Findlater Castle
| Findlater Castle | ||
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 Cliff coast with the ruins of Findlater Castle |
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| Creation time : | early 13th century | |
| Castle type : | Niederungsburg | |
| Conservation status: | ruin | |
| Place: | Sanding | |
| Geographical location | 57 ° 41 '32.2 " N , 2 ° 46' 17.7" W | |
| Height: | 15 m | |
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Findlater Castle is a ruined castle in Aberdeenshire near the Scottish village of Sandend between the villages of Cullen and Portsoy . The remains of the former fortress, which are still visible today, date back to a reconstruction in 1455.
geography
The castle ruins are located on the north coast of Aberdeenshire on the Moray Firth on a 15 m high cliff, which is surrounded by a steep cliff coast , which in some places towers up to 27 m high. The slightly protruding cliff can be accessed via a steep, irregularly shaped land bridge, which is interrupted in two places. These gaps used to be bridged by a bridge. Because of this difficult access, the fortress could only be entered on foot. There was therefore an associated forecourt on the mainland.
The main building of the fortress was built into the west side of the rock, so that the main level is flush with the top of the rock. The walls on this level have now been almost completely removed. Below there are two more levels of arched building structure, some of which has been preserved.
The rocks all around contain a lot of quartz. The name of the fortress "Findlater" is derived from the Old Norse words fyn "white" and leitr "cliff".
history
The oldest historical evidence for the existence of a castle goes back to the year 1246. King Alexander III. then had it repaired around 1260 in anticipation of an invasion by the Norwegian King Haakon IV . The fortress fell into the hands of the Vikings and was occupied by them for a time.
Today's ruins represent the remains of the fortress that was rebuilt and restructured by Walter Ogilvy of Auchlevin in 1455. He had received permission to strengthen and fortify the structure from King James II . Around 1560, property of the Ogilvy family fell to the Gordon family, sparking a bitter feud between the two families. Alexander Ogilvy disinherited his son and instead preferred Sir John Gordon, the third son of the Earl of Huntly.
The Gordons rebelled against the Crown in 1562, and Findlater Castle was held against the troops of Maria Stuart . However, the rebellion was short-lived: On October 28, 1562, the Gordons were defeated in the Battle of Corrichie . George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly died on the battlefield. Sir John was imprisoned and beheaded three days later in Aberdeen in the presence of the Queen and her half-brother, the Earl of Moray.
Findlater Castle fell back to the Ogilvy family but was abandoned in the mid-16th century in favor of a new residence in Cullen. The complex has been classified as a Scheduled Monument since 1969 and is therefore a listed building .
source
- On-site display board with a brief historical overview
Web links
- Entry on Findlater Castle in Canmore, Historic Environment Scotland database
- Description (English) pictures and plan