A History Lesson.

[piscatus absentis]

In a couple of earlier posts I alluded to the fact that my family had a long and distinguished fishing history and that my grandfather, a keen amateur historian, had managed to bring to light an incident in the early 1st century A.D. where some early ancestors had come across a man walking on the water where they were fishing and had told him what to do with himself and his tricks.

What is less well known is that some time earlier the family, a peace loving tribe who lived mainly for fishing, had split.   It was rumoured that there had been some trouble with the occupying Roman forces but the truth is that they simply wanted to see the world and discover new fishings ? not really a diaspora, more an irruption.  The tribe wandered eastwards and northwards inevitably dropping off some of their numbers on the way where the fishing was particularly good.  Eventually a fair number of them arrived in what is now Southern England and found the sport was undeveloped with lovely clear rivers everywhere.  Again, some of them settled there but the wanderlust had bitten and some continued northwards.  Many settled in what is now Northern England but others, attracted by stories of rivers teeming with fish continued into ancient Caledonia. 

All the way they were plagued by Romans and often had to fight for the right to fish but generally they settled down happily and lived peaceful and fish filled lives.  Over the years those who lived around what is now Perthshire and Stirlingshire were idyllically happy with only the odd skirmish to upset their tranquillity and every year many of them spent some time each year  further south in Clydesdale where the troot catching was particularly good.

Then one March they set off south and found a bloody great wall had been built by the Romans to try to pen them in and keep the best of the fishing to themselves.  This was a great disappointment to a peace loving people who lived mainly for their fishing and, as might have been said, ?fair got their dander up?.  The 2nd century equivalent of the fiery cross was sent out, a large number of men assembled, the wall was breeched and the Romans were given, in the words of an early historian, ?a right good kicking?.

Now I appreciate that you might be beginning to doubt the truth of this story but we now have the mighty and omniscient Google.  Have a look at the entry for Grahamsdyke and then, if you?re still not convinced, do some research on the lost legion.

That?s what happens when you get between the Grahams and their fishing.

Next time it?s Jimmy the Saxt, the Border Reivers and the curse of the Bishop of Glasgow.

[superscot]

canny wait on the next instalment ! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[haresear]

As usual, PA, hugely entertaining :lol:

Write a book. Dae it now. I'd buy it.

Alex

[Pearly Invicta]

I'm a Graham myself, on my mothers side. "The Grahams, they made the heids tae dance".
Wonder if there's decent water at the Haughs of Cromdale?