Our journey south continued and we were scheduled to catch a ferry from the Isle of Eriskay, which is the last island in the chain of islands called “the Uists”, to the Isle of Barra.
Before we headed south we revisited Kildonan Museum to see the restoration project that was being carried out on a model Viking Long Boat as this was not open the previous day.
Since our visit we understand that the Long Boat is now displayed outside the Museum.
The island of Eriskay is connected to South Uist by a causeway. The island is known by many due to the ship, the SS Politician, floundering off its shores in 1941. This caused its local seafaring community to set sail to salvage the precious cargo of whisky, which was in short supply on the islands during the war years. They reportedly brought ashore thousands of bottles of whisky. The incident became the basis of Compton Mackenzie’s book “Whisky Galore” which was later brought to the big screen by Ealing Studios.
The ferry takes roughly 45 minutes to reach Barra and on the way there were some fantastic views. The port on Barra is close to Barra’s airport which is worth visiting as the runway is the beach.
It is interesting to note that the Scottish Government in 2024 published figures stating that the population of the Uists and connected islands that we had just visited was 4,846, whereas the population of Barra and Vatersay was only 1,264 but Barra and Vatersay are smaller so this is not unexpected.
The airport on Barra is located at the northern tip of the island and is a short takeoff and landing airport (STOL). An aircraft was arriving as we left the ferry port so we made the short trip to the airport to see the aircraft arrive. The airport opened in 1936 and its only route is to Glasgow on the Scottish mainland. It is apparently the only scheduled airline route in the world that lands on a beach.
The Hebridean weather was playing ball and it was a beautiful sunny day so we went on to visit another of the historic sites on Barra.
Cille Bharra is the remains of a medieval church that lie on the eastern slopes of Ben Eoligarry about a mile north-east of Barra Airport. The medieval church is dedicated to Saint Barr after whom, it is said, the island of Barra is named, and is set within the Eoligarry burial ground.
The church, also referred to by its anglicised name of Kilbarr Church, comprises the substantial remains of its north and south walls. The gables no longer exist. The upper parts of a doorway and its arch can be seen in the north wall. The fragments that remain suggest that the church was built in the 1100s, probably on the site of an earlier chapel dating back to the 600s and dedicated to St Finbarr of Cork.Â
South east of the standing walls of the church are the more fragmentary remains of a chapel, known as the South Chapel. What little remains – part of the west gable – is the only really identifiable feature. It is thought this may have been built in the 1400s.Â
The surviving walls of the church and the South Chapel have been shored up in recent years with cement-filled sandbags as a temporary measure. The eventual aim is to remove these as part of a programme to properly consolidate the ruins that remain.Â
North east of the ruined church is the only standing building on the site, the North Chapel, probably built in the 1500s. Whether this was originally built as a chapel or as a burial aisle or a mausoleum is open to debate, but it certainly serves as a chapel today, as well as providing a home for a number of medieval grave slabs that have been found on the site.
Standing at the east end of the North Chapel is a replica of the Kilbar Stone, a unique Christian-Nordic Runic Stone dating back to the 900s. This carries a decorated cross on the front and a runic inscription on the reverse: “This cross has been raised in memory of Thorgeth, daughter of Steinar”. An explanatory sign notes that the original stone is held by the National Museum of Scotland and explains that efforts to return it to Cille Bharra have been under way since 1980 “the centenary year of its abduction”.
Cille Bharra has some superb views to the north and east from the upper parts of the surrounding burial ground. These extend to Eriskay and South Uist but your attention is drawn mostly to the magnificent array of white shell-sand beaches at this end of Barra and on the nearby island of Fuday.
Amongst those whose graves enjoy these remarkable views is Sir Compton Mackenzie author of, amongst other works, “Whisky Galore”, based on real events on Eriskay.
We then drove to Castlebay, where our accommodation was located, and is the main town in Barra. In the middle of the bay at Castlebay is Kisimul Castle.
Kisimul Castle was the seat of the chiefs of the Macneils of Barra who were Gaelic lordships in the Middle Ages.
It is believed that the Macneils settled in Barra in the 11th century, but it was only in 1427 that Gilleonan Macneil was recorded as the first lord. He probably built the castle that dominates the rocky islet, and in its shadow a crew house for his personal galley and crew.
The Macneils were a seafaring clan. A descendant, ‘Ruari the Turbulent’, was arrested for piracy of an English ship during James VI’s reign in the later 1500s.
The Macneils of Barra claimed Irish descent from the legendary Niall of the Nine Hostages, high king of Ireland in the 5th century and great-grandfather of St Columba.
By the 1400s, their clan chief was part of an elite group of lesser lords who were members of the Council of the Isles. This body advised the MacDonalds, Lords of the Isles, usually meeting at Finlaggan, on Islay.
The Macneils didn’t emerge as lords of Barra until Lord Alexander MacDonald granted the island to Gilleonan Macneil in 1427 – but they may have had some control over it in earlier medieval times.
It is thought that heavy debts forced the Macneil chiefs to sell Barra in 1838. But a descendant, Robert Lister Macneil, the 45th Chief, bought the estate in 1937, and set about restoring his ancestral seat. It passed into state care in 2000.
Unfortunately the castle was closed for restoration so we were unable to visit.
Words and photos: Copyright John Cruse 2025