Feel the History

Castles can be found throughout the Park, ranging from medieval castles to the barracks built in the 18th century to quell the Jacobite uprisings. Military roads were built at this time to supplement the ancient routes used by drovers and smugglers. The remains of townships can be found scattered throughout the Park, re-creations of which can be seen at the Highland Folk Museum.

The purchase of Balmoral estate by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1852, and the subsequent arrival of the railway, had a major impact, heralding the age of tourism. The romantic baronial style of architecture spread throughout neighbouring estates and to the villas of Braemar and Ballater. The Park became a wealthy playground with the creation of sporting estates, many of which continue to this day. The wealthy landowners built planned towns, such as Grantown-on-Spey and Kingussie, and a lucrative tourist industry grew around these urbanised areas.

Gaelic place names give us some insight in to the culture, environment and wildlife of the Park. They were used to identify natural and built landscape features and also to commemorate events and people. The landscape and life of the Park have inspired many people, through art, literature and music, such as the renowned Victorian artist, Sir Edwin Landseer, who visited the area often, and defined an image of Scotland that persists to this day with paintings like 'Monarch of the Glen'.

Sport has also defined the image of the Park, with sports like Highland games and shinty having their roots in old battles between fractious clans. Shinty continues to play and important part in local communities, with Kingussie and Newtonmore dominating competitively. Communities in the Park are proud of their history, and many have delved deep in to their past to illuminate the relationships between people and place in the Cairngorms landscape.