Cowal Comhghall (Scottish Gaelic) | |
|---|---|
 Cowal, taken by Landsat | |
  Cowal Cowal within Scotland | |
| Coordinates:56°01′N5°06′W / 56.017°N 5.100°W /56.017; -5.100 | |
| Grid position | NS 09111 85254 |
| Location | Argyll and Bute,Scotland |
| Highest elevation | 901.7 metres (2,958 ft) |
Cowal (Scottish Gaelic:Comhghall)[1] is a ruggedpeninsula inArgyll and Bute, on the west coast of Scotland. It is connected to the mainland to the north, and is bounded byLoch Fyne to the west, byLoch Long and theFirth of Clyde to the east, and by theKyles of Bute to the south.
Argyll is the historiccounty that the Cowal peninsula was within.Inveraray was the county town.[2][3]
The northern part of the peninsula is covered byArgyll Forest Park[4] and also includes theArrochar Alps. In the south, the peninsula is divided into three forks byLoch Striven andLoch Riddon. Cowal's onlyburgh isDunoon in the south-east,[5] from whichferries sail toGourock inInverclyde. Other ferries run fromPortavadie in the west toTarbert in Kintyre, and fromColintraive in the south toRhubodach on Bute.
Much of Cowal was once held by theLamont clan.[6] Later, theCampbells came to be one of the most powerful families in Cowal.[7]
The highest point on the peninsula isBeinn an Lochain in theArrochar Alps, aCorbett with a height of 901.7 metres (2,958 ft).[8] The summit overlooksLoch Restil.[9]
The peninsula is connected to the mainland and bounded to the north by theArrochar Alps, a group of mountains located around the head ofLoch Fyne,Loch Long, andLoch Goil. TheKyles of Bute, a narrow sea channel, separates it from theIsle of Bute to the south, and it borders theFirth of Clyde to the south-east. Several deeply incisedsea lochs form a major factor in its geography, with Loch Fyne providing its western boundary, Loch Long providing its north-eastern boundary, and Loch Goil, theHoly Loch,Loch Striven andLoch Riddon cutting into the peninsular and dividing it into several forks.[10][11][12]
At its longest, from theRest and be Thankful pass toArdlamont Point, the peninsular is some 32 miles (51 km) long. At its broadest, fromDunoon toOtter Ferry, it is some 17 miles (27 km) wide. Its highest point, onBeinn Ìme in the Arrochar Alps, is 1,012.2 metres (3,321 ft) above sea level.[10][11][12]
Cowal's underlying geology is made up largely of resistantmetamorphic rocks, but south of theHighland Boundary Fault part of theToward peninsula is composed ofsedimentary rocks. The landscape is mountainous, the high ground dominated bymoorland,peat mosses and the forest that often extends down the sides of the sea lochs to the water's edge. The acreage of improved farmland is small. Most land is owned by estates or theForestry and Land Scotland except in the more settled areas.[13]
The coast is mostly rocky and the few beaches are mostly shingle and gravel, with the principal exceptions ofOstel Bay on Loch Fyne in the far south-west of Cowal, andArdentinny on Loch Long in the east, where sandy beaches are to be found.[13][14][15] The only lowland areas are around the coast where most of the settlement is found, particularly around Cowal's largest settlement,Dunoon, on the Firth of Clyde.[13]
Settlements in Cowal include:
Evidence of early occupation of the area is in the form ofcairns or burial mounds. One example is aBronze Age cairn from between about 2000 BC and 800 BC is situated close to the summit of Creag Evanachan, 195 metres (640 ft) above sea level overlooking Loch Fyne. It is a mound of stones about 20 metres (66 ft) in diameter and up to 2 metres (6.6 ft) high.[16] Another is the cairn at Dunchraigaig which is 195 feet (59 m) in diameter and was first excavated in 1864. At the south end acist contained the deposits of burnt bones from eight or ten bodies. A smaller cist in the centre contained a bowl, burnt bone, charcoal andflint chips, and in the clay below them, the remains of a burial. A third even smaller cist also contained a food bowl, burnt bones and flint chips. Awhetstone, flint knife, fragments of pottery and agreenstone axe were also found.[17]
Whenthe Irish invaded the region, it became part of their kingdom ofDal Riata. TheCenél Comgaill, a kin group within Dal Riata, controlled the Cowal peninsula, which consequently took their name (evolving over time fromComgaill toCowal). Prior to this, little is known, except as revealed archaeologically, though the region may have been part of thePictish kingdom ofFortriu.
