Kildary ( gd, Caoldaraigh) is a small village in

Easter Ross Easter Ross ( gd, Ros an Ear) is a loosely defined area in the east of Ross, Highland, Scotland. The name is used in the constituency name Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, which is the name of both a British House of Commons constitu ...

Ross and Cromarty Ross and Cromarty ( gd, Ros agus Cromba), sometimes referred to as Ross-shire and Cromartyshire, is a variously defined area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is a registration county and a lieutenancy area in current use, the l ...

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. The village is located on the

Balnagown River Balnagown Castle is beside the village of Kildary in Easter Ross, part of the Highland area of Scotland. There has been a castle on the site since the 14th century, although the present building was remodelled in the 18th and 19th centuries. It i ...

and is bordered by

Balnagown Castle Balnagown Castle is beside the village of Kildary in Easter Ross, part of the Highland area of Scotland. There has been a castle on the site since the 14th century, although the present building was remodelled in the 18th and 19th centuries. It i ...

and the Balnagown estate, owned by

Mohamed Al Fayed Mohamed Al-Fayed (; arz, محمد الفايد ; born 27 January 1929) is an Egyptian-born businessman whose residence and chief business interests have been in the United Kingdom since the late 1960s. His business interests include ownership of ...

, former owner of

Harrods Harrods Limited is a department store located on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, England. It is currently owned by the state of Qatar via its sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority. The Harrods brand also applies to oth ...

department store. The main road A9 passes close by, running parallel to the

Far North Line The Far North Line is a rural railway line entirely within the Highland area of Scotland, extending from Inverness to Thurso and Wick. As the name suggests, it is the northernmost railway in the United Kingdom. The line is entirely single- ...

. The only landmark visible from the A9 is Ken's Garage, which has been on the same site for many decades. Ken's Garage gets its name from the original proprietor Mr Ken Mackay. It is now owned by the Bannerman brothers. The A9 used to run in front of the garage until the road was realigned. Close by is an unusual Tudor-style lodge, known as East Lodge, attached to the Tarbat Estate.

Kildary railway station Kildary railway station served the village of Kildary, Highland (council area), Highland, Scotland from 1864 to 1960 on the Inverness and Ross-shire Railway. History The station opened as Parkhill on 1 June 1864 by the Inverness and Aberdeen ...

served the village until its closure on 13 June 1960. It was opened on 1 June 1864 as Parkhill and renamed Kildary on 1 May 1868. The station was demolished when the A9 was realigned, although the station building remains as a listed building. The village is a good starting point for walks or drives – the Scotsburn area to the north is a warren of single track roads, and the village of Milton around to the south allows access to woodland and the Balnagown River, which can be followed down to the coast at the

Cromarty Firth The Cromarty Firth (; gd, Caolas Chrombaidh ; literally "kyles /nowiki>straits">strait.html" ;"title="/nowiki>strait">/nowiki>straitsof Cromarty") is an arm of the Moray Firth in Scotland. Geography The entrance to the Cromarty Firth is gu ...

. The Scotsburn area was home to a number of German

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, who were employed in helping the farming community locally

Kildary is an important site for those researching the

Clan Ross Clan Ross ( gd, Clann Anndrais ) is a Highland Scottish clan. The original chiefs of the clan were the original Earls of Ross. History Origins The first recorded chief of the Clan Ross was "Fearcher Mac an t-Sagirt" which in English meant ...

. However, the castle is on private land and limited access permission must be obtained well before any visit. Balnagown Castle - geograph

References

{{reflist

External links

Fearn Peninsula website

STV documentary - A Day in the Life - Balnagown
Populated places in Ross and Cromarty Clan Ross