Sma' Glen
A picturesque glen in central Perthshire through which flows the water of the River Almond, the Sma' Glen lies 5 miles (8 km) north of Crieff to the west of Glenalmond. Only 4 miles (6.5 km) in length, it was once part of a major routeway linking Strath Earn to Strath Tay.
The glen was of strategic importance to the Romans who built a fort and watchtower at Fendoch. Through this narrow defile marched Malcolm III of Scotland (1058-93) to recover his kingdom from the usurper Macbeth. After holding his war council in Crieff the ill-fated Bonnie Prince Charlie also marched through the glen on his way to the infamous massacre at Culloden (1746). It is one of history's many ironies that the Prince used this road that was built in 1730 by the English General Wade for the express purpose of crushing the rebellious Scottish clans. In the 18th century General Wade built a military road through the Sma' Glen. Bones found beneath Ossian's Stone, a large stone removed to its present site by Wade's road-builders, were thought to be those of the legendary hero Ossian.
It is one of the traditional drove roads linking Highland and Lowland Scotland. Its present name is a modern one for originally it was known as An Caol Ghleann, The Narrow Glen, and its Gaelic name is indeed descriptive of it.
In and Around Aberfeldy
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