Borve Castle, also known as Castle Wearie, and Caisteal Bhuirgh in Scottish Gaelic, is a ruined 14th-century tower house, located at the south-west of the island of Benbecula, in the Western Isles of Scotland. The castle was designated as a Scheduled Monument in 1993. [1]
MacGibbon and Ross attributed the building of the tower to Amie mac Ruari, wife of John of Islay, and dated it to between 1344 and 1363. [2] It was occupied by the Macdonalds of Benbecula until the early 17th century. [2]
The ruined rubble-built three-storey tower measures 18.9 metres (62 ft) by 11.3 metres (37 ft 1 in), and 9 metres (29 ft 6 in) high. The walls average 2.75 metres (9 ft) thick, although they narrow internally at the first- and second-storey level. The north wall has almost entirely collapsed. The tower had at least two timber floors above the basement. Its entrance was through a projecting wing in the center of the south wall which opened into the first storey. [1]
Archaeological investigations in 2018 have revealed that the tower was built in three distinct phases. The first was a structure with narrow masonry walls in a formal style with regular courses and sandstone quoins. Next, the eastern side of the castle was reinforced with very wide walls of a moderately formal style with large stones and intermittent coursing, forming an outer skin without windows to the existing structure. Later much the same was done on the western side although in an informal manner without coursing. The western wall had many windows. [2]
Doune Castle is a medieval stronghold near the village of Doune, in the Stirling district of central Scotland. The castle is sited on a wooded bend where the Ardoch Burn flows into the River Teith. It lies 8 miles northwest of Stirling, where the Teith flows into the River Forth. Upstream, 8 miles further northwest, the town of Callander lies at the edge of the Trossachs, on the fringe of the Scottish Highlands.
Craigmillar Castle is a ruined medieval castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is three miles (4.8 km) south-east of the city centre, on a low hill to the south of the modern suburb of Craigmillar. The Preston family of Craigmillar, the local feudal barons, began building the castle in the late 14th century and building works continued through the 15th and 16th centuries. In 1660, the castle was sold to Sir John Gilmour, Lord President of the Court of Session, who breathed new life into the ageing castle. The Gilmours left Craigmillar in the 18th century for a more modern residence, nearby Inch House, and the castle fell into ruin. It is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland as a scheduled monument, and is open to the public.
Dunrobin Castle is a stately home in Sutherland, in the Highland area of Scotland, and the family seat of the Earl of Sutherland and the Clan Sutherland. It is located one mile north of Golspie, and approximately five miles south of Brora, overlooking the Dornoch Firth.
Dunstaffnage Castle is a partially ruined castle in Argyll and Bute, western Scotland. It lies 3 miles (5 km) NNE of Oban, situated on a platform of conglomerate rock on a promontory at the south-west of the entrance to Loch Etive, and is surrounded on three sides by the sea. The castle and the nearby chapel ruin have been a Historic Scotland property since 1958. Both are Scheduled Ancient Monuments.
Muness Castle is located on Unst, which is one of the Shetland Islands of Scotland. The castle is 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) east of the village of Uyeasound. Unst is Scotland's most northerly inhabited island, and Muness is the most northerly fortalice in the British Isles. It was designated as a Scheduled monument in 1953 and is run as a museum by Historic Environment Scotland.
Edzell Castle is a ruined 16th-century castle, with an early-17th-century walled garden. It is located close to Edzell, and is around 5 miles (8 km) north of Brechin, in Angus, Scotland. Edzell Castle was begun around 1520 by David Lindsay, 9th Earl of Crawford, and expanded by his son, Sir David Lindsay, Lord Edzell, who also laid out the garden in 1604. The castle saw little military action, and was, in its design, construction and use, more of a country house than a defensive structure. It was briefly occupied by English troops during Oliver Cromwell's invasion of Scotland in 1651. In 1715 it was sold by the Lindsay family, and eventually came into the ownership of the Earl of Dalhousie. It was given into state care in the 1930s, and is now a visitor attraction run by Historic Environment Scotland. The castle consists of the original tower house and building ranges around a courtyard. The adjacent Renaissance walled garden, incorporating intricate relief carvings, is unique in Scotland. It was replanted in the 1930s, and is considered to have links to esoteric traditions, including Rosicrucianism and Freemasonry.
