer and astrophysicist who pioneered the study of the Earth's magnetic field was born in nearby Corriemulzie . On 16 March 2022, the 19th-century Braemar Lodge Hotel was engulfed in a fire and explosion. In the 1891 census, 59.2% of the population of Braemar spoke the Gaelic language "habitually"; the percentage of those actually able to speak the language (despite not having much opportunity to) would have been somewhat higher. The small crofting township of Inverey ( Inbhir Èidh )
5720-473: The UK and above the Scottish rate of 4.8%. A significant proportion of Aberdeenshire's working residents commute to Aberdeen City for work, varying from 11.5% from Fraserburgh to 65% from Westhill. Average Gross Weekly Earnings (for full-time employees employed in workplaces in Aberdeenshire in 2011) are £572.60. This is lower than the Scottish average by £2.10 and a fall of 2.6% on the 2010 figure. The average gross weekly pay of people resident in Aberdeenshire
5824-627: The UK. In 2011, 82.2% of residents identified as 'White Scottish', followed by 12.3% who are 'White British', whilst ethnic minorities constitute only 0.9% of the population. The largest ethnic minority group is Asian Scottish/British at 0.8%. In addition to the English language, 48.8% of residents reported being able to speak and understand the Scots language. The largest settlements in Aberdeenshire are: 19,060 14,660 12,570 12,110 11,150 10,070 8,940 7,440 4,700 4,700 4,550 4,000 3,890 3,830 3,140 3,120 3,050 3,010 2,920 2,800 Aberdeenshire's Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
5928-511: The United Kingdom, Braemar experiences an oceanic climate ( Köppen Cfb ) though somewhat cooler than lowland areas, verging on a subpolar oceanic climate . Braemar is the third-coldest low-lying place in the UK after the villages of Dalwhinnie and Leadhills with an annual mean temperature of 6.8 °C (44.2 °F). Braemar has twice entered the UK weather records with a low temperature of −27.2 °C (−17.0 °F), recorded on 11 February 1895 and again on 10 January 1982. This record
6032-457: The area in around 1059, and built a timber bridge connecting the east and west banks. 'Kindrochit' means bridge end and the castle is assumed to have been built to protect the crossing. The ruins are considered to be largely of 14th-century origin, replacing the presumed timber-construction of the original castle. Following the accession of George I in 1714, the Earl of Mar launched the 1715 Jacobite Rising on 6 September at Braemar. In 1795,
6136-410: The area of Marr to the west of Aboyne , the village itself being Castleton of Braemar ( Baile a' Chaisteil in Scottish Gaelic ). The village used to be known as Cinn Drochaid ('bridge end'); Baile a' Chaisteil referred to only the part of the village on the east bank of the river, the part on the west bank being known as Ach an Droighinn ('thorn field'). Braemar is approached from the south on
6240-410: The belligerence of the Maeatae, campaigned against the Caledonian Confederacy. Severus invaded Caledonia with an army perhaps over 40,000 strong. According to Dio Cassius , he inflicted genocidal depredations on the natives and incurred the loss of 50,000 of his own men to the attrition of guerrilla tactics, although it is likely that these figures are a significant exaggeration. A string of forts
6344-468: The circular brochs . On average, the ruins only survive up to a few metres above ground level, but there are five extant examples of towers whose walls still exceed 6.5 m (21 ft) in height. There are at least 100 broch sites in Scotland. Despite extensive research, their purpose and the nature of the societies that created them are still a matter of debate. In some parts of Iron Age Scotland, quite unlike almost all of recorded history right up to
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#17327872942976448-441: The competitors, using the funds of the Braemar Highland Society. On 14 September 1848, Queen Victoria attended the Gathering at Invercauld . In 1866, Royal was added to Braemar Highland Society and in 1906, the Duke of Fife presented 12 acres (5 hectares) of Mar Estate to the society, and the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park, the current home of the Braemar Gathering, was created. Since Queen Victoria 's time,
6552-432: The council area has risen over 50% since 1971 to approximately 263,750 in 2022, representing 4.7% of Scotland's total. Aberdeenshire's population has increased by 9.1% since 2001, while Scotland's total population grew by 3.8%. The census lists a relatively high proportion of under 16s and slightly fewer working-age people compared with the Scottish average. Aberdeenshire is one of the most homogeneous/indigenous regions of
