Duthil

The name of this parish is said to derive from the Gaelic Tuathil, 'north', as opposed to Deishal, 'south', which was the name of a considerable stripe of land in the southern part of the parish.

The early Parish Church of Duthil was at Baile an t-Seipeil (Chapeltown) which lies at Deishar {NH 922194}, where there was a settlement and burying-ground. It has been suggested that this church was built c.1400, although Dr. Grant considered that it could trace its history back to the 13th-century.

"Wolves were at one time numerous here. A short distance from the church is a lane called Clais-a-Mhadidh, in celebration of the feat of a woman who resided on the farm of Lochanhully {NH 917234}. When returning home with a gridiron in her hand, she was met by one [a wolf] of huge proportions. To retreat would have been certain destruction, and to proceed she dared not. They thus, for a few moments, stood surveying each other ; and then the brute made a spring at her, but she, by a well-directed stroke with the gridiron, left him lifeless at her feet."¹

The Church of Duthil was given to the Cathedral of Elgin by Gilbert, eldest son of the Earl of Strathern, 1224-1242.

The present church was built in 1826 to replace a much older building which, it was said, was "one of the few Popish chapels which survived the Reformation."² This church and its churchyard has anciently been the burial place of the Chiefs of Grant and now the Earls of Seafield.

The parish of Duthil was united with Rothiemurchus in 1630, but the union was made difficult by the fact that the two parishes were separated by the River Spey.

The nearby place-name Achnahannet {NH 978155 } is of great significance since it is a commonly accepted 'marker' of an ancient Christian site.³ This position also marks the southern end of an old hill-track leading to the famous Lochindorb and the castle there. It is believed that this would have been the 'main road' north before the advent of modern routes. Above Easter Rynechkra {NH 983303} it joins the road coming up from the crossing point of the Spey at Cromdale. This 'road' would also have formed a natural continuation of the 'drove-road' going from Nethy Bridge through Glen Derry to the south.

At Lower Finlarig {NH 994254} in an enclosure measuring 85ft. in diameter, and which was probably the site on an early Christian settlement, an incised and sculptured stone was dug up in 1867. While in the vicinity of the farm at Easter Laggan {NJ 002255} there are stones with 'cup markings' revealing the site's use by ancient peoples.
It is of great significance that a field which forms a part of the farm at Lower Finlarig is called Chapel Field.

It is of interest to note that the first Protestant minister of Duthil, Mr. William Fraser, was inducted in 1614, some 54 years after the Reformation!⁴