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Inveraray

Coordinates: 56°13′51″N 5°04′24″W / 56.230808°N 5.0732468°W / 56.230808; -5.0732468
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with Inverarnan or Inverurie.

Inveraray
Inveraray's Main Street (the A83), looking northeast to Loch Fyne
Scotland
Scotland
Inveraray
Location within Argyll and Bute
Population570 (2022)[3]
OS grid referenceNN 09600 08500
• Edinburgh75[4] mi (121 km)
• London383[5] mi (616 km)
Council area
  • Argyll and Bute
Lieutenancy area
  • Argyll and Bute
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townINVERARAY
Postcode districtPA32
Dialling code01499
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
  • Argyll and Bute
List of places
UK
Scotland
56°13′51″N 5°04′24″W / 56.230808°N 5.0732468°W / 56.230808; -5.0732468

Inveraray (/ˌɪnvəˈrɛəri/ or /ˌɪnvəˈrɛərə/; Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Aora pronounced [iɲɪɾʲˈɯːɾə] meaning "mouth of the Aray") is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Located on the western shore of Loch Fyne, near its head, Inveraray is a former royal burgh and known affectionately as "The Capital of Argyll". It is the traditional county town of Argyll, and the ancestral seat to the Duke of Argyll.

History

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The Old Town

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The original town of Inveraray was situated on the estuary of the River Aray, at the intersection of the trading route through Glen Aray and the estuary where ships were able to anchor. The town grew up in the shadow of the first Inveraray Castle, home of the Earls of Argyll from the early 15th century.[6]

To encourage trade there were various proposals for burgh status, with the 1st Earl of Argyll being successful in 1474 when King James III established it as a burgh of barony.[7] This allowed a weekly market on Saturdays and two annual fairs (for the Feast of St Brandan on 16th May and the feast of Michael the Archangel on 29th September).[6]

Inveraray became a Royal Burgh on 28 January 1648 following incorporation by King Charles I.  Records from 1690 and 1706 recorded about fifty properties in the town.[7]

In 1746 a “summons of removal” was served on the people of the town, in order for the 3rd Duke of Argyll’s vision for a new town to be built, half a mile away from where his new castle was being built.  There were delays in work actually starting on the new town, with most of the houses in the old town not being demolished until 1771 to 1776, although some had been demolished in 1758 to allow for the construction of the military road.[7]  

Inveraray Castle

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Main article: Inveraray Castle
Inveraray Castle

The first Inveraray Castle was built around 1432 and by 1457 was the home of Colin, second Lord Campbell when he became first Earl of Argyll.

In 1744 the third Duke of Argyll decided to demolish the existing castle and start from scratch with a new building. The castle was 40 years in construction, and the work was largely supervised by the Adam family, still renowned to this day as gifted architects and designers. The end product was not a castle in the traditional sense, but a classic Georgian mansion house on a grand scale, Inveraray Castle.

Over the years the castle has played host to numerous luminaries; Queen Victoria visited it in 1847, and the Royal connection was further cemented when her daughter, Princess Louise, married the heir to the Campbell chieftainship, the Marquess of Lorne, in 1871,[8] illustrating the elevated position of the Argyll family in the social order of the times.

The New Town

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View from the Bell Tower.

In 1747, William Adam had drawn up plans for the creation of a new Inveraray. By 1770, little had been done, and the fifth Duke set about rebuilding the town in its present form. Some of the work on the rebuilt Inveraray was done by John Adam. The Inveraray Inn (formerly known as the New Inn, Great Inn, Argyll Arms Hotel and Argyll Hotel) on Front Street being his, as well as the Town House. Much of the rest of the town, including the church, was designed and built by the celebrated Edinburgh-born architect Robert Mylne (1733-1811) between 1772 and 1800.[9]

The end product was an attractive town which included houses for estate workers, a woollen mill, and a pier to exploit herring fishing, which was to grow in later years to play a major role in the town's economy. The finished product is one of the best examples of an 18th-century new town in Scotland, and the vast majority of the properties in the centre of Inveraray are considered worthy of protection because of the town's architectural significance.

World War II

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During the Second World War the Combined Operations Training Centre, located close to the town, was an important military facility.[10] Between 1940 and 1944, roughly 250,000 allied soldiers received training at the centre. It was used primarily as a training site for the simulation of landing on enemy occupied beaches..[11]

Coat of Arms

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Inverary Coat of Arms.
Inveraray Coat of Arms

Inveraray's coat of arms depicts a net cast out over the ocean, entangled in which are five herrings. Underneath the shield, the Latin words "SEMPER TIBI PENDEAT HALEC" (possible English translation: "may a herring always hang to thee") appear on an escrol.[12][13]

Arthur Charles Fox-Davies, in his 1909 book A Complete Guide to Heraldry, notes the following:

