Dunduff Castle

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Dunduff Castle from the south after restoration

Dunduff Castle is a restored tower block on the slopes of the Brown Carrick Hills above Drumbane Burn and the sea in the village of Dunure in the Scottish administrative division of South Ayrshire .

history

The place name “Dunduff” could contain the Scottish Gaelic elements for “hill” or “fort” and “deer”, as is the case with Dundaff near Fintry . Other sources suggest that Duff is a proper name and therefore Dunduff is called "Fort des Duff", or "Fort on the Black Hill" from the Scottish Gaelic Dun Dùbh .

Glennie identifies Dunduff Castle as Dindywydd , a property mentioned by Aneirin or Neirin , a British Celtic poet in one of his Arthurian poems, preserved in a late 13th century manuscript with the Take Book of Aneirin .

Castle ruins

Dunduff Castle as a ruin, from the southeast
Floor plans of Dunduff Castle

This residential tower, which is located on a rocky hill east of Dunduff Farm , was built with an L-shaped floor plan and had a three-story stair tower with a square floor plan in the interior corner to the south. On the ground floor there are three rooms with barrel-vaulted ceilings that can be reached from the lobby of the residential tower. A private bedroom on the first floor was accessible via a corridor that ran the length of the main block. An open fireplace in the cultivation heated up the hall with their splayed window embrasure . There was once an intermediate ceiling, as can be seen from the supports for profile beams. The formation of the windows and doors of the original ruin suggest a construction period at the end of the 16th or beginning of the 17th century.

The map of General Roy from 1747–1755 shows a Dunduff Mill ( Eng .: mill) in connection with the castle; this mill is also mentioned in a charter from 1581. William Ayton's 1808 map shows Dunduff Castle, but it is not labeled as a ruin, although Dunure Castle is labeled as such.

In 1903 Groome described the ruins as a baron's small fortress.

task

In 1696 the castle was said to be almost complete. Smith says it was never completed. Cartographers show a Dunduff Castle as a whole from Pont s map (1560-1614) to the appearance of Armstrong s map in 1775, which shows Dunduff Castle as a ruin.

Hence, there is considerable doubt that Dunduff Castle was ever completed. Abercrummie lists Dunduff Castle among the noble houses of Carrick in his book A Description of Carrict as "a house on the coast that was never completed."

In 1891, Reverend R. Lawson formulated in his book Places of Interest About Maybole with Sketches of Persons of Interest :

“On the slope above are the ruins of the unfinished Dunduff Castle. A local illustration of this searching question from our Lord: Who of you who wants to build a tower does not sit down beforehand and count the costs, whether we have enough to at least deal with it after he has laid the foundation and is unable to finish it; all who see it make fun of him by saying: This man started the construction and was not able to finish it. "

restoration

In the 1990s, the ruins were secured and the tower was fully restored to serve as a family home. Ian Begg drafted the plans for the restoration.

Historic Scotland has listed the building as a Category B Historic Building.

Lords and lands of Dunduff

It is recorded that Sir John de Graham was born on the Dunduff lands in 1298. In the Scottish Wars of Independence he fought alongside Sir William Wallace and fell at the Battle of Falkirk , where the Scottish army was led by King Edward I of England . He was buried in the old parish church of Falkirk , Stirlingshire . The poet Robert Burns visited his grave in 1787. Smith sees Dunduff Castle as a castle owned by Clan Kennedy and their relatives, along with other castles in the area, notably Greenan Castle , Dunure Castle, Kilhenzie Castle , Doonside Castle , Sauchrie Castle , Craigskean Castle , Beoch Castle , Auchendrane Castle , Garryhorne Castle , Brockloch Castle and Smithstone Castle . To determine this, he quoted:

"Twixt Wigton and the toon of Ayr,
Port Patrick and the Cruives O'Cree,
Nae men need think fur tul bide there,
Unless he court a Kenedie."

The first written mention of Dunduff Castle was during the reign of William the Lion (1165-1214), when Walter Champenais de Karrig gave land in Dunduff to the monks of Melrose Abbey .

In 1581 the possessions connected to Dunduff Castle were 12 Merklands, the Dunduff Flour Mill, the 10 Merklands of Glentig with Flour Mill, the 5½ Merklands of Mekill Sallauchan and the 4 Merklands of Little Sallauchan.

The Stewart family lairds

Aiton's 1811 map of Ayrshire shows a roofless Dunduff Castle on the coastal road, easily accessible.
Places related to King Arthur in Ayrshire, e.g. B. Dindywydd and Dunduff.

Dunduff's first laird was William Stewart , who was married to Isobel Ker . In 1528 he was the Scottish envoy to France , appointed by King James V ; he died in 1552. His father was Sir Andrew Stewart , the 2nd Lord Evondale , first Lord of the Bedchamber of King Jacob IV. The family saw their ancestry directly from King Robert II.

