No visit to Inverness is complete without visiting Culloden Battlefield. Just outside of the city are the remains of one of the most important battles in Scottish history. I’ll be honest with you, before we went to Inverness I didn’t know much about this place. I’ve never seen Outlander and my Scottish history knowledge is average at best. However, venturing here taught me so much about the Jacobite uprising and allowed me to enjoy breathtaking views which only the Scottish Highlands can offer.
Here is my quick guide to help you get the most of your visit to this magical place. Enjoy.
Visiting Culloden Battlefield | Your Quick Guide
A Bit of Background – Why is Culloden Famous?
Before we get started, I want to explain why this place is so important. Culloden, which took place in 1746, was the last pitched battle fought on British soil. It was split between two armies. You had the Jacobite forces led by “Bonnie Prince Charlie’, an exiled Royal heir who wanted to take the throne of Britain. These were accompanied by the Scottish Highlander forces, supposedly some of the most elite soldiers of the day. On the other side you had the British forces led by the Duke of Cumberland who were tasked with destroying the rebellion.
The battle took place just outside of Inverness and lasted for just one hour, after which the British forces won. Because of the Highlander involvement, the aftermath brought with it a destruction of traditional clan culture; removing tartan and the Gaelic language from Scotland for the following years.
Your Visit to Culloden
Getting There and Costs
Culloden is just outside of Inverness and is easily accessible by car or bus, both of which take around 15 minutes. For buses, you have a few different options, with the most direct being the Numbers 27 and 112.
The Battlefields are part of National Trust Scotland and members of the National Trust enter for free. However, if you are not members tickets cost £12.50 for adults and £8.00 for a child. There are also concessions available and family passes. In terms of opening times, it is open from 09:00 – 18:00.
Visitor Centre
The first part of your journey will take you to the visitor centre. I was really impressed by the level of information here. You walk through a long timeline of events during your visit, showing you what led up to the battle. I loved how it was set up. The walkway had the two points of view, Jacobite and British, on opposite walls so that you could compare the viewpoints and understand the reasons why each side did what. This meant that I really understood what was happening and could understand the reasons behind the battle.
At the end of the timeline is the battle. The National Trust have created a 360-degree battle cinema, where you feel well and truly immersed in the battle. I thought that this was really effective at showing you what it could have been like on the day.
After the cinema experience, you then have the collection of artefacts from the battle. This ranges from weaponry to personal belongings of the soldiers.
The Battlefields
Once you have completed the visitor centre (and I would suggest you do it this way around), you can head out to the battlefields. By themselves they are a haunting site, with obvious graves marked across it. You’ll see flags that represent the different forces and stone markers for all the clans that fought and died here.
The best thing we did was to join a group tour. We had an incredible guide, Gavin, who was able to point out all of the key sites and really brought to life the information we had just seen in the visitor centre. In all honesty, without the tour I don’t think that I would have appreciated the battlefields as much. Besides from the obvious markers and the spectacular views, there isn’t a lot here to guide you around. Gavin however was an excellent storyteller and his descriptions were so good that we could almost picture how the battle unfolded.
Final Thoughts | Visiting Culloden Battlefield
Visiting Culloden Battlefield is a must-do for anyone who is staying in Inverness. There is so much Scottish history and heritage here and the National Trust have done an incredible job at bringing it to life. Not only that, but aside from the battlefield the location has to be one of the prettiest around. It is especially beautiful in the summer with all of the vibrant fireweed. Whenever you choose to go, a visit here will open your eyes to this sober chapter in British history.
I hope that this post has helped you plan your visit and, if you have any questions, please just ask.
