#Laird Family Estate

[wine-porn]

Adult Dessert

Black impenetrable staining… SO staining I’m sure these glasses will never be clear again. Big buttery heat off the nose, a fruit so ridiculously macerated beyond comprehension it goes pond-water in warmth and growth. Alcohol with a tinge of Ajax or Comet curls nostril-hairs. Tasting it improves things a bit, so just lie back and think of England on this one. Chewy green ire vie for dominance…

[blackinperiodfilms]

Roger M. Bobb to direct Hallmark Mahogany adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility with an all-black cast.

The period film which takes place in the early 19th century follows the two Dashwood sisters Elinore and Marianne and their widowed mother as they are forced to leave their rich family estate at Norland Park and move to Barton Cottage, a modest home on the property of distant relative. There Elinor and Marianne experience love, romance, and heartbreak while dealing with their new found poverty. 

The film stars Deborah Ayorinde (as Elinor Dashwood) Bethany Antonia (as Marianne Dashwood), Akil Largie (as Colonel Brandon), Victor Hugo (as John Willoughby), Martina Laird (as Mrs Jennings) and Victoria Ekanoye (as Lucy Steele). 

Executive Producers are Toni Judkins and Tia Smith. Filming locations are Bulgaria, Ireland and London. Sources say that Hallmark is devoting considerable resources on this first of it’s kind production which is slated to be released in February 2024.

(Source)

[allwaswell16]

A fic rec of fics that I think should be movies (that are not already movie AUs) as requested in this ask. If you enjoy the fics, please leave the kudos comments and kudos. You can find my other fic recs here. Happy reading!

—Louis/Harry—

✧ Darling, so it goes by @disgruntledkittenface

(E, 195k, royal au) Harry Styles is a world-famous actor at the height of his career but a personal low point when he meets His Serene Highness Prince Louis of Monaco by chance. 

✧ Love After the End of the World by @mercurial-madhouse

(E, 168k, dystopian au) When staying alive is already a constant battle, the deadliest weakness is to be in love. For Harry and Louis, finding each other sits on top of the endless list of What Else Could Go Wrong.

✧ Wild And Unruly by gloria_andrews / @gloriaandrews , @100percentsassy

(E, 123k, farm au) Harry is a cowboy sitting on the biggest oil reservoir in Wyoming, and Louis is the paralegal assigned to pressure him into selling his land.

✧ I'll Fly Away by @juliusschmidt

(E, 122k, small town) Harry and Louis grew up together in Lake County, Harry with his mom and stepdad in a tiny cottage on Edward’s Lake and Louis in his family’s farmhouse a few minutes down the road. But after high school, Louis stuck around and Harry did not

✧ Have Love, Will Travel by @kingsofeverything

(E, 97k, road trip au) Rather than spend the summer working at their desks, Louis and Harry are given the opportunity to crisscross the country together in a tiny camper, filming their adventures for a YouTube series.

✧ Flightless Bird by audreyhheart

(E, 97k, ballet au) AU where Louis Tomlinson is a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet. When his rival from ballet school, moody dance prodigy Harry Styles joins the company, old wounds are reopened and old passions reignited.

✧ Black with Autumn Rain by whimsicule

(T, 93k, magical realism)  Harry is a journalist, Louis has lots of secrets and the moors aren't exactly the ideal place to rekindle a lost romance.

✧ After Dark, After Light by QuickedWeen / @becomeawendybird

(E, 71k, historical) Harry Styles is the laird of Clan Edwards who is just trying to keep his clan afloat when they get word that the Mackenzies have been cutting a swath through the Midlands and beyond, and their sights are set on the northern Highlands next. In an attempt to garner extra protection for his clan, Harry sets out to mend his father's past wrongs and ally with their neighbors to the west, Clan Sutherland.

✧ this charade (was never going to last) by @scrunchyharry

(E, 68k, spy au) As if the whole ‘industrial spy’ business was not stressful enough, Harry found himself in a hatred-at-first-sight relationship with one of his new coworkers, Louis, a man intent on detesting Harry.

✧ Adore You by @isthatyoularry

(M, 66k, historical au) Against his wishes, Harry spends the holidays at his family’s summer estate, and is reluctantly pulled into a courtship he didn’t ask for. 

✧  Unveiled by @phdmama

(M, 60k, a/b/o) There are no robes. And not a single one of them is veiled.

✧  Old Photographs & Times I’ll Remember by @jaerie

(E, 54k, time travel au) A camera, a suitcase, and a relationship forged through time.

✧ Tied Down by HamPalpert / @ham-palpert

(E, 48k, crime au) The most interesting case in Liam and Niall's careers falls directly into their laps, courtesy of an epic fuck-up of one Harry Styles, partner to the almost-infamous drug dealer Louis Tomlinson. 

✧ That’s What I’m Here For by @taggiecb

(E, 46k, farm au) Louis needs help running his business but has no idea where to even start looking. Luckily for him his children know just the man for the job.

✧  Counterbalance by YesIsAWorld / @louandhazaf

(E, 44k, racing au) Harry Styles loves two things: teaching ballet and racing motorcycles. Those two worlds collide when his greatest rival on the track, Louis “Tommo” Tomlinson brings his tiny siblings to Harry’s class.

✧ The Haunting of Louis Tomlinson by @helloamhere

(T, 31k, ghost fic) Louis is a plucky Gothic Heroine, Harry is a Mournful Spirit, and Big Country Houses are full of mystery and suspense, as Big Country Houses ever are!

✧ I Am the Blinking Light by @dearmrsawyer

(G, 19k, ghost fic) There is a legend of a lighthouse far out to sea. It can’t be found on any map, and those who do find it never return. 

✧ No One Like You by myownspark / @myownsparknow

(M, 19k, historical) Where Liam and Niall are art historians discovering the truth about two nineteenth century painters on opposite sides of an artistic divide.

—Rare Pairs—

✧ Untamed Hearts by Layne Faire  / @laynefaire

(E, 68k, Zayn/Liam) In the end, though, it all came down to two meddling friends, a touch of Prince, a bit of Keats, and the moon over the ocean. Its a recipe for disaster. Or love. Probably love.

✧ We Used To Wait by sunsetmog / @magicalrocketships

(E, 56k, Louis/Nick Grimshaw) Louis has an accident, but nobody even knows he and Nick are going out.

[scotianostra]

On April 4th 1617 John Napier, the mathematician, died.

I hated maths with a vengeance at school, I'm not talking about counting, I can hold my own with that, but real maths. algebra, geometry, topology and worst of all logarithms, which we have Robert Napier to "thank" for, he introduced them in the early 17th century as a means to simplify calculations, aye right!

If John Napier had been born a common man he would maybe have been burnt at the stake, nothing to do with him and his maths nonsense but because he dabbled in the occult at a time when we were routinely setting such people on fire!

James VI was on the throne and his obsession with devilry consigned hundreds of unfortunates to the flames. Unless you were born of a noble family of course. A wee bit background on the Napier's his father was Sir Archibald Napier of Merchiston Castle, and his mother was Janet Bothwell, daughter of the politician and judge Francis Bothwell, Lord of Session, and a sister of Adam Bothwell who became the Bishop of Orkney. Archibald Napier was 16 years old when John Napier was born. John, as was the common practice for members of the nobility at that time, he was privately tutored and did not have formal education until he was 13, when he was sent to St Salvator's College, St Andrews. He dropped out of Uni and toured Europe for a time before returning to Scotland aged 21.

Back to his links with sorcery, several members of John Napier’s family – respected and wealthy participants of Edinburgh society - were commonly known to be wizards or sorcerers. Their necromantic power was feared by nobles as well as peasants from far and wide.

The family wizardry started with Napier's father, Sir Archibald, seventh Laird of Merchiston, who successfully predicted when Mary, then the former Queen of Scotland, would leave Lochleven Castle, where she was imprisoned. The story goes: "Claude Nan, the Queen's secretary, wrote that 'the Laird of Markyston (Sir Archibald), who had the reputation of being a great wizard, made bets with several persons to the amount of five hundred crowns, that by the 5th of May Her Majesty would be out of Lochleven." Mary escaped on 2 May 1568 – and the senior Napier was presumably wealthier for his prediction.

Sir Archibald married Janet Bothwell, sister of Adam, Bishop of Orkney, who the paper said was "a notorious necromancer", so that their son, the future mathematician, inherited "a double inclination towards the magic arts". This might explain some of John's odd behaviour. A necromancer is a wizard or magician by the way, I had to google it!

Tenants who lived on the vast Merchiston estate south-west of Edinburgh thought John to be a bit mysterious at times, Napier would be seen many evenings wearing a long gown, pacing outside his tower chamber, a private work area where he often would pass many long hours alone.

Many people thought that his pet black cockerel was a familiar – a supernatural being which assisted witches and wizards in their magical practice. However, the Napier family held the hereditary role of King’s Poulterer and Napier may have kept the cockerel on a whim but I have read he travelled not only with the bird but also with a black spider in a small box, not normal behaviour.

