Inverary
Inveraray enjoys a picturesque setting on the shores of Loch Fyne, where it meets Loch Shira. It was built on the site of an earlier fishing village in the mid 1700s by the 3rd Duke of Argyll, chief of the powerful Clan Campbell. He demolished the original village to give his rebuilt castle more space, and rehoused the population in a new village that is one of the most attractive in Scotland.
The original village of Inveraray was well enough established to become a burgh of barony in 1472 and a royal burgh in 1648. With a good natural harbour and lying at a key focal point in the limited road network across Argyll, it had effectively become the legal and administrative centre for the county by the early 1700s. Its growth had also gone hand in hand with the growing power of the Campbells and the importance of their seat at Inveraray Castle, which lay immediately to the north of the village.
But when the 3rd Duke of Argyll succeeded to his title in 1743 he inherited a castle that was in large part derelict and uninhabitable, with the household living in a makeshift "pavilion" erected alongside the castle in 1722.
The 3rd Duke's response was, in effect, to start again from scratch. He demolished the existing Inveraray Castle, and demolished the existing village of Inveraray on its site between the castle and the sea. The replacement Inveraray Castle was built in its own grounds and the new Inveraray was built on a site further to the south than its predecessor, out of sight of the castle. Today's Inveraray Castle is open to the public and boasts interiors every bit as magnificent as its exteriors, plus a superb collection of furniture and art, and a huge arsenal of weaponry including the dirk, the traditional highland dagger, used by Rob Roy.
What emerged was an exceptionally attractive village. This had two main elements. Firstly, Front Street ran almost west from the harbour to a large inn placed near the gates to the park for Inveraray Castle. And secondly, the very grand Main Street ran parallel with the shore of Loch Fyne and at right angles to Front Street. This comprised large white-harled buildings on both sides while in its centre it bulged out into Church Square to accommodate the classical bulk of the Glenaray and Inveraray Parish Church, built between 1792 and 1802 by Robert Mylne. This was originally built as a double church, with one half worshipping in Gaelic while the other half worshipped in Scots.
Because of the size and grandeur of the buildings lining its main streets, Inveraray can appear to be a much larger settlement than it actually is. In practice, it is little larger than what you see as you drive through. The area between Main Street and Loch Fyne is a warren of small streets, but a large part of it is occupied by Inveraray Jail. To the west, however, Main Street backs onto The Avenue, now the village's main car park.
To the west again is a scatter of more recent housing, but the original vision of Inveraray is still obvious on the ground, and it is probably one of the most original, complete and unaltered settlements you are likely to find in Scotland. Also to the west of The Avenue is All Saints Church, built in 1886. Between 1923 and 1931 this had added to it the freestanding Duke's Tower, a massive structure 38m high and built as a war memorial and to accommodate a ring of 10 bells, reputedly the second heaviest peel in the world. The views from the top of the Tower are outstanding.
Inveraray's Front Street and harbourside are both fascinating and unusually attractive. On the harbourside is Inveraray Cross, a tall and beautifully carved stone cross dating back to the 1300s or 1400s and once serving as the market cross of the original village (albeit in a different location). Moored at the town pier is the Arctic Penguin, a triple-masted schooner built in Dublin in 1911. Together with the steamer The Vital Spark this forms the Inveraray Maritime Museum, which is open all year.
Inverary Jail
Inveraray Jail dates to the 3rd Duke's original redevelopment of the village. The Georgian courthouse and grim prison blocks closed in the 1930s but in more recent times have re-opened as an imaginative visitor centre and museum. The museum tells the story of prison conditions from medieval times up to the 1800s using interactive displays and live performances. Inveraray Jail is open daily throughout the year. Not far to the south of Inveraray Jail and on the shore is the unassuming Para Handy Cottage, the birthplace of the author (of, amongst other things, the Para Handy stories) Neil Munro.