6656-457: The dead, Iron Age burial sites in Scotland are rare, and a 2008 find at Dunbar may provide further insight into the culture of this period. A similar site of a warrior's grave at Alloa has been provisionally dated to AD 90–130. Ptolemy 's Geography identifies 19 "towns" from intelligence gathered during the Agricolan campaigns of the first century. No archaeological evidence of any truly urban places has been found from this time and
6760-402: The earlier Ancient Greek designation as Albion . Roman legions arrived in the territory of modern Scotland around AD 71, having conquered the Celtic Britons of southern Britannia over the preceding three decades. Aiming to complete the Roman conquest of Britannia , the Roman armies under Quintus Petillius Cerialis and Gnaeus Julius Agricola campaigned against the Caledonians in
6864-510: The east. Traditionally, it has depended economically on the primary sector (agriculture, fishing, and forestry) and related processing industries. Over the last 40 years, the development of the oil and gas industry and associated service sector has broadened Aberdeenshire's economic base, and contributed to a rapid population growth of some 50% since 1975. Its land represents 8% of Scotland's overall territory. It covers an area of 6,313 square kilometres (2,437 sq mi). Aberdeenshire has
6968-403: The enemy be rich, they are rapacious; if he be poor, they lust for dominion; neither the east nor the west has been able to satisfy them. Alone among men they covet with equal eagerness poverty and riches. To robbery, slaughter, plunder, they give the lying name of empire; they make a solitude and call it peace. Calgacus' fate is unknown but, according to Tacitus, after the battle Agricola ordered
7072-458: The first and fourth centuries AD, most of modern Scotland, inhabited by the Caledonians and the Maeatae , was not incorporated into the Roman Empire with Roman control over the area fluctuating. In the Roman imperial period , the area of Caledonia lay north of the River Forth , while the area now called England was known as Britannia , the name also given to the Roman province roughly consisting of modern England and Wales and which replaced
7176-468: The following year, he soon settled for peace. The Romans never campaigned deep into Caledonia again: they soon withdrew south permanently to Hadrian's Wall. From the time of Caracalla onwards, no further attempts were made to permanently occupy territory in Scotland. It was during the negotiations to purchase the truce necessary to secure the Roman retreat to the wall that the first recorded utterance, attributable with any reasonable degree of confidence, to
7280-440: The foundations of several successive structures, Roman coins and pottery . Remains from the Roman army were also found, including a collection of Roman armour (with ornate cavalry parade helmets), and horse fittings (with bronze saddleplates and studded leather chamfrons ). Agricola is said to have pushed his armies to the estuary of the "River Taus" (usually assumed to be the River Tay ) and established forts there, including
7384-417: The front line, keeping the legions in reserve, and relied on close-quarters fighting to make the Caledonians' unpointed slashing swords useless. Even though the Caledonians were put to rout and therefore lost this battle, two-thirds of their army managed to escape and hide in the Scottish Highlands or the "trackless wilds" as Tacitus called them. Battle casualties were estimated by Tacitus to be about 10,000 on
7488-604: The island by Pytheas and received submission from local tribes, establishing the Roman limes of actual control first along the Gask Ridge , and then withdrawing south of a line from the Solway Firth to the River Tyne , i.e. along the Stanegate . This border was later fortified as Hadrian's Wall . Several Roman commanders attempted to fully conquer lands north of this line, including a second-century expansion that
7592-620: The kind of accommodation enjoyed by the middle classes. Over 400 souterrains have been discovered in Scotland, many of them in the south-east, and, although few have been dated, those that have suggest a construction date in the second or third centuries. The purpose of these small underground structures is also obscure. They are usually found close to settlements (whose timber frames are much less well-preserved) and may have been for storing perishable agricultural products. Scotland also has numerous vitrified forts but an accurate chronology has again proven to be evasive. Extensive studies of such