The Scottish writer and translator Sir Thomas Urquhart, who, told of a demonstration of devastating artillery Napier devised against the threat of invasion by Spain.

"He gave proof upon a large plaine in Scotland to the destruction of a great many herds of cattel and flocks of sheep, whereof some were distant from other half a mile on all sides and some a whole mile,"

A well as being a wizard and mathematician Napier was also a fervent Protestant, much of his writing is vehemently anti-Catholic even by the standards of the time. He was a man of contradictions though, as he is said to have had friends who were Catholic, including Alexander Seton, the Earl of Dunfermline, although the vast majority Catholics back then had to hide their faith.

The last interesting, and worrying, fact I found out about John Napier is that his cause of death according to wiki he died "from the effects of gout" at home in Merchiston tower, now I suffer from gout and it is bloody painful but I didn't know it could kill you!

[francisjameschild]

This one is Child 204 Jamie Douglas, which is tied up with several loaned verses from Wally Wally/The Water Is Wide.

Child wrote of the song,

"Lady Barbara Erskine, eldest daughter of John, Earl of Mar, was married to James, second Marquis of Douglas, near the end of the year 1670. The marriage did not prove happy, and the parties were formally separated in 1681. The blame of the alienation of Duglas from his wife is imputed by tradition to William Lawrie, the marquis's principal chamberlain or factor, who was appointed to that place in 1670, the year of the marriage. Lawrie married Marion Weir, of the family of Blackwood, then a widow, He is often styled the laird of Blackwood, a title which belonged to his son by this marriage, his own proper designation being, after the birth of his son, the Tutor of Blackwood.

The ballad first appeared in print in the second edition of Herd's Scottish Songs, 1776, but only as a fragment of five stanzas. Most of the versions have from one stanza to four of a beautiful song, known from the first quarter of the eighteenth century, and printed fifty years earlier than any copy of the ballad (see Notes).

So the Jamie Douglas in question is pretty straightforward- first engaged to "the daughter of one Widow Jack, a taverner at Perth" (source) he then apparently broke that off to instead marry the (presumably wealthier and at least more titled) Lady Barbara.

They wed in 1670, and, soon after believing the tales of his wife's infidelity, Douglas rejected Barbara Erskine and she returned to her father's home where she never married again, but she did get a decree from the Privy Council giving her a provision out of her husband’s estate.

All that said, I've spent the last few weeks reading up on and trying to make sense of the absolutely insane amount of drama that followed Jamie Douglas' two children by his second marriage- will try to summarize that and make a timeline here in a bit!

[homomenhommes]

THIS DAY IN GAY HISTORY

based on: The White Crane Institute's 'Gay Wisdom', Gay Birthdays, Gay For Today, Famous GLBT, glbt-Gay Encylopedia, Today in Gay History, Wikipedia, and more … December 26

1716 – Thomas Gray, the English writer, was born on this date (d.1771). "My life is now but a perpetual conversation with your shadow - The known sound of your voice still rings in my ears. I cannot bear this place, where I have spend many tedious years within less than a month, after you left me ..." So wrote Thomas Gray to a young man when he was 54. Professor of Modern History at Cambridge University and one of the best known poets of his time. He was also more than likely still a virgin, although he may have had a homosexual affair with Horace Walpole when he was younger.

The author of "An Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard," Gray had lived most of his life with his mother, but was known to have cultivated the Platonic friendship of handsome young men. One of Professor Gray's young men introduced him to the Swiss charmer, Charles de Bonstetten – and Gray was hooked. He was profoundly, deeply in love. When Bonstetten left Cambridge a year later, the poet was devastated. But the friends exchanged letters, and the young man suggested they take a walking tour together in Bonstetten's native Switzerland. Gray was overjoyed. The trip was scheduled for the summer of 1771 and Gray wrote tireless letters of devotion while counting the ticking minutes. Finally, the time was near. He would be leaving to see his handsome young man again. The poor poet dropped dead before he had taken one step out the door.

1795 – William Drummond Stewart (d.1871) was a Scottish adventurer and British military officer and homosexual. He traveled extensively in the American West for nearly seven years in the 1830s. In 1837 he took along the American artist, Alfred Jacob Miller, hiring him to do sketches of the trip. Many of his completed oil paintings of American Indian life and the Rocky Mountains originally hung in Murthly Castle, though they have now been dispersed to a number of private and public collections.

Born at Murthly Castle, Perthshire, Scotland, Stewart was the second son and one of seven children of Sir George Stewart, 17th Laird of Grandtully, 5th Baronet of Murthly and of Blair. The family decided that William would go into the Army (as his older brother would inherit his father's estate and title). After his seventeenth birthday in 1812, William asked his father to buy him a cornetcy in the 6th Dragoon Guards. After his appointment was confirmed on April 15, 1813, he immediately joined his regiment and began a programme of rigorous training.

Stewart was anxious to participate in military action; so in 1813, his father purchased for him an appointment to a Lieutenancy in the 15th King's Hussars, which was already in action during the Peninsular Campaign. In 1814, Stewart joined his regiment, subsequently seeing combat during the Waterloo campaign in 1815. In 1820, Stewart was promoted to a Captain and soon thereafter retired on half pay.

Seeking adventure, Stewart traveled to St. Louis, Missouri in 1832, where he brought letters of introduction to William Clark, Pierre Chouteau, Jr.,William Ashley and other prominent residents. He arranged to accompany Robert Campbell, who was taking a pack train to the 1833 rendezvous of mountain men, an annual all-male gathering of fur traders, a drunken debauch held each summer when trappers gathered to trade their pelts for food, liquor and manufactured goods brought to the Rockies from St. Louis by companies of fur traders.

The party left St. Louis on May 7 and attended the Horse Creek Rendezvous in the Green River Valley of Wyoming. Here Stewart met the mountain men Jim Bridger and Thomas Fitzpatrick, as well as Benjamin Bonneville, who was leading a governmental expedition in the area.

At the rendezvous Stewart met the Metis (French Canadian and Cree) hunter Antoine Clement, with whom he began a homosexual relationship. With some of the men, Stewart visited the Big Horn Mountains, wintered at Taos, and attended the next rendezvous at Ham's Fork of the Green River. Later that year, he journeyed to Fort Vancouver, Washington, at the coast of the Pacific Ocean.

Stewart attended the 1835 rendezvous at the mouth of New Fork River on the Green and reached St. Louis in November. Finding that his finances were curtailed because he brother had failed to forward his share of the estate left by their father, Stewart went to New Orleans, speculated in cotton to recoup, and wintered in Cuba.

In May, he joined Fitzpatrick's train to the Rockies for another rendezvous on Horse Creek. For the rendezvous of 1837, Stewart took along an American artist, Alfred Jacob Miller, whom he hired in New Orleans. Miller painted a notable series of works on the mountain men, the rendezvous, American Indians, and Rocky Mountain scenes. He wintered in 1836-1837 and 1837-38 at New Orleans, where he speculated again in cotton. In 1838 he learned that his childless older brother John had died of an undisclosed disease (probably cancer). William Stewart would become the seventh baronet of Murthly.

"Attack by Crow Indians" Alfred Jacob Miller

After his older brother John Stewart died childless in 1838, William inherited the baronetcy and returned to Scotland, taking with him his partner Antoine Clement, and the couple lived in Dalpowie Lodge, while entertaining in Murthly Castle. Stewart explained Clement's presence by at first referring to him as his valet, then as his footman. Because Clement was restless and unhappy in Scotland, the couple spent many months traveling abroad, including an extended visit to the Middle East.

In 1842 he returned to America, and in the summer of 1843 hosted a private rendezvous-style party at a remote lake in the Rockies (now called Fremont Lake). On that trip Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, the son of Sacagawea of the Lewis and Clark Expedition was hired to care for the mules.

Stewart returned to North America in late 1842, and in the September of 1843 he and a large entourage traveled to what is now Fremont Lake. Stewart brought with him a large array of velvet and silk Renaissance costumes for his all-male guests to wear during the festivities. He hauled wagon loads of canned delicacies, cigars, liqueurs and champagne. Fur trader William Sublette co-hosted the party with Stewart. Though there had been no rendezvous since 1840, the party had many elements of the old Rocky Mountain gatherings. Stewart had planned to spend the winter of 1843-44 in New Orleans, and visit Taos and Santa Fe the following spring, but the Renaissance "pleasure trip" ended in a dispute that split the party and caused Stewart to return to Scotland earlier than he had planned, never to return to the United States.

In 1856 Stewart's American friend Ebenezer Nichols, his wife, and three sons, visited from Texas. When it came time to leave Scotland, the Nichols's middle son, Franc, declined to return home. He instead stayed on with William Drummond Stewart at Murthly Castle, possibly in a sexual relationship, eventually being adopted by Stewart and becoming his primary heir.

Stewart died of pneumonia on April 28, 1871.

Stewart wrote two autobiographical novels based on his experiences in America, Altowan (1846) and Edward Warren (1854). Both novels include surprisingly frank homoerotic scenes.

