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Huntly

Coordinates:57°26′46″N2°47′17″W/ 57.446°N 2.788°W/57.446; -2.788
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This article is about the town in Scotland. For other uses, seeHuntly (disambiguation).

Huntly
Gordon Square, Huntly
Huntly is located in Aberdeenshire
Huntly
Huntly
Location withinAberdeenshire
Population4,550 (2022)[1]
OS grid referenceNJ5353
Council area
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHUNTLY
Postcode districtAB54
Dialling code01466
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
57°26′46″N2°47′17″W/ 57.446°N 2.788°W/57.446; -2.788

Huntly(Scottish Gaelic:Srath BhalgaidhorHunndaidh) is a town inAberdeenshire,Scotland,formerly known asMilton of Strathbogieor simplyStrathbogie.It had a population of 4,460[2]in 2004 and is the site ofHuntly Castle.Its neighbouring settlements includeKeithandRothiemay.Both Huntly and the surrounding district of Gordon are named for atownandfamilythat originated in theBorder country.[3]

Huntly is the historic home of theGordon Highlandersregiment, which traditionally recruited throughout the North-East of Scotland.[4]Huntly has a primary school (Gordon Primary) and a secondary school (The Gordon Schools) beside Huntly Castle.

Huntly is the home of the Dean's bakers, producers ofshortbreadbiscuits. In November 2007, the Dean's of Huntly opened their new visitor’s centre.[5]

Four of the owls from the local falconry centre were featured in theHarry Potterfilms.[6]

History[edit]

Huntly Castle
Stewart's Hall,formerly known as Huntly Town Hall

Settlement around the confluence of theBogieandDeveronrivers dates back to theNeolithicperiod. The settlement's remains and the remains of anIron Agehillforthave been excavated on Battlehill on the outskirts of the town. During the first millennium CE the area was dominated by thePictishculture. A very large Pictish settlement and vitrified hillfort was situated locally atTap o' NothinStrathbogie.

The site was strategically important, allowing for control of the routes fromMorayintoStrathdonandDeeside.The firstmotte-and-bailey castleon this settlement was erected by Donchaid McDuff, theGaelicspeaking 2ndMormaer of Fife,c.1180. The lands were transferred to theBerwickshireAnglo-Normanfamily, theGordons,in 1352 in retaliation for McDuff’s descendant,David of Strathbogie,defecting fromRobert ItoEdward I’s cause on the eve of theBattle of Bannockburn.

The settlement at the confluence of the Bogie and the Deveron was known asMilton of Strathbogieor The Raws of Strathbogie until 1508.

Despite theboggylands in the vicinity at that time, the castle at Strathbogie became a key centre for the Gordons of Moray over the following centuries.[citation needed]As the family built power through warfare anddynastic marriage,they became the dominant family in the North-East of Scotland, with theclan chiefacquiring the informal title of Cock o' the North.[citation needed]As a result, a thriving settlement serving the evolving palace complex developed. The settlement became aburgh of baronyin 1472. In 1508, the Gordons received aroyal charterenabling them to rename Milton of Strathbogie & the castle to Huntly – the name of theirancestral seatin Berwickshire.[citation needed]

During theScottish Reformation,the Gordons were among the leadingCatholicfamilies in the country and heavily embroiled inMary, Queen of Scots’conflict with thereformed churchand theprotestantmagnates.Huntly castle was bombarded and sacked in 1562 (by Mary) and in 1594 byJames VI.

After the restoration of Gordon titles, the town continued to develop during the 17th and 18th centuries both as amarket townand an adjunct to the Gordons’ palace with a wide range ofmerchantsandartisansserving the surrounding countryside – in the mid-17th century the town hosted 4 separate glovers.

The adjacentparishesofDunbennanand Kinnoir were consolidated into a single parish of Huntly in 1727, though each of these livings had been in the gift of theMarquess of Huntlyfor centuries. During this century, theDuke of Gordonalso commenced redeveloping the town as aplanned-townwithgrid-iron streets.

