Inverness City Centre

Crowned by its castle, Inverness city centre is full of historical interest.

Looming above the Gothic Town House in the High Street, and dominating the horizon, Inverness Castle perches picturesquely above the river. The original castle formed the core of the ancient town, which had rapidly developed as a port trading with Europe in the sixth century. The Jacobites blew up the castle to prevent it falling into government hands.

In summer, you can play the role of a new recruit in the 18th-century Hanoverian army at the Castle Garrison Encounter. Around 7pm during the summer, a lone piper clad in full Highland garb performs on the castle esplanade. The statue of a woman staring south from the terrace is a memorial to Flora MacDonald, the clanswoman who helped Bonnie Prince Charlie escape to Skye in the wake of Culloden.

Below the castle, the Inverness Museum and Art Gallery on Castle Wynd gives a good general overview of the development of the Highlands. Medieval Church Street is home to the town's oldest-surviving buildings. On the corner with Bridge Street stands the Steeple, whose spire had to be straightened after an earth tremor in 1816.

Further down Church Street is Abertarff House, reputedly the oldest complete building in Inverness and distinguished by its stepped gables and circular stair tower. It was erected in 1593 and is now owned by the National Trust for Scotland. Any Jacobites who survived the massacre of Culloden were brought to the Old High Church and incarcerated prior to their execution in the cemetery. If you take the guided tour, you'll be shown bullet holes left on gravestones by the firing squads.