Urquhart Castle, Inverness-shire One Place Study
Location: Urquhart, Inverness-shire, Scotland
Surnames/tags: One_Place_Studies Scotland Inverness-shire
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Urquhart Castle, Inverness-shire One Place Study
Name
Urquhart Castle, Inverness-shire
Scottish Gaelic: Caisteal na Sròine
aka: Castle Loch Ness
Geography
- Continent: Europe
- Sovereign State: United Kingdom
- Country: Scotland
- County: Inverness-shire
- GPS Coordinates: 57.324, -4.442
- Elevation:
The castle ruins are laid out in a rectangular form and oriented approximately North to South.
Overview
Sitting off the A82 roadway on 'Strone Point' which is a rocky sandstone promontory on the north-western shore of Urquhart Bay and beautiful Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands, the ruins of Urquhart Castle have a long and glorious history dating back to the 13th century.
Grants Tower (Keep) is at the extreme North end of the Neither bailey (enclosure), the lower of the two baileys. At the higher South end of the Upper bailey is where the Doocot is located.
The two baileys are surrounded by a loose figure eight curtain wall dating from the 1300's.
The castle was likely built on top of an earlier Pictish fortification.
Names like St. Columba, Scottish King Robert I, Clan MacDonald, Clan Grant , and the English all played a role in the battles, sieges, and attempted takeovers it had throughout its history.
It remains the third most visited castle in Scotland (after Edinburgh, and Stirling) while tourists from around the world are in the area trying to get a glimpse of famous 'Nessie' in the adjacent Loch Ness.
Historical Timeline
[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]
4th-6th Century
300 AD-500 AD - Picts likely occupied the North of Scotland and had some form of Pictish fortification on the former site of Urquhart Castle.
580 AD - Irish evangelist St. Columba (aka Colmcille) (521 AD-597 AD) made the trip on Loch Ness to baptize an elderly Pictish nobleman named Emchath at Airdchartdan (Urquhart).
13th Century
1229 - Scottish King Alexander II (1189-1249) granted Urquhart to Thomas de Lundin. On de Lundin's death a few years later it passed to his son Alan Durward (1194-1275).
1275 - After Alan Durward's death, the king granted the Urquhart site to John II Comyn (1242-1302), Lord of Badenoch.
1280 - The castle likely built around this time frame by the Comyn's.
1296 - English troops under orders from English King Edward I (1239-1307) (aka ‘Hammer of the Scots’) storm and take over the castle.
1296 - English King Edward I (1239-1307) appointed Engliosh solider Sir William Fitz Warin (d. 1299) constable of the castle.
1297 - Scotland's Sir Andrew de Moray (1270-1297) laid siege to the castle but failed in his attempt.
1298 - Scots reclaim the castle.
14th Century
1303 - Bruce loyalist Sir Alexander de Forbes (1286-1332) tried his best to hold off another attack by the English, but the English again took possession of the castle.
1307 - Following the death a year earlier of John Comyn III of Badenoch (1274-1306) (aka Red Comyn) by Scotland's King Robert I (aka Robert the Bruce) (1274-1309), the Comyn's were defeated and the castle was back in Scottish control.
1329 - Scotsman Sir Robert Lauder of Quarrelwood (d. 1370) became constable of the castle.
1342 - Scottish King David II (1324-1371) spent the summer at the castle.
1395 - Scotsman Donald, Lord of the Isles (aka Domhnall of Islay) (d. 1423) took the castle and held it for 15 years.
15th Century
1410 - The castle was back in the hands of the English Crown.
1437 - The son of Donald, Lord of the Isles, Alexander, Earl of Ross (aka Alexander MacDonald) (1390-1449) tried to take the castle but was unsuccessful.
1452 - The son of Alexander, Earl of Ross (aka Alexander MacDonald) (1390-1449), John of Islay (aka John macDonald) (1434-1503) attacked and seized the castle.
1475 - John MacDonald II (1434-1503), Lord of the Isles, was stripped of his titles after he sided with England's Edward IV (1442-1483) against the Scottish King James III (1451-1488).
