page_title: Battle of Dun Nechtain
section_title: Dunnichen
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Dun Nechtain / Location / Dunnichen
caption_attribution_description: Nechtansmere
context_page_description: The Battle of Dun Nechtain or Battle of Nechtansmere was fought between the Picts, led by King Bridei Mac Bili, and the Northumbrians, led by King Ecgfrith, on 20 May 685.
  The Northumbrian hegemony over northern Britain, won by Ecgfrith's predecessors, had begun to disintegrate. Several of Northumbria's subject nations had rebelled in recent years, leading to a number of large-scale battles against the Picts, Mercians, and Irish, with varied success. After sieges of neighbouring territories carried out by the Picts, Ecgfrith led his forces against them, despite advice to the contrary, in an effort to reassert his suzerainty over the Pictish nations.
  A feigned retreat by the Picts drew the Northumbrians into an ambush at Dun Nechtain near the lake of Linn Garan. The battle site has long been thought to have been near the present-day village of Dunnichen in Angus. Recent research, however, has suggested a more northerly location near Dunachton, on the shores of Loch Insh in Badenoch and Strathspey.
  The battle ended with a decisive Pictish victory which severely weakened Northumbria's power in northern Britain. Ecgfrith was killed in battle, along with the greater part of his army.
context_section_description: Dunnichen in Angus was first identified as a possible location for the battle by antiquarian George Chalmers in the early 19th century. Chalmers notes that the name 'Dunnichen' can be found in early charters of Arbroath Abbey as 'Dun Nechtan'. He further suggests a site, 'Dunnichen Moss' (grid reference NO516489), to the east of the village, which he informs us had recently been drained but can be seen in old maps as a small lake. Earlier local tradition, related by Headrick in the Second Statistical Account, claimed that the site was the location of the Battle of Camlann, where King Arthur fought Mordred.
  More recent suggestions for the battle site include the valley to the north of Dunnichen Hill, centering on Rescobie Loch (grid reference NO512518) and Restenneth Loch (grid reference NO483518), which is now much reduced following drainage in the 18th century.
  The battle scene inscribed on the Aberlemno kirk yard stone is often cited as evidence for the battle site. This interpretation was made based on the stone's proximity to Dunnichen, only 3 miles (5 km) to the north, but while the short distance seems compelling, the stone is unlikely to be any earlier than mid-8th century, and the ornamentation of the stone, including the animal forms used and the style of weaponry depicted, suggests it may be as late as the mid-9th century. Prior to being linked with the Battle of Nechtansmere, the Aberlemno stone had been cited as evidence for the Battle of Barry (now known to be historically inauthentic), and there are a number of other possible interpretations for the carving.
caption: Dunnichen Moss. The body of water to the left is a modern pond
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