1933 – On this date the Gay classic film Queen Christina was released and starred Greta Garbo in the lead role. The American pre-code historical drama film was directed by Rouben Mamoulian and written by H. M. Harwood and Salka Viertel and based on a story by Salka Viertel and Margaret P. Levino.

The movie is very loosely based on the life of the 17th century Queen Christina of Sweden, who, in the film, falls in love during her reign but has to deal with the political realities of her society. It was billed as Garbo's return to cinema after an eighteen-month hiatus.

1971 – Jared Leto is an American actor, singer, songwriter, and director. After starting his career with television appearances in the early 1990s, Leto achieved recognition for his role as Jordan Catalano on the television series My So-Called Life (1994).

He made his film debut in How to Make an American Quilt (1995) and received first notable critical praise for his performance in Prefontaine (1997). Leto played supporting roles in The Thin Red Line (1998), Fight Club (1998) and American Psycho (2000), as well as the lead role in Urban Legend (1998), and earned critical acclaim after portraying heroin addict Harry Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream (2000).

He later began focusing increasingly on his music career. Leto is the lead vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and main songwriter for Thirty Seconds to Mars, a band he formed in 1998 in Los Angeles, California, with his older brother Shannon Leto. Their debut album, 30 Seconds to Mars (2002), was released to positive reviews but only to limited success. The band achieved worldwide fame with the release of their second album A Beautiful Lie (2005). The band has sold over 15 million albums worldwide. Leto has also directed music videos, including the MTV Video Music Award–winning "The Kill" (2006), "Kings and Queens" (2009), and "Up in the Air" (2013).

Leto's performance as a transgender woman in Dallas Buyers Club (2013) earned him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, among numerous other accolades. Leto is considered to be a method actor, known for his constant devotion to and research of his roles. He often remains completely in character for the duration of the shooting schedules of his films, even to the point of adversely affecting his health.

Leto is a gay rights activist. In October 2009, he raised money to the campaign against California Proposition 8, created by opponents of same-sex marriage to overturn the California Supreme Court decision that had legalized same-sex marriage. He spoke out in support of LGBT rights group Freedom Action Inclusion Rights (FAIR). In May 2012, he expressed support after hearing that Barack Obama had endorsed same-sex marriage.

Although Leto presents himself as straight in real life, Alexis Arquette - the transgender sister of David Arquette - claimed "I had sex with Jared Leto back when I was presenting as a male," Alexis stated. "And yes, it's not only massive, it's like a Praetorian Guard's helmet."

You can watch him grab and flaunt this "massive" chunk of meat at a 30 Seconds to Mars concert performance in Toronto in 2014 in the gif clip below.

1973 – Reichen Lehmkuhl, (born Richard Allen Lehmkuhl) is an American former reality show winner, model, and occasional actor. A former United States Air Force officer, he is best known for winning season four of the reality game show The Amazing Race with his then-partner Chip Arndt, and for his much publicized 2006 relationship with pop singer Lance Bass.

After Lehmkuhl's parents, a policeman and a nurse, divorced when he was five, his family moved to Norton, Massachusetts, and his mother remarried. Sometime after 2002, he changed his first name legally from Richard to Reichen. Lehmkuhl graduated from the United States Air Force Academy. He has since advocated for gay rights in the military as a spokesperson for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.

Lehmkuhl was working simultaneously as a physics teacher at Crossroads School for the Arts and Sciences, flight instructor and model in Los Angeles when he was approached by a casting director for The Amazing Race. Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt were a couple during the competition but have since split. Lehmkuhl moved to Dallas, Texas briefly after his win on The Amazing Race but before all episodes had been broadcast. Reichen's spending habits at that time caused speculation that he had won The Amazing Race — and that he and Arndt had broken up. During the show, the couple was typically described as "Married" in the subtitles that are used to illustrate the relationship between team members (other teams being, for example, "Best Friends" or "Father-Daughter").

Lehmkuhl hosted The Reichen Show on Q Television Network until Q Television ceased operations in May 2006. His autobiography Here's What We'll Say, about his time in the Air Force under the military's commonly called "Don't ask, don't tell" policy, was released by Carroll and Graf on October 28, 2006. The New York Post reported in November 2010 that the book had been adapted into a screenplay. He published a beefcake calendar for several years and has appeared on sitcoms, soap operas, and other reality television shows.

On July 2006, former 'N Sync band member Lance Bass told People Magazine that he is gay and in a "very stable relationship" with Lehmkuhl. The couple broke up in January 2007. Bass said they remained "good friends".

On May 1, 2007, the LGBT-interest television network here! announced that Lehmkuhl had joined the cast for the third season of its original gothic soap opera, Dante's Cove. He plays the role of Trevor, originally described as "a business school graduate who comes to Dante's Cove looking to find himself."

Lehmkuhl also has a jewelry line called Flying Naked composed of flight-themed jewelry made of titanium steel. Items from the collection are being sold from loveandpride.com. A percentage of each sale goes to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.

Lehmkuhl starred in My Big Gay Italian Wedding, an off-Broadway production from its opening May 5, 2010 in New York City to July 24, 2010. A percentage of ticket sales promoted legalization of same-sex marriages in the US through Broadway Impact.

LGBT-interest network Logo announced on June 3, 2010, that Lehmkuhl and boyfriend, model Rodiney Santiago had joined the cast of Logo's reality series, The A-List: New York. The low-rated series, frequently described as a "Real Housewives"-style show, was cancelled after two seasons. Since the airing, Lehmkuhl and Santiago are no longer a couple.

1995 – Conner Mertens is an American football placekicker for the Willamette Bearcats. He was the first active college football player to publicly come out about his sexuality; he came out as bisexual.

Mertens grew up in Kennewick in Tri-Cities, Washington, where he was the youngest of four boys in his family. Growing up, he always excelled at sports. He concentrated on athletics after an incident in fifth grade in which classmates teased him for remaining in costume and makeup after a drama competition.

According to Mertens, the environment at Southridge High School was "hostile", as he was surround by a culture of homophobia. He said the Tri-Cities was not the most friendly area toward the LGBT community. In 2012, 63 percent of the area voted against a measure for same-sex marriage that was ultimately approved by the state. Starting with his sophomore year in high school, Mertens was active in Young Life, a national organization that preaches Christianity to youth. After being in trouble in his freshman year, he credited Young Life with turning his life around.

Mertens redshirted and did not play football in his freshman year due to an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury to his left knee from playing soccer. In January 2014, Mertens came out as bisexual, the first active college football player at any level to publicly come out. With his announcement, he was banned from working with Young Life, which he had been certain would be a part of the rest of his life; the organization's "Faith and Conduct Policies" did not allow any LGBT person to be a staff member or volunteer, though they could participate as "recipients of ministry of God's grace and mercy as expressed in Jesus Christ."

He became Willamette's kicker in 2014, when he also received limited opportunities as a punter. In his senior year, Mertens was named the placekicker on the Tri-City Herald All-Area second team. He was also a four-year starter on Southridge's soccer team. Conner is also a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.

Mertens is featured in Out to Win, a documentary about LGBT participation in American sports.

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

The Unexpected Guests?

I don't think SH’s visit to Midhope Castle had any relation with Midhope Distillery. The proposal It's outside his line and not his concern. He’s made much ado about nothing.

It seems SH's interest was a public interest. During the statutory consultation period, SH made a public comment supporting the initiative, which was open to anyone in the public.

However, it's worth noting that there are ethical considerations in research, and in any other category, SH's comments could be seen as a conflict of interest and may even nullify the decision-making process that is currently awaiting a final decision. It's important to remember that the plans have not yet been approved

Currently, there are over 50 reports from various research institutions among consultants, architects, engineers, the archaeological historical society, and other experts to complete the necessary plans for the Council. Numerous regulations have been proposed, and expectations are high. SH and AN have not any kind of string or making decisions in this project. This is the weakest field for him and his inexperienced partner AN whose sponsors are themselves.

If He visited Midhope Castle and was welcomed by the housekeeper of the bed and breakfast, Parkhead House (which is a private part of Hopetoun Estate) managed by Mr and Mrs. James Gourlay, the local family who live on the Estate, then it is most likely a display of show off to gain attention. It is quite possible that his fans will say the Laird was visiting the castle 🤦‍♀️ too fictional to be taken seriously.

In 2023, Midhope Distillery Company changed its name and now operates under a new name, but with the same persons. The company is registered in Scotland and is a private limited company by shares. However, it's important to note that SH is not involved in any category, owner, directorship or investment in this new company.

Midhope Castle’s Proposal: Application under Section 42 to vary planning conditions 1, 2, 3,6, 9 and 12 of planning permission 0543/FUL/20 is exclusively investment from Golden Decanters* and Hopetoun Estates Trust. The Estate which has traditionally grown and supplied malting barley to the Scottish whisky trade, and underground springs on the estate will provide the fresh water. If approved, the Midhope Castle Distillery will become one of a small number of single malt distilleries in the Lothians, including Glenkinchie in Tranent, and Chain Pier and Holyrood in Edinburgh.

