Braal Castle

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Ruins of Braal Castle

Braal Castle is a ruined castle north of the village of Halkirk in the Scottish county of Caithness (now the Highland administrative division ). The mid-14th century castle was originally called the Castle of Brathwell .

history

Harald II of Orkney , Mormaer of Caithness, (approx. 1134–1206) probably already lived on the site , but the remains of the building that has survived to this day date from the 14th century. The "Castle of Brathwell" lent King Robert II to his son, the Earl of Caithness . His descendant, Walter Stewart , forfeited his lands to the crown in 1437 when he was executed for his role in the murder of King James I.

In 1450, King James II gave the castle to George Crichton , the Lord High Admiral of Scotland , who was briefly Earl of Caithness in 1452 . In 1455, James II loaned the Earldom and Castle to William Sinclair , the Baron of Roslin and Lord Chancellor of Scotland . The castle then fell in the 18th century to the Sinclairs of Ulbster , a branch line of the Clan Sinclair , Earls of Caithness.

The cottage

A country house was to be built next to the castle , but construction was abandoned. In 1856 a hotel was built over its foundations. During the Second World War , this building was requisitioned by armed troops and converted into individual apartments in the 1970s.

description

The castle is in an easily defendable position above the Thurso . It consists of a residential tower with a floor area of ​​around 12 × 11 meters and 2.5–3 meters thick walls. The entrance is on the first floor and leads into a knight's hall . A staircase in the wall led to a second floor and a parapet, but the upper parts of the castle are no longer preserved. The ruins are considered a Scheduled Monument .

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c David MacGibbon and Thomas Ross: The Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland. Volume 3 . 1887. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  2. ↑ Braal Castle . In: Gazetteer for Scotland . Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  3. ↑ Braal Castle, Halkirk, Caithness, Highland . Archived from the original on March 14, 2017. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved March 20, 2017. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mcewanfraserlegal.co.uk
  4. ↑ Scheduled Monument - Entry . In: Historic Scotland .

Web links

Commons : Braal Castle  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 58 ° 31 ′ 16.9 ″  N , 3 ° 29 ′ 0.1 ″  W.