Bunchrew (

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

: ''Bun Craobh'', meaning "Near to the Tree") is a small village in the

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

council area of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. It is around 3 miles (5 km) west of

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

, close to the south shore of the

Beauly Firth The Beauly Firth ( gd, Linne Fharair) is a firth in northern Scotland. It is the outlet for both the River Beauly and River Ness. The Beauly Firth is bounded at its western end by the town of Beauly and its eastern by Inverness, where it emptie ...

on the A862. The village has a small caravan park and camping site. In the past Bunchrew also had a small railway station as part of

Inverness and Ross-shire Railway The Inverness and Ross-shire Railway was a Scottish railway company formed in 1860 to build a line from Inverness to Invergordon. It opened in 1862 as far as Dingwall and in 1863 to Invergordon. It was extended to a Bonar Bridge station in 1864 ...

, opening in 1862. However, the station closed to passengers in 1960 and goods in 1964. In the late-19th century, Bunchrew had a large bone manure works close to its railway station. This was the subject of numerous investigations, due to the toxic fumes the factory emitted.

Bunchrew House

Bunchrew House is a Scottish baronial-style mansion on the shore of the Beauly Firth, at the village's north end. The house was built in 1505 by Alexander Fraser of Lovat, then with only two rooms as little more than a

blackhouse A blackhouse ( ga, teach dubh ; gd, t(a)igh-dubh ) is a traditional type of house which used to be common in Ireland, the Hebrides, and the Scottish Highlands. Origin of the name The origin of the name blackhouse is of some debate. On the Is ...

, the original wall of which stands behind the wooden panelling in the drawing room. Under Simon Fraser, 6th Lord of Lovat, the house was expanded as a present to his wife Lady Jean, sister to the 2nd Earl of Moray. Jean oversaw much of the work, but died soon after its completion in 1621.

Clan Forbes

In 1673 the house was sold to John Forbes of

Clan Forbes Clan Forbes is a Highland Scottish clan from Aberdeenshire, Scotland. History Origins The name Forbes is most probably a location name assumed from the lands of Forbes in Aberdeenshire, in possession of this family reputedly since the time ...

, the son of the then

Provost of Inverness This is a list of provosts of Inverness. In 2012, the traditional functions of the Provost were controversially divided by the creation of a new executive role of "leader of the city". On 13 August 2012, Ian Brown was the first person to be ap ...

. After the purchase, Forbes is reported to have removed the motto "Fraser—Lord Lovat" carved over the front door—prompting 30 men of the Clan Fraser to smash the building's windows and destroy a mill on the grounds. Before his death in 1688, John Forbes did much to improve the estate ground's, planting what is reputedly the "oldest holly tree in Scotland". He also planted a

Lebanese cedar ''Cedrus libani'', the cedar of Lebanon or Lebanese cedar (), is a species of tree in the genus cedrus, a part of the pine family, native to the mountains of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. It is a large evergreen conifer that has great reli ...

in the garden, now known as the "Loving Tree", due to the belief it would bring good luck to couples making an oath of love under its boughs. During the

Jacobite risings , war = , image = Prince James Francis Edward Stuart by Louis Gabriel Blanchet.jpg , image_size = 150px , caption = James Francis Edward Stuart, Jacobite claimant between 1701 and 1766 , active ...

, Duncan Forbes (grandson of John and inheritor of Bunchrew House) played a large role in quashing the rebellion of '45. He was the first to report the landing of

Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (20 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, grandson of James II and VII, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland and ...

in Scotland to London, and allying with General George Wade during his march through the Highlands. A plan was concocted by Clan Fraser of Lovat to kidnap Forbes during the Siege of Culloden House, but was unsuccessful. After the rebellion, Forbes supported severe punishment for its leaders. He was, however, financially ruined by the conflict, and never reimbursed by the British government whom he backed. According to legend, treasures from Bunchrew House were buried at the top of nearby Craig Dunain during this time, though they were never found.

Recent history

In 1842, Bunchrew House was sold by Clan Forbes to John Fraser

Clan Fraser Clan Fraser is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands.Way, George and Squire, Romily. ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs). Publishe ...

, later Fraser-Mackenzie. The house passed along the family line until it entered the hands of

Malcolm Rifkind Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (born 21 June 1946) is a British politician who served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1986 to 1997, and most recently as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament from 2 ...

, then Scottish Secretary of State. In 1986, Rifkind converted Bunchrew House into a luxury hotel and wedding venue, which it remains to this day. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as well, an

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

unit was stationed at Bunchrew House.{{Cite web, title=The Fraser-MacKenzies, url=https://bunchrewhousehotel.com/history/the-fraser-mackenzies/, access-date=2020-07-29, website=Bunchrew House Hotel Inverness, language=en File:Bunchrew House Hotel - geograph.org.uk - 867885.jpg, Bunchrew House and surrounding gardens File:Bunchrew Level Crossing (9593915852).jpg, The village of Bunchrew, through which the

Far North Line The Far North Line is a rural railway line entirely within the Highland area of Scotland, extending from Inverness to Thurso and Wick. As the name suggests, it is the northernmost railway in the United Kingdom. The line is entirely single-trac ...

passes

References

Populated places in Inverness committee area