Broughty Castle

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Broughty Castle

Broughty Castle is a castle on the banks of the Tay in Broughty Ferry in the Dundee administrative district of Scotland . The castle is a Scheduled Monument .

history

construction

As early as 1454, George Douglas, 4th Earl of Angus , received royal permission to build a fortress on this site. His son, Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Angus , was forced to give this castle to the Crown. Andrew Gray, 2nd Lord Gray , received the castle in 1490. In 1495 he had the residential tower built, which forms the center of today's four-story castle.

Rough Wooing

In the 16th century, the castle was involved in fighting during Rough Wooing . After the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh in September 1547, it was sold to the English by its owner at the time, Patrick Gray, 4th Lord Gray . The Castle Envoy, Ninian Cockburn , who spoke to English Supreme Commander Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset , received a reward of £ 4. The Scottish keeper, Henry Durhan , received an English pension, an income from fishing and a Import / export license. Durham later loaned the English commander £ 138. Somerset's historian and writer '' William Patten '' laid down the castle's strategic importance:

"(...) it stands at the mouth of the Tay in such a way that whoever owns it rules Dundee as well as St John's Town (Perth) and many other cities or can force their use of the river."

The location of the old castle itself was difficult for modern martial arts, as it was discovered that the rapid flow of the river made it impossible to fire from the river. Soon after taking possession of the castle, the English garrison fortified Broughty Castle by digging trenches on the land side. Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln , began the fortification after advice from an Italian fortress engineer, Maestro Giovanni Rosetti , leaving 100 men and three ships to guard. The garrison was first led by Sir Andrew Dudley , brother of the Duke of Northumberland , who hoped to spread the Tyndale Bible in Dundee.

Andrew Dudley wrote in October 1547 that "never had a man such a weak group of soldiers, devoted to drink, gluttony, and laziness," though "the house was in good order." The city of Dundee on October 27, 1547 agreed to support the garrison and to oppose the Regent of Scotland, James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran . Dundee constable John Scrimgeour , the Baileys and the city council signed the agreement, if only under the coercion of Dudley's two gunboats.

The Earl of Argyll tried on November 22, 1547 and again in January 1548 to take the castle with 150 men under the leadership of the soldier Duncan Dundas , but without success. Thomas Wyndham brought two more ships in December 1547 and burned Balmerino Abbey on Christmas Day. On January 12, 1548, 100 matchlock rifles with powder flasks, fuses, pans and projectile forms were delivered from Berwick-upon-Tweed .

Portrait of the soldier John Luttrell by Hans Eworth 1550.

Andrew Dudley succeeded John Luttrell , who had previously been in command of Inchcolm . On May 11, 1548, the English commander of Haddington , William Gray, 13th Baron Gray de Wilton , wrote to Luttrell that he could not expect further supplies because of the expected French fleet. Baron Gray de Wilton warned him of Scottish assassins in June and the Duke of Somerset ordered him to release the German mercenaries under his command. A certain relief for Luttrell was that Lord Methven withdrew the rifles of the Scottish counter battery on June 6, 1548 for use in the siege of Haddington.

In the meantime, Luttrell has been commissioned to build a new fortress on an adjacent site. In November he wrote to the Duke of Somerset, describing the progress of this work and explaining that the turf curtain walls were not stable and could not be reinforced. Luttrell wrote that his enemies do not need rifles "because they will find them already finished." In December 1548, Patrick Gray, Lord Gray of Foulis , was charged with treason against the government of Scotland and the French commanders also voted for his execution. But he was eventually pardoned at the instigation of the Regent Arran.

The activities of Thomas Wyndham and his nephew Luttrell on the Firth of Forth were called into question in November 1549 and the Earl of Rutland was commissioned to investigate whether any of the ships they had captured had been a fair price. On Christmas Day 1549, Marie de Guise held a conference with her guests at Stirling Castle and they decided that more French cannons should be brought to the siege of Broughty Castle. Twelve English ships were sent to assist the defenders and it wasn't until February 12, 1550 that the Scots and the French managed to retake Broughty Castle. Marie de Guise watched the successful attack on Wednesday February 6, 1550 from a vantage point on the other side of the Tay. Paul de Thermes led the French troops, 240 men were wounded and 50 men were killed. The garrison surrendered at midnight six days later. James Dog of Dunrobin claimed Luttrell as his prisoner and his papers were seized. His ransom of £ 1000 (Scottish) was raised on May 16, 1550 in exchange for the sons of George Douglas of Pittendreich and the Master of Semple , who were prisoners in England. Luttrell was immediately re-arrested for owing to a Dundee merchant Robert Craig , but Regent Arran settled the debt in September and Luttrell was able to go home.

