The Jacobite Gold, The Loch Arkaig Treasure; whatever name you give it, is about a pot of gold at the end of a tartan patterned rainbow; or most likely, several pots of gold.  It is a symbol of happiness just beyond your ability to attain it, the symbol of some...

  If there’s one thing this whole History Hit – Royal Society – Professor Sue Black investigation into the Old Fox has shown, it is how many bones do not rest in peace. It is a world away from scenes of horrendous massacres and accidents worldwide. Yet, what appears...

Well, I’ve just heard something off the charts. It can’t be true but I have to pass it on. To set the scene, I was walking the dog on a stunning day. The Highlands lying under snow and blinding sun, you can see for 50 miles. A neighbour stopped me. He said he had seen...

Sir Simon Fraser of Neidpath, can be thought of as the founding father of the Lovat Frasers. Born in 1257 in Neidpath Castle near Peebles, he met a gruesome death in London in 1306. He had been captured fighting in the Scottish Wars of Independence. One chronicler...

What follows is an enormously long post – so I’d better explain what it’s for. There is such a huge revival in the interest in Highland history – in the clans, and in clan Fraser of Lovat in particular, as a result of the smash hit TV series Outlander. I want to give...

  What might a Jacobite victory have meant for the cause of Scottish Nationalism? Millions have watched the first episodes of Outlander Season 3. They dramatise vividly the failure of the ’45 and the consequences of defeat on Culloden Moor for the combatants and...

  This is the link to an article I wrote for the Daily Record, on the liks between Outlander and the real stories of the clans - particularly clan Fraser. www.dailyrecord.co.uk/scotland-now/outlander-racy-truth-highland-life-10756192   The historical figure, Lord...