Heritage

Barnhill on the Isle of Jura, where author George Orwell wrote Nineteen Eighty-Four, photographed by Craig Easton

George Orwell's home 'of hope' on isolated Scottish island revisited
Photographer Craig Easton travelled to ‘An Extremely Un-get-atable Place’ to immerse himself in George Orwell’s former home.

Adam Hardie, business development partner and head of food and drink at Johnston Carmicahel; Gary Drummond, founder of the Trossachs Cooperage; and Alan Wright at the Trossachs Cooperage in Callander.

£1.3m Trossachs cooperage looks to rejuvenate centuries-old whisky cask craft

Kinloch Castle on the Isle of Rum is heading back on the market after islanders supported its sale and redevelopment. PIC: NatureScot

Millionaire rules himself out of buying Scottish island castle

Soutra Aisle in Midlothian, the site of a medieval hospital and friary.

Hilltop hospital run by 300 medieval monks gets anti-vandal protection

Descending Conic Hill on the West Highland Way. A number of walkers have fallen ill after drinking water from a nearby river. PIC: Geograph.org/Chris Heaton.

Hillwalkers on popular route 'pretty ill' after drinking from river

29 Epic David Attenborough quotes starting with his love for Scotland

The road to German surrender: Privates H McIvor, W Harton and D Mill from the 10th Highland Light Infantry,15th Scottish Infantry Division, roll a wooden Swastika emblem through Kranenberg during Operation Veritable on February 10, 1945 at Kranenberg. Scots had a heavy presence in Germany during this period, which led to Operation Plunder and the crossing of the Rhine, the last big set piece ahead of the German surrender.
British Official Photo B. 14427 (WT). (Photo by Sergeant Norman Midgley/No.5 Army Film & Photographic Unit/BIPPA/Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images).

The Scots fighters who paved the last road to allied victory in Europe

Infantry soliders search the wrecked streets of Caen for snipers in 1944, with the Kings Own's Scottish Borderers dispatched to the town. PIC: Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)

VE Day: Salute for old Scottish regiment who lost 1,000 men during war

Women dressed in the flags of the USA, France, the UK and Soviet Union celebrate on VE Day in Paris (Picture: Keystone/Hulton Archive)

The Scotsman's editorial from VE Day on May 8, 1945 Scotsman comment

The joy of VE Day in Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh, on May 8, 1945.

VE Day in Scotland: Bonfires, searchlights and dancing in the streets

View from the deck at The Taversoe on Rousay. PIC: Contributed.

Cheers! Residents of tiny Scottish island buy their pub

The skyline of Linlithgow, including the ruins of Linlithgow Palace and St. Michael's church from the air

The 'bizarre' constituency change for historic town angering locals

The Home Guard, a civilian militia which supported the Home Forces during World War Two from 1940, in training. The Home Forces mobilised along the coastlines of Britain - including Scotland - in preparation for a feared Nazi invasion.

VE Day: The Nazi attack on Scotland feared by army commanders

The 'extraordinary' Rae brothers from Broughty Ferry, who were all awarded the Military Cross for exemplary gallantry during World War Two. Pictured left to right are Douglas, Ian, Bruce and Stanley. PICS: The Rae Family.

VE Day: The four brothers from a Scottish city hailed for bravery

Remembering my grandfather on VE Day

Explainer The events happening in Scotland for VE Day anniversary

Inside a Nissen hut at Cultybraggan POW camp, which housed around 4,000 men during World War Two. Among them were Nazi hardliners, with Cultybraggan one of only two 'black list' camps. This picture was taken in 1953 and shows US soldiers stationed there on training exercises.

VE Day: Silence among Nazi hardliners at Scotland's POW camp

The Red Arrows thunder over Buckingham Palace

VE Day commemoration in pictures: From the Red Arrows to the royals

Grade A listed Balbegno Castle near Fettercairn, Aberdeenshire, is undergoing a £1m renovation by a couple who have relocated from Chicago. PIC: Savills.

Chicago couple reveal £1m vision for 456-year-old castle revamp

The letter written by Ella Ranson to her husband George, a merchant seaman, during World War Two. It lay behind a fireplace in their home in Inberbervie for more than 70 years and has recently been discovered.

The wartime letter from wife to sailor found behind my fireplace

The cluster of buildings was built as part of plans for a Cold War listening station. Picture: Robert Perry/The Scotsman

Exclusive Former Cold War building in a remote village goes on sale

A mile-long drive leads to Glamis Castle in Angus, the ancestral seat to the Earls of Strathmore and Kinghorne and their Lyon predecessors since the 14th Century. PIC: Contributed.

