A vision of Britain through time
A vision of Britain from 1801 to now.
Including maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions.
A vision of Britain through time
A vision of Britain from 1801 to now.
Including maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions.
Appin (Abthania or Apthane, i.e., 'abbatial lands' of Lismore), a village, a quoad sacra parish, and a territorial district, on the coast of Argyllshire. The village stands at the head of Appin Bay, on the SE side of Loch Linnhe, 15 miles N-NE of Oban; and has a post office, with money order, savings' bank, and telegraph departments. The quoad sacra parish, constituted in 1868, is in the civil parish of Lismore, extends along the SE side of Loch Linnhe, measuring about 18 miles by 12, and abounds in interesting features. The shore is sandy, broken with islands and indentations; the coast behind is generally high, but not rocky, embellished with woods and mansions. The interior ranges from undulating meadow along the coast to high mountain on the farther watershed, or rises away in great variety of height and contour, and terminates in alpine masses, cleft by deep glens, and striped with torrents or cataracts. The scenery everywhere is richly diversified and strikingly picturesque. The Airds of Appin, lovely with lawn and wood, occupy the peninsula between Lochs Linnhe and Creran; Port-Appin, with an inn, fronts the N end of Lismore; Portnacroish village, with another inn, stands on the northern horn of Appin Bay; and opposite Shuna island is Appin House, the seat of Miss Downie, Lady of the Barony of Appin, and owner of 37,000 acres, valued at £2265 per annum. This parish, forming part of Lismore and-Appin civil parish, is in the presbytery of Lorn and synod of Argyll, the stipend being £150, with manse and glebe. There is also a Free church for Appin and Lismore. Pop. of quoad sacra parish (1871) 1327; of registration district (1871) 728, (1881) 762. The territorial district comprehends likewise Glen - Creran, Glen - Duror, Kingairloch, and Glencoe, and is upwards of 5 miles long, and from 10 to 15 broad. Appin abounds in legends of Caledonian times; possesses some interesting mediæval antiquities; and was the country of the Stewarts, or Stuarts, long famed as ` the unconquered foes of the Campbell, ' but ultimately overmastered. Their history may be read in The Stewarts of Appin (Edinb. 1880) by John H. J. Stewart and Lieut. Col. Duncan Stewart; and Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd, has celebrated their fame in verse:-
I sing of a land that was famous of yore,
The land of green Appin, the ward of the flood;
Where every grey cairn that broods over the shore,
Marks a grave of the royal. the valiant, or good;
The land Where the strains of grey Ossian were framed,-
The land of fair Seima and reign of Fingal,-
And late of a race, that with tears must be named,
The noble Clan Stuart, the bravest of all.
Oh-hon, an Rei! and the Stuarts of Appin !
The gallant, devoted, old Stuarts of Appin !
Their glory is o'er,
For the clan is no more,
And the Sassenach sings on the hills of green Appin.'
(F.H. Groome, Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland (1882-4); © 2004 Gazetteer for Scotland)
| Linked entities: | |
|---|---|
| Feature Description: | "a village, a quoad sacra parish, and a territorial district" (ADL Feature Type: "populated places") |
| Administrative units: | Argyll ScoCnty |
| Place: | Appin |
Go to the linked place page for a location map, and for access to other historical writing about the place. Pages for linked administrative units may contain historical statistics and information on boundaries.