Ochtertyre by Crieff

Ochtertyre

Exerts from “Beauties of Upper Strathearn “ – an 1860 Tourist Guide 

The mansion house is situated about half way down the slope and is a plain modern and commodious building. At the foot o

f the slope there is a beautiful sheet of water, on the promontory of which stands the donjon of an old fortress that once occupied the whole of the promontory. To the west of the mansion house there is an observatory most picturesquely situated and designed.

The tourist , sending forward his vehicle to the lower west lodge , may enter the grounds  by the east avenue  at what is called the Granite Lodge .On the left , at half distance between the lodge and the mansion  may be seen the family mausoleum , a massive  and tasteful structure of Gothic architecture, erected in 1809 and adorned  with suitable windows of  stained glass. On a black marble tablet, under the large window at the west end, are recorded the names  , ages , marriages , off spring  and burial places of the direct line of the  family ( Murray ) since the middle of the fifteenth century . One of the family died on the fatal field of Flodden. A churchyard enclosed by a neat modern wall  surrounds the mausoleum  where formerly  stood the Parish  Church of Monzievaird   founded fourteen hundred  years ago  by St Serf  who was afterwards styled the Apostle  of the Orkneys .

At a short distance to the west of the mausoleum there is a well still bearing the name of the saint.   received unexpected succour   by the arrival of Campbell of Dunstaffnage with a large body of his clansmen. They had come to avenge the death of Drummond of Mewie or Lennoch., Campbell’s father in law who had been killed by the Murrays. The Drummonds and Campbells united their forces    and followed the Murrays, who seeing their danger, took refuge in the Church of Monzievaird. They did so, without   being perceived by their pursuers and had been able to assemble their wives and children with them. The avengers, as they called themselves, were baffled in their pursuit and were about to disperse when one of the Murrays   shot an arrow from  a window of the church  thus  revealing the place of their retreat .Every  combustible that could be procured was gathered around the building which was thatched  with heather  and burned quickly  to the ground . There were  one hundred  and  sixty men, with their  wives and children thus  burned  to death in that old church .Only one of the Murrays escaped and this happened  through the connivance of a Drummond who was so hated and persecuted  by his  clan  on this  count that he  had  to take  refuge in  Ireland .He was there for many years and only returned when the Murrays had acquired  sufficient power to reward and protect him . They gave him a  small property between Strowan and Comrie  and its name still bears  testimony  to his  exile , for it is  called Drummond – ernoch , that is , “Drummond the Irishman “ .In consequence of this massacre , James lV  brought the Drummonds to a stern reckoning and caused the Master of Drummond  with a number of his followers  to be  executed at Stirling .The church was  soon afterwards   rebuilt on the same site and with some alterations   remained the Parish Church  till the beginning  of the present century .When the foundation of the mausoleum  was being prepared  an immense quantity of bones were found which  bore  unquestionable   evidence of burning.

The old church in 1511 was the scene of a fearful tragedy, which Sir Walter Scott has narrated in his introduction to the “Legend of Montrose”. There had been an old feud between the Murrays and the Drummonds. A bloody battle was fought between them at Knock Mary (an eminence at the south side of the Earn near Crieff). The Drummonds had been defeated and the Murrays were returning home with the cattle and goods of their defeated foes. The Drummonds

A little onward from the mausoleum, the tourist gains a point which commands   a beautiful view of the lake and the surrounding scenery. The lake covers about thirty Scottish acres and abounds with pike and perch. The old fortress on its northern bank was surrounded by a deep and broad ditch which is still sufficiently marked. When recently cleaned out a horse shoe of a peculiar form   was found in it. The fortress is said to have belonged to the Red Comyn whom Robert Bruce killed before the High Altar of the Convent of the Minorites at Dumfries. About eighty yards west of the ruin is a small artificial island   which tradition alleges to have been the prison of the castle.

At the west end of the lake is a large mound where those who died of the plague which ravaged the district in the reign of Charles l, were buried.

On the south, is the scene of the Battle of Monzievaird which was fought in 1003 and where Kenneth lV was killed. There is a cairn on one of the heights overlooking the valley and is called Cairnchaiachan – the cairn of Kenneth.  Kenneth was buried on Iona in tradition with previous royalty.

Ochtertyre is the residence of Sir William Keith Murray – fourteenth in the line of descent from the founder of the branch of the family. In the preceding thirteen generations, the father has invariably been   succeeded by his eldest son, there never having been any collateral descent.

The observatory next to the mansion house was erected in 1852. In front of the observatory on a stone platform five feet above ground level is a stone pier carrying an improved iron equatorial of a simple construction suitable for as  six feet  telescope and on ground level  are two massive wood stands furnished  with simple iron equatorials  for portable instruments . These are especially fitted up for the use of visitors and out of door observations.

It is well known that Burns visited Ochtertyre in 1787 and left behind a poetic memorial of his visit. The house in which he visited is now demolished and was located to the north west of the present building. It was here Burns met the beautiful Euphemia  Murray of Lintrose . She later married a Mr Smythe of Methven  who  was a Lord of Session .

Blithe , blithe and merry was she

Blithe  was she baith but and ben

Blithe  by the banks of the Earn

But blither in Loch Turret Glen