The castle lies on the same estate as Hopetoun House and its exterior has been used as a backdrop in Outlander. The new development planned for the estate will complement Hopetoun House and it will continue to be a filming location for other TV series and films. It is important to note that the plans for a distillery at Hopetoun Estate are completely unrelated to SH or Outlander.

The grounds of Midhope Castle are set to become the location of a new whisky distillery. This proposal is provided by Lord Hopetoun, (Laird Hopetown) Andrew Hope, and is intended to complement the already existing Hopetoun House and Estate, a 300-year-old Scottish estate to develop the region 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Andrew Hope, the Earl of Hopetoun

* Golden Decanters is an independent bottling company based in Perth 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 that specialises in creating luxury expressions for high-net-worth individuals.

[sunshine-luca]

follows X

Luca smoothed his slightly sweaty palm down his thighs, over the thick woollen pleats of the O’Riain kilt he wore. It felt a little strange to have his knees exposed out in the cool highland air but thick socks and his usual boots kept the rest of his legs warm just as a thick sweater protected the rest of him from any chill.

He trudged over the worn but still rocky path, just half a step behind Ryan where he clung to Ryan’s tattooed hand like a lifeline. In an odd way, this place felt familiar. Deep in his bones, like his soul was sighing with relief to be back there yet Luca knew he had never stepped foot on this part of the estate before.

“So, if we’re getting married in Italy, why are we doing a handfasting too?” he asked in an effort to distract himself. It was midmorning and the day had dawned bright but fog was steadily building and pressing in on them. Luca had worried about a storm as they left the safety of the house, but Ryan had only pressed his lips to his temple and told Luca not to fret. “I mean, not that I’m complaining. I’m just… curious, I guess?”

Ryan stopped on a ridge. Ahead of them, the path continued, falling away sharply down the side of the hill. There was nothing out here, just the wind howling through the peaks and tufts of wild heather waving among the lichen covered mounds that dotted the harsh landscape. It was barren and wild but Luca loved it.

He paused beside Ryan, studying the line of the older man’s stern profile before following his line of sight to the valley below. There, silent in the greying light stood tall, dark, blurred shapes in a misshapen circle.

Luca’s breath caught. The stones.

“The laws of the highlands are different here,” Ryan finally answered. It wasn’t the first time Luca had heard him mention something like this. On some distant level, he had realised it the first time he had ever stepped foot in this wild part of Scotland. The old ways were still prominent here, the laws of the national government held sway only on a surface level, a thin veneer to the outside world to afford them the autotomy to continue as they did without interference from outsiders.

On the outside, the estate was a grand old home, the villages surrounding them quaint and quiet - But Luca had been in the room when a man had shown up in Ryan’s study, demanding justice for his family. Luca had seen Rourke and the others that followed his lead met out that begged for justice in blood and fire. There were no courts, police here looked the other way and the Laird and Lady O’Riain’s words were law. It was eye for an eye as a way of life and payment and punishment were harsh but loyalty was blood – and forever.

“Only our own traditions truly matter,” Ryan continued. He glanced sideways at Luca, squeezed his hand as he lifted their joined palms and kissed Luca’s knuckles. “Binding ye to me in the stones makes ye my wife. My love. My partner - and all that comes with it.” He lowered their hands, his blue gaze falling to the stones again. “No’ too late to back out now, darlin’.”

Luca inwardly took note of the way his ass still ached and his body was marked all over - how his heart had never felt more full and he had never felt so truly at home.

This man was the reason Luca existed. His purpose. If he wasn’t at Ryan’s side, Luca didn’t want to live. “Are you kidding?” Luca snorted as he shook his head and threw Ryan a wry smile. He appreciated the last-minute offer of freedom but he had been Ryan’s from the moment their eyes had met across the room. “Ry, I want this more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my whole fucking life. I love you. I think I’ve loved you and searched for you before I even knew you existed and I-“

Luca’s gaze snapped back to stare at the stones. The sense of familiarity washed over him like a wave once again. Echoes of a dream, or a memory, he wasn’t sure but he clutched at Ryan’s arms as the wave of dizziness threatened to take him.

“There, love,” Ryan murmured, like he knew just what Luca was feeling. Like he had been expecting it.

“Ry?” Luca whispered shakily. “We’ve been here before, haven’t we?”

[verecunda]

Looking back on The Master of Ballantrae, there's like, almost hilarious levels of Gothic romance in Mackellar's relationship with Henry Durie. It starts with the young, conscientious, rather prudish Mackellar taking up his new position at a great old country estate, owned by an old family surrounded by history and scandal. The laird's son, his new employer, is a virtual recluse, and Mackellar is escorted to the house by a local lad who tells him all these terrible stories about the man and what he's done, to the point where Mackellar is almost ready to turn right back and go home.

But then he meets Mr. Henry and is floored, because he's nothing like what the stories painted him to be. And as he gets to know him better, he realises just how misunderstood the man is. What's more, the house is haunted - not by a literal ghost, but by the memory of Henry's older brother, presumed dead in the Jacobite Rebellion (for which local rumour unfairly blames Henry); his father, the laird, and his own wife are so obsessed with mourning the brother's memory that Henry is practically excluded from his own family. He's forced to be careful with money, because the estate is almost exhausted, but that just earns him a reputation for being a miser; and he keeps to the house, because whenever he used to go out, he got abuse (and stones!) hurled at him. He's forced to bite his tongue, and the only company he has, the only one whom he can trust and confide in, is his Mackellar, his steward, and Mackellar can see every day just how bitterly lonely and ill-used this man his, and his heart goes out to him more and more...

Then, of course, it's revealed that the Byronic older brother isn't dead, and his return ends up sparking a fatal chain of events. Both brothers become obsessed with destroying each other, and Henry starts losing his very sanity. And though Mackellar is increasingly dismayed and appalled at the change in his master, his love and loyalty are too deeply entrenched, so he's bound to go with him, to whatever terrible end awaits...

Actually, I would argue that "Mackellar is in love with Mr. Henry" is a viable - nay, defensible - reading of the text. Even more than Kidnapped, with its made-for-fanfiction, There Was Only One Coat! levels of shippiness, or even Jekyll and Hyde, where the queer reading is a common and very viable one. Mackellar talks about how little he likes women, and has no thought about love - even though he uses that very word in connection with Mr. Henry throughout the whole book. There's even a whole narrative thread wherein Mackellar himself is almost effectively seduced by the Master, practically mirroring the subplot about the Master trying - and ultimately failing - to seduce Henry's wife. And there are other moments where Mackellar and Mrs. Henry parallel each other. Despite the various pressures and manipulations of the Master, Henry stands firm on two distinct points: refusing to dismiss Mackellar for insulting the Master, and smacking the Master in the mouth (which leads to a duel) for insulting his wife. And when he starts losing his mind, Mackellar and Mrs. Henry both end up being neglected, essentially, and thrown back on each other's company. (The one bright spot here: they actually start to appreciate each other.)

There's even that hilarious bit in New York, where Henry starts acting suspiciously and going out without telling anyone where. And despite being well aware that he is wholly obsessed with the thought of destroying his brother, Mackellar's suspicion is that Henry is keeping a mistress in town!! And starts following him to get the truth!! (Spoiler alert: there is no mistress.) Like, calm down, son.

There are also various little charged moments of physicality, like this:

"Quietly!" cries he, and put my hand suddenly against his heart, which struck upon his bosom like a sledge.

In conclusion: Ephraim Mackellar is a simp. I rest my case.

[renee-writer]

All's Fair Chapter 4

AO3

She and Susan sit eating breakfast. It is the next morning. 

 

“Susan, I am selling this house and moving to Inverness.”

 

“Really, wow! My husband and I would love to buy it.”

 

She smiles as she was hoping they would be interested in it. Someone who would love it and care for it, like she does.

 

“How about I let it to you for a year, then you can buy it?”

 

The other lady nods her head. “Perfect, that way if things don’t work out in Inverness, you can have this house to come back to.” That was exactly what she was thinking.

 

“Just so.”

 

Packing is more about deciding what not to. A lot will be returned to the museum, all the Egyptian artifacts. Claire believes they need to be returned home.

 

The books, or must of them, will be donated to the Oxford library. She keeps the botany books. 

 

Everything else, she leaves in the house for the use of Susan and her husband. Two boxes of personal stuff is all, bar the books, she is taking.

 

She decided that one thing she wants to pick back up doing once she is in Scotland, is cooking again. With that in mind, she pens a letter to Nubia inquiring about the spices she will need.

 

Jamie never meet Lambert Beauchamp  but has heard good things from Ned. He sits in his hotel room working on the final details of the Beauchamp estate. He soon has a whole stack of papers for Claire ‘s signature.

 

As the second son of the Laird, he knew from a young age that he would need to find his own profession. Reading the Law suit him. Ned and himself make a good team as they help the vulnerable of the Highlands.

