Ardvreck Castle

Ardvreck Castle
	Ardvreck Castle, looking west from the banks of Loch Assynt, with the summit of Quinag in the background
Creation time :	Late 15th century
Castle type :	Niederungsburg
Conservation status:	ruin
Place:	Loch Assynt
Geographical location	58 ° 9 '59.1 " N , 4 ° 59' 38.2" W Coordinates: 58 ° 9 '59.1 " N , 4 ° 59' 38.2" W.

Ardvreck Castle is a ruined castle in the Scottish Highlands . The building, which is located on a peninsula in Loch Assynt and was built at the end of the 15th century, is classified as a Scheduled Monument .

history

Ardvreck Castle was built around 1490 by the MacLeods of Assynt, a branch of the MacLeod clan , which had been owned by Assynt since the beginning of the 14th century . The castle is located on a small peninsula on the north bank of Loch Assynt, which becomes an island depending on the water level. The first, quite simple building, which consisted only of a rectangular tower house , was fundamentally extended by Donald Ban MacLeod of Assynt about a century later with a tower and surrounding walls.

James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose

Ardvreck Castle played a small role in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms in the mid-17th century . In 1650 the loyal James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose , sought refuge in Ardvreck Castle. Montrose had landed with a small army after the execution of King Charles I in Scotland to continue the fight for the rights of his son Charles II , who had made Montrose Lord Lieutenant for Scotland. He tried to mobilize the Clans in support, but was defeated by the radical Covenanters on April 27, 1650 at the Battle of Carbisdale . On the flight through the Highlands he finally surrendered on April 30, 1650 in Ardvreck Castle, as he hoped for protection from Neil MacLeod of Assynt , the then laird of Assynt. MacLeod was not present, but his wife Christine, the daughter of an opponent of Montrose, had him locked up and handed him over to the Covenanters. It is unclear whether MacLeod himself was involved in the extradition. Montrose was brought to Edinburgh and executed on May 21, 1650.

View from the west end of the peninsula to Ardvreck Castle, in the background to the left the ruins of Calda House

The MacLeods lost Ardvreck Castle a few years later after Neil MacLeod was viewed with suspicion by the new government and finally regarded as a rebel due to the extradition of the Marquess of Montrose after the re-establishment of the kingdom by General Monck in 1660. In 1672 the Seaforths of MacKenzie, a branch of the MacKenzie clan , who had previously purposely bought promissory notes from the MacLeods , captured the castle after a two-week siege and took possession of it. The MacKenzies replaced the uncomfortable castle in 1726 with Calda House , a large modern mansion a few hundred meters from Ardvreck Castle on the north bank of Loch Assynt on today's A837 , which, however, fell victim to a fire a few years later in 1737. The MacKenzies, who as supporters of the Jacobites were also viewed with suspicion by the government and were financially in dire straits, had previously advertised Calda House for sale. Allegedly the house was set on fire to prevent it from being taken over by the Sutherland family and the Earl of Sutherland . In 1745 the MacKenzies supported the last uprising of the Jacobites and after the defeat in the Battle of Culloden lost their property, which was ultimately taken over by the Earl of Sutherland in 1757. Calda House was not rebuilt, its masonry used for other buildings in the area. Ardvreck Castle, whose walls had already been partially used for the construction of Calda House, finally collapsed after a lightning strike in 1795 and fell into disrepair.

Ardvreck Castle and its surroundings remained in the possession of the Earl of Sutherland until the 20th century . Between 2003 and 2004 the ruins of Ardvreck Castle and Calda House were secured and renovated by the Historic Assynt Trust.

description

Ardvreck Castle was originally built as a likely three-story tower house, a construction typical of castles in the British Isles at the time. There were vaults on the ground floor, above a large hall, which probably also had a vaulted ceiling. The floors above only had wooden ceilings. Around 1590, the owner at the time extended it to the southeast corner of the rectangular main house to include a circular stair tower and extensive surrounding walls, which probably included a garden. The stair tower was rectangular in the upper floors, which protrude over the base . Other buildings such as stables and smaller houses for servants on the peninsula were probably also part of the castle. To the southwest lie the foundation walls of a rectangular building in which the remains of a furnace can still be seen.

In particular, part of the south side of the Tower House and parts of the stair tower have been preserved. The north wall has completely disappeared, only smaller remains can be seen from the east and west sides of the main building. In addition, various foundation walls and a stone wall running across the narrowest part of the peninsula have been preserved.

Say

The history of the castle is also reflected in corresponding legends. In addition to the Marquess of Montrose, who allegedly walks around as a gray-clad man, the builder's daughter is said to appear as a ghost in the ruins. Her father had allegedly promised her as a bride to the devil if he would help the MacLeods build the castle. When the devil wanted to get the promised daughter, she is said to have thrown herself from the tower and since then has been walking around the walls.