Latheron
Principal Sources
OSA Vol 17 No 3 1796
NSA Vol XV 1845 (written in 1840)
RMS I (666) 1377-8
RMS II (942) 1467-8, (1300) 1477, (2371) 1497
RMS III (354) 1526, (475, 476) 1527, (2450) 1541, (3165) 1545
RMS IV (745) 1552-3
RMS V (2078) 1592
RMS VI (1758) 1606
RMS VII (2008) 1619
RMS VIII (251) 1622
RMS XI (551) 1664
Robertson’s Index p 122 No 111 <=1377/1378
RSS I (3433) 1526
RSS VII (989) 1577
GD96/5A 1476
GD96/20 1527, GD96/63 c. 1554, GD96/613 1657, GD96/679/48 >1681
GD112/58/1/1 1526, GD112/58/1/15 1566
GD112/58/8/10 1635, GD112/58/8/27 1637, GD112/58/8/35 1638
GD112/58/14/4 1660, GD112/58/14/12 >1681
GD112/58/43/22 1680, GD112/58/70/5 1688
GD136/166 1793
GD139/47 (nineteenth-century copy of an original dated 1306-1330)
GD139/48 (nineteenth-century copy of an original dated 1539)
NLS Dep.313/428/2/3
NLS Dep.313/428 Item 2/20 & 21
NLS Dep.313/3624/13 Plan of the Estate of Langwell, 1857
ER XXI p 525 1586
RS36/2/36r 1606
RS36/2/116v 1606
RS20/1/p 190 1664 top left (Ousdale)
RS20/1/p 190 1664 bottom left (Langwall)
RS20/1/p 191 1664
RS20/1/pp 197-8 1664
RS20/1/p 232 1668
RS20/1/p 233 1668
RS21/1/335r 1702
RS21/1/427v 1708
RS21/1/429r 1708
Retours (Caithness) (5) 1604, (7) 1605, (15) 1624, (20) 1640, (22) 1644, (25) 1657, (30) 1674, (31) 1676
ALI pp 45-47
Macfarlane’s Geographical Collections Vol. I, SHS, Edinburgh, 1906, pp 162-169 – Geographical Description of the Parish of Lathron in Cathness (c.1726)
Illustrations of the Topography and Antiquities of the Shires of Aberdeen and Banff, Vol IV, Spalding Club, Aberdeen, 1862, p 625
Book of Thanes of Cawdor pp 54-5 1472
Liber Ecclesie de Scon, Edinburgh, 1843
Lord Cooper, Select Scottish Cases of the Thirteenth Century, Edinburgh, 1944
Watt, D.E.R., & Murray, A.L., (eds.), Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae Medii Aevi Ad Annum 1638, Edinburgh, 2003
B.E. Crawford, ‘Scots and Scandinavians in Mediaeval Caithness’ pp 61-74 in J.R. Baldwin, Edinburgh, 1982.
B.E. Crawford, The Northern Earldoms, Edinburgh, 2013
Munro, J. & Munro R.W., (eds.), Acts of the Lords of the Isles 1336-1493, Scottish History Society, Edinburgh, 1986 (hereafter ‘ALI’).
According to the Old Statistical Account (p 19) Latheron included the former parish of Dunbeath. The latter presumably comprised the drainage-basins of the Langwell, Berriedale and Dunbeath Waters.
Old Statistical Account (p 32) shows runrig (rig and rennet) still practised.
New Statistical Account (p 93) suggests the burn of East Clyth was, for a long period, a linguistic boundary. (English to east, Gaelic to west).
Latheron is an important parish in a land-assessment context because it gives us concrete evidence for the relationship between ouncelands and davachs in Caithness. Nottingham is defined as both an ounceland and 3 davachs. Similarly Noss (Wick parish) and Landhelow (Latheron parish) are described as 2 urislands c. 1554 (an urisland or eyrisland is the Orkney term for an ounceland). The number of 6d units also suggests that each of these composed a davach – just as in Sutherland. It is striking just how valuable some of these farms were – particulary in comparison to the west coast. West Clyth was 24d or 4 davachs in 1467-8; 26d+ in 1668. That would make it more valuable, in davach terms, than Rum or Knoydart.