 

He smiles as he thinks of his family. His mam, the strong Matriarch, starting over as a mammy again with the surprise birth of the twin, Angus and Fergus five years ago. She handles this with the same calm strength she handles everything else with.

 

She was spared the worry most mam’s experienced. Neither himself or his brother, William, had to serve in the war. Jamie was injured in a accident as a child, falling of his horse, messing up his back. William has a limp from his own childhood accident.

 

Spared, they make a point to help those not so blessed. Helping each other was the code of the Highlands. They put that code in practice, assisting the war created widows and orphans.

 

Lallybroch and the accompanying , Fraser’ s Ridge houses many of them. Work was found for as many as possible.

 

His da told him that was always the Fraser way. After the ill fated Raising, their ancestors had done the same.

 

His last day in Oxford and he has one more thing to do. It is a task he has been looking forward to.

 

He bows to her when she opens the door. “Miss Beauchamp.”

 

She smiles. “Claire please, Jamie.”

 

“Claire. I have the papers requiring your signature.” She invites him in.

 

“Please come in. I have some tea and scones prepared.” They take seats at her table and she starts to sign.

 

“Do you still wish to sell this house?” he picks up one of the scones.

 

“Not right away. I am letting it to Susan and her husband for a year first. I wish to be ready to leave in a month.”

 

He nods. “I will see Mary has it ready. Is there anything in particular you will need?”

 

“Yes, a ramp if there be stairs. Navigating them is still quite painful.”

 

“It will be done.” She smiles at him as she signs the last paper.

 

“Thank you.” He finishes the tea, wipes his mouth and hands, before gathering them back up.  She watches his ministrations and forces herself not to bite her lip.

 

“I live on a small croft in the property. You will let me know if you need anything.”

 

“I will. Thank you.” He  stands and she joins him. He places the paperwork back in his briefcase.

 

“I will see you in month.” She smiles. Her eyes draw him, as sparkling and intoxicating as his families best whisky. They are in his mind all the way to the train station. It will be a long train ride.

[logi1974]

Laird Hasenbär in Schottland - Tag 16

Lairds and Ladies!

Da das Brodie Castle wegen aktuell stattfindender Filmaufnahmen für Besucher geschlossen war, machten wir uns auf den Weg als Alternative das Cawdor Castle zu besichtigen.

Das Wetter hat sich zu gestern ebenfalls wieder verschlechtert, da bietet sich doch so ein Castle Besuch geradezu an. Das Cawdor Castle in Nairn liegt nur ca. 23 Kilometer östlich von Inverness. 

Wir fahren etwa eine halbe Stunde auf Landstraßen, vorbei an grünen Landschaften mit sanften Hügeln und einem Mix aus Sonne und Wolken. Wir sind am Südrand der Highlands. Im Land südlich der Bucht, die Inverness vom Meer trennt.

Von Inverness aus auf der A96 Richtung Nairn fahren. Beim Schild B9090 abbiegen. Hier ist die Cawdor Castle auch schon mit einem braunen Schild ausgeschrieben. 

Die B9090 macht nach einigen Kilometern noch einen Linksschwenk, dann eine sanfte Rechtskurve, ehe man durch das Örtchen Cawdor fährt. Hier noch weiter über die Ampelkreuzung, dann ist rechts die Auffahrt zum Parkplatz des Schlosses angeschrieben. 

Nicht wundern: Der Weg geht noch ein ganzes Stück nach hinten, ehe man den Parkplatz erreicht. Von da aus geht es auch noch einige Minuten zu Fuß bis zum Gebäude.

Cawdor Castle befindet sich etwas außerhalb des gleichnamigen Dorfes. Hier trägt vieles den Namen Cawdor. Die Cawdor Tavern, The Cawdor Estate. Die Cawdor Castle Gardens usw.

Und natürlich das Schloss selbst. Oder ist es eine Burg? So ganz sind wir uns da nämlich nicht sicher. Der älteste Teil des Gebäudes ist auf jeden Fall eine Burg. Das ist das wehrhafte Tower House im Zentrum des trutzigen Bauwerks. Dieses überragt noch heute alle später hinzugefügten Bauten.

Die Familie Cawdor hat hier noch alles unter ihrer eigenen Kontrolle. Die Witwe des Earl of Cawdor lebt noch heute in diesem Haus ihrer Familie. Sie zieht während der warmen Jahreszeit aus dem Schloss aus und verbringt die Zeit zwischen April und Oktober in einem anderen ihrer Besitztümer. Während dieser Monate ist das Schloss für die Öffentlichkeit zugänglich.

Die erste Festung der Calders, so hießen die Cawdors in alten Schriften, entstand bereits 1179 am Ufer des Flusses Nairn. Die Thanes of Calder waren damals zu Sheriffs und Wächtern des königlichen Schlosses in Nairn ernannt worden. 

William the Lion ließ diese Festung an der Furt über den Fluss Nairn nahe des Meeres errichten. Sie sollte die Route zwischen Inverness und Elgin sichern. Von dieser Festung gibt es heute keine Überreste mehr, genauso wenig wie von ihrem Nachfolgebau. 

Ende des 14. Jahrhunderts entstand schließlich der Kernbau des heutigen Schlosses. Das Tower House mit seinen vier Stockwerken überragt noch heute die später hinzugefügten Erweiterungen des Gebäudes. 

Wie viele Tower Houses jener Zeit diente es der Verteidigung. Als solches bediente man sich einer einfachen Form der Verteidigung. Der Eingang zum Tower House befand sich im ersten Stock, so dass man den Bau leicht vor Eindringlingen schützen konnte.

Im Laufe der kommenden 600 Jahre erweiterte die Cawdor Family den Bau immer wieder, bis er die heutige Form annahm. 

Shakespeare beschreibt das Schloss in seinem Drama Macbeth. Nur – zu Lebzeiten Macbeths gab es Cawdor Castle noch gar nicht. Duncan starb am 14. August 1040. Die Festung wurde erst 300 Jahre später gebaut.

Tatsächlich gibt es auch keine vernünftige Verbindung zwischen der Burg und König Macbeth. Nicht einmal ein Teil des Stückes von Shakespeare spielt dort. Der verrät nämlich nur, dass es sich um eine Burg in Inverness handle. Lediglich der Titel „Thane of Cawdor“ wurde ihm im Theaterstück zugesprochen. Historisch gesehen aber hatte der echte Macbeth diesen Titel nie inne.

Macbeth hat zwar tatsächlich seinen Vater Duncan getötet, aber nicht hinterrücks wie in Shakespeare’s Drama, sondern in einer Schlacht.

Diese fand ganz in der Nähe des Ortes statt, wo das Schloss heute steht. Der echte Duncan starb nach der Schlacht in Elgin. Danach wurde Macbeth in Scone nahe Perth zum Hochkönig der Schotten gekrönt.

Im Laufe der Überlieferung erwähnte ein Chronist fälschlicherweise den Thane of Cawdor im Ablauf der Ereignisse. In seiner Tragödie verlegt schließlich Shakespeare die Geschichte nach Cawdor Castle. Er schrieb das Werk 1606, hunderte von Jahren nachdem die Geschichte sich abspielte.

Dem fünften Earl of Cawdor nervte diese Tatsache so, dass er meinte: „I wish the Bard had never written his damned play!“ Natürlich kann man den Zorn des 5. Earl von Cawdor durchaus nachvollziehen. Trotzdem besuchen heute viele gerade wegen dieser Episode in Shakespeare’s Werk das Schloss.

Das Tower House ist um einen Dornbusch herum gebaut. Um diesen rankt sich eine Familienlegende. Danach ist der Thane of Cawdor in einem Traum angewiesen worden, einen Esel auf die Suche nach dem besten Platz für den Bau der neuen Festung auszuschicken.

Und genau das tat er auch. Er schnallte dem Esel eine Kiste voll Gold auf den Rücken. Dieser ließ sich am Abend unter einer Stechpalme nieder, die noch heute im Keller des Tower Houses weiter wächst. Was aus dem Esel wurde, ist allerdings nicht überliefert.

Gleich daneben liegen geheimnisvolle Gewölbe, die als Verlies genutzt wurden und (wie raffiniert) eine Verbindung in den alten Dining Room. Dort befindet sich nämlich links neben dem Kamin eine geheime Falltür, durch die missliebige Personen umgehend entsorgt werden konnten. 

Um es Feinden möglichst schwer zu machen, wurde zudem ein Graben und eine Zugbrücke angelegt.

Im Rest der Burg geht es weniger rustikal zu. Die Anbauten, die sich um das Tower House gruppieren, stammen größtenteils aus dem 17. Jahrhundert. In diesen Teilen des Hauses befinden sich die Räume, die der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich sind. 

Wir sehen mehrere Schlafzimmer, deren Mobiliar von vergangenen Generationen der Cawdor Familie stammt. Das Himmelbett mit seinem Baldachin aus rotem Samt im Tapestry Bedroom war einst das Hochzeitsbett von Sir Hugh Campbell und Lady Henrietta Stuart, die 1662 in Darnaway Castle heirateten.

