Redgorton is a settlement in

Gowrie Gowrie ( gd, Gobharaidh) is a region in central Scotland and one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It covered the eastern part of what became Perthshire. It was located to the immediate east of Atholl, and originally included t ...

Perth and Kinross Perth and Kinross ( sco, Pairth an Kinross; gd, Peairt agus Ceann Rois) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Fife, Highland an ...

, Scotland. It lies a few miles from the

River Tay The River Tay ( gd, Tatha, ; probably from the conjectured Brythonic ''Tausa'', possibly meaning 'silent one' or 'strong one' or, simply, 'flowing') is the longest river in Scotland and the seventh-longest in Great Britain. The Tay originates i ...

and the

A9 road This is a list of roads designated A9. * A009 road (Argentina), a road in the northeast of Santa Fe Province * ''A9 highway (Australia)'' may refer to : ** A9 (Sydney), a road linking Windsor and Campbelltown ** A9 highway (South Australia), a li ...

, across the latter from

Luncarty Luncarty (; pronounced ''Lung''-cur-tay) ) is a village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, approximately north of Perth. It lies between the A9 to the west, and the River Tay to the east. Etymology The name ''Luncarty'', recorded in 1250 as ''Lum ...

. It lies close to the Inveralmond Industrial Estate.

Etymology

The first recorded spelling of Redgorton was Rochgorton, this can be found in a charter of

King David I David I or Dauíd mac Maíl Choluim (Modern: ''Daibhidh I mac haoilChaluim''; – 24 May 1153) was a 12th-century ruler who was Prince of the Cumbrians from 1113 to 1124 and later King of Scotland from 1124 to 1153. The youngest son of Malcolm ...

preserved in the chartulary of

Scone A scone is a baked good, usually made of either wheat or oatmeal with baking powder as a leavening agent, and baked on sheet pans. A scone is often slightly sweetened and occasionally glazed with egg wash. The scone is a basic component ...

. The prefix of the current name, can be seen as translation of the

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

word Roch, or Ruach, which means 'red.' Gorton, or Garton, suggests "a little field;". The name as a whole, Redgorton, can be interpreted as 'the red field or field of blood,' and it has been mooted that it arose on account of the proximity of the Battle of Luncarty, which took place near Redgorton in c. 980AD between the

Danes Danes ( da, danskere, ) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. Danes generally regard ...

and the

Scots Scots usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: * Scots language, a language of the West Germanic language family native to Scotland * Scots people, a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland * Scoti, a Latin na ...

. Further weight is added to this interpretation by the name, Battleby given to the

Scottish Natural Heritage NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an Scottish public bodies#Executive NDPBs, executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, ...

centre just outside Redgorton. It is important to note that there is much myth surrounding the battle, most of which was propagated by the historian

Hector Boece Hector Boece (; also spelled Boyce or Boise; 1465–1536), known in Latin as Hector Boecius or Boethius, was a Scottish philosopher and historian, and the first Principal of King's College in Aberdeen, a predecessor of the University of Abe ...

in his ''Scottish History'' of 1526. It likely the myth was generated at the bequest of the Hays of Errol to increase the legitimacy of them holding substantial lands in the area. Boece's account suggest they gained their lands as a reward from

Kenneth III Cináed mac Duib ( Modern Gaelic: ''Coinneach mac Dhuibh''; c. 966 – c. 25 March 1005), anglicised as Kenneth III, and nicknamed ''An Donn'' ("the Chief" or "the Brown"), was King of Scots from 997 to 1005. He was the son of Dub (Dub mac Maíl ...

for their services in the battle.

The Redgorton Witches

In 1656 four residents of Redgorton were accused of being

witches Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

, however, no record of their names or alleged crimes remains.

Morthouse

morthouse A morthouse or deadhouse was a specialised secure building usually located in a churchyard where bodies were temporarily interred before a formal funeral took place. These buildings date back to the time when bodysnatchers or resurrectionists fre ...

dated 1832 is located in the churchyard, but as this post-dates the

Anatomy Act The Anatomy Act 1832 (2 & 3 Will. IV c.75) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that gave free licence to doctors, teachers of anatomy and bona fide medical students to dissect donated bodies. It was enacted in response to public revu ...

it is unconnected to bodysnatching.

Save Redgorton Campaign

In 2010 a campaign was started opposing one of Perth and Kinross Council's proposed routes for a new

Perth Perth is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth most populous city in Aust ...

Bypass. The proposed road would run across the

from

to Huntingtower and campaigners suggest that it will result in the demolition of houses in Redgorton and destroy the character of the settlement. The Campaign also led to the establishment of the Luncarty and Redgorton Community Council in late 2010.

References

External links

Redgorton at geo.ed.ac.uk
Villages in Perth and Kinross {{PerthKinross-geo-stub