In the Register of Sasines we have some early eighteenth-century documents that shed light on the earlier davach structure of Latheron. Because these sources are relatively late they must be used with some caution but there is no reason to doubt them. It is difficult to see why anybody would want to invent ‘davachs’ at this period and all the data is consistent internally as well as with other sources. For instance:
RS21/1/335r 1702 refers to a 10-davach unit of land consisting of Lathronwheell, Lappan, Knockinen, Smerell & Landhallow with pertinents.
RS21/1/427v 1708 refers to the 10-davach lands of Lathronwheell. It then goes on to list a 24½d portion of these lands viz.:
24½d Lathronwheell comprehending
the Davoch land in the mains of Lathron wheell
the Davoch land of Over Lathron
the six farden land of Bualnabine (1½d)
the pennyland of Titticonchar (1d)
the four penny land of Easter and Wester Achintofts (4d)
the half pennyland of Bualnaknappich (½d)
the half pennyland of Bualintaggart (½d)
the pennyland of Lochnacreoch (1d) *
the pennyland of Strathie (1d) *
the pennyland of the Miln and (1d) *
the six farden land of Achnagald (1½d)
with the miln of Lathronwheell and the dry multurs of the 24½d
as also the lands and Bowroom of Brayhungie.
(Pennyland values given numerically, in brackets. An asterisk indicates the property has the same value in other documents).
The arithmetic of the above listing is persuasive. The numbers in brackets add to 12d. We know there were two davach units, which, in other parts of the north, were worth 6d. If we add 12d to two davach units @ 6d each we come to 24d which is only ½d shy of the stated total.
RS21/1/429r 1708 also refers to the 10-davach lands of Lathronwheell as well as the 24½d Lathronwheell with the mill thereof and the Bowroom of Brayhungie. Again, we should interpret this as meaning a 10-davach unit, part of which came to 24½d. But this document then goes on to list ‘the Remainder of the s(ai)d ten davoch lands of Lathronwheell viz.’:
the six pennyland of Smerrell and Bualtain (6d) *
the seven pennyland of Knockinnan (7d) *
the two pennyland of Lappan (2d) *
the pennyland of Guydibist (1d)
the two pennyland of Leodabist (2d)
the two pennyland of the Crofts and (2d)
the fifteen pennyland and three farden of (15¾d)
Easter and Wester Langhallow lying betwixt the Crofts and the Sea.
These total 35¾d. If we add 35¾d to 24d listed above we come to 59¾d which is only ¼d shy of the notional 60d of the 10-davach lands of Lathronwheell.
This is good evidence for both a 10-davach unit and also a 6d:1 davach ratio.
There is a significant cluster of Bal- names around Dunbeath.
In earlier charters the lands of Dunbeath and Reay are often held together. RMS VII (2008) 1619 lists the constituent farms. This list is repeated in Retours (Caithness) (25) 1657. I have given the 1619 list below (with 1657 spellings in brackets):
Ramiscraigis (Ramscraigis)
Ballinbroch cum molendino (Ballinbroach + mill)
Achahorne (Auchachorne)
Wiuackis (Winackise)
Auchinnachloy (Auchinnachley)
Brachachie (Brackathie)
Lodubiste (Lodubist)
Houstrie (Houstre)
Ballintanick (Ballintanick)
Auchabraill (Auchabraill_
Ballauchly (Ballachcly)
Innurie (Innvrie)
I have listed these under Dunbeath in the table although I have almost no valuations. With the exception of Ramscraigs the holdings lie on either side of the Dunbeath Water or the Burn of Houstry. In the Retour the Old Extent valuation is given as £10 (200 shillings). That might imply 20 pennylands.
In the table Latheron shows 252d or 42 davachs – and this does not include all the properties. Reay (271d) and Latheron (252d) were the two most valuable parishes in Caithness, Sutherland and Ross.
It is no coincidence that the parish is well endowed with brochs. In ‘The Book of Ross by D. Macdonald and Sutherland & Caithness by A. Polson, Dingwall, 1931’ there is the following comment on p 107:
This parish of Latheron is one of the richest in the Highlands so far as brochs or Pictish towers are concerned, as there are at least twenty-four of them in this one parish, one always visible from another, as if they were a chain of watch-towers.
I cannot prove there was a link between brochs and davachs – but it seems very likely.
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