Im Laufe der Zeit dekoriert die Familie ihren Wohnsitz mit feinen Gobelins, Teppichen, Gemälden von berühmten Malern wie Sir Joshua Reynolds, Francis Cotes, Sir William Beechey und Sir Thomas Lawrence. 

Dazwischen hängen jedoch auch handgemalte Zeichnungen der Damen des Hauses an den Wänden. In den Vitrinen stapelt sich Porzellan aus mehreren Jahrhunderten. Die Regale der Bücherschränke biegen sich unter den gedruckten Werken, die im Laufe der Zeit von den Generationen der Cawdors gesammelt wurden.

Die Tour im Inneren von Cawdor Castle ist sehr sehenswert. Ein Besuch in Cawdor Castle ist so, als ob man die Privatgemächer der Inhaber betritt. Auf dem Tisch im Drawing Room liegen Stapel von Büchern wahllos drapiert auf Sideboards. 

Im Dining Room ist der Tisch gedeckt, als ob die Familie jeden Moment von ihren täglichen Unternehmungen zurückkehrt. Im Wohnzimmer hat man den Eindruck, als ob die Zeitschriften von einem gemütlichen Leseabend auf dem Tisch liegen blieben. Das Haus ist kein Museum. Es ist bewohnt, und hinterlässt beim Besucher auch diesen Eindruck. 

In diesem Schloss kann man sich sehr gut vorstellen, wie die fleißigen Bediensteten in der alten Küche die erlesensten Speisen für ihre Herrschaften kreierten. Bis 1938 war sie in Betrieb. Groß ist sie, die alte Küche. Die Regale an den Wänden und der große Küchentisch biegen sich unter den Küchenutensilien, die sich im Laufe der Zeit angesammelt haben. 

Uns hat es allerdings die neue Küche einen Stock höher angetan. Heute nutzt die Familie diese Küche. Auch sie ist groß, besitzt allerdings modernste Installationen, interessanterweise vornehmlich der Firma Miele. Hier bereiten inzwischen sogar Sterneköche elegante Mahlzeiten für Veranstaltungen zu, die auf Cawdor Castle stattfinden. Beim Cawdor Castle Food Festival leistet sie sicher gute Dienste.

Das Schloss ist nicht nur berühmt für seine Räumlichkeiten, sondern auch für seine Gärten. Drei dieser Gärten befinden sich in unmittelbarer Schlossnähe.

Der älteste davon ist der Walled Garden, der etwa um 1600 entstanden ist. Neben Kräutern und Blumen beherbergt er ein echtes Labyrinth. Dies war die Idee von Lord Cawdor, der 1981 beschloss, ein Labyrinth aus Stechpalmen anzulegen. 

Als Vorlage diente ein Labyrinth-Design im Mosaikboden einer Ruine einer römischen Villa in Conimbriga in Portugal. Die Mitte ziert eine Minotaurus Statue und schlägt damit den Bogen zum mythischen Labyrinth des Minotaurus.

Im zweiten Teil des Gartens gibt es heute außerdem den Knoten-Garten, den Distelgarten und den Paradiesgarten. Alte schottische Obstbäume erinnern zudem an den ursprünglichen Obstgarten, der zum ersten Mal 1635 erwähnt wurde.

Der Blumengarten geht zurück auf das Jahr 1710. Damals übernahm Sir Archibald Campbell, der Bruder des Thane of Cawdor, die Gestaltung dieses Gartens. Es dauerte fünfzehn Jahre, bis er fertig war. Sir Archibald machte daraus einen Garten, in dem Obstbäume und Hecken wuchsen.

Eine spätere Hausherrin fügte Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts Lavendelgrenzen zu den Rosenbeeten hinzu. Außerdem ließ sie Stachelbeerhecken pflanzen, da die Familie deren Früchte besonders gerne aß. 

Damals nutzte die Familie Cawdor das Schloss fast nur während der Jagdsaison zwischen August und Oktober. Der Garten enthielt daher vor allem Pflanzen, die um diese Jahreszeit blühten. 

Diese Beete existieren noch heute, allerdings hat man die Zeit der Blüte erweitert, indem man Zwiebelpflanzen, blühende Bäume und Sträucher hinzufügte, die die Blütensaison vom frühen Frühjahr bis in den Herbst hinein erweiterten.

Besonders faszinierend finden wir die kunstvolle Vogelfutterskulptur. Ein Kunstobjekt als Futterautomat und das Ganze auch noch unerreichbar für Katzen oder diebische Eichhörnchen. Toll!

Die Vögel sind von diesem Futterautomaten begeistert, misstrauen aber dem Hasenbär auf das Äußerste.

Der Wild Garden in Cawdor Castle ist ebenfalls eine der neueren Errungenschaften des Schlosses. Er existiert seit den 1960er Jahren. Dabei handelt es sich um eine Anpflanzung von Azaleen, Rhododendren, Narzissen, Primeln, Weiden und Bambus unter hohen alten Bäumen. Fünf Wanderwege laden ein zu ausgedehnten Spaziergängen durch diese Gärten. 

Zum Castle gehört natürlich auch der obligatorische Souvenirladen, der selbstverständlich von einem Herrn in zünftigem Clan Tartan geleitet wird. Als wir einen Scherz untereinander über das “geschmackvolle” Angebot machen, sehe ich aus dem Augenwinkel, wie sich der Mann ein Lachen verkneift und versucht die Contenance zu wahren.

Der vermeintliche Schotte in den traditionellen Schottenkaros ist nämlich gar kein Schotte, sondern ein eingeheirateter Deutscher. Ich wittere Betrug!

Der zum Castle gehörende Tearoom ist inzwischen von diversen Reisegruppen okkupiert, weswegen wir da auf einen Besuch verzichten. 

Der aktuelle Eintrittspreis beträgt 13,50 £ für das Castle & die Gärten. Darin enthalten ist ein ausgezeichneter Audioguide für das Castle, der auch in deutscher Sprache zur Verfügung steht. Für die Gärten gibt es eine kleine Karte, um sich darin zurecht zu finden.

Besonders schön ist, dass man überall und alles photographieren darf. Nicht so glücklich ist die Lage der Toiletten. Denn die befinden sich noch vor dem Kassenhäuschen. Das bedeutet: jeder der zum Klo will, muss erst wieder den kompletten Weg zurück laufen.

Auf dem Hinweg war uns ein Hinweis auf eine gewisse Cawdor Tavern im Dorf aufgefallen, das wollen wir uns doch einmal genauer anschauen ... 

Was für eine zauberhafte Überraschung: bei der Taverne handelt es sich um ein historisches Gebäude, das früher einmal ebenfalls zum Castle gehörte und ursprünglich die hauseigene Tischlerei war.

Innen toll dekoriert mit historischen Stücken. Das Prunkstück ist eine alte Kleidertruhe, die direkt im Eingang steht, und einst einem gewissen Captain Murray gehörte. Dieser war ein General der Jacobiten Armee des Bonnie Prince Charlie. Was für ein tolles historisches Stück, dessen Wert unschätzbar ist.

Wir nehmen Platz, studieren die Speisekarte und lassen uns die Today´s Specials empfehlen: Haggis Sausages und Steak Ale Pie.  

Als Vorspeise nehmen wir eine Seafood Platter, die wir uns teilen. 

Ein tolles Lokal, das wir gerne weiter empfehlen! 

Es hat sich zugezogen, fängt an zu regnen und wir fahren zurück in “unsere” Wohnung nach Inverness. Dieses befindet sich in einem historischen Gebäude aus dem Jahre 1860.

Inverness hatte bereits 1680 seinen ersten städtischen Arzt und ein Jahrhundert später kämpfte die Kirchengemeine darum, Geldmittel zu finden, um mit bis zu 800 Armen gleichzeitig fertig zu werden.

Bis etwa 1845 wurden die Armen der Gemeinde von der Kirche versorgt. Nachdem ein neues Armengesetz im Jahr 1843 beschlossen wurde, wurde das Dunbar Hospital in der Church Street zum vorübergehenden Armenhaus umgewandelt. Der neue Vorstand suchte jedoch nach maßgeschneiderten Räumlichkeiten.

Das Armenhaus von Inverness wurde schließlich 1859-61 auf einem 8 Hektar großen Grundstück an der Westseite der Old Edinburgh Road (auch bekannt als General Wade's Military Road) im Süden von Inverness erbaut.

Es wurde  von James Matthews und William Lawrie entworfen. James Matthews hatte schon 1847 die Caledonian Bank in der High Street gebaut, vier Jahre später Aldourie Castle umgestaltet und 1852 die Nairn United  Presbyterian Church gebaut.  Die Kosten für den Bau beliefen sich auf 6.000 Pfund.

Der in Stonehaven geborene William Lawrie trat 1855 in die Firma ein und übernahm zunehmend die Kontrolle über das Büro in Inverness. Er übernahm die Führung bei der Fertigstellung des Black Isle Poorhouse in Fortrose im Jahr 1856 und eines ähnlichen in Nairn vier Jahre später.