Following a subsequent invasion byNorsemen, theHebridean islands of Dal Riata became theKingdom of the Isles, which following Norwegian unification became part of Norway, asSuðreyjar (historically anglicised asSodor). The remaining parts of Dal Riata attracted the name Argyll, in reference to their ethnicity. In an unclear manner, thekingdom of Alba was founded elsewhere by groups originating from Argyll.
However, an 11th-century Norse military campaign led to the formal transfer ofLorn,Islay,Kintyre,Knapdale,Bute, andArran, toSuðreyjar. This left Alba with no part of Argyll except Cowal, and the land betweenLoch Awe andLoch Fyne. After Alba united withMoray, over the course of the century, it became Scotland. In 1326, asheriff was appointed for the Scottish parts of Argyll.
Although, following theTreaty of Perth, Suðreyjar's successor state, theLordship of the Isles, fell under the nominal authority of the Scottish king, it was not until 1475 that it was merged with Scotland (the occasion being the punishment ofits ruler for an anti-Scottish conspiracy). The sheriffdom of Argyll was expanded to include the adjacent mainland areas from the Lordship. Following local government reforms in the 19th century, the traditional provinces were formally abolished, in favour of counties aligned with sheriffdoms, so Cowal became merely a part of the county of Argyll.
The history of the Cowal is tied into the clans who inhabited it. Seemingly, in the 11th century, an unidentified heiress of the Cenel Comgaill marriedAnrothan, grandson ofthe king of theCenél nEógain, fromUlster. Clan traditions argue that Anrothan's lands were passed down to a descendant named Aodha Alainn O'Neil, who had the following sons:
Excavations carried out at Castle MacEwen showed the site had several stages of development before it was the defended medieval homestead of the MacEwens; at first there was a palisaded enclosure, and then a promontory fort with a timber rampart.[18]
The remote areas in the north east of Cowal, which were theoretically under the dominion of Clan Lamont, were used by Scottish kings for hunting; indeed, Cowal was the last part of Britain to havewild boar. When KingJohn Balliol was threatened by his rival,Robert de Bruys, Balliol's ally,the king of England, establishedHenry Percy atCarrick Castle, in the region; likewiseDunoon Castle further south. De Bruys expelled the English from Cowal, with the aid of theCampbells (who were based nearby at Loch Awe), and eventually defeated Balliol.De Bruy's son gave Carrick Castle to the Campbells, while, after spending some time as a direct Royal possession, Dunoon Castle was handed to them byJames III, who made the Campbells its Honorary Keepers.[19]
Duringthe civil war between Royalists and Puritans, the Campbells had sided withthe Puritans, so following their defeat at theBattle of Inverlochy, Clan Lamont took the opportunity to push back the borders of Campbell control. Predictably, in 1646, the Campbells took revenge, and overran Toward Castle; after being offered hospitability, the Campbells slaughtered the Lamont occupants in their beds. Despite the chief of the Lamonts surrendering, the Campbells hanged many members of Clan Lamont, in what became known as the Dunoon massacre.[19]
By contrast, the next chief of the Campbells, the son of the former chief, was aRoyalist, so after therestoration of Royalist rule, the Campbells were not ultimately dispossessed of their gains. However, afterJames VII came to the Scottish throne,the Campbells revolted, and the chief was executed, but his son, the new chief, took part inthe successful expulsion of James VII, so the Campbells once again ultimately retained their lands.
