Arrochar ( ; gd, italic=yes, An t-Àrchar or ''An Tairbeart Iar'') is a village located near the head of

Loch Long Loch Long is a body of water in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The Sea Loch extends from the Firth of Clyde at its southwestern end. It measures approximately in length, with a width of between . The loch also has an arm, Loch Goil, on its weste ...

, on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute,

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

. The village is within the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park.

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

in Dunbartonshire, it is overlooked by a group of mountains called the Arrochar Alps, and in particular by the distinctive rocky summit of

the Cobbler The Cobbler ( gd, Beinn Artair) is an mountain located near the head of Loch Long in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is a Corbett, and is an important site for rock climbing in the Southern Highlands. Many maps include the name Ben Arthur (an an ...

. It enjoys good communications as it is at the junction of the A83 and A814 roads and is served by Arrochar and Tarbet railway station. In addition the

A82 road The A82 is a major road in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Inverness via Fort William, Highland, Fort William. It is one of the principal north-south routes in Scotland and is mostly a trunk road managed by Transport Scotland, who view it a ...

runs through Tarbet east. For over five centuries this area, the feudal barony of Arrochar, was held by the chiefs of Clan MacFarlane and before them by their ancestors the barons of Arrochar. The family is

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

in the male line and native to their Highland homeland of tall peaks and deep lochs just above the waist of Scotland. The settlement was a key target for Viking raiders who took their boats overland to Tarbet to attack the unprotected inland settlements at Loch Lomond before their defeat in 1263 at the

battle of Largs The Battle of Largs (2 October 1263) was a battle between the kingdoms of Norway and Scotland, on the Firth of Clyde near Largs, Scotland. Through it, Scotland achieved the end of 500 years of Norse Viking depredations and invasions despite bei ...

. The western end of Arrochar marks the traditional boundary of

Argyllshire Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

and Dunbartonshire, and this remained the case under local government reorganisation in 1975. However, in 1996 the boundaries of Argyll and Bute and

West Dunbartonshire West Dunbartonshire ( sco, Wast Dunbairtonshire; gd, Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann an Iar, ) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. The area lies to the west of the City of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's commuter town ...

were substantially redrawn, bringing the whole area into Argyll and Bute.

Arrochar Torpedo Testing Facility

The photograph shows the former

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

testing facility at the head of

. It was decommissioned in 1980 and is currently part demolished. Demolition has been stalled since a fire on the site in June 2007. Torpedoes were fired up Loch Long from tubes at the front of the facility. A boat stood by to recover the (unarmed) torpedoes where they were returned for analysis. The now roofless shed to the left and the main part of the building have tracks where torpedoes were stored and worked on. Hoists on the first floor lowered the torpedoes into the tubes. The control room at the top looking straight down the loch housed a camera. Behind the control room, above the loading shed, is office accommodation. The rest of the facility included housing and workshops but these have been sold off.

References

External links

The Official Homepage of the International Clan MacFarlane Society, Inc.

Arrochar, Tarbet and Ardlui History - website

Three Villages Community - website.

The Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park - website

Video footage of the old Arrochar Pier

Video footage of Arrochar & Tarbet railway station
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arrochar, Argyll Highlands and Islands of Scotland Villages in Cowal

Arrochar Torpedo Testing Facility

See also

References

External links