Culloden

Culloden was where the English finally caught up with and defeated Prince Charles (Bonnie Prince Charlie) who was leading the Jacobites in the mid-1700s. I was surprised by a few things: First, the battle field was pretty small; Second, it was very wet marsh land covered with nearly impenetrable bushs; and Third, the battle lines were very close together -- around a hundred yards. I guess both sides were surprised, too, because the battle became a bloody hand-to-hand conflict punctuated by occasional cannon fire. In fact it was the superiority in the number of English cannon that the battle turned on. The only other battle field I have ever visited was the Custer Battle Field in Montana. So I am hardly an expert. But I found it interesting to visit this site and imagine what the battle must have been like.

This is one of 3 houses that remain from the period of the battle. I'm still trying to figure out why a thatched roof doesn't leak.

Near the battle field there is an ancient burial site. The tombs, called cairns, were covered domes made from stone and aligned so the sun would light the interior on the winter solstice.

I have seen many of these sites in the UK. Of them, the ones at Newgrange just north of Dublin Ireland were the best preserved. All share the same basic plan. All share the orientation with the sun on a particular day. All appear to have been constructed of dry stone with a capstone roof.

And all are (or were) surrounded by standing stones. Many of the standing stone were carved with decoration (although the ones here were worn off).

I am not sure why these fascinate me so much. It may have to do with a physical connection to an impossibly distant past. Stimulates my thinking. Gets my imaginative juices flowing. In any event, it was a brief and fun stop.