In the footsteps of Queen Victoria

Senior features writer

Sunday 14 October 2012

This summer might have been about the Queen's diamond jubilee, but another monarch is getting all the attention in a scenic corner of Scotland.

Deeside, particularly Balmoral Castle above, became a home from home for Victoria. She is pictured with ghillie John Brown, above right, and her pet dog Sharp, below, the castle

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A royal history and heritage trail of Deeside takes in castles and trains. By Ann Fotheringham

Queen Victoria's links with Deeside, which stretches from Braemar almost all the way to Aberdeen, have been turned into a heritage trail, taking in everything from railways and churches to mountains and castles, including her beloved Balmoral.

We didn't know that much about Queen Victoria before we started the trail – aside from the stern face, the mourning and the longest reign. But, tempted by the promise of trains and castles, our children (aged eight and four) were intrigued and over the course of a few days, a fascinating history came alive.The Victorian Heritage Trail pinpoints many places with connections to Victoria and Albert, who first visited the Balmoral Estate back in 1848. Some are simply pretty to look at – the Linn of Dee bridge, for example, opened by Victoria in 1857, or the lochside bothy at Glen Muick, mentioned frequently in the Queen's diaries.Others are full of history and atmosphere, like Braemar Castle, where she hosted the early Braemar Gatherings. The castle has an intriguing past – built principally as a hunting lodge by the Earl of Mar, it became the family home of the Farquharson clan for more than 200 years and Victoria and Albert regularly took tea in the drawing room with the family. In 2007 it was about to be put on the market, but the local community rallied together and persuaded the Farquharsons to lease it to them to run as a visitor attraction for the next 50 years. Substantial work still needs to be done but so far volunteers from Braemar have carried out renovations and have succeeded in opening it up to the public at weekends.The community can take heart from another band of volunteers. The Royal Deeside Railway, which served generations of the Royal Family, closed in 1966. But thanks to the efforts of local people, a one-mile stretch has been restored, allowing the royal trains to run once more.The carriage we travel in has echoes of its majestic past. Our eight-year-old sits in what was once the Queen Mother's seat ("it doesn't feel very royal, but it is comfy," he says, approvingly), while our four-year-old practises waving regally at families walking on the trackside path. The glamour has faded a little, along with the blue and gold fabric on the "posh" seats, but it's a memorable trip.We continue the railway theme with a visit to the Old Royal Station at Ballater (which, incidentally, has more By Royal Appointment warrants than any comparable place in the world). The bright-red-and-white wooden station has recently been restored and now houses an exhibition, the tourist information centre, a restaurant and shops. The exhibition opens up a whole new side to Victoria, with diary extracts revealing her deep love of the area and how it helped her to cope in the aftermath of Albert's death.Our boys had fun, predictably, looking at the royal toilet, and they spent some time building their own Balmoral out of magnetic blocks on a giant board and admiring the refurbished carriage of the Queen's royal train.The rest of the heritage trail highlights well-known places like Crathie Kirk, place of worship for the royals in Scotland since Queen Victoria laid its foundation stone in 1893, and the magnificent memorial arch in Fettercairn, built to commemorate her visit there in 1861. But there are many more lesser-known gems to discover – everyone has a royal connection, it seems, and locals love to share their stories. For us, there is one final link to explore – Loch Kinord Hotel, a small, friendly hotel in the little village of Dinnet, has been known locally forever as "the Profeits" because it was built in the late 1800s for the nieces of Dr Alexander Profeit, Queen Victoria's factor at Balmoral. Andrew Cox, who runs the hotel, says: "We are very fortunate to have this history and heritage and the Victorian trail is a clever way of bringing it all together."

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In the footsteps of Queen Victoria

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