Lochinvar (or Lan Var) is a

loch ''Loch'' () is the Scottish Gaelic, Scots language, Scots and Irish language, Irish word for a lake or sea inlet. It is Cognate, cognate with the Manx language, Manx lough, Cornish language, Cornish logh, and one of the Welsh language, Welsh w ...

in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

of Dalry in the historic county of Kirkcudbrightshire,

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

Scotland. It is located in the

Galloway Hills The Galloway Hills are part of the Southern Uplands of Scotland, and form the northern boundary of western Galloway. They lie within the bounds of the Galloway Forest Park, an area of some of largely uninhabited wild land, managed by Forestry an ...

, around north-east of

St. John's Town of Dalry St John's Town of Dalry ( gd, Clachan Eòin), usually referred to simply as Dalry ( / 'dal-RYE'), is a village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, in the historic county of Kirkcudbrightshire. Location St Johns Town is located close to the ...

. The loch formerly had an island on which stood Lochinvar Castle, seat of the Gordon family. In the 20th century the loch was dammed to form a reservoir, raising the water level and submerging the island with the ruins of the castle. The loch is used for

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

fishing. The name Lochinvar is from Scots Gaelic ''Loch a' bharra'' (older Gaelic ''Loch an bharra'', the genitive of ''barr'' = summit) meaning "Loch on the hilltop". Consequently it is stressed on the last syllable (unlike

Lochinver Lochinver (''Loch an Inbhir'' in Gaelic) is a village that is located at the head of the sea loch Loch Inver, on the coast in the Assynt district of Sutherland, Highland, Scotland. A few miles northeast is Loch Assynt which is the source of ...

Gordons of Lochinvar

The Gordon family arrived at Lochinvar from Berwickshire in 1297. They established a castle, but the date of the ruins on the former island is not known.

John Gordon of Lochinvar Sir John Gordon of Lochinvar and Kenmure (died 1604), was a Scottish courtier, landowner, and supporter of Mary, Queen of Scots. He was the son of Sir James Gordon of Lochinvar and Margaret Crichton. On 20 August 1547 his sister Janet Gordon (die ...

was a supporter of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

. His son, Sir

Robert Gordon of Lochinvar Sir Robert Gordon of Lochinvar (died 1628) was a Scottish landowner, courtier, and promoter of colonies in Nova Scotia. He was a son of John Gordon of Lochinvar and his second wife Elizabeth Maxwell, a daughter of John Maxwell 4th Lord Herries. H ...

(c.1565–1628) was one of the first to embark in the scheme for the establishment of colonies in North America. He obtained a charter of what was called the barony of Galloway in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

on 8 November 1621. In 1625 he published a tract on the subject entitled ''Encouragements for such as shall have intention to bee Vndertakers in the new plantation...By mee Lochinvar...Edinburgh, 1625''. Lochinvar was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1626. On 12 July 1626 he was appointed a member of the council of war for Scotland and a Commissioner for the Middle Shires, residing at Greenlaw,

Crossmichael Crossmichael ( gd, Crois Mhìcheil) is a small village on the east side of Loch Ken in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire, about north of Castle Douglas in Scotland. Crossmichael is also the name of the civil parish in Kirkcudbright ...

Parish, Kirkcudbrightshire. His second son, Robert Gordon of Gelston, joined with his father in the plantation of America in the grant of the barony of Galloway in

in 1621. His eldest son, Sir John Gordon of Lochinvar, 2nd baronet, was a supporter of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

and a notable Protestant. He was created

Viscount of Kenmure Viscount of Kenmure was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created by Charles I in 1633 for the prominent Presbyterian Sir John Gordon, 2nd Baronet. He was made Lord Lochinvar at the same time, also in the Peerage of Scotland. Both titles ...

by Charles at his Scottish coronation in 1633. "Young Lochinvar" is a key character in

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...

's epic poem '' Marmion'' (1808). Although the tale is associated with the historical Sir William Gordon of Lochinvar, 15th-century laird of Lochinvar, there is no evidence for the events described in the poem.

References

External links

Lochinvar
{{authority control Lochs of Dumfries and Galloway Castles in Dumfries and Galloway Reservoirs in Dumfries and Galloway

Gordons of Lochinvar

See also

References

External links