Wars of the Three Kingdoms

In 1651 the castle was attacked again by General Monck and his parliamentary army in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms . On this occasion, the royalist defenders fled without a fight. After 1666 the Gray family sold the castle and it slowly fell into disrepair.

Military and modern uses

In 1846 the Edinburgh and Northern Railway Company bought the castle and then built a harbor for their train ferry. In 1855 the War Office acquired the castle with the intention of defending the port against attack by the Russians . In 1860, renewed fears of a French invasion led the War Office to repair and re-fortify the property. The work was carried out according to plans by Robert Rowand Anderson . The walls and the main courtyard were renewed and a new wing with a courtyard was added to the tower. A caponier was added on the southeast side of the courtyard. Bases for nine large cannons were also built. And a small enclosure was created on the west side of the courtyard.

Broughty Castle

From 1886 to 1887 a building line was built east of the castle to accommodate underwater mine-layers. In an emergency, these sea ​​mines should lay out in the Tay estuary to damage enemy ships. In the years 1889-1891 a magazine was built in the western enclosure, which also led to a major reconstruction of the gun positions. The castle remained in military use until 1932 and then again between 1939 and 1949. The last change related to defense was made during World War II : a defensive post was installed on top of the main tower.

In 1969 the castle was opened to the public as a museum and is operated by the Dundee City Council.

Individual references and comments

  1. ↑ Scheduled Monument - Entry . In: Historic Scotland .
  2. ↑ Lord Gray of Foulis received £ 1,000 on November 14, 1547.
  3. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. p. 39.
  4. ↑ John Roche Dasent (Editor): Acts of the Privy Council . Volume 2. Her Majesty's Stationary Office, London 1890. pp. 157-159, 242.
  5. ↑ Arthur Clifford (editor): Sadler State Papers . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1809. p. 361.
  6. ^ William Patten: The Expedition into Scotland . London 1549. Abridged, noted September 18, 1547.
  7. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. p. 124. No. 256.
  8. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. pp. 21, 35.
  9. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. p. 24. Dudley to Somerset.
  10. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. pp. 33, 35.
  11. ↑ Duncan Dundas commanded the workers of the Scottish artillery platoon before the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh.
  12. ↑ Marcus Merriman: The Rough Wooings . 2000. p. 263.
  13. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. pp. 45, 64.
  14. ^ Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland . Volume 9. Edinburgh 1911. p. 142.
  15. ^ Calendar State Papers Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1898. pp. 48-49, 51, 53.
  16. ↑ David Starkey (editor): The Inventory of Henry VIII . Volume 1. Society of Antiquaries, 1998. p. 139.
  17. ^ Annie Cameron (editor): Scottish Correspondence of Mary of Lorraine . SHS, 1927. pp. 235-237, 243-248.
  18. ^ Annie Cameron (editor): Scottish Correspondence of Mary of Lorraine . SHS, 1927. pp. 275-278. Luttrell at Somerset, November 1548.
  19. ^ Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland . Volume 9. Edinburgh 1911. p. 264. December 18, 1548.
  20. ↑ 12th report, Appendix, part 4, The Manuscripts of the Duke of Rutland at Belvoir Castle . Volume 1. Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1888. pp. 50, 52.
  21. ↑ Michaud & Poujoulat: Nouvelle Collection des memoirs pour server a l'histoire de France . Volume 6. 1839 . Pp. 6-7.
  22. ^ A b Annie Cameron (editor): Scottish Correspondence of Mary of Lorraine . SHS, 1927. p. 322 (footnote), according to NAS Arrans liber emptorum .
  23. ^ The son of George Douglas later ruled Scotland as Regent Morton .
  24. ^ Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland . Volume 9. Edinburgh 1911. p. 443.

Web links

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

Coordinates: 56 ° 27 '46 "  N , 2 ° 52' 13"  W.