Stonehaven - on the East Coast of Scotland

Here are some photos that were taken in and around Stonehaven, a town on the East coast of Scotland, where my mother lived from 2004 untill she died in May 2009. She moved into a nice little flat in the Hanover sheltered housing complex right down beside the beach. She had a great view of the sea from her livingroom window which she loved having been brought up and lived beside it for many years. Her flat, being right next to the supermarket and the High Street shopping, was very convenient for her. She loved her little house and I'm sure it greatly improved her quality of life in her twilight years.

A long time ago Stonehaven was a busy fishing harbour, a market town and also the county seat for Kincardineshire. These days the harbour, like so many others, is used mainly for pleasure boats with only a handful of fishing boats left there. Nearly all the children in Kincardine went to the Mackie Academy which was founded in 1893 thanks to the generosity of a local merchant, William Mackie. Dunnottor Castle stands on a rocky point a couple of miles south of the town and is worth a visit if you are ever in the area. In the later part of the 13th century a stone church, the oldest part of the present castle, was constructed and is thought to have been dedicated to St Ninian. Since then the castle has played an important part in Scottish history. The original wooden walls and church buildings were all burnt down in 1297 by William Wallace while the English garrison was still inside. Later in 1650, Oliver Cromwell almost destroyed the castle with cannon fire during an eight month siege attempting to steal the Scottish Crown Jewels. But just before he took the castle the Crown Jewels were smuggled out in a boat by some ladies who took them to Kinneff church a little way down the coast. The castle has remained derelict since although it is being repaired gradually now. To see a selection of photos about Dunnottar Castle just click on the image on the Right.

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