The 18th centuries saw the development of theflaxindustry and associated cottage industries inheckling,spinning,bleachingandweaving,though the trade was inhibited in the longer term by poor transport infrastructure toBanffandAberdeen.Smugglingwhiskywas also an important trade at this period until the industry was licensed in 1823.

In the 19th century, following thepost-Napoleonicslump in thelinentrade, the town experienced another period of growth with the establishment ofrail transportin 1845 coupled with a shift frompeasantfarming to capitalist agriculture. Huntly became an important market and shipping centre whilst its surrounding parishes depopulated.

In 1836 the town and the Gordon estates passed to the Sussex-based 5thDuke of Richmondbyinheritance.Ownership of thefeuand much of the land and property remained in the ownership of the Dukes of Richmond and Gordon until August 1936 when all the property and feus in the town along with much surrounding farmland was sold atauctionatHuntly Town Hallin order to paydeath dutieson theducalestates.[7]

Though the town’s population has varied slightly over the 20th century – with a net outwardmigrationafter the2nd World War– the town in 2018 had a population of 4,650. This compares with 4,229 in 1911. Significant demographic growth was over the course of the 19th century from 1000 in 1800 to 3,600 in 1861.

Arts[edit]

Huntly is home toDeveron Projects,an arts organisation that invites artists from all over the world to come and live and work in the town.[8][9]Since 1995 it has worked with a 'town is the venue' methodology, connecting artists, communities and places.[9][10]It hosts artists and projects that explore local, regional and global topics, such asforestry,geology,botany,foraging,anthropology,history, politics and art. Over 100 renowned artists have spent time in the town, includingRoman Signer[11]andHamish Fulton.[12]

Walking is often used as a medium to bring people together for these projects, and Deveron Projects has a Walking Institute that commissions artists to make walks.[8]Their annualSlow Marathonstarted in 2012 in collaboration withEthiopianartist Mihret Kebede.[13]Deveron Projects also runs a community kitchen and gardening projects.[14]In 2013 Deveron Projects won Huntly the Creative Place Award, which recognises 'creativity across Scotland’s smaller communities'.[15]

Geography[edit]

Brown Hill is located in Huntly parish.[16]

Sports[edit]

There is salmon and trout fishing on the RiversDeveronandBogie,which are administered by the River Deveron Salmon Fisheries Board. Its other principal outdoor activities includegolf,Nordic SkiinginClashindarroch Forest,walking,mountain bikingandRugby.The localfootballteam isHuntly F.C.,the localrugby unionside isHuntly RFC.[17]

Transport[edit]

Huntly railway stationis arailway stationserving the town. The station is managed byScotRailand is on theAberdeen to Inverness Line.The station opened on 20 September 1854.[18]

Notable people[edit]

  • Ian Cameron,father of British Prime Minister,David Cameron,was fromGlass, Huntly;he was born atBlairmore House.
  • Ronald Center(1913–1973), composer, lived there from 1943 until his death in 1973, teaching first at the Gordon Schools, then privately.
  • Willie Donald(1953–2022), first-class cricketer and former president ofCricket Scotland
  • Iona Fyfe(born 1998), Scots singer and musician.
  • Elizabeth Gordon, Duchess of Gordon(née Brodie; 1794 – 1864), was a Scottish noblewoman and church patron
  • John Henderson(born 1973), a PDC darts player, is from Huntly.
  • James Legge(1815–1897), scholar and missionary to China, was born in Huntly and educated there and at King's College Aberdeen, before leaving to his first mission post in Malacca in 1839. Across the next 43 years he worked in Hong Kong translating all the classic books of the Confucian canon in a huge series of books, a set still considered to be the gold standard of English translations today. He frequently returned to Huntly across his life in China, bringing three young Chinese lads to live there and get "a good Scottish education" in 1845. By the time they returned to China in 1848 they had all been invited to meet Queen Victoria, then a lively young woman. Legge retired from his mission work in Hong Kong in 1873, was named the first Oxford Professor of Chinese in 1876, and lived there until his death. His father Ebenezer Legge had been Mayor of Huntly, and the Legge family home is still in use, on the main square.
  • George MacDonald(1824–1905), writer, and influence upon JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis. Some of his novels, especially the Robert Falconer and Alec Forbes of Howglen play partly in Huntly, even if the name of the town is changed, and give an introduction to the life in Huntly in the 19th century.
  • William Milne(1785–1822), born atKennethmontnear Huntly, was the second British Protestant missionary to China (followingRobert Morrison). He was the founding headmaster of the first Anglo-Chinese school,Ying Wa College,in 1818 atMalacca.(This school was subsequently moved to Hong Kong by James Legge in 1843 and still exists.)
  • George Philip,(1800–1882) was a cartographer, map publisher and founder of the publishing houseGeorge Philip & Son Ltd.He was born in Huntly.
  • John Perie(1831–1874)VC,born in Huntly.
  • Jo Pitt,para-equestrian (1979-2013), was from Huntly.[19]
  • Andrew Young,(born 1992)cross-country skierwith severalworld cuppodiums.
  • William Mellis Christie(1829–1900), founder of the CanadianMr. Christiebrand of cookies and biscuits.[20]

