Mar Lodge Estate
| Mar Lodge Estate | |
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 The Lui Water on the Mar Lodge Estate | |
| Grid reference: | NO097898 |
| Information | |
| Website: | Mar Lodge Estate |
Mar Lodge Estate is a Highland estate in Aberdeenshire to the west of Braemar, owned by the National Trust for Scotland. It is entirely contained within the Cairngorms National Park and important for nature conservation, landscape, recreation and culture.
Contents
Geography
The Estate is in the heart of the Cairngorms, Mar Lodge itself standing five miles to the west of Braemar. The estate covers 72,501 acres of some of the most remote and scenic wild land in the Highland, including four of the five highest mountains in the United Kingdom.[1] The estate, now owned and managed by the National Trust for Scotland, is recognised as one of the most important nature conservation landscapes in the British Isles and occupies nearly 8% of the Cairngorms National Park.[1]
The estate is characterised by rounded granite Cairngorm mountains to the north, with deep corries and crags down to the valley floor. There are spectacular glacial breaches, the Lairig Ghru and Lairig an Laoigh. To the south west are the more open, rolling hills of the Geldie and Dalvorar. Extreme weather conditions are experienced across the estate, especially on the plateau. Landslides, avalanches and floods alter the landscape and give it an interesting geomorphology.[2]
Conservation and designations
The estate contains examples of remnants of the ancient Caledonian pine forest, heather moorland, juniper scrub and a part of the high Cairngorm plateau. It supports important populations of red grouse, waders and raptors.[1] Waters flowing from the mountains becomes the headwaters of the River Dee. The estate includes land which has a number of national and international natural heritage designations, one of the country's largest areas of Scheduled Ancient Monuments and archaeological sites.[1] The architectural importance of the estate is reflected in that there are 5 listed buildings including Mar Lodge, which was built in 1895 by the Duke of Fife and destroyed by a fire in 1991. Rebuilt soon thereafter, it has recently been converted into holiday flats and retains many of the grand features of its heyday as a hunting lodge. The ballroom has a spectacular 2,435 red deer stags heads lining the walls and ceiling.[3]
Long term conservation of the area is a priority of the Trust – in particular the regeneration of Caledonian pinewood by reducing the damage caused by grazing red deer. It has carried out pioneering work in mountain footpath repair, and the restoration of bulldozed hill tracks.[1]
Recreation
Mar Lodge is a traditional Highland Estate. Today, the estate provides opportunities for Salmon fishing, deer stalking, grouse shooting and walking, with several mountain bothies. The area includes four of the five highest peaks in the United Kingdom.[1]
History
Today Mar Lodge Estate and Mar Estate are two independent Highland Estates. They are the two largest remnants, in upper Deeside, of the historic Earldom of Mar.
John Erskine
The 'modern' story of the estate begins with the participation of John Erskine, 6th Earl of Mar, known as "Bobbing John" who was a leader of the Jacobite Rising of 1715. As a result of his rebellion his lands were forfeit in 1716, and this forfeiture brought to an end the essentially feudal landholding system practiced in the Earldom of Mar.
At this period the locality of Mar Lodge was known as Dalmore from dail mhor ("Great plain") and was held by the McKenzies who had acted as foresters to the Earls of Mar from at least the 17th century. Documents in the National Archives of Scotland – for example (NAS GD124/6/95) dated 11 December 1661 refers to 'John McKenzie of Dalmoir [sic]'. Later documents (NAS GD124/6/61) dated 1707 – for example – refer to 'Kenneth McKenzie of Dalmore, forester to the Earl of Mar' – the duties of forester were to 'protect the game, to supervise timber-extraction, to conserve the woodland, and to apprehend trespassers' – Dixon & Green (1995).
Modernity
The process of resolving the forfeiture of 1716 took many years. Eventually it was bought by James Erskine, Lord Grange and David Erskine, Lord Dun, in 1719 or 1724 (the records are uncertain). Lord Grange was the brother of the Earl of Mar, and other documents make clear that his and Lord Dun's intentions were to purchase Mar Estate to provide for the Earl of Mar's wife and son – Frances, Countess of Mar and Thomas, Lord Erskine.
When Lord Grange and Lord Dun acquired the lordship of Braemar the landholding system was still essentially feudal with Kenneth McKenzie of Dalmore acting as forester, and feuar in his own right. Along with him other feuars include John Farquaharson (Invercauld), Patrick Farquaharson (Inverey), Donald Farquaharson (Allanaquoich).
Dalmore, the westernmost part was bought by the astute entrepreneur William Duff of Dipple, later created Earl of Fife, between 1730 and 1737.[4] This formed the nucleus of Mar Estate. In the years that followed, the many minor lairdships surrounding the two large estates of Invercauld and Mar were gradually absorbed by one or the other, until they were the only two estates in Braemar.[3]
The Duffs as Earls of Fife (following the recreation of the title in 1759) held onto what became Mar Lodge Estate into the 20th century building the 2nd and 3rd Mar Lodges. William died on 30 September 1763, and is interred in the mausoleum at Duff House, Banffshire.