After theJacobite rising of 1715 whenJames Francis Edward Stuart attempted to regain the throne, the lack of roads in the Highlands prevented the British army from advancing to quell areas of unrest.General Wade was tasked with implementing aprogramme to build military roads from north-central Scotland through the Highlands to the forts in the Great Glen. They were constructed by officers and soldiers. William Caulfeild succeeded Wade in 1740 and constructed the road from Dumbarton via Tarbet to Inveraray through the Cowal where it is known as the "Rest and Be Thankful".[20]
In Victorian times tourism began to take hold on the Clyde coast. Steam propulsion started in 1812 and by the end of the 19th century,paddle steamers ferried thousands of Glaswegiansdoon the watter fromBroomielaw in the city centre to holiday resorts including Dunoon on the Cowal.[21]
The principal forms of transport in Cowal are by road and by ferry, and the peninsular is crossed by a cycle route that makes use of both. Railways have never penetrated the area.
TheA83 trunk road crosses the northern end of the peninsular passingArrochar at the head of Loch Long andCairndow near the head of Loch Fyne. It partly follows or runs parallel toWilliam Caulfield's historicmilitary road that takes its name, Rest and Be Thankful from the stone seat erected at the summit at the head ofGlen Croe. As the A83 has been subject tolandslips, the old route has been used as a diversionary route.[22] The other A roads are theA815 which links the A83 with Dunoon via Strachur where theA886 leaves it and heads south viaGlendaruel toColintraive where the ferry connects it to the Isle of Bute and theA8003 which linksTighnabruaich to the A886. Other roads are secondary B roads, narrow roads or tracks.
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Because of the incised nature of the coastline around Cowal, ferries play a large part in the transport of the area. The shortest and fastest routes from much of Cowal to the population centres of theScottish central belt involve crossing theFirth of Clyde. A passenger-only service operated byCaledonian MacBrayne connectsDunoon toGourock inInverclyde where there is easy access theScotRail train service toGlasgow Central railway station.Western Ferries operates a high-frequency vehicle carrying service betweenHunters Quay, nearDunoon, andMcInroy's Point, on the outskirts ofGourock inInverclyde.[23][24][25]
Further south and west, Caledonian MacBrayne vehicle ferries provide crossings both to theIsle of Bute and toKintyre. It takes five minutes to cross the 400-yard (370-metre) strait fromColintraive on Cowal toRhubodach on Bute. The ferry fromPortavadie on Cowal toTarbert on Kintyre across Loch Fyne takes 25 minutes.[26][27]
TheNational Cycle Route 75 (NCR75) linksDunoon andPortavadie on Cowal, as part of a through route betweenEdinburgh andTarbert on theKintyre peninsula. The route forms part of theNational Cycle Network, maintained bySustrans.[28][29]
From east to west across Cowal, the route starts with a ferry crossing fromGourock toDunoon. It then follows the Cowal coast north, passing theHoly Loch andSandbank, before travelling throughGlen Lean to the head ofLoch Striven atArdtaraig. From the head of Loch Striven it crosses to the head ofLoch Riddon at theClachan of Glendaruel. It then passes down the west coast of Loch Riddon toTighnabruaich on the shore of theKyles of Bute. From here it crosses inland toPortavadie, where another ferry takes it toTarbert on Kintyre. At Tarbert the NCR75 connects with theNCR78 fromCampbeltown toInverness.[28][30]
TheLoch Lomond and Cowal Way stretches for over 57 miles (92 kilometres) through Cowal, fromPortavadie on the southeastern shore ofLoch Fyne leading toInveruglas onLoch Lomond, in theLoch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park.[31]
TheCowal Highland Gathering, the annualhighland games, are held annually in Dunoon stadium on the last Friday/Saturday of August.[32]
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