The closest record is that of William Stewart, second Laird of Dunduff, 1558; his wife was Elizabeth Corry . The correct family name appears to have been "Stewart", but they often used the name "Dunduff" as a family name. Paterson speculated that they got the property by marrying an heiress with the surname "Dunduff". Matthew, the third laird, was born at Dunduff Castle in 1560, inherited the property from his father William in 1580 and is called "Dunduff of that Ilk".

In the sixteenth century the Master of Cassilis (younger brother of the Earl) entered into a plot with the Laird of Dunduff (Matthew Stewart) and the Laird of Auchindraine to kill his brother, the Earl of Culzean ; all three suffered from him. Thomas Kennedy of Bargany , who freed Alan Stewart , Commedator of Crossraguel to Gilbert Kennedy, 4th Earl of Cassilis , and the "black vault" of Dunure, was an ancestor of the Lairds of Dunduff.

The Bargany Laird then had property disputes with the Earl over the Newark lands , which resulted in a fourth participant joining the plot against the Earl of Culzean's life. On January 1, 1598, the Earl dined with Sir Thomas Nasmyth in Maybole and the conspirators and their servants lay in wait, but despite the eight shots fired at him, the Earl escaped unharmed by walking in the dark, gloomy night and through the streets ran away from Maybole and hid.

As a result of this incident, the Laird of Dunduff was imprisoned for a short time at Edinburgh Castle , then banished from Scotland, England, Ireland and all other British Isles and sentenced to a fine of 1,000 marks . This condemnation was either overturned or inapplicable, and on his return the Laird of Dunduff and the Earl of Culzean settled their quarrel and became friends; the laird died in 1609. George , brother of Matthew Stewart , was murdered in 1601 by John Glendoning of Drumraschein .

William Stewart , the fourth laird, inherited the lands from his father. In 1668 it was recorded that John , the fifth (and last) Laird of Dunduff, of the Stewart family, and his brother William were prevented from renewing their contract for opposing Oliver Cromwell and supporting the Crown, and soon after the property was sold and fell to the Whiteford family . John's sister inherited Mount Stewart and their daughter was Countess of Wicklow Alice .

The Lairds from the Whiteford or Whitefoord family

The Quhitefoord or Whiteford family owned lands of that name in southeast Paisley until 1689 . Originally, Walter Whiteford owned the Whitefoord lands from King Alexander III. received after its use in the Battle of Largs in 1263. James Whiteford of Dunduff Castle married Isabel Blair , daughter of Sir Bryce Blair of Blair Castle . Another James Whiteford's name appears in charters of 1700 and 1714; a Bryce Whiteford from Dunduff Castle and Cloncaird Castle († 1726) married Elizabeth Cuninghame , daughter of Sir David Cuninghame from Cloncaird Castle.

A James Whiteford from Dunduff Castle owned lands at Drumfadd in 1757 and a Lady Dunduff , widow of Bryce Whiteford before 1750, is believed to have lived in Ayr in 1767 and died in 1775 at the age of 85. The title “Lady” was often given to older widows, who were not noble husbands, as a sign of respect, including widows of Lairds. The family once owned other properties such as Blairquhan House (then called "Whiteford Castle"), Whitefoord Tower, Cloncaird Castle and Ballochmyle Castle. The family now lives in Shropshire , England.

A Walter Whyteford (sic) became Laird of Fail in 1619 , the donation to him by the old Fail Abbey was ratified by Parliament in 1621. The Wallaces of Craigie Castle had hoped to inherit the property.

Irish connection

William Stewart, the 4th Laird of Dunduff, was born around 1580 and was later made a baronet. He had applied for land in Ulster during the Plantation of Ulster and was assigned 4 km²; this happened in the "colonization period" under King James VI. These lands were in County Donegal , called "Coolaghy", in the Barony of Raphoe , called "Fort Dunduff" and later called "Manor of Mount-Stewart". Sir William had the power to enter into leases and to appoint court barons and court leets .

Mount Stewart fell to the family of Alice Howard, 1st Countess of Wicklow .

Mount Stewart in Donegal must not be confused with Mount Stewart in County Down in Northern Ireland, recently the seat of the Vane-Tempest-Stewart family , Marquesses of Londonderry .

Dunduff Mill

Matthew Dunduff aka Stewart took possession of the Dunduff flour mill in 1581. The mill was powered by one of the streams that run down Brown Carrick Hill , but its exact location is unknown. The Dunduff Mill was powered by a medium-sized water wheel that moved a single millstone. The sifting and sifting of the husk was done by hand; the mill had no air separators or mechanical sieves .

