View source for Suidhe

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country                          = Scotland
| official_name                    = Suidhe
| gaelic_name                      =
| population                       =
| population_ref                   =
| os_grid_reference                =
| coordinates                      = {{coord|56.316761|-6.253278|type:landmark_region:GB|display=title}}
| map_type                         = Scotland
| unitary_scotland                 = [[Argyll and Bute]]
| civil_parish                     = [[Kilfinichen and Kilvickeon]]
| lieutenancy_scotland             =
| constituency_westminster         =
| constituency_scottish_parliament =
| post_town                        =
| postcode_district                =
| postcode_area                    =
| dial_code                        =
| static_image_name                =
| static_image_caption             =
}}'''Suidhe''' ([[Scottish Gaelic]]: ''Suidhe'') is a ruined township located on the southwestern peninsula of the [[Isle of Mull]], [[Scotland]]. It lies about {{convert|3/4|mi|km|spell=in}}  to the west of the village of [[Bunessan]] in the civil parish of [[Kilfinichen and Kilvickeon]]. It was awarded the status of [[Scheduled monument]] in 2004 on the basis of its potential value as a source of information about post-medieval, and possibly medieval, settlement and economy in the Western Isles of Scotland.<ref>
{{cite web
| url = http://portal.historic-scotland.gov.uk/designation/SM10661
| title = Suidhe, Scheduled Monument Designation
| publisher = Historic Environment Scotland
| accessdate = 13 January 2016
}}
</ref>
== Etymology ==
The name ''Suidhe'' is derived from the [[Scottish Gaelic|Gaelic]] for seat. One theory suggests that this name may be a reference to the location as a resting place at the top of the steep hill out of the village of Bunessan.<ref>
{{cite web
| url = http://www.bunessan.bordernet.co.uk/history/suidhe.html
| title = Suidhe, History of Bunessan
| publisher = Bunessan village website
| accessdate = 13 January 2016
}}
</ref>
== History ==
[[File:Blaeu - Atlas of Scotland 1654 - MVLA INSVLA - The Isle of Mull.jpg|thumb|Mull as shown in Bleau's Atlas of Scotland, 1654. Suidhe (as 'Suy') can be found towards the bottom left on the [[Ross of Mull]] (Ros-y)]]
The first documented reference to the settlement is found in Bleau's Atlas of Scotland, 1654, which depicts the site of 'Suy'. In the [[Ordnance Survey]] First Edition map one unroofed and five roofed buildings are shown, along with a head dyke and an enclosure.<ref>Ross of Mull Historical Centre (2004) ''Discover The Ross...'', p. 38. Bunessan, Ross of Mull Historical Centre</ref>
The 1779 census of inhabitants of the [[Duke of Argyll|Argyll]] estates shows a population of 11, excluding female children.<ref>Cregeen, Eric R. (1963) ''Inhabitants of the Argyll Estate 1779'', p. 79, Scottish Record Society Publications</ref> It is likely that one of the John McCormicks (anglicised form of McCarmaig) recorded in the census was the source of information for a 1791 work entitled ''A Description of the curious monuments and antiquities in the island of Icolmkill, or the island of St. Colman-Kill. Also an account of the island of Staffa, [...] By a gentleman who made the tour of Europe, prior to this description, in a letter to a friend''. Only one extant copy of this pamphlet is known to exist, held in the collection of the [[British Library]] .<ref>
{{cite web
| url = http://www.history.ox.ac.uk/fileadmin/ohf/documents/Iona_Innes.pdf
| title = ''Iona in 1771: Gaelic tradition and visitors’ experience''
| publisher = The Innes Review (2012), Edinburgh University Press, pg. 12
| accessdate = 13 January 2016
}}
</ref>
Architectural remains at the site reflect changing construction techniques. Earlier structures have rounded gables and are of drystone construction, typical of buildings roofed with thatch. Later ones have the squared gables which became common when corrugated iron became the preferred roofing material.<ref>Ross of Mull Historical Centre (2004) ''Discover The Ross...'', p. 38. Bunessan, Ross of Mull Historical Centre</ref>
The site is known to have been fully abandoned by the 1940s.<ref>
{{cite web
| url = http://portal.historic-scotland.gov.uk/designation/SM10661
| title = Suidhe, Scheduled Monument Designation
| publisher = Historic Environment Scotland
| accessdate = 13 January 2016
}}
</ref>
== Designation as a Scheduled Monument ==
The remains of the settlement were given [[Scheduled Monument]] designation by [[Historic Scotland]] on 20 January 2004. The decision was made on the grounds that it was of national importance as a source of information about post-medieval, and possibly medieval, settlement and economy. The scheduling decision also note that the site's importance is increased by the cartographic and archeological evidence that it was occupied and adapted over a period of at least several hundred years.<ref>
{{cite web
| url = http://portal.historic-scotland.gov.uk/designation/SM10661
| title = Suidhe, Scheduled Monument Designation
| publisher = Historic Environment Scotland
| accessdate = 13 January 2016
}}
</ref>
== Bronze age barrow and standing stones ==
Slightly to the south of the township ruins is another scheduled monument consisting of a prehistoric [[Tumulus|barrow]] and several [[standing stones]]. The barrow is typical of the type believed to be used as funerary monuments dating to the [[Neolithic]] and Early [[Bronze Age]] (3000 -2000 BC).<ref>Ross of Mull Historical Centre (2004) ''Discover The Ross...'', p. 39. Bunessan, Ross of Mull Historical Centre</ref> The scheduling decision, made in 1963, was based upon the fact that the burial mound may be expected to contain information relating to the techniques used in its construction and use.<ref>
{{cite web
| url = http://portal.historic-scotland.gov.uk/designation/SM2322
| title = Suidhe, barrow and standing stones, Bunessan, Scheduled Monument Designation
| publisher = Historic Environment Scotland
| accessdate = 13 January 2016
}}
</ref>
==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
==External links==
*[https://canmore.org.uk/site/21762/mull-suie/ Canmore - Suie, Mull]
{{Mull}}
[[Category:Villages on the Isle of Mull]]