Exclusive House of Gordon Tour
This tour explores the magnificent scenery of the Gordon heartland whilst tracing some of the clan history through their estates and more humble homes, castles and military legacy. Along the way we’ll be looking at the clan’s origins, their later Jacobite exploits and subsequent years of illicit whisky smuggling. As part of the tour, we have exclusive access to the Aboyne Castle Estate, seat of the Gordon Clan. As an optional extra, you can also take a guided tour of Aboyne Castle led by the Earl of Aboyne, heir to the Clan Chief, the Marquis of Huntly (subject to availability).
Itinerary
Day One, Gordon upland country
Our first stop is the atmospheric, ruined Huntly Castle. Originally built by the earls of Fife around 1190, it was the mighty Gordons who made the stronghold their own from the 1300s and eventually renamed it Huntly Castle. The surviving remains tell the story of the development of the castle in Scotland, from the motte and bailey of the 1100s, through the tower house of the later Middle Ages, to the stately stone palace of the Jacobean era.
Driving south, we’ll then visit the Rhynie Pictish Symbol Stones – enigmatic stones carved with mysterious symbols by the original residents of the northeast of Scotland who had disappeared from history by the 11th century (if you are a Gordon, you may well have some Pictish blood in you!). Turning west for a while we’ll drive over the remote and atmospheric Cabrach Moor where both Jacobites and later whisky smugglers hid away from the prying eyes of Redcoats, and where the scattered ruins of later farms bear witness to the impact of the First World War that emptied the land of its young men.
Turning into the majestic Strathdon, we’ll visit Glenbuchat Castle – a ruined 16th century tower house built by one of the lesser Gordon aristocratic families and later owned by the infamous John Gordon of Glenbuchat, who fought in all three Jacobite uprisings and reputedly bullied his neighbours into joining the 45! On the approach to Aboyne, we’ll stop at the mysterious Tomnaverie Stone Circle, an early Bronze Age recumbent stone circle in the middle of the beautiful Howe of Cromar, a type of monument peculiar to the northeast of Scotland. From there, we can view Alastrean House (House of Cromar) – the former summer hunting ‘lodge’ of Lord and Lady Aberdeen, John and Ishbel Gordon, whose main residence, Haddo House we’ll be visiting on Day Two. We’ll finish the day with a visit to the private Aboyne Castle Estate and view (outside only) the beautifully restored tower house of Aboyne Castle and learn about its Knights Templar connection and also how the Aboyne Gordons acquired the Marquis of Huntly and clan chief titles from the Huntly Gordons.
Day Two, Gordon lowland country
We start the day with a tour of the attractive Glen Dronach Distillery – one of the oldest licensed distilleries in Scotland in the middle of Gordon country, which was taken over by Charles Grant of Glenfiddich’s Grant-Gordon fame in 1920. The tour is finished with a sampling of three malts, accompanied by hand made chocolate truffles. Our next stop is Fyvie Castle, first built in the 13th century, the castle has been added to over the centuries by five successive families, Preston, Meldrum, Seton, Gordons and Leith – each of whom added a new tower to the castle to create the present impressive structure. Inside, the castle features a great wheel stair (which the Gordons supposedly rode their horses up and down after wild drinking nights), a display of original arms and armour, and a collection of old portraits by famous artists. The splendour and beauty of the castle’s surroundings are almost entirely the doing of William Gordon, the illegitimate son of General William Gordon and his scullery maid!
Our final visit of the day is to Haddo House, the opulent home of the Earls of Aberdeen. Built near an earlier Gordon castle, the house was designed by William Adam in 1732 in the Georgian Palladian style and luxuriously refurbished in the 1880s by Lady Aberdeen, Ishbel Gordon, who considered it old fashioned and uncomfortable. It contains a large art collection, including family portraits of generations of Gordons, who played a huge part in Scottish and British history, including a prime minister. Lord and Lady Aberdeen, Johnny and Ishbel Gordon, were generous Victorian philanthropists and were progressive and forward thinking on many issues of the day. However, their generosity combined with the financial responsibilities that came with Johnny’s diplomatic posts (Viceroy of Ireland and Governor General of Canada) and declining revenues from the estate meant that much of the fortune was eventually lost.
Visits to:
Day One – Huntly Castle; Rhynie Pictish Stones; Cabrach Moor; Glenbuchat Castle; Tomnaverie Stone Circle; Aboyne Castle Estate
Day Two – Glen Garioch Distillery; Fyvie Castle; Haddo House;