Lumphanan is documented to be the site of the Battle of Lumphanan of 1057 AD, where Malcolm III of Scotland defeated Macbeth of Scotland. Macbeth was mortally wounded on the north side of the Mounth in 1057, after retreating with his men over the Cairnamounth Pass to take his last stand at the battle at Lumphanan.[2] The Prophecy of Berchán has it that he was wounded at Lumphanan and died at Scone, 60 miles (100 kilometres) to the south, some days later.[3] Mac Bethad's stepson Lulach mac Gille Coemgáin was installed as king soon after. The nearby Peel of Lumphanan was built in the early 13th century, and is a good surviving example of an earthwork castle.[4] This site was used in the filming of the 1984 children's TV series The Box of Delights, which was based on John Masefield's fantasy novel of the same name.[citation needed]
The etymology of Lumphanan is identical to that of Lumphinnans in Fife, both deriving from the Gaelic for 'Church of St Finnan'.[5][6]
Amenities
The village has its own primary school, Lumphanan Primary, which has recently been extended, and its own pre-school, called "The Hut: Lumphanan Pre-school". There is a village corner shop, and a small tea-room called "The Meet Again Tea Room". There is one pub in the village called "The MacBeth Arms", there was another bar (a former hotel) located 3 miles (5 kilometres) from the village centre named "The Crossroads Hotel". Known in the local area as "The Cross", this closed in 2011. This is now home to Paterson stoves, a local business, who install wood-burning stoves and also carry out chimney cleaning.
The ruins of Corse Castle, the ancient seat of the Forbes family, stand approximately 3 miles (5 kilometres) to the north.
Along with a short, but challenging, nine-hole golf course, Lumphanan also has a recently refurbished multi sports court maintained by the Lumphanan Community Recreation Association (LCRA). Furthermore, there is a flood lit sports training area situated in the large play park, which is available for use by request. Lumphanan's summer league football team are nicknamed "The Wildcats".
The LCRA members also organise Scotland's first 10 km run of the year, known as the "Detox", that has been running since 2004 on 2 January. The race starts and finishes in Lumphanan, is mostly on road, passing through countryside. The start of the course includes a hill climb out of the village and a section of farm track running next to the old Deeside Railway Line.
The village was formerly served by bus route 201 until all scheduled bus services were replaced by a council funded service starting on 21 August 2023.[7]
^Andrew Wyntoun, Original Chronicle, ed. F.J. Amours, vol. 4, pp 298-299 and 300-301 (c. 1420)
^The exact dates are uncertain, Woolf gives 15 August, Hudson 14 August and Duncan, following John of Fordun, gives 5 December; Annals of Tigernach 1058.5; Annals of Ulster 1058.6.