1476 - George Gordon (1455-1501), the 2nd Earl of Huntly, was given Urquhart Castle by Scottish King James III (1451-1488).
16th Century
1509 - The castle and nearby lands were granted by Scottish King James IV (1473-1513) to John Grant of Freuchie (d. 1538) who restored the site and built Grants Tower.
1513 - Sir Donald MacDonald of Lochalsh (1470-1519) claimed and occupied the castle.
1517 - John Grant of Freuchie (d. 1538) regained the control of the castle from the MacDonalds.
1538 - The son of John Grant of Freuchie (d. 1538), James Grant of Freuchie (d. 1553) retained control of the castle upon his fathers death.
1545 - With the help of Clan Cameron, the MacDonalds laid siege to the castle and escaped with three ships, cattle, and furnishings.
1546-1623 - The Grants again regained control of the castle and made substantial improvements.
17th Century
1644 - Covenanters (Presbyterian agitators) broke into the castle and robbed Lady Mary Grant.
1689 - A garrison of troops supporting the Protestant monarchy of William and Mary held off a much larger Jacobite force.
1692 - The castle was abandoned by the garrison and damaged by blowing up Grants Tower and most of the other structures to keep the Jacobite's from ever again using it as a stronghold.
18th Century
1715 - Most of the upper portion of Grants Tower crashed to the ground during a storm.
19th Century
1884 - Caroline, Dowager Countess of Seafield (1830-1911) inherited the castle ruins from her son Ian Ogilvy-Grant, 8th Earl of Seafield (1851-1884).
20th Century
1913 - Upon the death of Caroline, Dowager Countess of Seafield (1830-1911), Urquhart Castle ruin passed into state hands which fell under the jurisdiction of the Commissioners of His Majesty's Works and Public Buildings. The Commissioners office eventually was taken over by Historic Scotland which is now known as Historic Environment Scotland (HES).
21st Century
2002 - A new Visitor Center and Parking facility was completed.
Historical Points of Interest Nearby
Bridge of Oich c.1850 aka Victoria Bridge
Location: Aberchalder
Pedestrian bridge designed by English engineer James Dredge (1794-1863)
Clava Cairns c.2000 BC
Location: Inverness, near Clava Lodge Holiday Homes, Nairn River, and Nairn Viaduct
Bronze Age Cairns
Fortrose Cathedral c.1300 AD
Location: 7 Cathedral Square, Inverness, Fortrose
Late Gothic Cathedral
Fort George c.1769
Location: Ardersier, Inverness
Replaced original Fort George in Inverness.
Ruthven Barracks c.1721 AD
location: Kingussie, near Ruthven in Badenoch, Scotland
Built by King George II
In The Movies
1970 - ‘The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes.’
1996 - ‘Loch Ness’, starring Ted Danson
Visiting The Castle
Urquhart Castle is open daily to visitors year round. Hours vary seasonally and it is closed Christmas Day and Boxing Day (the day after Christmas), with shorter hours on New Year's Day.
Sources
- ↑ Wilderness Scotland; https://www.wildernessscotland.com
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ Castles of Britain and Ireland; Plantagenet Somerset Fry, 1997
- ↑ Wilderness Scotland; https://www.wildernessscotland.com
- ↑ Historic Scotland; https://www.historicenvironment.scot
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ Loch Ness By Jacobite; https://www.jacobite.co.uk
- ↑ European Waterways; https://www.europeanwaterways.com
- ↑ Undiscovered Scotland; https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk
- ↑ Castles of Scotland; https://www.thecastlesofscotland.co.u
- ↑ Clan Grant; https://clangrantvisitors.org
- ↑ About Scotland; http://www.aboutscotland.com
- ↑ Jacobite Trail; https://www.jacobitetrail.co.uk
- ↑ Hidden Scotland; https://hiddenscotland.co
- ↑ Hidden Scotland; https://hiddenscotland.co
- ↑ Historic Scotland; https://www.historicenvironment.scot
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ Wilderness Scotland; https://www.wildernessscotland.com
- ↑ Scottish at Heart; https://www.scottish-at-heart.com
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