Loudon Hill | mountain

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Loudoun Hill marks the eastern end of the Irvine Valley. From its summit there is an extensive view over Ayrshire to the Firth of Clyde and Arran. The hill has witnessed the passage of history from the earliest times. An iron-age homestead is located at the foot of the south-east slope. Nearby at Allanton Beg a Roman fort was built. The current A71 is probably the line of the Roman road as it left the fort. Sir William Wallace defeated an English force at Loudoun Hill in 1296 and King Robert the Bruce inflicted greater punishment on the English in 1307. A large Conventicle (outdoor religious service) held in the vicinity in 1679 led on to the humiliation of Claverhouse by the covenanters at the battle of Drumclog. The Viaduct which crossed the valley from Allanton carried the line of the Caledonian Railway Company. It was opened in 1905 and was a very visible monument to the railway age until it was considered “unsafe” and demolished in 1986. The “unsafe” viaduct took several attempts to blow it up before it finally succumbed