Glenfinnan Viaduct
The Glenfinnan Viaduct is the most celebrated piece of railway engineering in Scotland and one of the most famous in the world, a concrete viaduct of twenty-one arches carrying the West Highland Line 30 metres above the valley floor at the head of Loch Shiel in the Highlands, its combination of elegant construction, dramatic mountain and loch setting and global fame as the location of the Hogwarts Express sequence in the Harry Potter films making it a destination for visitors from every country. Built between 1897 and 1901 by Robert McAlpine's construction company using innovative mass concrete technology, the viaduct demonstrates that functional infrastructure and landscape beauty need not be in conflict.
The viaduct curves gently as it crosses the valley, following the natural contour of the hillside rather than cutting across it in a straight line, and this gentle curve gives the structure its characteristic profile in the most famous viewpoint photographs taken from the hillside to the south. The 21 semicircular arches, each spanning approximately 15 metres, carry the railway in a graceful sweep that complements the surrounding mountain scenery rather than dominating it. The Jacobite Steam Train, which operates the summer service between Fort William and Mallaig, crosses the viaduct twice daily and provides the dramatic image of a steam locomotive on the great curve that has become one of the defining photographs of the Scottish Highlands.
The valley of Glenfinnan carries enormous historical weight quite apart from its railway heritage. It was here at the head of Loch Shiel on 19 August 1745 that Bonnie Prince Charlie raised the Jacobite standard and began the last rebellion that came closest to restoring the Stuart monarchy to Britain, the campaign that ended at Culloden eight months later. The Glenfinnan Monument on the lochside, managed by the National Trust for Scotland, marks the spot with a tall column topped by a kilted Highlander.
The combination of the viaduct, the monument, the loch scenery and the steam train makes Glenfinnan one of the most layered and most rewarding destinations in the Highlands.