Inverness Poem by Laurence Overmire

The capital of the Highlands
At the mouth of the River Ness
In olden times 'twas a
Stronghold of the Picts

St. Columba himself journeyed here
To convert the Pictish King Brude

Denied entry by the king
Columba knocked and the doors
Mysteriously open'd!

Macbeth, Shakespeare's tragic
Scottish brute
As Mormaer of Moray and Ross
At a later date
Held a castle within the city

Then Malcolm III destroyed the last traces
Of vanquish'd Macbeth
Built his own castle
Victoriously on the mount

The castle that stands at Inverness today
Was built in the 1830's
A majestic impression of
Red sandstone sovereignty
With a statue of Flora MacDonald
To grace its entrance way

Perched overlooking the city
The river flowing serenely
Below
A footbridge takes you across
From side to picturesque side

One of the most livable cities in
Scotland, they say

Inverness

Even the name is magical!

~ Laurence Overmire

(Previously published in The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland, Indelible Mark Publishing,2016)