Halkirk Village, Caithness

Halkirk is a village in Caithness in the North of Scotland. The Halkirk Highland Games is a annual event attracting a large number of spectators and many of Scotland's top Highland Games athletes. Karen Steven on fiddle plays the accompanying music with three of her own compositions The Wild Spell, The Brig o' Trams and The Stroma Swelkie. In this short video members of the Clan Gunn can be seen participating in their clan gathering. Halkirk has a long and interesting history. It was at one time the site of the cathedral of the Diocese of Caithness. In 1222 a revolt against the tithe, imposed by the Bishop, led the local husbandmen to lay siege to the cathedral kitchen, and burn it down, with Adam of Melrose, the Bishop, still inside. Adam's successor Gilbert de Moravia moved the seat of the Diocese to Dornoch, and there are no remains of the Halkirk cathedral church or the bishop's seat. Halkirk has had two whisky distilleries, Gerston from 1796 to 1885, and Ben Morven (also known as Gerston II) from 1886 to circa 1911. Both were established on the banks of the River Thurso, near Gerston Farm, and both drew water from the Calder Burn. The Ben Morven distillery was named after the mountain which is the highest point in Caithness. The original Gerston distillery was first registered by a Francis Swanson, and was expanded by two sons, John and James, in 1825. Sir Robert Peel is said to have acquired a taste for the whisky. The distillery closed not long after it was sold to new owners in 1872, and a London company, calling themselves the Gerston Distillery Company, decided to build a new distillery. In 1897 the new distillery was sold to Northern Distilleries Limited, who gave it the Ben Morven name. It was never very successful, and it closed circa 1911. The stillhouse is still standing. Subscribe to our channel for free. For other YouTube videos from Caithness enter 'Ross Records Caithness Playlist" in YouTube Search. For more videos like this search YouTube for 'Ross Records Documentary Playlist'. If you have enjoyed watching this video please share it with your friends. Copy and paste the hashtag below into GOOGLE SEARCH to view more of our videos. #rossrecordsvideoplaylist