Largs Pencil Monument — Attraction in Scotland

The Pencil Monument

Largs' most famous monument is The Pencil, situated at the south end of the Prom, near to Largs Marina. The Pencil was built in 1912, to commemorate the Battle of Largs 1263, when the Scots defeated King Haco of Norway's troops on the shore at Largs, after the 160 long ships got caught in a storm. Largs is very famous for its Viking connections, and there is an interactive exhibition called the Viking Experience, open all year round at the Vikingar! in Largs.

In addition each year the fireworks at the Pencil signal the end of the Viking Festival.

Why not check out the FESTIVAL section of this website to find out more about this year's Viking Festival? The Battle of Largs (2 October 1263) was an indecisive engagement between the kingdoms of Norway and Scotland, on the Firth of Clyde near Largs, Scotland. The conflict formed part of the Norwegian expedition against Scotland in 1263, in which Haakon Haakonsson, King of Norwayattempted to reassert Norwegian sovereignty over the western seaboard...

We love Largs very much and visit very often, we often sit at pencil point monument, the views are lovely but then you can sit anywhere in Largs and the views are lovely. The only problem we have with Largs at the moment is the public toilets need refurbished and kept open later at night for the people out for a walk. Lots of cars are parking on double yellow lines (what's that all about) don't you have wardens on patrol? That would pay for things that need attending...

A simple yet enlightening monument to a historical event with the Viking raids. It was pleasant to see it even if just a "small" replica of the original building. And being from Sweden, and the history is part of my own, seeing it in this form was exciting.

It did require a bit of a walk to reach but it is a nice area and the path is well kept. It had nice seating that allowed enjoying the monument itself or just the...