A guide to the history of Caithness

Crannogs and Brochs

A significant amount of Caithness is well off the beaten tourist route but this is not due to any lack of interesting features. Caithness has its fair share of ancient civilisations which have left their mark on the land.

There are the more obvious attractions like Girnigoe, Keiss and Mey castle. Less obvious but equally rewarding are the little known sites which litter the Caithness countryside where Brochs, Crannogs and monuments were built thousands of years ago.

There are over 600 Crannog sites in Scotland and more are being discovered all the time including in Caithness. Crannogs were centres of prosperous Iron Age farms. Built on artificial islands in lochs or bogs to create easily defendable homesteads some dating from around 5,000 years ago. Situated on water or on boggy land meant the occupiers were more protected from passing raiders or wild animals.

There is no real consensus on what the word ‘Crannog’ actually means. The old Irish word refers to some sort of wooden structure coming from the word crann which means tree. Other translations point towards meanings such as ‘piece of wood’, ‘pulpit’, ‘vessel’ or ‘structure’. It is even unknown as to whether the term refers to the structure or the island that the structure sits on.

As you drive around the Caithness country side you may see an island that looks a little out of place. This may have been the centre of a community thousands of years ago.

Brochs are also common (or were common a few millennia ago) in Caithness. There are thought to be as many as 300 Broch sites in Caithness, many of which have never been excavated. Brochs are Iron Age dry stone structures which are only found in Scotland. Some represent the most sophisticated dry stone architecture ever discovered. Caithness, Sutherland and Orkney claim the densest concentrations in the country.

The word ‘Broch’ comes from the Lowland Scots word ‘brough’ roughly translated as fort. Their purpose was to provide a place of refuge for a community and their livestock but may also have been a symbol of prestige. Many are surrounded by massive earthworks and would have had communities springing up around them many of which may still survive today.

Considering these structures were built over 2,000 years ago by a little known culture, the scale is truly amazing. They would vary in size from 5 to 15 meters tall with walls 3 meters thick. Two layers of rock surround the hollow inside with stairs leading up to the different levels. Wooden floors created the living space above and the ground floor was left for livestock.

You will struggle to find directions to the many Brochs, Crannogs and Iron Age hut circles in guide books. Better to consult a local farmer who could point you in the right direction. Although they will not be towering 15 meters above any more you they are still wonderful places to visit on the right day.

The Pictish tribes who dominated Northern and Eastern Scotland during the late Iron Age have left behind a huge number of fascinating sites, place names and objects which archaeologists still study. In 2006 seven archaeological projects took place across Caithness to investigate the Neolithic and Iron Age history demonstrating the rich history of the area.