Duffus Castle
Duffus Castle is a ruined castle near Elgin in the Scottish administrative division of Moray . The originally wooden moth was used from around 1140 to 1705. During this time the castle underwent many changes, the most profound of which was the demolition of the wooden castle and its replacement with a stone castle. At the time of its construction it was one of the safest forts in Scotland. After the death of 2nd Lord Duffus in 1705, the castle was unreasonable as a place to live and was therefore given up.
The wooden castle
Moray was an important part of the Pictish Confederation. In the early 12th century, the province of Mormaer was ruled by Angus , grandson of Lulach MacGillecomgan, who succeeded Macbeth as King of Scots in 1057 . Angus, eager to be self-sufficient and not trusting the expansion of the monarchy, rebelled in 1130. This revolt was put down by King David I ; he began to populate the province with nobles and common people of his choice.
Freskin
An important newcomer was Freskin (or Freskyn ), who already owned an extensive estate in County Lothian ( Stabrock , now Uphall ). He received land in Duffus from King David I. Freskins origin is unclear. Historians agree that it probably came from Flanders , as "Freskin" is a Flemish name. Undoubtedly King David, himself a Normanized magnate with extensive estates in northern England and Normandy , lent lands to many Flemish nobles as well as Normans. The unlikely alternatives would be that Freskin was an Anglo-Saxon or Gale who fought for King David and his English general Edward Siwardsson in Moray. At that time the Flemish nobles were called “Flandrensis” in decrees (which almost never happened). Freskin does not appear in any contemporary source and was never addressed by its national origin. From the 13th century onwards, his descendants called themselves "de Moravia" (German: from Moray) and had become one of the most powerful families in northern Scotland.
It was Freskin who had the moth built out of wood and earthworks on marshy ground in the coastal plain of Moray ( Laich of Moray ) around 1140. It was in safe position in 1151 when the king came to visit. The moth consisted of an artificially constructed mound with steep sides and a deep trench around its base. Wooden buildings stood on its flat summit and were additionally protected by a wooden palisade around the edge of the summit plateau. The mound was accessible through a bailey . This is a wide strip of terrain that was raised from its surroundings, but not as high as the mound. At Duffus Castle the mound was reached via built-in steps. The outer bailey contained the buildings that were necessary to supply its residents - brewery and bakery, workshops and stables - as well as residential buildings.
The castle was destroyed in 1297 during a rebellion against English rule over the region.
The stone castle
Freskins direct male line ended in 1270 and the castle fell to Sir Reginald le Chen († 1312) through marriage with the heiress Mary , daughter of Freskin de Moravia . With the death of Reginald le Chen of Duffus in 1345, Duffus Castle fell to his daughter Mariot , who was married to Nicholas , the second son of the 4th Earl of Sutherland . The Sutherlands, also descendants of Freskin, held the castle until 1705, when it was abandoned.
It is recorded that in 1305 King Edward I of England gave Reginald le Chen 200 oaks from the royal woods of Longmorn and Darnaway "to build his country house at Duffus," indicating that a major construction project was under way. The wood was used for the scaffolding, floors and roofs of the new stone fortress.
A two-story tower with a rectangular floor plan was built on the mound and was the main residential building. The lord's knight's hall was housed on the upper floor , along with a latrine and sleeping chambers. The ground floor was the main warehouse and also housed the lord's household. The tower was built as a defensive structure with a small number of narrow windows. There was only one entrance on the first floor, which was equipped with a portcullis . Two doors led from the roof to the courtyard . This wall completely enclosed the outer bailey. The arming rod holes in the curtain wall show that there must have been a number of buildings. A building was later erected on the north side, which housed a kitchen, a knight's hall with a reception hall and the parade bedroom. It is possible that the Sutherlands had this building built. It is not known when the subsidence began, but there is evidence of repairs to the tower before it slid down the mound. No further signs of repair can be found on the tower and it may have collapsed early, but the newer hall became the main residential building. Signs of ongoing renovations can be found on this building. In 1689 , just before the Battle of Killiecrankie , John Graham, 1st Viscount of Dundee , was guest of Lord Duffus, one of the last important visitors before the castle was abandoned.
Duffus Castle is a Scheduled Monument .
Individual evidence
- ^ D. MacGibbon, T. Ross: The Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland . Volume 1. Edinburgh 1897.
- ^ GWS Barrow : The Kingdom of the Scots. Edinburgh 1973.
- ^ GWS Barrow: The Beginnings of Military Feudalism in Barrow (editor): The Kingdom of the Scots . 2nd edition (2003). P. 252, No. 16.
- ↑ James Gray: Sutherland and Caithness in Saga-Time or, the Jarls and the Freskyns . Edinburgh 1922.
- ^ A b J. Balfour Paul: The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh . 1906 & 1911.
- ^ Anna Ritchie, James Neil Graham Ritchie: Scotland: An Oxford Archaeological Guide . Oxford University Press. 1998. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
- ^ W. Douglas Simpson: The castles of Duffus, Rait, and Morton reconsidered (PDF) doi : 10.5284 / 1000184 . Retrieved June 22, 2017.
- ^ J. Bain (editor): 1888 Calendar of Documents relating to Scotland. Volume IV. Edinburgh 1888.
- ↑ L. Shaw, J. Gordon: The History of the Province of Moray . Volume 2. Edinburgh 1882.
- ↑ Scheduled Monument: Duffus Castle . Historic Scotland. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
Web links
- Duffus Castle . Historic Scotland.
- Duffus - one thousand years and one thousand pages of history . Duffus website.
Coordinates: 57 ° 41 ′ 16 ″ N , 3 ° 21 ′ 41 ″ W.