Two castle gems and an elegant historic home to visit in Angus

Exclusive Revealed: Remarkable transformation of famous Edinburgh bridge

A female competitor takes part in the caber toss at the Glenurquhart Highlands Games in 2024

Loch Ness Highland Games to boast world-first women's championship

Edinburgh residents on their way down Arthur's Seat after the Mayday Sunrise Service in 1966.

How Edinburgh Marked May Day: 20 pictures from half a century ago

The secrets that have kept this Edinburgh restaurant thriving

Perth Museum opened after a £27 million development.

The £27 million Scottish museum vying to be the best in the UK

Stone tools were found in the north of Skye, in the area around Uig (pictured), and have been dated to around 11,000 to 11,500 years old. PIC: DavideGorla/Flickr/CC.

Scottish island reveals 11,000- year-old traces of earliest settlers

26 pictures of Pope John Paul II's visit to Scotland in 1982

Leif Larsen - known as "Shetlands Larsen" - the most famous Norweigian sailor who operated the Shetland Bus escape route during the war - is pictured here (left) with comrades Severin Roald and Mickey Fiveldal, who helped to run soliders, spies and supplies between Scotland and Nazi-occupied Norway during World War Two. Their lifesaving voyages across the North Sea are due to be recreated as part of the 80th anniversary of VE Day next month. PIC: Sunnmøre museum.

VE Day: Flotilla to cross North Sea in honour of 'Shetland Bus' heroes

The Eoropie Bothan, Ness, Isles of Lewis, pictured in 1977 following a court case held after huge amounts of alcohol were found at the shelter. PIC: The Scotsman.

Remembering the police raids on Scottish island's 'bothan' culture

The Mercat Cross statue on Dunfermline High Street was damaged

Police hunt vandals after 'very old' statue snapped in half

Clara Weale has created a new scent connected to James VI as a new exhibition about the monarch is launched. The scent has been name 'Prescence'. Picture: Lisa Ferguson

New scent that whiffs of a 'misunderstood' Scottish king created

Kingsburgh House overlooking Loch Snizort on Skye. The house can be seen nestled in the trees in the foreground. PIC: Savills.

Clan surpise as Bonnie Prince Charlie's hideout house' is sold off

Donald MacPhee, a crofter and keen metal detectorist from Benbecula with his dog, Fergus, and the Mary Queen of Scots coin he found on his croft recently

Metal detectorist's 'mind-blowing' Mary Queen of Scots coin discovery

Exterior of the Paramount, Renfield Street, Glasgow. Frank T Verity and Samuel Beverley, 1934. PIC: Bruce Peter collection

Art Deco Scotland: The designs that took hold in the Jazz Age

The memorial cairn on Culloden Battlefield where wreaths will be laid on Saturday to commemorate the battle fought on April 16, 1746.

Culloden anniversary: Kate Forbes, Hells Angels and Gaelic psalms due

The 5 Scottish railway artworks among Britain's best-loved 20 unveiled

Doune Bay Lodge on the Knoydart Peninsula is being sold by Savills for offers over £395,000.

Off-grid home in the Highlands with private beach goes up for sale

King Charles III and Queen Camilla after attending a service at Crathie Kirk, near Balmoral, in which a new piece of music by Paul Mealor was performed to mark the royal couple's 20th wedding anniversary. Picture: Paul Campbell/PA Wire

King Charles and Camilla listen to new anniversary music in historic kirk

The Tomb of the Eagles at Isbister, South Ronaldsay , which is around 5,000-years-old, is to be bought by the island community and re-opened as a historic attraction. PIC: Contributed.

Scottish island community to buy 5,000-year-old ancient monument

Lismore in the Inner Hebrides near Oban has a population of 170 - and is looking to attract new people to the island.

Tiny Scottish island - population 170 - looking for two new families

Barry Mill in Angus, rebuilt in the 19th century, produced flour for nearly 800 years until it closed in 1982. It has now reopened thanks to a £2.4 million donation from a mystery benefactor

Why Ancient Romans and 12th-century Scots can teach us about energy Scotsman comment

The 800-year-old Scottish mill running again thanks to £2.4m donation

Ewan McGregor's stunning 18th-century mansion revealed in pictures

King James VI of Scotland, later also King James I of England, as a boy (Picture: Print Collector)

King James VI's thank you letter to Lady Minny was brief but touching Scotsman comment

A portrait of James VI

The first known letter written by King James VI to go on show

Montrose in Angus became a key logisitical centre for the Jacobites during the 1745 Rising led by Prince Charles Edward Stuart, with the harbour receiving ships loaded with fighters and supplies from France. PIC: Getty.