7696-537: The larger Orcadian broch villages, it is unlikely that the tower was ever more than a single-storey high. There is an absence of Roman artefacts at this site. Various theories for the existence of these structures have been proposed, including their construction by northern invaders following the withdrawal of Roman troops after the Agricolan advance, or by allies of Rome encouraged to emulate the impressive northern style in order to suppress native resistance, perhaps even
7800-580: The largest recorded diurnal ranges of temperature in the UK, as well as recording the warmest and coldest temperatures for the UK for September 2015; the maximum temperature was 24.0 °C (75.2 °F) and the minimum was −1.3 °C (29.7 °F). The next day it was again the coldest and warmest place in the UK. The minimum temperature was −2.0 °C (28.4 °F) and the maximum was a new October record for Braemar — 22.7 °C (72.9 °F). Braemar recorded −5.0 °C (23.0 °F) later that month, so for
7904-466: The mainland, which he describes as being triangular in shape. In his work On the Ocean , he refers to the most northerly point as Orcas ( Orkney ). Originals of On the Ocean do not survive, but copies are known to have existed in the first century so at the least a rudimentary knowledge of the geography of north Britain would have been available to Roman military intelligence. Pomponius Mela ,
8008-504: The mid-180s. Roman troops, however, penetrated far into the north of modern Scotland several more times. Indeed, there is a greater density of Roman marching camps in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe, as a result of at least four major attempts to subdue the area. The Antonine Wall was occupied again for a brief period after AD 197. The most notable invasion was in 209 when the emperor Septimius Severus , claiming to be provoked by
8112-444: The names may have indicated hill forts or temporary market and meeting places. Most of the names are obscure: Devana may be the modern Banchory ; Alauna ("the rock") in the west is probably Dumbarton Rock and the place of the same name in the east Lowlands may be the site of Edinburgh Castle . Lindon may be Balloch on Loch Lomond side. There are remains of fifteen broch towers in southern Scotland that appear to date from
8216-509: The nature of the Celtic life in the early Christian era. Radiocarbon dating for this period is problematic and chronological sequences are poorly understood. For a variety of reasons, much of the archaeological work to date in Scotland has concentrated on the islands of the west and north and both excavations and analysis of societal structures on the mainland are more limited in scope. The peoples of early Iron Age Scotland, particularly in
8320-432: The north and west, lived in substantial stone buildings called Atlantic roundhouses . The remains of hundreds of these houses exist throughout the country, some merely piles of rubble, others with impressive towers and outbuildings. They date from about 800 BC to AD 300, with the most imposing structures having been created around the second century BC. The most massive constructions that date from this time are
8424-620: The north that was largely free of Roman hegemony. Scotland had been inhabited for thousands of years before the Romans arrived. However, it is only during the Greco-Roman period that Scotland is recorded in writing. The work On the Cosmos by Aristotle or Pseudo-Aristotle mentions two "very large" islands called Albion ( Great Britain ) and Ierne ( Ireland ). The Greek explorer and geographer Pytheas visited Britain sometime between 322 and 285 BC and may have circumnavigated
8528-455: The period immediately prior to or following Agricola's invasion. They are found in four locations: the Forth valley, close to the Firth of Tay , the far south-west and the eastern Borders . Their existence so far from the main centres of broch-building is something of a mystery. The Leckie broch may have been destroyed by the Roman invaders, yet, like the nearby site of Fairy Knowe at Buchlyvie ,
8632-593: The period: by the time of the End of Roman rule in Britannia around 410, the various Iron Age tribes native to the area had united as, or fallen under the control of, the Picts , while the southern half of the country was overrun by tribes of Romanized Britons . The Scoti ( Gaelic Irish raiders who would give Scotland its Anglicised name) had begun to settle along the west coast. All three groups may have been involved in
8736-468: The present day, there does not seem to have been a hierarchical elite . Studies have shown that these stone roundhouses, with massively thick walls, must have contained virtually the entire population of islands such as Barra and North Uist . Iron Age settlement patterns in Scotland are not homogeneous, but, in these places, there is no sign of a privileged class living in large castles or forts, nor of an elite priestly caste or of peasants with no access to
