Glenbuchat Heritage

2 Dunnottar, Netherly and Cailleachanrennie Burn

This page highlights some varied aspects of the Auchernach Estate not mentioned previously.

Pictured above
Dunnottar House
Netherly House
Map of Cailleachanrennie Burn

Click to see introduction to Auchernach.

Click to see all the pages referring to Auchernach.


In 1835 General Nathaniel Forbes the owner of Auchernach Estate also bought Dunnottar House and estate of 4,000 acres near Stonehaven. About the same time, he also bought Netherley House and estate of 2,600 acres.

Dunnottar House, a large and somewhat bald looking classical building, built in 1786 and demolished in 1957 or 1958. It was originally the elegant home of a branch of the Kennedy family, a famous Scottish family the head of which was the Marquis of Ailsa, and latterly was lived in by Captain W.H. Ritchie who owned Glenury Distillery. Now only some huge slabs of granite by the roadside mutely testify to the presence in the past of a building opposite".

1814 - Lord William Kennedy married Eleanor Allardice and took up residence
1835 - House changed hands, bought by General Nathaniel Forbes
1851 - House passed on to his son, Charles William Mackay Forbes
1901 - Property sold to William Ritchie

After William Ritchie's death, the house was let to several tenants until it eventually was reduced to rubble. "Dunnottar House had a beautiful walled garden which was well known for its magnificent flowers and vegetables.

Netherley House is a mansion built by Alexander Silver in the late 18th century in Netherley, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is situated near the northerly flowing drainage of Crynoch Burn. The home was sold to Horatio Ross by James Silver, son of George Silver in 1853 for 33,000 pounds sterling. It subsequently came into the possession of the descendants of General Nathaniel Forbes of Auchernach, who held it until 1901.
George Silver was the son and heir of Alexander Silver. While George Silver inhabited Netherley House, he acquired the further lands of Muchalls Castle.


From Wandering in the Highlands of Banff and Aberdeenshire 1881

Continuing our homeward march, we soon entered the avenue leading to Auchernack, one of the seats of Forbes, laird of Dunnottar. On reaching the Castle, we found that it bore a resemblance to Candacraig in beauty, and, I am sorry to add, also in decay.

The house is a handsome modern mansion, built on the face of a brae, a situation rendered rather pretty by planting and other improvements. The principal feature of attraction at Auchernack to a stranger is the collection of armour, ancient and modern. There are steel helmets, used in the days of chivalry; a number of arrows, not very ancient apparently by their make, which have been done by very skilful hands; swords, and other implements of warfare belonging to different nations.

The house was built by the late General Forbes, father of the present proprietor, who amassed an enormous fortune in India. He was a strange, eccentric old gentleman, and had a strong love for Auchernack and its surroundings, as the following anecdote will sufficiently testify: The Earl of Fife's factor wrote to him in India, telling him that the Earl had bought up all the property near Auchernack, and that his little patch was now surrounded on every side, and he thought it was no use for him to keep it longer, for the Earl would give him a good price for it. The patriotic old General sent the following characteristic reply : " Tell him that I would sooner part with the skin of my face."

When living at Auchernack, he never attended church, but occupied his time on Sunday in going about with an old woman, pruning trees. The woman carried the prunings on her back. While engaged at this occupation one day, the old woman suddenly exclaimed, " Here's the minister, laird! " Quoth the laird, " I wonner fat he wants wi' me 1 I'm sure I dinna aften disturb him


Town of the ghost

Cateranes, (Katheranes) bands of robbers, especially such as came down from the Highlands to the low country, and carried off cattle, corn, or whatever pleased them, from those who were not able to make resistance.
Scottish National Dictionary

From Donean Tourist: Giving an Account of the Battles, Castles, Gentlemen's Seats ...
By Alexander Laing

From the river of Nochty or Cold Water which falls into the Don a little eastward the parish was formerly titled Invernochty, and the parson of it was elected a Prebend by Bishop Alexander Kinninmonth, in 1358. The river has its source on that range of mountains which separates the counties of Aberdeen and Banff, and passes the ancient seat of Auchernach a branch of the Forbes family of Skellater

It is one of the places in this country noted for antiquity Isabella Stuart daughter to John Stuart of Drummin relict of Nathaniel Forbes died Oct 29 1772.

In 1742 Duncan Roy MacGregor was wounded here and died at Aberdeen: his eldest son fell in the battle of Culloden and James. his second son was taken by Charles Forbes of Auchernach’

Proprietor in 1826 is General Nathaniel Forbes

Near this is Ledmacoy, seat of James Forbes, in 1584, who married Mary, daughter to Finlay Farquharson Esq. In this country are many veins of calcareous stone, granite and moorstone: and on the hills are found spar and asbestos The river passes Invernetty on the left and Balnaboddach or town of the ghost, on the right, ancient seat of the Forbeses of Auchernach, and then held by the Nairn family, who having assassinated one of the Kern tribe, interred him privately. Many people afterwards pretended to have seen his ghost, hence the name of the place. The Kern, in revenge, returned and killed all of the name of Nairn in that country
Many people afterwards pretended to have seen his ghost hence the name of the place The Kern in revenge returned and killed all of the name of Nairn in that country’



From Place Names in West Aberdeenshire

Cailleachanrennie Burn
Locally this name is supposed to mean " the Cowards' Burn," because once on a time there was a fight on Auchernach Hill between the Campbells and the Forbeses, the former being defeated, and many of them slain when trying to escape over this burn. Cailleach means an old woman, and in a figurative sense "a coward"; but I fail to follow this curious explanation further. Coileachan, dim. of coileach or caileach, means a small rill, and raineach is " fern," so that the name probably means " ferny rill." It flows into
Quillichan Burn, which seems to be only another form of Coileachari.

Auchernach (Strathdon). The local tradition is that once on a time a band of cateranes made a raid on this part of the country, and that one of them was killed, and his ghost haunted the place, which was therefore called Ach' cheatharnaick (th mute), " field of the caterane." Whatever may be said for or against this derivation, I do not think it suits the accent, and prefer Ach’ chairnic “field of the stony ground." The dykes all over the property show that stones were very abundant before the land was reclaimed.