Duffus is a village in Moray

Moray

Moray is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland.- History :...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, centred on a Mercat Cross

Mercat cross

A mercat cross is a market cross found in Scottish cities and towns where trade and commerce was a part of economic life. It was originally a place where merchants would gather, and later became the focal point of many town events such as executions, announcements and proclamations...

. The Duffus Village Inn, along with the local shop, Post Office and Duffus Village Hall provide a focal point for the community. Nearby are the impressive remains of Duffus Castle

Duffus Castle

Duffus Castle, near Elgin, Moray, Scotland, was a motte-and-bailey castle and was in use from c.1140 to 1705. During its occupation it underwent many alterations. The most fundamental was the destruction of the original wooden structure and its replacement with one of stone. At the time of its...

, St. Peters' Kirk, and Spynie Palace.

Duffus has consecutively won numerous awards, including "Best Kept small village in the North of Scotland". Also to the east side is Gordonstoun School

Gordonstoun

Gordonstoun School is a co-educational independent school for boarding and day pupils in Moray in North East Scotland. Named after the estate originally owned by Sir Robert Gordon in the 1600s, the school now uses this estate as its campus...

 which takes over 150 acre (0.607029 km²).

Gala Day

The annual Duffus Village Gala (held each summer) provides a whole host of activities for villagers and nearby settlements, starting with the crowning of the Rose Queen, Rose Prince & Rosebud.

Name

The name of the village Duffus derives from the lands of Duffus in Moray, Scotland. What is presently known as Duffus Parish encompasses the lands of the ancient Barony of Duffus and comprises 9565 acres (38.7 km²). The Duffus name has undergone a variety of spelling changes through the years; in 1290, "Dufhus", and in 1512, "Duffous". The name is probably a compilation of two Gaelic words, dubh and uisg, meaning "darkwater" or "blackwater". At one time, the region was below sea-level and the Loch of Spynie and stagnant pools of water were a conspicuous feature of the area.

History

Duffus was the base of the regionally powerful de Moravia family during the High Middle Ages

Scotland in the High Middle Ages

The High Middle Ages of Scotland encompass Scotland in the era between the death of Domnall II in 900 AD and the death of king Alexander III in 1286...

. The family was probably of Flemish

Flanders

Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

 origin. Freskin de Moravia came north from his lands in Lothian as part of an army of David I to put down another rebellion by the men of Moray. At his side, and soon to be a neighbor, was the ancestor of the Innes'.

See also

• Duffus family website www.duffus.com
• Gilbert de Moravia
  Gilbert de Moravia
  Gilbert de Moravia , later known as Saint Gilbert of Dornoch, was the most famous Bishop of Caithness and founder of Dornoch Cathedral....
  
  
• Andreas de Moravia
  Andreas de Moravia
  Andreas de Moravia was a 13th century Scottish bishop. He may have been from the "de Moravia" family of Flemish origin who were lords of Duffus and other areas in the Greater Moray region in this period. In the time of Bishop Bricius' episcopate , there was a man called "Andreas" who was rector of...
  
  
• Walter de Moravia
• Fearchar, Earl of Ross
  Fearchar, Earl of Ross
  Fearchar of Ross or Ferchar mac in tSagairt , was the first Mormaer or Earl of Ross we know of from the thirteenth century, whose career brought Ross into the fold of the Scottish kings for the first time, and who is remembered as the founder of the Earldom of Ross.-Origins:The traditional...
  
  
• Nechtan IV of the Picts
  Nechtan IV of the Picts
  Nechtan mac Der-Ilei or Nechtan mac Dargarto was king of the Picts in the early 8th century. He succeeded his brother Bridei in 706. He is associated with significant religious reforms in Pictland. He abdicated in 724 in favour of his nephew and became a monk...
  
  
• Duffus Castle
  Duffus Castle
  Duffus Castle, near Elgin, Moray, Scotland, was a motte-and-bailey castle and was in use from c.1140 to 1705. During its occupation it underwent many alterations. The most fundamental was the destruction of the original wooden structure and its replacement with one of stone. At the time of its...
  
  
• Duffus - Sept of Sutherland