References[edit]

  1. ^"Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland".National Records of Scotland.31 March 2022.Retrieved31 March2022.
  2. ^ "Table 1: Settlements in alphabetical order"(PDF).General Register Office for Scotland.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 25 January 2012.Retrieved5 December2011.
  3. ^Gazetteer of Scotland (1882-5)
  4. ^Gordon Highlanders Museum websiteArchived2011-09-27 at theWayback Machine
  5. ^ "Dean's of Huntly Shortbread".Scotland on TV.Retrieved5 December2011.[permanent dead link]
  6. ^Team, The Sunday Post Features."The North East: 13 Things to visit, see and do".The Sunday Post.Retrieved11 March2021.
  7. ^Huntly Estate, Aberdeenshire: Auction Sale at the Town Hall, Huntly, on Monday, 3rd August 1936.Fox & Sons. 1936.
  8. ^abMorris, Blake. (2019).Walking Networks: the Development of an Artistic Medium.London: Rowman & Littlefield International.ISBN978-1-78661-022-5.OCLC1126214150.
  9. ^abSacramento, Nuno. (2010).ARTocracy: art, informal space, and social consequence: a curatorial handbook in collaborative practice.Zeiske, Claudia. Berlin: Jovis.ISBN978-3-86859-064-7.OCLC679932663.
  10. ^Hristova, Svetlana; Šešić, Milena Dragićević; Duxbury, Nancy (21 April 2015).Culture and Sustainability in European Cities: Imagining Europolis.Routledge.ISBN978-1-317-67715-4.
  11. ^"Roman Signer transmits from the river".MAP. 6 November 2012.Retrieved29 June2022.
  12. ^Fulton, Hamish. (2010).Mountain time, human time.Milano: Charta.ISBN978-88-8158-791-9.OCLC696737211.
  13. ^Morris, Blake (1 January 2018). "The Walking Institute: a reflexive approach to tourism".International Journal of Tourism Cities.4(3): 316–329.doi:10.1108/IJTC-11-2017-0060.ISSN2056-5607.S2CID158172657.
  14. ^Beattie, Kieran."Deveron Projects in Huntly receives £270,000 from Scottish Land Fund".Press and Journal.Retrieved5 August2020.
  15. ^"Media Release: 2013 Creative Place award winners announced!".allmediascotland.com.Retrieved16 July2020.
  16. ^p.2,The Place Names of the Parish of Huntly,Patrick W. Scott
  17. ^Drysdale, Neil (22 May 2019)."Huntly RFC welcomes £34,000 investment in ground and facilities from Scottish Rugby".Press and Journal.Retrieved26 July2021.
  18. ^Brailsford, Martyn, ed. (December 2017) [1987].Railway Track Diagrams 1: Scotland & Isle of Man(6th ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. p. 125.ISBN978-0-9549866-9-8.
  19. ^Scots paralympian Jo Pitt dies after lung condition by Natalie Walker, 4 May 2013, accessed 5 May 2013
  20. ^"Biography – CHRISTIE, WILLIAM MELLIS – Volume XII (1891-1900) – Dictionary of Canadian Biography".

External links[edit]

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