8840-783: The public sector. Aberdeenshire's economy remains closely linked to Aberdeen City's and the North Sea oil industry, with many employees in oil-related jobs. The average monthly unemployment (claimant count) rate for Aberdeenshire in 2011 was 1.5%. This is lower than the average rate of Aberdeen City (2.3%), Scotland (4.2%) and the UK (3.8%). The following significant structures or places are within Aberdeenshire: There are numerous rivers and burns in Aberdeenshire, including Cowie Water , Carron Water , Burn of Muchalls , River Dee , River Don , River Ury , River Ythan , Water of Feugh , Burn of Myrehouse , Laeca Burn and Luther Water . Numerous bays and estuaries are found along
8944-720: The reigning monarch has been the patron of the Braemar Royal Highland Society, and is styled Chieftain at the games. The current Chieftain of the Braemar Gathering is King Charles III . Lots of events are held, including: Another event that happens at Braemar is the presentation of the Aberdeenshire League/Walker's Shortbread League winners. The overall top six dancers from across certain Highland games held over
9048-818: The reoccupation of southern Scotland c. 141 , probably using the Legio II Augusta . He evidently campaigned against several British tribes (possibly including factions of the northern Brigantes), certainly against the lowland tribes of Scotland , the Votadini and Selgovae of the Scottish Borders region, and the Damnonii of Strathclyde. His total force may have been about 16,500 men. It seems likely that Urbicus planned his campaign of attack from Corbridge, advancing north and leaving garrison forts at High Rochester in Northumberland and possibly also at Trimontium as he struck towards
9152-413: The sea. Famously, his co-ordinates place most of Scotland north of Hadrian's Wall bent at a right angle, stretching due eastward from the rest of Britain. Ptolemy's catalogue of tribes living north of the Forth-Clyde isthmus include the Caereni , Smertae , Carnonacae , Decantae , Lugi , and Creones all to the north of the Great Glen , the Cornovii in Caithness , the Taexali in the north-east,
9256-615: The seacoast of Aberdeenshire, including Banff Bay , Ythan Estuary , Stonehaven Bay and Thornyhive Bay . Aberdeenshire has a marine west coast climate on the Köppen climate classification . Aberdeenshire is in the rain shadow of the Grampians , therefore it has a generally dry climate for a maritime region, with portions of the coast receiving 25 inches (64 cm) of moisture annually. Summers are mild, and winters are typically cold in Aberdeenshire; Coastal temperatures are moderated by
9360-454: The second month in a row Braemar recorded the warmest and coldest monthly temperatures for the UK. On 2 November 2015 a new record high temperature for November in Braemar was set 17.7 °C (63.9 °F). On 11 February 2021 Braemar made national news after a temperature of −23.0 °C (−9.4 °F) was recorded. It was the lowest February temperature since 1955 and the UK's coldest night since 30 December 1995. The modern village sits over
9464-417: The south-east of Scotland, came under Roman sway at an early stage and Cerialis sent one division north through their territory to the shores of the Firth of Forth . The Legio XX Valeria Victrix took a western route through Annandale in an attempt to encircle and isolate the Selgovae who occupied the central Southern Uplands . Early success tempted Cerialis further north and he began constructing
9568-419: The summer are presented with their awards. Each dancer receives a tin of Walker's shortbread (hence the nickname 'Shortbread League') and a commemorative vase, picture or something similar. Braemar has a golf course, two large hotels (Fife Arms and Invercauld Arms) as well as many smaller hotels and private homes offering bed and breakfast -style accommodation and a large SYHA hostel . On the southern edge of
9672-442: The village there is also a caravan site. Braemar also has a small post office /village shop and mountain bike hire. The Morrone Birkwood Nature Reserve is a nature reserve on the edge of the village reached from the car park at the top of Chapel Brae. There is a regular bus service between Braemar and Aberdeen. Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( Scots : Aiberdeenshire ; Scottish Gaelic : Siorrachd Obar Dheathain )
9776-498: The wall was overrun and abandoned soon after AD 160. The destruction of some of the southern brochs may date to the Antonine advance, the hypothesis being that whether or not they had previously been symbols of Roman patronage they had now outlived their usefulness from a Roman point of view. In 1984, a candidate for a Roman fort was identified by aerial photography at Easter Galcantray , southwest of Cawdor . The site