Comlongon Castle is a tower house dating from the later 15th century or early 16th century. It is located 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) west of the village of Clarencefield, and 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south-east of Dumfries, in south west Scotland. The original tower has been extended by the addition of a baronial style mansion, completed around 1900. Originally built by the Murrays of Cockpool, it remained in the Murray family until 1984. It was subsequently restored, having been vacant for some time, and the castle and mansion are now a hotel. As of 15 April 2019, the business side of Comlongon Castle has gone into Administration, consequently all weddings due and accommodation booked for after this date were cancelled, leaving the future of the castle uncertain.
Duntulm Castle stands ruined on the north coast of Trotternish, on the Isle of Skye in Scotland, near the hamlet of Duntulm. During the 17th century it was the seat of the chiefs of Clan MacDonald of Sleat. It is a scheduled monument.
Inverlochy Castle is a ruined, 13th-century castle near Inverlochy and Fort William, Highland, Scotland. The site of two battles, the castle remains largely unchanged since its construction. It is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland.
Rothesay Castle is a ruined castle in Rothesay, the principal town on the Isle of Bute, in western Scotland. Located at NS086646, the castle has been described as "one of the most remarkable in Scotland", for its long history dating back to the beginning of the 13th century, and its unusual circular plan.
Craiglockhart Castle is a ruined tower house in the Craiglockhart district of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Aberdour Castle is in the village of Easter Aberdour, Fife, Scotland. Parts of the castle date from around 1200, making Aberdour one of the two oldest datable standing castles in Scotland, along with Castle Sween in Argyll, which was built at around the same time.
Ormacleit Castle is a ruined mansion house of the early 18th century. It is located on South Uist in the Western Isles of Scotland. It was built in the early years of the 18th century by Allan Macdonald, chief of Clanranald, and occupied from 1707. Macdonald was killed at the Battle of Sheriffmuir on 13 November 1715, and Ormacleit Castle is said to have burned down on the same day. After the fire, the Clanranald seat was moved north to Nunton on Benbecula, and the castle was abandoned after less than ten years of occupation.
Nether Horsburgh Castle is a ruined tower house near Cardrona, in the Scottish Borders, in the former county of Peebleshire. It is situated at the back of a farmstead, 3.5 miles (5.6 km) southwest of the market town of Peebles, at grid reference grid reference NT304396, on the A72 road. Access may be gained by permission from the adjoining farmstead, Nether Horsburgh Farm.
Tranent Tower is a ruined L-plan tower house dating from the 16th century, in Tranent, East Lothian, Scotland. The remains are protected as a scheduled monument.
Borve Castle in Sutherland, Scottish Highlands is now a ruin. Formerly called the House of Burro. It was built in Kirtomy Bay near the hamlet of Farr. It is also known as Farr Castle.
Galdenoch Castle is a tower house near the Scottish village of Leswalt in the Council Area Dumfries and Galloway. The ruin is listed as a Scheduled Monument.
Rusco Tower, sometimes called Rusco Castle, is a tower house near Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Built around 1500 for Mariota Carson and her husband Robert Gordon, on lands given to them by her father, it was used to incarcerate a number of the Gordons' rivals in the 16th century. After Robert Gordon died and Carson remarried, their eldest son James Gordon seized the tower and imprisoned his mother, fearing that she would make it over to her new husband, Thomas Maclellan of Bombie. Gordon went on to kill Maclellan on the High Street in Edinburgh, while a court case intended to settle the matter was ongoing.
Plunton Castle is a ruined L-plan tower house between Kirkandrews and Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Built around 1575 for the Lennoxes of Plunton, it passed by marriage to the Murrays of Broughton in the late 17th century. It was still inhabited in 1684, when it was described by Reverend Symson in his Large Description of Galloway as "a good strong house", but by 1838, when it was painted by George Colomb, it had been abandoned and had fallen into a ruinous condition.
Dowhill Castle is a ruined castle in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. Sited on a hill near Loch Leven, the oldest part of the castle was built in around 1500 as a tower house. The main structure was extended in around 1600 with additional living space, as well as a tower and turret. The castle had a fortified courtyard (barmkin) to the north with a separate tower. There were probably four storeys but only two still survive.
Coordinates: 57°25′49.97″N7°22′37.99″W / 57.4305472°N 7.3772194°W
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Borve Castle . |