Seaforth Highland Country EstateThe Seaforth Highland Country Estate at Brahan, near Dingwall, is a veritable jewel of peace and tranquillity in the Crown of the Highlands, and its fascinating beauty continues to lure holiday makers from home and abroad seeking a sojourn from the fast pace of our modern world. But it is not just holiday makers who favour this away-from-it-all location among the 4 000 acres of rich farm land that rises gently into the hills above the river Conon. |
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The estate and its many country-style attractions are open for locals to enjoy too. Echoing the tales of history, the modern estate captures all the enjoyment of the outdoor environment, blending it with peace, privacy and, for the tourists who regularly book to stay here, easy access to the rest of the scenic beauties of the Highlands. Brahan
Castle Brahan is the name
given to the land which much of the Seaforth
Country Estate lies. Here stood Brahan
Castle traditional home of the Seaforths
- The Chiefs of the Clan Mackenzie - which
was the setting of many a romantic episode in both
the Jacobite risings and the religious struggles
that seized the Highlands when the Mackenzies were
at the peak of their power. It was here, on the
steps of Brahan Castle, that the Jacobite
Mackenzies became the first defeated clan forced to
surrender their arms and swear allegiance to the
English Crown. And it was her, a
few years later, that a famous Royal Regiment - The
Seaforth Highlanders - was raised, taking more than
500 men into its service from the estate
alone.
The Castle was demolished in 1951, and the rubble unceremoniously used as foundations for the new Conon Bridge, and the visitor only needs to consider that today's Brahan House - grand as it is - was the original stables to get a glimpse of times past. Yet for all the power of the Seaforths, it was a mysterious power of one of the estate workers, Kenneth Mackenzie, that made the estate famous the world over. Better known as the Brahan Seer, this shadowy figure from the 17th century was - and still is - renowned for his many prophecies which for generations following his execution, has continued to come true. It was the Brahan Seer who foresaw in detail the downfall of the Seaforth Mackenzies, including the death of Lady Caroline Mackenzie at the hands of her sister, who was dubbed the Hooded Lassie. A monument on the estate marks the exact spot. |
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Today, Andrew Matheson, a direct descendant of the Hooded Lassie now owns the estate, and he and his wife Judith ensure that the three demands of the farm, forest and leisure management have as little impact as possible on the wild richness of the natural environment.
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