There is no doubt of its ancient usage. ...and the blazon of the coat, according to the form it is depicted upon the Corporate seal, would be for the field: "The sea proper, therein a net suspended from the dexter chief and the sinister fess points to the base; and entangled in its meshes five herrings," which is about the most remarkable coat of arms I have ever come across.[14]

Tourist attractions

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Inveraray Jail

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The building was originally built as a courthouse and jail and built between 1816-1820. Further restoration work was undertaken in 1989 as the Inveraray Jail Visitor Attraction. [15]

Mercat Cross

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Dated from the 15th century, this cross was previously stood in the Old Town, but is currently located on the Inveraray Pier on the seafront end of the Inveraray Main Street. [16]

Bell Tower

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This detached bell tower southwest of the All Saints' Episcopal Church was built as a memorial to Campbells who perished in WWI and previous wars.[17] The Bell Tower dominates the town, and contains the second-heaviest ring of ten bells in the world.[18] The bell tower is open to the public, and the bells are rung regularly.

Dun Na Cuaiche, Tower

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DunNaCuaiche 2013-08

Is a folly of a ruined watch tower overlooking Inveraray and Loch Fyne. Built 1747-48 by William Douglas, at a contract price of £46 for the mason work, commissioned by the 3rd Duke of Argyll. [19]

Other attractions include the Argyll Folk Museum at Auchindrain.

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Poetry

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Robert Burns reflects coldly on his time spent in Inverary in his poem 'Written at Inverary':

Whoe'er he be that sojourns here,

I pity much his case,

Unless he's come to wait upon

The Lord their God, his Grace.

There's naething here but Highland pride

And Highland cauld and hunger;

If Providence has sent me here,

T'was surely in his anger.[20]

Television

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Inveraray was featured in an episode of the PBS series Great Estates of Scotland, as was the present Duke of Argyll, head of the Campbell clan.[21]

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  • Inveraray, viewed from the B839 on the Eastern side of Loch Fyne, above St Catherines
    Inveraray, viewed from the B839 on the Eastern side of Loch Fyne, above St Catherines
  • Aray Bridge on Loch Fyne from Inveraray. The spires of Inveraray Castle can just be seen on the left. The hill behind the bridge is Dun Corr Bhile
    Aray Bridge on Loch Fyne from Inveraray. The spires of Inveraray Castle can just be seen on the left. The hill behind the bridge is Dun Corr Bhile
  • Inveraray reflections
    Inveraray reflections
  • Main street of Inveraray
    Main street of Inveraray
  • Archway from Inveraray town
    Archway from Inveraray town
  • Aray Bridge
    Aray Bridge
  • Inveraray 1844 from Waverley Novels vol. iv
    Inveraray 1844 from Waverley Novels vol. iv

References

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  1. ^ "StackPath". www.ainmean-aite.org.
  2. ^ "Scotslanguage.com - Names in Scots - Places in Scotland".
  3. ^ "Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland". National Records of Scotland. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  4. ^ "Distance from Inveraray, UK to Edinburgh, UK or how far is Inveraray, UK from Edinburgh, UK?". Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  5. ^ "Distance from Inveraray, UK to London, UK or how far is Inveraray, UK from London, UK?". Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  6. ^ a b Fraser, Alexander (1977). The Royal Burgh of Inveraray. Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, Edinburgh. ISBN 978-0715203545.
  7. ^ a b c "Inveraray, Old Village | Canmore". canmore.org.uk. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  8. ^ Matthew Dennison (14 July 2011). "Inveraray Castle: home to the Duke of Argyll". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011.
  9. ^ Ward, Robert (2007) The Man Who Buried Nelson: The Surprising Life of Robert Mylne. London: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7524-3922-8. pp.101, 167
  10. ^ "No. 1 Combined Training Centre, Inveraray". Combinedops.com. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  11. ^ "No 1 Combined Training Centre, Inveraray - HMS Quebec". www.combinedops.com. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  12. ^ "INVERARAY". thereformation.info. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  13. ^ "Record: Miniature pig, with Inveraray coat of arms". National Museums Scotland. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  14. ^ Fox-Davies, Arthur (1909). A Complete Guide to Heraldry. New York: Dodge. p. 88.
  15. ^ "Former Inveraray Court House, Crown Point, Inveraray". Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  16. ^ "Inveraray, Pier, Mercat Cross". Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  17. ^ "Inveraray, All Saints' Episcopal Church View of bell tower from South East". Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  18. ^ "Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers". Retrieved 28 July 2009.
  19. ^ "Inveraray Castle Estate, Dun Na Cuaiche, Tower | Canmore".
  20. ^ "Written At Inverary. by Robert Burns • Simple Poetry". Simple Poetry. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  21. ^ "Great Estates of Scotland, Inveraray". PBS. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Inveraray.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Inveraray.
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