Am östlichen Eingang des Geländes stand ein U-förmiger Block. Darin befanden sich wahrscheinlich ein Pförtnerzimmer und das Büro des ablösenden Offiziers. Heute ist nur noch der zentrale Torbogen erhalten.  

Das Hauptgebäude hatte wie die von Fortrose und Nairn einen H-förmigen Grundriss und war zweistöckig.  Der größere Block an der Vorderseite war ein Korridorgebäude mit einem zentralen Teil, der die Quartiere des Meisters, Ausschussräume und das Büro des Sekretärs enthalten hat.

Der Speisesaal und die Kapelle des Armenhauses befanden sich im hinteren Mittelblock. Die beiden Flügel des vorderen Blocks enthielten Männer- und Frauenunterkünfte, wahrscheinlich mit den Alten an der Vorderseite und den arbeitsfähigen oder "ausschweifenden" Insassen auf der Rückseite. Die Quartiere der Kinder wurden normalerweise am anderen Ende jedes Flügels platziert.

In den einstöckigen Gebäuden auf der Rückseite Gebäude befanden sich verschiedene Arbeits- und Wirtschaftsräume, darunter eine Backstube auf der Männerseite und eine Wäscherei auf der Frauenseite.  

Vier Giebelbuchten wurden der Vorderansicht hinzu gefügt und ein gewölbter Block am Eingang enthielt einen Pförtnerraum und das Büro des Verwalters.

Die Volkszählung von 1881 zeigte 96 Bewohner mit Donald Macfie aus Ardnamurchan als Gouverneur und seiner Frau Helen aus Uddingston als Matrone mit ihrem Sohn John (18) als Gerichtsschreiber.

Das Armenhaus von Inverness wurde später als Muirfield Institution bekannt. 1946 stellte ein offizieller Bericht fest, dass das Gebäude enge zentrale Korridore und schlecht beleuchtete, aber gut belüftete Stationen hatte.

Armenhäuser wurden durch das National Assistance Act von 1948 abgeschafft. Das Wachstum des National Health Service führte dazu, dass Muirfield 1961 übernommen und in Hilton Hospital umbenannt wurde.  

Die Unterbringung umfasste damals 54 Betten für chronisch Kranke, 3 Entbindungsbetten, eine Kinderstation für 6 Kinder  und Plätze für zertifizierte Geisteskranke. Unter dem National Health Service wurde die Institution zum Hilton Hospital.  

Es blieb bis zu seiner Schließung im Jahr 1987 ein Gemeinschaftskrankenhaus. Das achtstöckige Hochhaus des Raigmore Hospital war zwei Jahre zuvor eröffnet worden, und somit wurde das Hilton Hospital überflüssig.

Das Gebäude wurde einige Jahre als Gesundheitsamt genutzt, bevor es verkauft wurde. Inzwischen wurden die Gebäude umgebaut und beherbergen heute komfortable Wohnungen mit hohen Decken. Es ist heute als Old Edinburgh Court bekannt.  

Oidhche mhath!

Angie, Micha und Laird Hasenbär

[clan-carruthers]

CLAN CARRUTHERS: The lands of our family 1300-1700, a window into our history.

We were deemed in our day to be quite a powerful, and very well respected family and classed in Annandale as a member of the landed gentry. Although we were lairds of estates throughout Annandale, Carruthers were never Lords. However, both Mouswald and Holmains were erected as Baronies through the Scottish Crown. The accumulation of lands were therefore very important, both finacially and…

[mystlnewsonline]

California Governor Issues Legislative Update 8/22/2023

California Governor Newsom Issues Legislative Update on 8/22/2023 SACRAMENTO, CA (STL.News) California Governor Gavin Newsom yesterday announced that he has signed the following bills: - AB 342 by Assemblymember Avelino Valencia (D-Anaheim) – Architects and real estate appraisers: applicants and licensees: demographic information. - AB 400 by Assemblymember Blanca Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) – Local agency design-build projects: authorization. - AB 592 by Assemblymember Lori Wilson (D-Fairfield) – Vehicles: commercial nonfranchise solid waste haulers: pilot program. - AB 648 by Assemblymember Avelino Valencia (D-Anaheim) – Common interest developments: procedures: meetings by teleconference. - AB 1140 by the Committee on Insurance – Insurance. - AB 1395 by Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia (D-Coachella) – Licensed Physicians and Dentists from Mexico Pilot Program: requirements. - AB 1560 by Assemblymember Heath Flora (R-Modesto) – Crematories: change in ownership. - AB 1716 by the Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials – Hazardous wastes and materials: certified unified program agencies. - AB 1763 by the Committee on Agriculture – Food and agriculture: industry-funded standardization program: Cannella Environmental Farming Act of 1995: Noxious Weed Management Account. - AB 1765 by the Committee on Revenue and Taxation – Income tax administration: installment agreements, suspension, forfeiture, and revivor. - SB 95 by Senator Richard D. Roth (D-Riverside) – Commercial transactions. SB 151 by the Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review – State employment: State Bargaining Unit 6 agreement. - SB 247 by Senator Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita) – Alcoholic beverages: licensing exemptions: barbering and cosmetology services. - SB 343 by Senator Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) – Child support. - SB 388 by Senator Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera) – Alcoholic Beverage Tax: beer manufacturer returns and schedules. - SB 432 by Senator Dave Cortese (D-San Jose) – Teachers’ retirement. - SB 544 by Senator John Laird (D-Santa Cruz) – Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act: teleconferencing. - SB 743 by Senator Janet Nguyen (R-Huntington Beach) – Insurance: false and fraudulent claims. - SB 852 by Senator Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) – Searches: supervised persons. - SB 891 by the Committee on Transportation – Transportation: omnibus bill. The California Governor also announced that he has vetoed the following bills: - AB 316 by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) – Vehicles: autonomous vehicles. A veto message can be found here. - AB 957 by Assemblymember Lori Wilson (D-Fairfield) – Family law: gender identity. A veto message can be found here. - AB 1306 by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles) – State government: immigration enforcement. A veto message can be found here. - SOURCE: California Governor Read the full article

[scotianostra]

John Rattray, the Scottish Jacobite Surgeon and golfer was born on September 22nd 1707, Craighall Castle, Rattray, Perthshire.

John’s father was an Episcopalian priest who became the Bishop of Dunkeld, then of Brechin and was elected Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church. On his death in 1743 his elder son James became clan chief and inherited the estate. As the second son John had no such inheritance and he trained as a surgeon in Edinburgh by apprenticeship to the surgeon John Semple between 1728 and 1735, when he began surgical practice in Edinburgh. To enhance his professional status he applied to become a freeman (or fellow) of the Incorporation of Surgeons of Edinburgh (later the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh) This involved sitting a series of four examinations which were held in the later months of 1740, and, having passed these, he was admitted a freeman of the Incorporation in November 1740.

In his spare time John Rattray was a keen sportsman he joined , The Royal Company of Archers in 1731 winning the archery competition for the silver punch bowl on 4 occasions and The Company’s most prestigious prize, the Edinburgh Arrow, twice. He was also a skilled golfer and his prowess at golf is recorded in this extract from the mock heroic poem ‘The Goff’ by Rev. Thomas Mathison published in 1743, the first poem devoted to the sport of golf.

North from Edina eight furlongs and more, Lies that fam’d field, on Fortha’s sounding shore. Here Caledonian Chiefs for health resort, Confirm their sinews by the manly sport. Macdonald and unmatch’d Dalrymple ply Their pond'rous weapons, and the green defy; Rattray for skill, and Corse for strength renown’d, Stewart and Lesly beat the sandy ground, And Brown and Alston, Chiefs well known to fame, And numbers more the Muse forbears to name. Gigantic Biggar here full oft is seen, Like huge behemoth on an Indian green; His bulk enormous scarce can 'scape the eyes, Amaz’d spectators wonder how he plies. Yea, here great Forbes, patron of the just, The dread of villains and the good man’s trust, When spent with toils in serving human kind, His body recreates, and unbends his mind.

John Rattray was one of the men who drew up the first ever Rules of Golf and on March 7th, 1744, the City of Edinburgh Council provided the Gentlemen Golfers at Leith (now the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers at Muirfield) with a Silver Club on condition they draw up regulations for their competition and rules ‘for the goff’.The following month Rattray won the first ever competition for the Silver Club, was duly appointed ‘Captain of the Goff’ and became the sole signatory of the first known written ‘Rules of Golf’.

18 months later the Jacobites entered Edinburgh and Rattray’s older brother James, the Laird of Craighall, suggested he offer his medical services to Bonnie Prince Charlie, I say suggested, as Clan Chief he chose which side to be on for family members.

Please note not all followed their Clan Chief, this split many families down the middle, you had brothers taking different sides during th ‘45 Uprising.

