Loch Alsh or Lochalsh (from the Scottish Gaelic Loch Aillse, "foaming lake") is a sea inlet between the isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides and the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The name is also used to described the surrounding country and the feudal holdings around the loch. The area is rich in history, and is increasingly popular with tourists.
The hilly country around Loch Alsh has a temperate, well-watered climate. There is some pasture and woodland, but much of the area is moorland. The rocks are ancient Precambrian Gneiss, some of the oldest in the world, much eroded.
The earliest known inhabitants were Picts, but in the late 6th century Loch Alsh became part of the Gaelic island kingdom of Dál Riata. Between the 8th and 13th centuries the area was disputed between the kingdoms of Norway and Alba and often ruled by independent lords. Although nominally subject to the Kingdom of Scotland after 1266 AD, the history of the region until the failed rebellion of Bonnie Prince Charlie in 1745 is one of obscure struggles between the local clans and against the central government.
To prevent further feuds and rebellions, in 1746 the government enacted laws designed to break the bond between the clan leaders and their people. An indirect result was gradual conversion of the land from crofting to more profitable and less labour intensive sheep farming. These Highland Clearances and the subsequent Highland Potato Famine of 1846–52 forced many of the people to emigrate. Today, the area is thinly populated with an economy based mainly on tourism.
Read more about Loch Alsh: Location, Geology, Fauna, People, Lochalsh Today
Famous quotes containing the word loch:
“Oh, many a day have I made good ale in the glen,
That came not of stream, or malt, like the brewing of men;
My bed was the ground, my roof the greenwood above,
And the wealth that I sought, one far kind glance from my love.”
—Unknown. The Outlaw of Loch Lene (l. 1–4)