Culrain

For the Christian Salvesen cargo ship in service 1946-59, see SS Culrain.

Culrain

Culrain (Cul Raoin) is a small village in Sutherland, Highland, Scotland.

Location

It lies west of Ardgay, beside the Kyle of Sutherland, where several rivers converge to flood into the sea through lush water meadows.

History

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose was defeated here, at the Battle of Carbisdale, in 1650, in what proved to be the beginning of his end.

In March 1650 Montrose landed in Orkney from Denmark to take the command of a small force which he had sent on before him. Crossing to the mainland, he tried in vain to raise the clans, and on 27 April he was surprised and routed at the Battle of Carbisdale in Sutherland. His forces were defeated in battle but he escaped. After wandering for some time he was surrendered by Neil MacLeod of Assynt at Ardvreck Castle, to whose protection, in ignorance of MacLeod's political enmity, he had entrusted himself. He was brought a prisoner to Edinburgh, and on 20 May sentenced to death by the parliament. He was hanged on the 21st, with Wishart's^{[disambiguation needed ]} laudatory biography of him put round his neck. To the last he protested that he was a real Covenanter and a loyal subject.

More recently Culrain has been the childhood home of the notable geologist Dr Steven Andrews, whose work upon sub-Milankovich cycles within the Devonian strata of the Old Red Sandstone of northern Scotland has revolutionised current geological theories of the Devonian period. His subsequent research on Stromatolites is equally ground breaking, however his ongoing struggle with perfectionism means it may never be published.

For a number of years Culrain was also the home of the Scottish female sculptor Ann Henderson (RSA).

Surrounding area

Overlooking the Kyle of Sutherland is the early 20th-century Carbisdale Castle. This was home to the exiled King of Norway during the German occupation of Norway during World War II. This now houses the largest and most sumptuous Youth Hostel in Scotland, and possibly anywhere else,

Getting there

Trains between Inverness and Thurso stop at Ardgay railway station and Culrain railway station (a request stop!). The youth hostel is half a mile up a steep hill from the station.

Buses between Inverness and Lairg stop in Ardgay and Bonar Bridge.

Coordinates: 57°55.14′N 4°24.48′W / 57.919°N 4.408°W / 57.919; -4.408