As the Jacobites mobilised ahead of Prestonpans, Rattray, who lived at South Foulis Close off the High Street, rode to the East Lothian encampment along with John Lauder, a fellow of the Incorporation of Surgeons,according to their records he tended the wounded and travelled as surgeon with the army as it advanced into England and then retreated from Derby, eventually becoming surgeon general and personal surgeon to Prince Charles.

Records also show Rattray and Lauder were captured on the battlefield at Culloden on April 16 1746. The pair were held in a church in Inverness and their medical instruments removed, according to accounts. They were moved to Inverness Prison three days later. Their detention, however, was short lived after Lord President Forbes sought a direct reprieve for Rattray and Lauder from the Duke of Cumberland, Forbes, the same Forbes mentioned in the poem, and a friend of the surgeon.

Following his release, Rattray headed to Culloden House, the family home of his golfing companion.

One account of his release in The Lyon in Mourning, a collection of papers, letters and speeches of Jacobite supporters of the ‘45 Uprising, said: “Mr John Rattray came to Culloden House after his liberation at Inverness. President Forbes told the said Mr Rattray that he had obtained his liberation upon condition that he should become evidence.”

John Rattray was horrified by the prospect of becoming a witness for the state, according to the account.

It added: “This provoked Mr Rattray so much that he told the President in a passion that he would far choose to give himself up in a second and to return to the miserable situation of a prisoner once more than to become an evidence.”

Lord President Forbes convinced him not to surrender with the law man sure he was able to spare the surgeon. The medics returned to Edinburgh and Rattray confided in a friend about Lord Presidents’ offer.

It is said the Lord President, who died the following year, was so taken aback at Rattray sharing details of the proposal that “it had bad effects upon the President’s health, and even hastened his death.

“It is indeed a prevailing opinion that the President died of a broken heart,” the account said.

Rattray was quickly seized in the capital and was again taken prisoner on 28 May 1746 before being sent to London, by Cumberland’s orders, to act as a witness.

He was finally released on January 7 1747 and eventually returned to his usual routine of work and sport.

In 1751, he won the Silver Club for the third time. Today, you can visit a statue of John Rattray on Leith Links, close to the first hole of the original course that was played 276 years ago. He died in Edinburgh on 5th July 1771.

[annarellix]

The Scottish Ladies' Detective Agency By Lydia Travers (The Scottish Ladies Detective Agency #1)

When Maud McIntyre sets up her own private detective agency, she never imagines her first case will involve murder… A mystery in the Highlands? The Scottish Ladies’ Detective Agency is on the case!

Edinburgh, 1911: When Maud McIntyre and her lady’s maid, Daisy, form a detective agency, they never dream their first case will take place at a glamorous house in the Scottish Highlands. But when the Duchess of Duddingston, concerned that a notorious jewellery thief will target her lavish weekend party, employs Maud to go undercover as a guest to find the culprit, the agency has its first case to solve… Undercover with Daisy as her maid, Maud follows a trail of clues across the Duddingston House estate. And as she meets the weekend guests, she hopes one of them will reveal themselves as the jewellery thief. But when one of the house guests is discovered dead, Maud and Daisy realise they’re not only hunting precious gems, but a murderer… As Maud and Daisy investigate, they realise that a connection in Edinburgh might hold a vital clue that will help them solve the case. Travelling back to the city, Maud hopes that what she and Daisy uncover will help them piece together the mystery. But when Maud receives a telephone call from the Duchess requesting urgent assistance, she realises that the murderer didn’t have just one victim in mind. Speeding down the drive to Duddingston House, Maud and Daisy hear gunshots ring out across the estate. Will they reach the Duchess in time to save her? And might they catch the murderer in the act?

My Review: A gentlewoman who choose to work as Detective with her own lady’s maid: when I read the blurb I liked the idea and was curious about Maud and Daisy. When I met them I was glad to meet to two clever and unusual women who will be shunned for their gender and unusual work choice. Maud, a gentlewoman, is a suffragette and fights for social justice, Daisy is a very clever and vivacious woman. They’re a lovely couple that will not stop at anything when they want to investigate. There’s a lot of humour, there’s a lovely couple of MCs and there’s a solid mystery. I guessed the culprit but I didn’t guess why so I had a lot of fun in following the clues and trying to understand. I want to meet this lovely couple soon as I binge read this novel in one afternoon. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Bookouture for this arc, all opinions are mine

The Author: Lydia Travers was born in London.  She moved progressively north until settling with her husband in a village on the edge of the Scottish Highlands. She has raised children, bred dogs and kept chickens; and for as long as she can remember has written for pleasure. A former legal academic and practitioner with a PhD in criminology, she now runs self-catering holiday accommodation, sings in a local choir and is walked daily by the family dog. Lydia also writes as Linda Tyler and her first novel under that name, Revenge of the Spanish Princess, won a 2018 Romance Writers of America competition for the beginning of an historical romance. Her second novel The Laird's Secret was Commended in the 2021 Scottish Association of Writers' Pitlochry Quaich competition for the beginning of a romantic novel. Mischief in Midlothian won the 2022 Scottish Association of Writers' Constable Silver Stag trophy. She has had a number of short stories published in magazines, journals and anthologies in the UK, the USA and Australia.

https://www.facebook.com/LindaTylerAuthorScotland https://twitter.com/LindaTyler100

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[ashauyel]

can you recommend the good harlequin romance novels?

full disclosure I was using the word harlequin in a very loose way that fans of romance do sometimes to refer to a specific subset of romances, romances that are very light on plot and heavy on emotionalism and generally speaking revolve around a set of tropes that is agreed upon by fans of the genre (something that would be reflected in the future in fandom spaces!), and not “Harlequin” as the romance novel publishing house from the 50s that originated the use of the term. I hope this isn’t deeply disappointing to you because I still do have some recommendations off the top of my head!

I have read many (MANY) romances, and a lot of them are bad or contain some good things inside a lot of bad surroundings. The few that I can recommend with a straight face that I can remember:

Rebellion by Nora Roberts— Nora Roberts is one of the best selling and most prolific romance authors of all time and this is for a reason! Honestly I would recommend a lot of her work because she is just a very good author. This novel is one of her earlier works from the 80s before she branched out into fantasy. Set during the Jacobite Rising, starring the tomboy daughter of a Scottish laird who wants to pick up a sword to defend her family, and an English lord who gives up a life in England to help free Scotland from English rule. Kind of like if Pride and Prejudice was sexy and people were stabbed. General warning for the heavy discussion of sexual violence as well as situations of dubious consent.

Jewels of the Sun by Nora Roberts— had to recommend another by her, the lady knows her stuff! This is the first of a three part series, if you like this book you will love the next two! Set in modern day (so… 2000 when it was written lol) Ireland, a practical and stuffy author comes to the small town where her grandmother grew up to reconnect with herself after her divorce and meets the local pub owner who offers to help her write a book about local legends. Nora started dipping into fantasy around this time so this book does have some supernatural elements and some really interesting discussion of Irish mythology! This one is mostly focused on the main characters’ emotional journey rather than an external plot so it discusses finding yourself outside of romance, which I think is really fun!

Scandalous by Karen Robards— I will be honest this is probably the only novel I could ever recommend in good conscience from this author, there are two more in this series that are just okay but aren’t moving. Set in Regency era England, this book stars the oldest sister of a family of three neglected girls whose father dies leaving his entire estate to their estranged older brother, who dies suddenly just before he is due to inherit. The main character decides to pretend he is still alive in order to embezzle their father’s money and secure their future— but wait! A man shows up claiming to be their brother, and the main character is the only one who knows this is impossible. She makes an uneasy truce with the criminal who intends to take her brother’s place… but what if there’s something more between them? (They should hire me to write the blurbs on the back of books.) Protagonist isn’t a typical romance heroine! Warning for situations of dubious consent and the discussion of childhood sexual abuse.

Brigand Bride by Miriam Minger— if you want to read historical romances I would recommend Miriam Minger. She writes everything from Vikings to Victorians and her books are reliably fun reads that stick to a formula that works. Set some years after the Jacobite Rising, the main character is a nobleman’s daughter who moonlights as a ruffian who thwarts English soldiers, who suddenly has to deal with an English soldier who comes to occupy her land but like… feels bad about it? Suffers from romance novel syndrome but it’s still a fun read. General warning for the discussion of sexual violence.

Getting Rid of Bradley by Jennifer Crusie— if you want to have fun AND think about a romance for the rest of your life please read this book. Generally would recommend a lot of Jennifer Cruise’s work, she’s a good author with a very enjoyable style! Our heroine is a woman who has recently divorced her awful husband Bradley, and our hero is a detective looking for a criminal named Bradley. Due to coincidences he ends up moving in to protect her and her hilariously named group of dogs while investigating the connection between the two and silliness ensues. The drama is excellent and the comedy is better.

what I would recommend to anyone looking for romances is just to get into them! especially the ones with paintings of women in long dresses and flowers and stuff on the covers! I genuinely think there’s a lot of good stuff to be found in novels like those as long as you’re willing to wade through some bad stuff lol