Tour Two: Stirling and Surrounds Historic Tour - 21st-28th July 2024 

Greetings!  Whether you’ve been to Scotland before or not, a number of historic venues which were influential is shaping the history and character of the nation which should not be missed! Our Clan Gregor members have expressed an interest in a coach tour which maximizes visits to these sites by basing the tour in Stirling, geographically based in the center of the country and offering easy access to a number of noteworthy destinations. 

 

Known as the Gateway to the Highlands, Stirling boasts a royal castle built and occupied by the Stewart kings.  Its colorful history also includes the Wallace Monument (built 1898), overlooking the actual site of William Wallace’s famous victory in the Battle of Stirling Bridge as depicted in Braveheart.  Scotland’s War for Independence culminated a few years later at nearby Bannockburn Battlefield where Robert Bruce defeated the forces of Edward II of England in 1314, the result being four centuries of independence for Scotland freedom. The on-site Bannockburn Battle Experience immerses visitors in the medieval warfare experience using state-of-the-art technology. Not too be missed!

 

Where do we start?

Richard McGregor, CGS Chairman and Keith MacGregor, North American Representative will act as your tour guides.  We have arranged to stay at the Stirling Highland Hotel, which will allow daily coach trips to a number of attractive and historic locations. Following a day in Stirling we will visit Edinburgh Castle an impregnable fortress and military barracks which the MacGregors attempted to take during the ’45, having breached the West Gate for Bonnie Prince Charlie but finding their ropes too short for scaling the castle walls.  Nearby we find St Giles Cathedral, with its shadowed history of John Knox and the 1560 Reformation in Scotland, a memorial to Scottish heroes, and, depending on your point of view, even a few villains.

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Most significantly for the MacGregors, here is the Heart of Midlothian where the old Tolbooth prison hosted the execution of Alasdair MacGregor and eleven leading MacGregor figures following the Rout of Glen Fruin. For those of you who may know, the clan offered a stunning display of its warlike nature by routing the Colquhouns as well as 200 armored cavalry from Dumbarton in a lopsided victory on 7 Feb,1603, only to become the victims of a misguided James VI whose questionable decree is the only genocide ever recorded by a Scottish king - condemning all of the name MacGregor to “the pain of deid”. The Proscription lasted some 170 years and contributed greatly to our reputation and our tenacity.  It is also the reason so many of our members today bear a surname other than, but still related to, MacGregor – all tied to Glen Fruin.

 

It was Sir Walter Scott who wrote The Heart of Midlothian to be found within the brick outline embedded in the pavement in front of St Giles. On our visit to Abbotsford, the baronial manor he built with the proceeds from his novel Rob Roy, we’ll see the desk where Sir Walter penned many of his famously popular works as well as Rob Roy’s actual sword, crafted by the famous swordsmith Andrea Ferrara.

 

From there its time for the DaVinci Code - aka Rosslyn Chapel - built by the Sinclairs, Templar Grand Masters in the 15th century. Some say it once housed the famous Templar treasure amassed by them during the Crusades. Of course, we’ll go down into the crypt as Tom Hanks did in the movie, where you can decide whether that treasure – or the Virgin Mary – lies hidden there.

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And back to Edinburgh...

On Day 5, we’ll begin the day by exploring Edinburgh’s Royal  Mile, savoring the street culture of the Fringe, an avant-guard festival of sorts which takes place each summer, with a bit of time for shopping. You’ll see John Knox’s house and the Palace of Holyrood as well as the new, impressive Scottish Parliament building along the way. Speaking of impressive, during the afternoon we’ll visit the world-famous Kelpies, an astounding (as well as massive) metal sculpture which won the European prize in 2016.  If you don’t know what a Kelpie is, read a bit of Scottish and Viking seafaring mythology.

 

Day 6 brings an interesting mix of visits beginning with the Killecrankie museum and a key Jacobite victory in 1689. There are several accounts of the battle which claim that Rob Roy, son of Lt. Colonel Donald Glas (Grey) MacGregor, was present at the battle – his age barely 17. Other tales claim this battle as the birth of the Highland Charge which demolished the Redcoat army. Further up the road we come to Blair castle, ancestral home of the Murrays, Anglo-Norman nobles who our chiefs marry at various times over various centuries. However, in the early 18th century, Rob was captured and imprisoned here until he convinced his jailor to procure a bottle of whisky, following which Rob let himself out of the cell and was off! Another tale of our hero!

 

On our way back to Stirling we’ll visit the lovely village of Pitlochry, considered to be the wool capitol of the Highlands. On summer evenings the village puts on “Pitlochry Evenings”, a small nightly festival with food, entertainment, and of course fine woolen goods for sale! A serendipitous event!

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Finally...

Our final day will be spent touring the “Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond’, famed in beauty and song. On its NE side lies the estate of Craigroyston, a vast mountainous area belonging at one time to Rob Roy MacGregor.  We have a grand tale to tell about that in relation to our plans for 2025, but more to follow when we’re there.

 

Finally, for what is certainly one of the most important moments in MacGregor history, we will make our way to the battle site of Glen Fruin.  Here we’ll present a complete picture of what actually happened - the famous victory which established us as a superior fighting clan, as well as the tragic consequences which followed

when King James VI, about to head off to London to rule the two kingdoms, issued the ONLY genocidal order ever produced by a Scottish king – against us in 1604!

 

Logistics...

The Stirling Tour will be based at The Stirling Highland Hotel. The cost for the week of 21 - 28 July, 2024 is 1850 GBP per person, which we hope you'll compare to the prices other travel agents and tourism companies are charging. Please note that airfares are not included.

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If you are sincerely interested in joining us for this one-of-a-kind weeklong event, we’d be happy to hear from you.  Remember it is for Clan Gregor Society members only and presents a level of knowledge of our MacGregor history not available anywhere else.  

 

Tell us your age range – 21-35, 36-50, 60-75 and so on. Who in your party would be attending, including names, addresses, emails, and yes, cell phone numbers.  We don’t want to lose anyone!

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One more suggestion – if you are attending Tour 2 we recommend booking your flight through Edinburgh airport as it provides easier access than Glasgow when returning home.  Costs for flying to either airport are about the same.

 

Once again thanks for your interest in the Clan Gregor Society of Scotland!

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Keith MacGregor

North American Representative/CGS

usa@clangregor.com