Product Code Database
Assynt ( or Asainte ) is a sparsely populated area in the south-west of Sutherland, lying north of Ullapool on the west coast of Scotland. Assynt is known for its landscape and its remarkable mountains, which have led to the area, along with neighbouring Coigach, being designated as the Assynt-Coigach National Scenic Area, one of 40 such areas in Scotland.
The western part of Assynt has many distinctively shaped mountains, including Quinag, Canisp, Suilven and Ben More Assynt, that rise steeply from the surrounding "cnoc and lochan" scenery. These can often appear higher than their actual height would indicate due to their steep sides and the contrast with the moorland from which they rise. Many of the most distinctive peaks such as Suilven were formed during the last Ice age, when they were left exposed above the ice sheet as , and they now remain as of highly eroded Torridonian sandstone sitting on a bedrock of much older Lewisian complex. The Moine Thrust runs through the area, and is most visible at Knockan Crag National Nature Reserve, which includes a visitor centre interpreting the geological features of the landscape. In the east of Assynt lies a region of karst surrounding Ben More Assynt. This part of Assynt hosts the longest cave in Scotland, Uamh an Claonaite, which lies south of Inchnadamph. "Peter Glanvill Photography: Claonaite" darkanddeep.co.uk. Retrieved 29 September 2007. The geological importance of Assynt is reflected in its inclusion in the North West Highlands Geopark.
The name Assynt may derive from an Old Norse word meaning 'ridge end'. There is also a tradition that the name comes from a fight between the two brothers Unt and Ass-Unt, (meaning Man of Peace and Man of Discord). The latter having won the tussle gave his name to the parish.Strang, Tom. (1975) The Northern Highlands. Edinburgh. Scottish Mountaineering Club.
The Quinag estate belongs to the John Muir Trust, a charity that seeks to conserve wild land and wild places.
The Little Assynt Estate, which comprises two of the old townships of Assynt, Little Assynt and Loch Beannach is now owned by Culag Community Woodland Trust, a local trust that seeks to provide employment and training and improvements in well-being for local people, as well as encouraging education about the area's natural environment.
The Assynt branch of the Scottish Crofters Union met on the 6 June 1992, to discuss the sale. There the crofters decided to attempt to raise enough money to buy the estate and run it themselves.MacAskill (1999) pp. 46–47
Assynt Crofters' Trust, a company limited by guarantee, was formed to make a bid for the land. Membership of the trust was open to crofters within the estate. The trust aimed to buy the estate and keep it under the control of the crofters, and to develop the area by initiating projects such as house building, job creation and tree planting.MacAskill (1999) pp. 56–60 Funding for the trust came from many sources. Each crofting family was asked to raise £1,000. Caithness and Sutherland Enterprise, part of Highlands and Islands Enterprise donated £50,000, while NatureScot gave a grant of £20,000. Highland Regional Council donated £10,000. Much of the money, however, came from a public appeal for funds. This appeal raised over £130,000 from 824 individuals.MacAskill (1999) pp. 60–78 Money came from throughout the United Kingdom, as well as abroad. Political figures such as the local Member of Parliament, Robert Maclennan,Maclennan's ancestors had been expelled from their homes during the Highland Clearances. He gave £1,300—£50 for every year he had served as an MP. MacAskill (1999) page 68 Ray Michie, Alex Salmond, Winifred Ewing and Charles Kennedy donated, as did the rock band Runrig. A secured loan of £90,000 was received from Highland Prospect Limited, a company set up by Highland Regional Council to promote investment in the Highlands by providing grants and low-interest loans.The loan, with a low initial rate of interest, was to be repaid through the sale of Torbreck Lodge, a hunting lodge on the estate. MacAskill (1999) page 72
The trust made two unsuccessful bids, of £235,000 and £245,000 respectively. This caused the trust to adopt a more aggressive stance. They threatened to use right-to-buy provisions of crofting law to buy the crofts.MacAskill (1999) pp. 92–131 This option, requiring legal action, would be expensive and time-consuming; and would deny the crofters complete control of the estate.Crofting law allows crofters to force their landlord to sell, at a low price, their croft houses; the in-bye land (land which formed an integral part of the croft); and a share of the local common grazing land, provided it was adjacent to the croft and had been fenced off. However, the landlord would retain mineral, salmon fishing and hunting rights (except for limited rights for crofters to shoot deer who were damaging crops or grazing land). MacAskill (1999) pp. 206–207 The option was therefore kept in reserve in order to make the estate less attractive to other potential bidders—compulsory purchase of the crofts would force the new landowners to sell much of their newly acquired land for a fraction of its value. To assist this strategy, the crofters enclosed and divided an area of common grazing land, an action which would give them the option of buying the common land as well as the crofts themselves. Pressure was also exerted on the main creditor of Scandinavian Property Services, the Swedish Östgöta Enskilda Bank, as the trust wrote telling them of their proposed strategy.
On 4 December 1992, the trust submitted a final bid of £300,000. This was accepted after four days. On Monday, 1 February 1993, Assynt Crofters' Trust became the owners of the North Lochinver Estate, which they renamed the North Assynt Estate.MacAskill (1999) page 133
The Coigach and Assynt Living Landscape Project is a community partnership project which aims to bring environmental and economic benefits to the Coigach and Assynt regions of North West Scotland. The partnership includes landowners (private and community), the local community and charitable organisations, with the Scottish Wildlife Trust being the lead partner. The project is described as an "ecosystem restoration project", and aims to "bring woodland connectivity, species-rich flora and fauna, and economic growth back to the Scottish uplands".
A large part of Assynt, known as Inverpolly, was formerly designated as a national nature reserve but since 2004 the designation has been limited to the area surrounding Knockan Crag. The Inverpolly area is classified as a Special Area of Conservation, one of three in Assynt along with Inchnadamph and Ardvar and Loch a' Mhuilinn Woodlands. Many of the loch and lochans are designated as Special Protection Areas.
|
|
