Glendaruel
Encyclopedia
Cowal
thumb|Cowal shown within ArgyllCowal is a peninsula in Argyll and Bute in the Scottish Highlands.-Description:The northern part of Cowal is mostly the mountainous Argyll Forest Park. Cowal is separated from the Kintyre peninsula to the west by Loch Fyne, and from Inverclyde and North Ayrshire to...
Peninsula in Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
, 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...
.
The main village in Glendaruel (Gaelic: Gleann Dà Ruadhail) is the Clachan of Glendaruel.
Features
The present Kilmodan Church was built in the Clachan of Glendaruel in 1610. The Clachan of Glendaruel is the current location of Kilmodan Primary School, and the ground of Col-Glen Shinty Club.Dunans Castle
Dunans Castle
Dunans Castle is a historic structure located in Glendaruel, in the Argyll and Bute region of Scotland. Shown on maps in 1590, the building was elaborated into a castle in 1860, the castle sits on of ground and in 2001, was ruined by fire.-History:...
is also located in Glendaruel, while Glendaruel Wood and Crags and the Ruel Estuary are both included in the List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Mid Argyll and Cowal.
Decline
The community is home to around 188 people as of 2008 and has been subject to a general decline in the late 20th century continuing into the early 21st century. The closure of the Glendaruel Hotel, a 17th century coaching inn housing the only local pub, was in particular described as "a body blow." Over the past two decades a number of facilities within the community have been lost, notable examples include the post office, general store and tearoom with even KilmodanKilmodan
The parish of Kilmodan is situated in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It includes the valley of Glendaruel and surrounding areas, with Kilmodan Church located in the Clachan of Glendaruel. The alternative historical spelling, Kilmadan, is no longer used....
church becoming part-time, holding services only 2 Sundays in a month.
Notable residents
- The ScottishScottish peopleThe Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
Colin MaclaurinColin MaclaurinColin Maclaurin was a Scottish mathematician who made important contributions to geometry and algebra. The Maclaurin series, a special case of the Taylor series, are named after him....
was born in Clachan of Glendaruel in 1698 to the Reverend John Maclaurin, who was minister to the parish of KilmodanKilmodanThe parish of Kilmodan is situated in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It includes the valley of Glendaruel and surrounding areas, with Kilmodan Church located in the Clachan of Glendaruel. The alternative historical spelling, Kilmadan, is no longer used....
. - Michael Russell MSP lives in an 18th century cottage in Glendaruel with his wife and son. Russell represents the Argyll and Bute Scottish Parliament ConstituencyArgyll and Bute (Scottish Parliament constituency)Argyll and Bute is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
which includes Glendaruel.
Mythology
Glendaruel is thought to be one of the glens praised in the GaelicIrish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
poem "The Lament of Deirdre", in which reference is made to a Glenndaruadh. It is found in the 15th-century Glenmasan manuscript
Glenmasan manuscript
The Glenmasan manuscript is a 15th-century Scottish vellum manuscript in the National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh, where it is catalogued as Adv. MS 72.2.3. It was previously held in the Advocates Library, Edinburgh, where it was classified as MS 53...
, which may go back to an original written down in 1238. Deirdre
Deirdre
Deirdre or Derdriu is the foremost tragic heroine in Irish mythology and probably its best-known figure in modern times. She is often called "Deirdre of the Sorrows." Her story is part of the Ulster Cycle, the best-known stories of pre-Christian Ireland.-Legendary Biography:Deirdre was the...
is a tragic heroine in Irish mythology
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
, and in the poem she is lamenting the necessity of leaving Scotland to return to Ireland.
Music
Glendaruel is the inspiration for a number of bagpipe tunes, including The Glendaruel HighlandersThe Glendaruel Highlanders
The Glendaruel Highlanders is a march tune written for the bagpipes. It was the tune used for the popular Scottish comic song Campbeltown Loch, as sung by Andy Stewart. Glendaruel is a valley in Cowal, Argyll and Bute-External links:...
, and The Sweet Maid of Glendaruel.