Kingussie - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Kingussie is a small town

Town

A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...

in the Highland

Highland (council area)

Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute. Their councils, and those of Angus and...

region of 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...

. It is one settlement in the Highland Council ward of Badenoch and Strathspey

Badenoch and Strathspey

Badenoch and Strathspey as a local government district 1975 to 1996Badenoch and Strathspey is a local government ward of the Highland council area and a ward management area of the Highland Council in Scotland...

, and is the capital of the district of Badenoch. It lies beside the A9 road, although the old route of the A9 serves as the town's main street. Kingussie is 42 miles (67.6 km) south of Inverness

Inverness

Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...

, 12 miles (19.3 km) south of Aviemore

Aviemore

Aviemore is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and other winter sports, and for hill-walking in the Cairngorm...

, and 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Newtonmore

Newtonmore

Newtonmore is a village in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of about 1000. The village is only a few miles from a location that is claimed to be the exact geographical centre of Scotland...

, which is its greatest rival in the game of shinty

Shinty

Shinty is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands, and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread, being once competitively played on a widespread basis in England and other areas in the...

History

The name "Kingussie" comes from the Gaelic, "Ceann a' Ghiuthsaich" which means "Head of the Pine forest".

The ruins of the early 18th century Ruthven Barracks

Ruthven Barracks

Ruthven Barracks near Ruthven, Highland in Scotland are the smallest but best preserved of the four barracks built in 1719 after the 1715 Jacobite rising, set on an old castle mound. It comprises two large three-storey blocks occupying two sides of the enclosure each with two rooms per floor...

(Historic Scotland

Historic Scotland

Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government, responsible for historic monuments in Scotland.-Role:As its website states:...

; open to visitors at all times) lie near the original site of the village which was moved to avoid the flood plain of the River Spey

River Spey

The River Spey is a river in the northeast of Scotland, the second longest and the fastest-flowing river in Scotland...

. The Hanoverian Barracks were built on the site of Ruthven Castle, the seat of the Comyns, Lords of Badenoch in the Middle Ages.

Shinty

For more info, see article on Kingussie Camanachd
Kingussie Camanachd
Kingussie Camanachd is a shinty team from Kingussie, Scotland and according to the Guinness Book of Records 2005, is World sport's most successful sporting team of all time, winning 20 consecutive leagues and going 4 years unbeaten at one stage in the early 1990s. The second team plays in North...

According to the Guinness Book of Records 2005, Kingussie is World sport's most successful sporting team of all time, winning 20 consecutive leagues and going 4 years unbeaten at one stage in the early 1990s.http://www.kingussieshinty.com/news

Tourism

The main railway line to Inverness

Inverness

Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...

passes through from Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

, Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

and points south. Kingussie railway station

Kingussie railway station

Kingussie railway station is a railway station serving the town of Kingussie, Inverness-shire in the Highland Council Area of Scotland. The station is managed by First ScotRail and is on the Highland Main Line.-History:...

is about 200 metres south east of the High Street

High Street

High Street, or the High Street, is a metonym for the generic name of the primary business street of towns or cities, especially in the United Kingdom. It is usually a focal point for shops and retailers in city centres, and is most often used in reference to retailing...

. In the past few years, the TV series Monarch of the Glen has been filmed in and around the area of Kingussie. Ardverikie Estate, where Monarch of the Glen was filmed, is about 12 miles (19.3 km) from Kingussie. You can park in a lay-by across from the Gatehouse and hike back to the 'Big House'. It is about an 8 miles (12.9 km) round trip hike but is well worth it, especially if you are a Monarch of the Glen fan.

The Highland Wildlife Park

Highland Wildlife Park

The Highland Wildlife Park is a safari park and zoo near Kingussie, Highland, Scotland. The park is located within the Cairngorms National Park...

is sited very close by. The Highland Folk Museum

Highland Folk Museum

The Highland Folk Museum, recognized as Britain’s first mainland open air museum opened at Kingussie, Scotland in 1944. Named Am Fasgadh this became the third home for founder Dr. Isobel F...

is in Newtonmore

Newtonmore

, 3 miles (4.8 km) from Kingussie.

Speyside Way

The Speyside Way is a long distance route which currently has its southern terminus at Aviemore, north of Kingussie. There is, however, a proposed extension to the route to Newtonmore, going through Kingussie on the way. See the link below for more information:

Fame

Kingussie featured in the 8-time Oscar winning Danny Boyle film 'Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British epic romantic drama adventure film directed by Danny Boyle, written by Simon Beaufoy, and co-directed in India by Loveleen Tandan. It is an adaptation of the novel Q & A by Indian author and diplomat Vikas Swarup...

'. A woman's voice calling a call-centre, where the main character was working, was shown to be making the phonecall from '4 Ruthven Road, Kingussie'.

Kingussie in literature

Kingussie is mentioned in Compton Mackenzie

Compton Mackenzie

Sir Compton Mackenzie, OBE was a writer and a Scottish nationalist.-Background:Compton Mackenzie was born in West Hartlepool, England, into a theatrical family of Mackenzies, but many of whose members used Compton as their stage surname, starting with his grandfather Henry Compton, a well-known...

's book The Monarch of the Glen, on which the BBC TV series is based. In chapter 8 Kingussie Sanatorium, now St. Vincent's Hospital, is mentioned.

Activities

Walking
Mountain Biking
Horse Riding and Pony Trekking: The popular outdoor sport of Pony Trekking was credited with being started in Badenoch at nearby Newtonmore in 1952 by Ewan Ormiston, it is still possible to ride in Newtonmore with his grandson Ruaridh at the Newtonmore Riding Centre. Ormiston Highlands
Fishing
Shooting
Badminton

Football

Although the village is more famous for its Shinty club, it also has a successful football side which plays its games in the local Strathspey & Badenoch Welfare FA

Strathspey & Badenoch Welfare FA

The Strathspey & Badenoch Welfare Football Association is the governing body overseeing amateur Scottish Welfare football in the Badenoch and Strathspey area of Scotland. It is affiliated to Scottish Welfare FA and Scottish Football Association and has been running intermittently since its...

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.