9880-475: The walls alone, which would have used up 100 hectares (250 acres) of forest. Presumably as a consequence of the Roman advance, various hill forts such as Dun Mor in Perthshire, which had been abandoned by the natives long ago, were re-occupied. Some new ones may even have been constructed in the northeast, such as Hill O'Christ's Kirk in Aberdeenshire . Soon after his announcement of victory, Agricola
9984-514: Was Calgacus ("the Swordsman"), a leader of the Caledonians at Mons Graupius, who is referred to by Tacitus in the Agricola as "the most distinguished for birth and valour among the chieftains". Tacitus even invented a speech for him in advance of the battle in which he describes the Romans as: Robbers of the world, having by their universal plunder exhausted the land, they rifle the deep. If
10088-826: Was 86.3% Gaelic-speaking, most non-speakers being originally from Lower Deeside. The Gaelic spoken in the Aberdeenshire Highlands shared most features in common with the Gaelic of Strathspey and East Perthshire. The last native-speaker of the local Gaelic dialect died in 1984, though there are still surviving native-speakers of the similar Strathspey dialect. At the 2001 census, out of a total population of 839 in Crathie and Braemar Civil Parish, only 5 (0.6%) claimed to be Gaelic-speakers. Known colloquially as "The Games" and originating from those believed to have been held by Malcolm III , an annual Highland games gathering
10192-564: Was constructed in the northeast (some of which may date from the earlier Antonine campaign). These include camps associated with the Elsick Mounth, such as Normandykes , Ythan Wells , Deers Den and Glenmailen . However, only two forts in Scotland, at Cramond and Carpow (in the Tay valley) are definitely known to have been permanently occupied during this incursion before the troops were withdrawn again to Hadrian's Wall circa 213. There
10296-605: Was excavated between 1984 and 1988 and several features were identified which are supportive of this classification. If confirmed, it would be one of the most northerly known Roman forts in the British Isles. The possibility that the legions reached further north in Scotland is suggested by discoveries in Easter Ross. The sites of temporary camps have been proposed at Portmahomack in 1949, although this has not been confirmed. In 1991 an investigation of Tarradale on
10400-479: Was fortified as the Antonine Wall . The history of the period is complex and not well-documented. The province of Valentia , for instance, may have been the lands between the two Roman walls, or the territory around and south of Hadrian's Wall, or Roman Wales . Romans held most of their Caledonian territory only a little over 40 years; they probably only held Scottish land for about 80 years. Some Scottish historians such as Alistair Moffat maintain Roman influence
10504-423: Was inconsequential. Despite grandiose claims made by an eighteenth-century forged manuscript , it is now believed that the Romans at no point controlled even half of present-day Scotland and that Roman legions ceased to affect the area after around 211. " Scots " and " Scotland " proper would not emerge as unified ideas until the eighth century . In fact, the Roman Empire influenced every part of Scotland during
10608-782: Was recalled to Rome by Domitian and his post passed to an unknown successor, possibly Sallustius Lucullus . Agricola's successors were seemingly unable or unwilling to further subdue the far north. This inability to continue to hold the far north may be in part due to the limited military resources available to the Roman Proconsul after the recall of the Legio II Adiutrix from Britain, to support Domitian's war in Dacia. Despite his apparent successes, Agricola himself fell out of favour; one author has speculated that Domitian may have been informed that Agricola's claim to have won
10712-459: Was then split between four of the five new districts in the Grampian region: Banff and Buchan (which also included eastern parts of Banffshire, including its county town of Banff ), Gordon , Kincardine and Deeside (which also included most of Kincardineshire), and Aberdeen City. Local government functions were shared between the two levels. The modern council area was created in 1996 under
10816-468: Was wide enough to allow for a walkway along the top. The purpose of the wall appears to have been in part at least to control contact between the subject Brigantes to its south and the client Selgovae to the north. Quintus Lollius Urbicus was made governor of Roman Britain in 138, by the new emperor Antoninus Pius . Urbicus was the son of a Libyan landowner and a native of Numidia (modern Algeria ). Prior to coming to Britain he served during
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