Individual evidence

  1. ^ JB Johnston: Place-names of Scotland. David Douglas, Edinburgh 1903, p. 110.
  2. ^ John Smith: Prehistoric Man in Ayrshire. Elliot Stock, London 1895, p. 176.
  3. ^ Place Names. (PDF) (No longer available online.) Politics for People, archived from the original on July 27, 2011 ; Retrieved March 6, 2010 . 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.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / politicsforpeople.org
  4. ^ John S. Stuart Glennie: Arthurian Locations. Edmonston & Douglas, Edinburgh 1869, p. 81.
  5. ^ A b Robert Close: Ayrshire and Arran: An Illustrated Architectural Guide. Royal Incorporation of Architecture of Scotland, 1992, ISBN 1-873190-06-9 , p. 167.
  6. ↑ Dunduff Castle. In: Canmore. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, accessed June 27, 2017 .
  7. ↑ James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 429.
  8. ^ Roy Military Survey of Scotland, 1747-1755. (No longer available online.) National Library of Scotland, archived from the original on August 18, 2009 ; accessed on June 27, 2017 .
  9. ^ William Aiton: General View of The Agriculture of the County of Ayr: Observations on the Means of its Improvement; Drawn up for the Consideration of the Board of Agriculture, and Internal Improvements, with Beautiful Engravings. Glasgow 1811. Map.
  10. ^ Francis H. Groome: Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland. Volume 1. Caxton, London 1903, p. 428.
  11. ^ A b Thorbjørn Campbell: Ayrshire: A Historical Guide. Birlinn, Edinburgh 2003, ISBN 1-84158-267-0 , p. 175.
  12. ^ A b c John Smith: Prehistoric Man in Ayrshire. Elliot Stock, London 1895, p. 182.
  13. ^ Charles S. Dougall: The Burns Country. A. & C. Black, London 1911, p. 88.
  14. ↑ Timothy Pont's Map. (No longer available online.) Formerly in the original ; Retrieved March 6, 2010 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.nls.uk  
  15. ↑ Captain Armstrong's Map. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on March 4, 2009 ; Retrieved March 6, 2010 . 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.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.nls.uk
  16. ↑ Dunduff Castle. In: Gazetter for Scotland. Retrieved June 27, 2017 .
  17. ↑ W. Abercrummie: A Description of Carrict. Maybole, 1696, Retrieved June 27, 2017 .
  18. ↑ Dunure Castle. ( Memento from April 2, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  19. ↑ Dunduff Castle. Website, accessed June 17, 2017 .
  20. ^ Dane Love: Ayrshire: Discovering a County. Fort Publishing, Ayr 2003, ISBN 0-9544461-1-9 , p. 298.
  21. ↑ Dunduff Castle. In: British Listed Buildings. Retrieved June 28, 2017 .
  22. ↑ James Mackay: Burns. A Biography of Robert Burns. Alloway Publishing, Darvel 2004, ISBN 0-907526-85-3 , p. 335.
  23. ↑ James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 428.
  24. ^ Archaeological & Historical Collections Relating to the Counties of Ayrshire & Wigton. Volume VI. Ayrshire & Wigton Archaeological Association, Edinburgh 1889, p. 167.
  25. ^ William Aiton: General View of The Agriculture of the County of Ayr: Observations on the Means of its Improvement; Drawn up for the Consideration of the Board of Agriculture, and Internal Improvements, with Beautiful Engravings. Glasgow 1811. Card insert.
  26. ^ A b c William Stewart, Laird of Dunduff. ( Memento of the original from July 17, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Royal House of Stewart. Retrieved June 28, 2017.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.theroyalhouseofstewart.com
  27. ↑ King Robert II of Scotland. ( Memento of the original from February 29, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) 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. The Royal House of Stewart. Retrieved June 28, 2017.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.theroyalhouseofstewart.com
  28. ↑ James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 45.
  29. ^ A b James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 46.
  30. ^ A b James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 430.
  31. ↑ James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863–1866, p. 50.
  32. ^ A b James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 431.
  33. ↑ a b c Martin Coventry: Castles of the Clans . Goblinshead, Musselburgh 2010, ISBN 978-0-89987-436-4 , p. 595.
  34. ^ A b Whiteford Genealogy. Forehead. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  35. ↑ Joseph Denham Shearer: Ayr & its People: From 1428 To The Time Of Burns. ISBN 978-0-9804731-1-7 . Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  36. ↑ David Courtney McClure: James McAdam: Waterhead and Whitefoord. In: Ayrshire History. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  37. ↑ James Paterson: History of the Counties of Ayr and Wigton. V. - III - Carrick. J. Stillie, Edinburgh 1863-1866, p. 33.
  38. ↑ Scottish "Undertakers" in Ulster. Ulster Ancestry. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  39. ^ Wilson, p. 73.

Web links

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

Coordinates: 55 ° 24 '38.5 "  N , 4 ° 43' 52.5"  W.