The 'most rebellious' Scottish town central to the Jacobite cause

National Lottery funding is helping to ensure a balance is struck between responsible tourism at the Calanais Stones on the Isle of Lewis and protecting the 5,000-year-old monument (Picture: Andy Buchanan)

How £1bn of National Lottery cash has enriched Scotland's heritage Caroline Clark

The 400 new homes will be built close to Culloden House, now a hotel, which served as the headquarters of Prince Charles Edward Stuart in the days leading up to the Battle of Culloden.

'High potential' for Battle of Culloden relics at site for 400 homes

First Scot presides over historic body with stunning portrait of King

A view of the Sleat Peninsula on Skye, part of which will be sold off after the trust which owns historic Clan Donald assets run into financial difficulty. Armadale Castle and the Clan Donald Centre will go up for sale in the summer with 22,000 acres of the South Sleat Estate on the market now for £6.7m.

Exclusive 'Betrayal, tragedy and sadness' as clan castle and land sold off

The 'battle scene' stone at Aberlemno churchyard, which some believe may depict the Battle of Dun Nechtain, fought nearby in 685 when the Picts killed King Ecgrith of Northumbria, the most powerful warrior of the day in a move which led to the creation of Scotland itself.

The Picts: A tiny Angus village, its carved stones and a sacred place

Artist's impressions showing two different views of the proposed statue of Dr Elsie Inglis on the Royal Mile

We're Dr Elsie Inglis' family and planned statue is fitting tribute Relatives of Dr Elsie Inglis

Dr Elsie Inglis, the pioneering Edinburgh midwife and surgeon, who is to be immortalised with a statue on the Royal Mile. A row has erupted over the appointment of the sculptor and his design, with 17 members of Dr Inglis' family coming out in support of his work. CC

Exclusive Family of Dr Elsie Inglis support statue despite design backlash

My Bloody Valentine in 1990

I want to see My Bloody Valentine, but gigs over 40 are a bad idea Gaby Soutar

Corporal Thomas Hunter VC and First Minister John Swinney

John Swinney's tribute to war hero uncle awarded the Victoria Cross

Calanais Standing Stones on the Isle of Lewis is one of the great Neolithic sites in the west of Europe.

Rare chance to work at standing stones on Scottish island

An artist rendition of meat eating megalosaurs and plant eating sauropods mingling at a site on Prince Charles's Point on the Isle of Skye. Picture : Tone Blakesley/Scott Reid/University of Edinburgh/PA Wire

Watch: The 'fascinating' dinosaur discovery on the Isle of Skye

Linda Bates tells a good tale in the Blair Street Vaults

What UK's first 'fully immersive multi-sensory walking tour' is like Janet Christie

The Old High Church in Inverness, ancient in site and stone, is on the market for offers over £150,000.

Complaints made about church sales as locals overlooked for higher bid

St Mary's Cathedral on York Place

Historic 200-year-old Edinburgh churches win funds for urgent repairs

Historical costumier Lilja Husmo recreating the 'unique' Bronze Age horsehair hat found in the Highlands. PIC: Sandy Scullion.

The 3,000-year-old horsehair hat found in a Highland peatbog

Traditionally observed on May 1, Beltane was one of four quarter day festivals which saw communities come together to celebrate the return of Summer. Said to be the midpoint between the Vernal Equinox and the Summer Solstice, ancient Celts would light two bonfires, which were believed to have healing and purification qualities, in celebration of the land’s fertility returning once more. While it isn’t entirely the same, the tradition is still celebrated to this day with the annual Beltane Fire Festival taking place in Edinburgh each year.

Spring in Scotland: 9 ancient traditions and customs

What to see in Scotland in 2025: Readers' 25 best sights for tourists

The table is set in the Dining Room.

Take a look inside Scotland's oldest inhabited family home as it opens to public

Castle Campbell, Dollar Glen

10 stunning historic attractions reopening across Scotland on April 1

Properties around The Meadows and Edinburgh University appear to be the most in demand for the overseas buyer looking for a home in Scotland.

The 10 Scottish postcodes most popular with overseas buyers

The Scotsman Top Stories

Scotland has failed to meet its latest target for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, the latest official figures show. Picture: John Giles/PA Wire

Fail: Scotland misses climate target

Pro-independence protesters with Scottish Saltire flags (top) march for Scottish independence. Picture: Andy Buchanan/AFP via Getty Images

Yousaf: Growing popular support for Yes the only way to Scottish independence

Nadine Dorries. Picture: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

SNP MP cleared of bullying Nadine Dorries