The Aird (from the

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 ...

: ''An Àird'' (IPA: �anˈaːɾʃt̪ meaning "The High Place") is an area of the

County of Inverness Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populati ...

, to the west of the

City 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 ...

. It is situated to the south of the

River Beauly The River Beauly ( gd, Abhainn nam Manach, ) is a river in the Scottish Highlands, about 15 km west of the city of Inverness. It is about 25 km long, beginning near the village of Struy, at the confluence of the River Farrar and the ...

and 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 empties ...

, and to the north of

Glenurquhart Glenurquhart or Glen Urquhart ( gd, Gleann Urchadain) is a glen running to the west of the village of Drumnadrochit in the Highland council area of Scotland. Location Glenurquhart runs from Loch Ness at Urquhart Bay in the east to Corrim ...

and the northern end of

Loch Ness Loch Ness (; gd, Loch Nis ) is a large freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately southwest of Inverness. It takes its name from the River Ness, which flows from the northern end. Loch Ness is best known for clai ...

. Villages within the Aird include

Kirkhill Kirkhill or Kirkhills may refer to a number of places. In Canada: * Kirkhill, Nova Scotia * Kirkhill, Ontario, an area of North Glengarry In Northern Ireland: * Kirkhills, a townland in County Antrim In Scotland: *Kirkhill industrial estate, near ...

Kiltarlity Kiltarlity ( gd, Cill Targhlain) is a small village in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is west of Inverness and south of Beauly, on the south bank of the Bruiach Burn. It has a population of under 1,000 people, and a local primary sch ...

Lentran Lentran is a small hamlet in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is 1.8 miles (3 km) east of Kirkhill and 5 miles (8 km) west of Inverness, on the south shore of the Beauly Firth. The area was served by Lentran railway statio ...

and Inchmore. It is the traditional heart of the

Clan Fraser of Lovat Clan Fraser of Lovat ( gd, Friseal french: link=yes, Fraiser) is a Highland Scottish clan and the principal branch of Clan Fraser. The Frasers of Lovat are strongly associated with Inverness and the surrounding area since the Clan's founder gaine ...

's territory, containing their family seat of

Beaufort Castle Beaufort Castle can refer to several places: * Beaufort Castle, Florennes, Belgium * Beaufort Castle, France, in the historical region of Auvergne * Beaufort Castle in Huy, Belgium * Beaufort Castle, Greece, a Frankish castle in Laconia * Beaufor ...

. The first known Lord of the Aird, however, was Iain Mac Eoin Nan Gleann or "John Bisset of the Glens" in English. The area gives its name to a

Highland Council The Highland Council (' ), the political body covering the Highland local authority created in 1995, comprises 21 wards, each electing three or four councillors by the single transferable vote system, which creates a form of proportional represe ...

ward - "Aird and Loch Ness".

History

Blar Nam Feinne Blàr nam Fèinne (Battlefield of the Fingalians) on Cnoc na Moine (Hill of the Peat) in The Aird, to the west of Inverness, is the site of the 11th century battle between Scottish forces led by Malcolm III of Scotland against Norwegian forces le ...

( is a site on Cnoc na Moine that reputedly saw a battle in the early 11th century between King Malcolm and Thorfinn of Norway. The Aird is first documented as a

provincial lordship Provincial lordships is a modern term used by historians to describe large feudal landholdings created in Scotland during the 12th and 13th centuries. These landholdings were granted by kings to their supporters to secure royal control of territor ...

between 1203 and 1221. It only survived as a single territory until 1259, when it was divided among the three female heirs of

John Bissett of Lovat John Bissett, Lord of Lovat (died 1260) was a Scottish nobleman. Life His father John, Lord of the Aird fled to Ireland and then to England, with his uncle Walter Byset, Lord of Aboyne after Walter and John had been complicit in the murder of Pa ...

and their husbands. The extent of the lordship is uncertain. It can be shown to have included the parishes of Convinth, Farnua,

, and Dunballoch, which all lay within the

Province of Moray Moray ( mga, Muréb; la-x-medieval, Moravia; non, Mýræfi) was a province within the area of modern-day Scotland, that may at times up to the 12th century have operated as an independent kingdom or as a power base for competing claimants to th ...

, and may also have included the parish of Glenelg on the west coast. Uniquely among Moravian lordships it may also have included land outside the province, including Edirdovar (now

Redcastle Redcastle ( gd, an Caisteal ruadh), historically known as Edirdovar and Ederdour, is a medieval castle in Killearnan on the Black Isle, northern Scotland. It is so named from the colour of the stone of which it is built. The castle is now in a ...

) on the

Black Isle The Black Isle ( gd, an t-Eilean Dubh, ) is a peninsula within Ross and Cromarty, in the Scottish Highlands. It includes the towns of Cromarty and Fortrose, and the villages of Culbokie, Jemimaville, Rosemarkie, Avoch, Munlochy, Tore, and Nor ...

, and land within the parish of

Kilmorack Kilmorack ( gd, Cill Mhòraig) is a small hamlet in Inverness-shire, in the Highlands of Scotland and now in the Highland Council area. It is situated on the north bank of the River Beauly, west of Beauly and west of the city of Inverness. The ...

, both of which lay within the Province of Ross. The Aird is also supposed to be the site of the defeat of Donald Balloch in the 15th century. Various cairns marked the burials from the battles, about 20 mounds have survived forestry operations with varying degrees of mutilation.

History

References

Bibliography

See also