Ancient Alba

Bridei Mac Beli was a prince of Strathclyde, who claimed the Pictish kingship around 672AD. He was famous for winning the battle of Dunnichen against the Northumbrian Angles in 685AD. The battle is actually referred to as the battle of Dun Nechtain or Nechtansmere. Bridei Mac Beli would have grown up at the fort on Dumbarton rock, which was the capital of Strathclyde. Dumbarton rock overlooks the River Clyde and the River Leven, which runs down from Loch Lomond to the north. It’s located at the southern end of the highland line, whilst Dunottar is located at the north eastern end on the coast. Bridei Mac Beli was a Brythonic prince and would have spoken a language similar to Welsh. His grandfather was called Neithon or Nechtan, which is a Pictish name. He was a king of Strathclyde and may have also been a king of the Picts. Neithon was the son of Guipno. The name Guipno may be derived from Vipno or Fibno. It was the Welsh version of Vipno, just as the name Gododdin is the Welsh versi...

The Ulbster Pictish stone www.canmore.org.uk In the far north of Scotland, there’s a fascinating Pictish stone. The stone was found at a place called Ulbster on the east coast of Caithness. It’s a Class II stone, which dates to around the 8 th /9 th centuries. There’s a Christian cross on one side, with animals, and another Christian cross on the other side, with four symbol pairs. This is the most symbols on any Pictish stone in Scotland. There’s a crescent moon and V rod and an animal below, at the top of the stone. The crescent moon and V rod is a common symbol in the far north of Scotland. There’s a Pictish beastie and a salmon to the left. These two symbols are found on the Craw stone at Rhynie in Aberdeenshire. There are other symbols like a sea horse and a double disc. The Pictish stone may have been located close to a church or monastery. There are also a number of brochs, cairns and hillforts in the area. The four symbol pairs may represent individuals. They may be the trib...

There’s a reference to a battle in Pictland at a place called Luith Feirnn in the Irish annals for the year 664AD. This is around 20 years before the famous battle of Dunnichen, where the Picts defeated the Northumbrian Saxons. The Picts were led by Bridei Mac Beli, a prince of Strathclyde who claimed the Pictish high kingship. The battle of Luith Feirnn took place in Fortrenn, which was another name for Pictland. The entry in the Irish annals simply states; “The battle of Luith Feirnn, i.e. in Fortrenn.” This battle is interesting as it’s the first time Fortrenn is mentioned in the Irish annals. Fortrenn was also the name of a Pictish province, which gave its name to the whole of Pictland. The location of Fortrenn is unknown. The traditional idea is that Fortrenn was located in Strathearn and Menteith in southern Pictland. However, historians have recently suggested that Fortrenn was located in Moray in northern Pictland. The location of Luith Feirnn is also unknown. Feirnn is th...

One of the proposed locations for the battle of Mons Graupius is a place called Duncrub in Strathearn. This is one of the most southern locations. Duncrub is close to a small town called Dunning, just to the north of the Ochil hills. Strathearn is a valley which runs from Loch Earn to the west all the way to the Firth of Tay to the east. The main reason why some historians believe Duncrub is the location is the name. The word ‘crub’ is Gaelic for a ridge. The name Graupius is supposedly derived from ‘crub’. Duncrub means the ‘fort of the ridge’ and Mons Graupius means the ‘hill of the ridge’. However, there are other places in Scotland with the word crub. For example, there’s a Cruban Beg and   Cruban Mor in the highlands, to the north of Atholl, which means the ‘little ridge’ and the ‘big ridge’. The name Grampians is also derived from Graupius. There’s a Roman marching camp at Dunning of around 115 acres, which may date to the campaigns of Agricola around 80AD. However, the mar...