Once Upon a Highland Christmas(46)

Therefore, I’d like to note that at the time this story takes place, Highlanders celebrated Yule and Winter Solstice with as much gusto as modern-day Scots enjoy today’s Christmas merrymaking.

In medieval Scotland, Auld Yule fell on January 5, because the Julian Calendar was still in place. This practice continued for several centuries, causing the holiday festivities to be celebrated twice in many parts of Scotland. This was done with a blend of “Old” and “New” Christmas traditions. As my characters are pagan, I allowed myself creative license to write what I hope is a pleasing mix of Highland holiday customs.

For example, Archie’s Yule Log, aka the Cailleach Nollaigh or “Christmas Old Wife,” truly existed and was a crucial part of Highland holiday celebrations. It was indeed carved to resemble an old woman. Mistletoe was also every bit as important as in the story. Held sacred since the dimmest mists of time, mistletoe was known as “All-Heal” by the Druids, who had strict rules for gathering it and for its use. Mistletoe’s connection to the season goes far deeper than merely offering an opportunity for kissing, also having been believed to ensure fertility, which would’ve been important in a time of the year when the world was so cold and still.

The Yule beacons Grim and Breena appreciate during their journey were reflections of the Midwinter Solstice balefires that would’ve blazed far and wide across the Highland hills, lighting the night darkness.

There were so many wonderfully fascination customs, it was hard to choose only a few. I hope the traditions I settled on lend festive atmosphere and fun to the story.

I’d also like to note that although Duncreag Castle, the nearby Glen of Many Legends, and other locations are purely fictional, Breena’s home, Inishowen in Donegal, Ireland, actually exists.

There really were O’Doherty Lords of Inishowen. The name is ancient, and they descend from the legendary hero Niall of the Nine Hostages, who was a great champion and perished at a jousting tournament in AD 405. Breena’s forebears were a warring folk and so would they have been in her time as well. There were great power struggles and much fighting among the rulers of the day, including between relatives. Breena’s fate, having been given in secret for safekeeping to a trusted agent of her sire, could well have happened. She wouldn’t have been the first noble child to have been placed into such care, neither in Ireland nor in Highland Scotland.

Buncrana Castle is also real, though its true name is O’Doherty’s Keep. It stands to this day, a romantic ruin overlooking Trawbreaga Bay and offering splendid views of the Donegal coast. If you visit Inishowen, you can walk about its crumbling splendor.

For centuries, the Vikings made frequent raids on this area, so Breena’s capture by Ralla and his men was not a stretch of writerly imagination. Her home was prime raiding territory, with the Northmen even claiming the land and setting up a trading post there from the ninth through the twelfth centuries. In the thirteenth century, Breena’s O’Dohertys arrived and made Inishowen their own. They ruled until 1610.

Aside from the historical realities behind the telling of Once Upon a Highland Christmas, Yuletide magic accompanied me through the typing of every word.

However you celebrate, may the spirit of the season warm your heart and brighten your holiday.





About the Author


Sue-Ellen Welfonder is a Scotophile whose burning wish to make frequent trips to the land of her dreams led her to a twenty-year career with the airlines.

Now a full-time writer, she’s quick to admit that she much prefers wielding a pen to pushing tea and coffee. She makes annual visits to Scotland, insisting they are a necessity, as each trip gives her inspiration for new books.

Proud of her own Hebridean ancestry, she belongs to two clan societies: the MacFie Clan Society and the Clan MacAlpine Society. In addition to Scotland, her greatest passions are medieval history, the paranormal, and dogs. She never watches television, loves haggis, and writes at a 450-year-old desk that once stood in a Bavarian castle.

Sue-Ellen is married and currently resides with her husband and Jack Russell terrier in Florida.





Turn the page for a preview of the first book in the sexy Scandalous Scots series,


To Love a Highlander.





Chapter One



STIRLING CASTLE



Summer 1399

Sorley the Hawk slept naked.

His bare-bottomed state was glaringly apparent, even to Lady Mirabelle MacLaren’s innocent eyes. She should have known that a man with such an inordinate fondness for pleasures of the flesh would take to his bed unclothed. Still, it was a possibility she should’ve considered before sneaking into his privy quarters. She hadn’t expected him to be in his room so early of an e’en. She’d hoped to catch him unawares, surprising him when he strode inside.