Reid & Robie

The hills echo with bagpipe tunes. The ‘gathering’ is in full swing. Tartaned dancers are on stage performing the ‘Highland Fling’.

– Evelyne A. McMaster

In Aberdeen, Robie and I kept hearing about strange happenings across Scotland. In towns across the country, people gathered for a day of music, competition and dance. Naturally, there were a few pints thrown in as well.

History of the Scottish games

The Highland Games began as a recruiting tool. When King Malcolm III of Canmore organized a footrace to the summit of Craig Choinnich for all able-bodied clansmen, he made the fastest runner in the realm his royal messenger. Soon every rival chief found strong men for battle and personal protection through athletic events.

In 1314, Robert the Bruce granted the village of Ceres a charter to hold a fayre (fair) to thank the villagers for their service at the Battle of Bannockburn, a turning point that solidified his claim to the throne after a small Scottish army defeated the larger English force. Today, the Ceres games remain the oldest tournament in Scotland.

Following the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Culloden, the English wanted to crush the clan system. In addition to the speaking of Gaelic, wearing tartan and playing bagpipes, they outlawed Highland gatherings. After nearly four decades, the ban was lifted, and clan societies returned.

Then in 1848 Queen Victoria attended the Braemar Gathering near her private estate in Balmoral. After granting the event her royal patronage, her love for Scotland helped romanticize Highland culture and made the games popular across Victorian society.

Competitive events

In Perth, the games included bicycle and foot races, dance and pipe bands, and fair goers could test themselves in feats of strength.

And there was medieval sword fighting by men dressed in armor.

But mostly it was all about the Scottish heavy events, a day-long competition that started with the Hammer Throw.

Using a heavy metal ball attached to a long wooden handle, athletes stood with their backs to the field. Unlike the Olympics, contestants didn’t spin their bodies. Instead, they stood in a fixed position with the aid of metal blades attached to their boots. Anchoring their feet to the ground, they then swung the hammer around their head before releasing it as far as they could.

Next came the Stone Put. Similar to the more conventional shot put, the stone put used a large, heavy river stone. With two recognized forms, in Perth athletes competed in the Braemar style standing completely still as opposed to the Open style that allowed a running start. As with the hammer throw, distance was again the measure of success.

Weight for Distance came next. Here contestants use a spinning technique to build speed and momentum before hurling a heavy metal ball attached to a short chain as far as possible.

Then in the Weight for Height event, athletes were charged with hoisting a 56-pound (25.4 kg) metal weight over a 12-foot-high (3-3.5-meter) horizontal bar. Standing beneath the bar, each man held the weight between their legs before tossing it up and slightly back. With three tries at each height, the bar was then raised until only one contestant remained.

Finally, it was time to Toss the Caber. Here challengers lifted a massive 20-foot tree vertically, balancing it against their bodies and running forward before heaving the pole in the air. Judged on accuracy not distance, the highest scores were the ones that included an end-over-end flip followed by a 12 o’clock vertical landing.

In Perth, only one contender successfully flipped the enormous wooden pole.

At the 200^th Highland Games in Perth, a good time was had by all!