In 1763, James Duff succeeded his father William to the earldom and estate. Improvements began in the 1760s which meant, in essence, the clearing of subsistence tenants off the land to introduce efficient sheep-farming. Even today the names on ordnance survey maps and ruins on the ground record the existence of townships and farms in the main glens of the estate (including) Glen Dee, Glen Ey, Glen Lui and Glen Quoich from this period.
... during the course of the later 18th century, almost all the farms and townships listed in the rentals were cleared of tenants. The reasons for the clearances varied from place to place. Those townships around Mar Lodge itself were removed to make parkland and improve the view, whilst others were removed to improve the hunting (Glen Lui), or in order to turn land to grass. The result of this process of clearance was a significant reduction in population during the later 18th century[5]
...and himself set the example by instituting near each of his seats a model farm, where agriculture and cattle-breeding were carried on under his personal supervision.—Stephen, Leslie
James died on 24 January 1809 at his house in Whitehall, London, and is interred in the mausoleum at Duff House, Banffshire.
Anderson & Anderson" writing in 1850 give interesting descriptions of the estate travelling through it from Glen Tilt and down Glen Dee to Castletown of Braemar as Braemar was known at that time. They describe the location of Mar Lodge as 'in the bottom of the valley', that it is a 'commodious hunting-seat of the Earl of Fife's' and that it was being 'rented, with the adjoining deer forests, by the Duke of Leeds'. They also describe Corriemulzie Cottage (second Mar Lodge) as a 'pretty sporting villa, occupied during the season by General[6] Duff and his family'. From this we can see that the first Mar Lodge was still habitable, and in use, but that the Duffs were only using the 'Cottage' on their visits for the deer hunting season.
The hamlet of Inverey is the only survivor of the estate clearance, not counting the village of Braemar part of which was also very much part of Mar Estate well into the 20th century.
In the 19th century the estate moved towards being used primarily for recreational shooting and fishing with the building of the Hunting Lodges of Derry Lodge, Geldie Lodge and Bynack Lodge.
On 29 January 1912, Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife, died at Aswan in Egypt. He was interred at Mar Lodge. Thereafter the estate was managed by trustees. In 1959 it was inherited by Alexander Ramsey, who sold it to the Ashford family, who in 1962 sold the state to the Swiss Panchauds family, who ran the estate as a commercial sporting venture and the Lodge as a hotel. Vehicle tracks were constructed throughout the estate, including one leading close to the summit of Beinn a' Bhùird, constructed for a proposed skiing development.[2] In 1989 the estate was bought by Mar Lodge Estate Inc. who ran the estate for sporting purposes, with a greater emphasis on sensitive land management and improvement of facilities and buildings. Renovation of the Lodge was interrupted by a fire in 1991 and finally completely in 1993.[2]
1995 onwards (National Trust)
In 1995, the National Trust for Scotland bought Mar Lodge Estate. Ann Marie Salvesen, a publicity-shy member of the Christian Salvesen shipping and distribution dynasty anonymously donated £4.5m to assist with the purchase. At the time there was much speculation that the Prince of Wales was behind the donation.[7]
Pictures
This photograph gallery contains general views of Mar Lodge Estate.
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Mar Lodge Estate) |
Lui Water between Black Bridge and Linn of Lui
Glen Dee from Morrone
Linn of Dee from the East
Glen Quoich from Morrone
Allanaquoich from the Linn of Dee road
Allanaquoich from the Linn of Dee road
Braegarie
Mar Lodge
[Morrone from Corriemulzie
Outside links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Mar Lodge Estate". National Trust for Scotland. http://www.marlodgeestate.org.uk/. Retrieved 7 February 2009.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Case Study – Mar Lodge". National Trust for Scotland. http://www.ntseducation.org.uk/students/case-mar.html. Retrieved 7 February 2009.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 History - Braemar Guide
- ↑ Wyness, Fenton (1968). Royal Valley – The Story Of The Aberdeenshire Dee.
- ↑ Dixon & Green
- ↑ He was a Major General in the Spanish army during the Peninsular War
- ↑ Paul Kelbie (25 January 2002). "Mystery of donor who saved Mar Lodge is solved". The Independent (UK). http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/mystery-of-donor-who-saved-mar-lodge-is-solved-668188.html. Retrieved 7 February 2009.
Sources
- Anderson, George; Anderson, Peter (1850). Guide to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Adam and Charles Black, Edinburgh
- Diack, Dr. Alison M.G. (PDF). Place-Names of the Cairngorms National Park. Cairngorms National Park Authority. http://www.cairngorms.co.uk/resource/docs/publications/23062006/CNPA.Paper.275.Place-Names%20Leaflet.pdf
- Gibbs, Hon. Vicary; Doubleday, H (1926). The Complete Peerage of England Scotland Ireland Great Britain And The United Kingdom. St. Catherine Press, London
- Stephen, Sir Leslie; Lee, Sir Sydney (1917). The Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press
