Culloden Battlefield site bought and cleared of trees by National Trust Scotland in 1980
Yesterday the Press & Journal revealed the National Trust for Scotland's concern that planning rules are being ignored as the story revealed
"A leading conservation boss has called for a major overhaul of planning laws to save historic heritage sites across the country, including Culloden Battlefield."
One luxury housing development has already been approved, after the Scottish Government reporter overruled local councillors and local people, with the story going on to say
"four new development applications have recently been made within the Culloden Conservation Area – on the back of approval for 16 houses to be built near the battlefield NTS owns."
"NTS was opposed to the Culloden housing plan at Viewhill by Kirkhill Homes, and also for a golf course at Coul Links, which was recently given the green light by Highland councillors.Mr Skinner claims the developments could be “disastrous” for the country’s heritage, and has called on the Scottish Government to toughen the planning system in forthcoming legislation to provide stronger protection.
Culloden Battlefield is designated as a Conservation Area, while Coul Links falls within a Site of Scientific Special Interest (SSSI) and is home to rare coastal habitats."
The NTS chief has questioned whether either designation has any meaning any longer if they were simply “going to be run roughshod over” by the current planning process."
Historic England has a register of 46 important battlefields where
"Its purpose is to offer them protection through the planning system, and to promote a better understanding of their significance and public enjoyment."
Culloden, in Scotland, is the site of the last pitched battle on British soil - making it one of the most important battlefield sites in all of the UK.
On the website "Scotiania everything about Scotland", we also learn
"They used to call it Drumossie Moor – a bleak stretch of boggy, heather-clad upland moor above Culloden House, south-east of Inverness, overlooking the broad waters of the Moray Firth. This was where the last pitched battle on British soil was fought, on 16 April 1746."
"Culloden is now one of the flagship possessions of the National Trust for Scotland. The moor had become unrecognisable as a battle-site. In 1835 a road had been driven right through the graveyards of the fallen clansmen. Much of the land was shrouded under a blanket plantation of sitka spruce, making it impossible to visualise the true setting of the battle.
In 1980 the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) "purchased from the Forestry Commission 180 acres of land which had been planted with conifers. The mature trees were felled and the road realigned.
At last it was possible to see again the moor as it had been when the encounter took place. The field has been marked with the positions of the kilted Highland clans and the red-coated Hanoverian regiments which took part in the battle."
Culloden has a memorial cairn, many clan graves & this link gives story of Well of the Dead above
In 2010 we were told Scotland's important battlefields, like England's would be given protection as SNP Culture Minister, Fiona Hyslop, said
"Many legendary battles took place in Scotland and the famous figures who fought in them, such as Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn and Bonnie Prince Charlie at Culloden, are known around the world."
""They are a wonderful resource for education, helping us understand why significant events in our history unfolded as they did and provide a tangible link to some of the key figures of Scottish history," she added.
"Not only do battlefields form an important part of our sense of identity, they also have enormous potential for attracting tourists, as well as for general recreation, allowing visitors to experience the site of a dramatic historical event for themselves.
"We want to make sure that these important battlefields are looked after now and for future generations. ""
and the point of the new historic battlefield register is
"intended to guide landowners, developers, local authorities and the Scottish Ministers in the future development of these areas"
to protect the historic significance and archaeological potential of these sites.
Fiona Hyslop has responsibility to ensure the Culloden battlefield site is protected through planning for all future generations.
In 2016 it was reported there was a surge of 21% of visitors to the Culloden battlefield visitors centre, which many attribute to the Outlander books and TV series, with Fiona Hyslop quoted as saying
""It is fantastic that Scottish visitor attractions recorded another successful year in 2016""
But now we find, in 2014, while we were all distracted with a referendum, the Scottish Government's planning reporter overturned a decision, by local councillors and local people, to block a housing development on Culloden battlefield.
