Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre (Scotland)

Culloden has to be one of the most atmospheric historic sites that I have ever been to. It is one of those rare places where the events of the past seem to have been soaked up by the landscape and it is not hard at all to imagine what happened there; it has that intangible factor that heritage experts are fond of calling “a sense of place”. So many historical attractions that I visit tend to be an assault on the senses, an overload of information ...
...of the significance of it. Culloden is actually a stretch of moor about 5 miles east of Inverness in the Scottish Highlands, and the site of the last battle to be fought on British soil. The battle was fought between Charles Edward Stuart (“the young pretender” or Bonnie Prince Charlie) the leader of the Jacobite cause, and the government’s army, led by Charles’ cousin the Duke of Cumberland.

Charles was an exiled member of the Stuart ... more

Culloden has to be one of the most atmospheric historic sites that I have ever been to. It is one of those rare places where the events of the past seem to have been soaked up by the landscape and it is not hard at all to imagine what happened there; it has that intangible factor that heritage experts are fond of calling “a sense of place”. So many historical attractions that I visit tend to be an assault on the senses, an overload of information or a route march through the site by bored guides. Culloden, by contrast, is a quiet and dignified site that is well worth a visit, despite the fact that its remote location makes it a long journey for many visitors.

I’m sure the word “Culloden” does sound somewhat familiar to many of you reading this, even if you are not quite sure of the significance of it. Culloden is actually a stretch of moor about 5 miles east of Inverness in the Scottish Highlands, and the site of the last battle to be fought on British soil. The battle was fought between Charles Edward Stuart (“the young pretender” or Bonnie Prince Charlie) the leader of the Jacobite cause, and the government’s army, led by Charles’ cousin the Duke of Cumberland.

Charles was an exiled member of the Stuart line, formerly the Royal House of Scotland, who returned to the country from the continent in August 1745 with the aim of raising an army that would restore his father James Stuart to the throne (the word Jacobite actually coming from the Latin for James: Jacobus). Landing in the Hebrides, Charles moved through Scotland, gradually bringing together support and easily taking Edinburgh shortly afterwards, where he proclaimed his father King. However, knowing that the Hanoverian monarchy in London would never accept an independent Scottish king, the Jacobites took the decision to invade England, with the hope that English supporters would flock to their cause along the way, swelling their armies. In the end, the English support did not come in the numbers expected. Although the Jacobite army managed to get as far south as Derby, Charles decided to retreat back to Scotland to avoid being caught in a pincer movement between two branches of the government army as he attempted to take London. As it happened, London itself was so fearful of an invasion of Highlanders that many people – including George II – were on the verge of fleeing. On the march north, Charles’ army met and defeated a government force at Falkirk, but continued to move north in search of a location where the decisive battle between government and the uprising would take place. In April 1746 they arrived in Inverness and Charles’ generals chose Culloden moor as their battleground.

On 16th April, the two armies finally met; Charles’ force was made up of Highlanders fighting out of Clan loyalty to the cause, who were by this time exhausted and starving, while the government army of redcoats was well trained, disciplined and armed with guns. The battle was not so much English versus Scots as it is commonly understood, but rather government versus rebels. In fact, more Scots fought on the government side that for the romantic Stuart cause. The battle proved to be one sided and was over in about an hour with over 1000 Highlanders dead – indeed, the word “Culloden” has come to mean “massacre” to some people. Following the battle, Charles fled back to his father, while the government took severe repressive measures against the Highlanders to prevent another upraising taking place. Cumberland killed almost the same number again after the battle was over, tartan and bagpipes were made illegal (and remained so for many years) and the Gaelic language was discouraged.

