Scotland for Quiet Moments is not a standard travel guide. You’ll find no references to the main tourist destinations or opening times. Rather, it leads you to largely unknown, quiet places. In its pages, you will find a plethora of historical, strange, romantic and funny stories from across the centuries, which will lead you to... Continue Reading →
Scotland is a country full of history, stories and secrets. Often, the three cannot be separated. That is what makes this country so wonderful and unique. These stories have been discovered and gathered for Erkenbach’s blog, Graveyards of Scotland, over many years. Her main sources were historical travel guides from the 18th and 19th centuries,... Continue Reading →
The morning of the first day of the year 1919 dawned but despite the light the day was as dark as a day could be for the islanders. Lewis was in shock, the death toll after the tragic sinking of the HMY Iolaire slowly became apparent. She had taken 205 men to their death. Few... Continue Reading →
It was at the beginning of the last millennium, the Danes were still threatening the Scottish coast, and the clanchiefs were busy fighting off invaders after invaders. In 1004, the Danes invaded Banffshire and were received with horror as well as courage by the locals. There were not many places along the coast where a... Continue Reading →
Portpatrick is a village in the Dumfries and Galloway council area, formerly Wigtownshire at the southwestern end of Scotland. It has an old burial ground (Old Portpatrick) and an older part to the new cemetery . As the name suggests, the local harbour has for a long time been trading with Ireland, there was a... Continue Reading →
Kirkyards all over Scotland have been abandoned for various reasons, some after the Reformation, others because the Parish or village boundaries were changing or because the churches were too old or the kirkyards too full. Whatever the reason, an abandoned churchyard has a sad and slightly eerie quality, especially on a dreich day. Stoneykirk in... Continue Reading →
a partisan for the pretender When Charles Edward Stuart came to Scotland in 1745 to conquer his crown and his realm, the young king-to-be landed in the Western Highlands, where he could count on most supporters. There were not many in the Borders who would have given him unwavering support, with one big exception: James... Continue Reading →
Blackmount is a pretty and small graveyard on the border between Peeblesshire and Lanarkshire. The cemetery goes back to the late 18th century. Many stones are very old and somewhere in between these stones a man was buried who left no gravestone to remember him. He was a tailor, a major and a prisoner. ... Continue Reading →
Here lies removed from mundane scenes, A major of the King's Marines, Under arrest in narrow borders He rises not till further orders. Raymont Lamont-Brown: Scottish Epitaphs. Chambers, Edinburgh, 1990
They called it "the forest", plain and simple, there was never another one that size and importance. The Ettrick forest is extraordinary in the history of Scotland, its worth was political, biological and geographical. When one spoke of the forest, everyone knew which one was meant. There was only one of these dimensions; it reached... Continue Reading →
Lindisfarne graveyard on Holy Island, Northumberland, symbolizes centuries of faith and history, overlooking Lindisfarne Priory’s ruins. A significant site since the 7th century, it holds the remains of islanders and clergy. The graveyard fosters reflection and connection to St Cuthbert, attracting visitors seeking inspiration and tranquility amid a sacred legacy.
Bamburgh, with its dramatic coastal setting and rich history, has revealed yet another fascinating chapter of its past. Decades of dedicated research by the Bamburgh Research Project and Durham University, in collaboration with the Bamburgh Castle Estate, have shed light on the lives of Anglo-Saxons who inhabited this area over a thousand years ago. The […]
Grace Darling, born in 1815, became famous for her courageous sea rescue of Forfarshire survivors in 1838. She passed away in 1842 and is buried in Bamburgh, where a monument marks her legacy. Celebrated in literature and art, her story inspires future generations, symbolizing bravery and compassion.
Graveyards of Scotland 
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