"SCOTLAND'S main heritage group has hit out at a "flawed" planning system after a controversial application to build 16 houses at Culloden was given the go ahead."
"The National Trust for Scotland (NTS) said Highland Council was given "no choice" but to approve the construction, despite the location being within a conservation zone and "the historic boundaries of one of the most pivotal battlefields in all of Scotland’s history".
""Local people and the democratically elected Highland Council rejected the application to build houses at Viewhill Farm in 2013;
"yet developers were able to use a route of appeal not open to ordinary residents to have this decision overturned by the Scottish Reporter."
The Scottish Government then claimed they can do nothing as the reporter's decision is final, as the Herald story went on to reveal
"A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The independent reporter considered a wide range of evidence before making a decision in 2014, which is final and provided no opportunity for Ministers to revisit that decision."
But SNP Ministers have overruled the reporter's decision before, for private developments.
Trump Development
The Trump development was blocked by local councillors and the decision was upheld by the Scottish reporter on appeal. Then Scottish Government Minister, John Swinney, stepped in and gave Trump's plan approval - overturning the Scottish Reporter and local council's ban on the development, with the timeline of events, over two years, headlined
"The £1bn plans were rejected by local councillors before being resurrected by the Scottish Government, and the process became embroiled in claims of sleaze, bullying and impropriety."
The Trump development, in Menie, was subject to an award winning documentary, "You've Been Trumped", (trailer left), which revealed how Trump's people made the life of locals a living hell after the Scottish Government overrode everyone's objections to give approval of the golf course which was really all about a huge private development.
Dunblane Luxury Housing Development
Developers had been trying to build a luxury housing development on green belt land in Dunblane for years, plans which were consistently knocked back by local councillors and local people.
This time, a famous face, with friends in high places, was brought in to front the development, Judy Murray, saying it was all about a tennis centre, when this had just been tacked on to the luxury housing development plans to pull the same stunt as Trump - pretend the application was all about sport - when like Culloden and Trump's development it was really all about luxury housing development.
And once again, Scottish Ministers overruled local elected councillors and the government planning reporter, and in August 2017, Judy Murray's developer friends got the Scottish Governments personal service to approve the plan, against all justified opposition,with the report in August 2017 saying
"Ministers over-ruled the recommendation of their own planning Reporter to approve the scheme after he concluded it was in the wrong location, would be accessed by “unsustainable” modes of travel and would not conform to the local development plan.
Kevin Stewart, Minister for Local Government and Housing, said ministers were backing the project because it was “of significant regional and national significance”.
This does not hold up much hope for Culloden as Scottish Ministers appear to think it's their job to approve developments - despite the planning rules - which no one but the developers in Scotland want - for their profit regardless of the impact on local people and our cultural heritage.
A petition on Change dot org set up by local people, to stop the luxury housing development being built on Culloden has reached nearly 95,000 signatures, and rising every day, proving the people of Scotland are outraged at this decision, which is only now coming to wider attention thanks to social media.
I'm sure Historic England would have it on their list of protected battlefields, as the last pitched battle on British soil - a battle that changed the course of history for Scotland and the UK - as the victory against the Scots kept Scotland as part of the UK, against the will of the people - until now.
Scottish Ministers have serious questions to answer regarding, once again, approving planning applications which go against local elected councillors, local people and protecting our heritage, which the SNP government have proven to do time and again for rich friends - repeatedly turning their back on the ordinary people of Scotland trying to defend Scotland and our heritage for future generations - especially when Fiona Hyslop said the Scottish Battlefield list gave Culloden protection from development.
I hope you can email your MSP and sign the petition to show the Scottish government we will not stand for broken promises and being repeatedly given a false sense of security that we don't need to worry about developments on battlefields - when this proves to be untrue now.
If it is true then the Scottish Government, for the ordinary people of Scotland and future Generations and tourists, must, as they did for their rich friends Trump and Judy Murray, step in and override the reporter's decision and protect Culloden as they said they would.