The site today is owned and run by the National Trust for Scotland. Arriving at Culloden moor, you will find a large and modern visitor centre next to a car park of considerable size, as well as access to the battlefield site itself. Anyone can avail themselves of the restaurant, toilets and shop in the visitor centre, but you need to pay (or show your National Trust/National Trust for Scotland membership card) to actually get to the exhibits and historic sites themselves. My first port of call was the “taste of Scotland” restaurant to get some lunch and a drink, and to be honest I found this to be the weak link of the whole experience. I arrived just after a coach party; such a site gets many coach parties, yet the facilities are just not adequate to deal with the huge influxes of people – just two servers were trying to dish out the food and take payment, meaning it took 25 minutes just to buy my food. The food in itself wasn’t especially expensive given the captive audience the site had, although I have to confess that it wasn’t brilliant. I am still not entirely sure what I was eating, either, as a lot of the food on display were neither labelled nor priced, something else I didn’t like. My advice would be to take a packed lunch, or eat in nearby Inverness before or after your visit instead.

Moving on though, I have nothing but praise for the rest of the visitor facilities. Toilets were clean; the shop was huge, well stocked and fairly priced; the staff were polite, and all internal signposting was clear. Provisions were also made for foreign tourists with guidebooks in French and German, and for blind visitors with Braille guides.

The historic interpretation is what I had come here for, though. Having flashed my NT card, I went to have a look around the two exhibitions on show – one was a simple affair of illustrations and text panels that aimed to give the visitor the historical background they needed to understand and appreciate the site, the other a collection of artefacts associated with the events of Culloden moor. The design of the exhibitions was simple; there was no “bells and whistles”, no fancy computer interactives or anything like that, which no doubt made it less interesting to children. However, what the NTS did succeed in doing, though, was in producing exhibitions that conveyed clearly, effectively and without obvious bias what happened there in 1746. The displays were also backed up by a short film (lasting about 20 minutes). I liked this approach. Although the film essentially said nothing different to the exhibitions, it made the information more accessible: if you didn’t enjoy reading huge reams of information, well, you could watch it on a film instead. This also works for anyone who doesn’t read English well, as the film offered a commentary via headphones in French, German, Italian and Japanese. Having this information is the key to understanding the battlefield, so it was good to see it made available in a variety of ways to help the visitor get the most from their visit.

The battlefield itself, as I have said, is a very evocative place. The interpretation is quietly understated, consisting of a series of flags marking the location of government and Jacobite lines at the start of the battle, and several small panels that put your location into the context of the battlefield. The NTS are currently in the middle of a long-term plan to return the site to as it was in 1746, so you see the knee high gorse and thistles, the thick heather and the flock of Hebridean sheep grazing. Seeing the field like this helps you to understand why the Jacobite cause died here – how could the famous Highland charge work on a moor where vegetation makes it barely possible to walk, let alone run? The Clan grave markers, the Well of the Dead and the huge memorial cairn add to the sense of poignancy of the site, but what brought the significance of it home to me most of all were the fresh bunches of flowers that are still left by some of the grave markers. NTS do promise living history presentations throughout the summer, and as much as I enjoy them normally, I can’t help but feel glad that I was left in peace to fully contemplate the site on the day I visited.

Overall, Culloden moor is well worth a visit. The restaurant aside, I think the site was good value for money, tastefully presented and well explained, and I easily spent a full afternoon there. It comes well recommended from me; I reckon it is a “must see” for anyone visiting the eastern Highlands.

*Culloden is…*
- Poignant but not depressing
- Well interpreted
- A long journey but worth it
- Somewhere that will help you get a full appreciation of Highland life

*Culloden is not…*
- Good for kids (I didn’t really like it when I was there as a 12 year old)
- The best place to get lunch
- A good choice to visit in bad weather
- For anyone who wants to say “Bonnie Prince Charlie was not a hero” in a loud voice

● Details
Location – 5 miles east of Inverness on the B9006, signposted from the A9.

Open – Daily, all year round. November to March 11-4; April to June and September to October 9-6; July and August 9-7.

Price – Free to NT and NTS cardholders. Otherwise £5 for adults, £3.75 for concessions (child, student, OAP).

Contact – Web: www.nts.org.uk
Email: Culloden@nts.org.uk
Phone: (01463) 790607

 

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