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NO7664 Kaim of Mathers
The Kaim of Mathers and Rock Hall are the only two buildings in grid square NO7664. Although both occupy headland sites, there are many contrasts between them. Kaim of Mathers, or camp of Mathers, is thought to have been built in the 15th century whereas Rock Hall dates to the nineteenth century with the lower bothy being dated to 1835 and the ice house to 1842. The former, salmon bothy of Rock Hall has been converted into holiday accommodation while Kaim of Mathers has long been a ruin. Rock Hall is easily accessible as it is served by a road whereas Kaim of Mathers is accessed by an exceedingly dangerous path. The tradition relating to the inaccessible location of Kaim of Mathers is directly connected to the reason why the refuge was built.
According to D.P. Davidson in ‘The Kaim of Mathers: An Historical Tale: Respecting Barclay Its Lairds & C of 1424-38’, published in 1880, the Kaim of Mathers was built by David Barclay, who was later known as ‘the cannibal laird.’ The story of his crime originates in the court of King James II, at Redcastle, with a complaint from Barclay and his fellow lairds Arbuthnott, Pitarrow and Halkerton about the inappropriate conduct of Sheriff John Melville. Exasperated by the complaints, the king was heard to exclaim; “No sorrow gin the sheriff wis sodden and supped in broo!” Barclay took the king’s words quite literally and hatched a plan to capture and kill the sheriff. Some days later, the sheriff was invited to a hunting party, without realising that he was the prey. At the end of the unsuccessful hunt, Sheriff Melville was looking into the huge, iron cauldron of boiling water when he was attacked by Barclay and his fellow conspirators. Melville was stripped and tossed into the boiling pot. With his dying breath, Sheriff Melville cursed the assassins and pronounced that Barclay would never be at peace because of his foul act of murder. With the murder being planned and premeditated, Barclay was able to produce horn spoons so that the lairds could easily consume the broth. Barclay malevolently declared “Now, we must carry out our royal master’s command to the letter, we will sup the broo of our sheriff!” When the king heard of these atrocious acts, done in his name, he declared that “Barclay shall ne’er have peace on land nor sea, woe betide he ever appears in my presence again!” The tradition is that Barclay went into hiding at the Kame of Mathers and that he used that refuge as a place to escape retribution for his gruesome and barbaric acts.
Set in a wider area of SSSI’s, in what is now Aberdeenshire, Kame of Mathers is a Scheduled Monument with little remaining of the original building. The ruined vestiges mainly relate to the tower but even here gaps in the masonry allow daylight to be seen through the walls. The ruined remains of the former stronghold are reached by walking along a narrow isthmus which projects from the cliffs to the seaward edge of the promontory. Any attempt to complete this journey is extremely dangerous as it involves walking along a narrow path with precipitous slopes on both sides. Windy conditions exacerbate the difficulty of this walk but the final stages of this passage are even more treacherous. To make footfall on the rock where Kame of Mathers is situated involves a leap over chasm with an approximately 18m (60 feet) drop to the sea. The cliffs and rock faces are often wet with sea spray, rain or ice and windy conditions make the prospect of a safe landing more unpredictable and less likely. The western side of the headland, on which Kame of Mathers sits, is badly eroded and what remains shows substantial cracks. I would strongly advise against trying to access the Kame of Mathers and would leave the seaward part of the promontory to the cormorants that often frequent that spot. Although there are warning signs not to use the coastal path for safety reasons, there is no specific sign warning of the danger of trying to access Kame of Mathers. I would urge that improved safety warnings are put in place, near the Kame of Mathers, to prevent potential injury or loss of life.
Adrian Diack, M.A. (Hons)


NO7664 : Kaim of Mathers, AberdeenshireNO7664 : The Kaim of Mathers, AberdeenshireNO7664 : Southward view of Kaim of Mathers, AberdeenshireNO7664 : Kaim of Mathers accessed by a narrow isthmus, AberdeenshireNO7664 : The position of Kaim of Mathers, Aberdeenshire[75 56843]