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. [1] It was designated as a Scheduled monument in 1953 and is run as a museum by Historic Environment Scotland. [2]
The castle was built in 1598 for Laurence Bruce of Cultmalindie, half-brother to Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Orkney. Earl Robert was succeeded by his son Patrick in 1593. The building may have been constructed under the direction of Andrew Crawford, Earl Patrick's master of works, who also oversaw the construction of Scalloway Castle and the Earl's Palace at Kirkwall, Orkney. [2] Bruce gave the castle to his son Andrew in 1617. It was burnt by foreign privateers in August 1627, and may never have been fully repaired. It was abandoned before the end of the century and it was sold out of the family in 1718. [3] The castle is now roofless and missing its upper storey which was removed to build the surrounding boundary wall. Aerial photographs reveal the possible presence of a formal garden to the south-west of the castle. [3]
The castle forms a rectangular block 22.3 by 7.9 metres (73 by 26 ft) with circular towers at the north and south angles. The ground floor and first storey survive virtually intact and the corbelling supports for small turrets on the east and west corners on the second storey remain. The roof was probably gabled and the towers likely had conical roofs. The entrance is located on the south-western side and is covered by gun loops in the main block and in the south-eastern tower. [3]
Unst is one of the North Isles of the Shetland Islands, Scotland. It is the northernmost of the inhabited British Isles and is the third-largest island in Shetland after Mainland and Yell. It has an area of 46 sq mi (120 km2).
The North Isles are the northern islands of the Shetland Islands, Scotland. The main islands in the group are Yell, Unst and Fetlar. Sometimes the islands in Yell Sound are included in this group.
Lochleven Castle is a ruined castle on an island in Loch Leven, in the Perth and Kinross local authority area of Scotland. Possibly built around 1300, the castle was the site of military action during the Wars of Scottish Independence (1296–1357). In the latter part of the 14th century, the castle was granted to William Douglas, 1st Earl of Douglas, by his uncle. It remained in the Douglases' hands for the next 300 years. Mary, Queen of Scots, was imprisoned there in 1567–68, and forced to abdicate as queen, before escaping with the help of her gaoler's family. In 1588, the queen's gaoler inherited the title of Earl of Morton, and moved away from the castle. In 1675, Sir William Bruce, an architect, bought the castle and used it as a focal point for his garden; it was never again used as a residence.
The Earl's Palace in Birsay, Orkney, Scotland, is a ruined 16th-century castle. It was built by Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Orkney (1533–1593), illegitimate son of King James V and his mistress Euphemia Elphinstone. The palace is in the care of Historic Environment Scotland as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Kilchurn Castle is a ruined structure on a rocky peninsula at the northeastern end of Loch Awe, in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It was first constructed in the mid-15th century as the base of the Campbells of Glenorchy, who extended both the castle and their territory in the area over the next 150 years. After the Campbells became Earls of Breadalbane and moved to Taymouth Castle, Kilchurn fell out of use and was in ruins by 1770. It is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland and is open to the public in summer.
Scalloway Castle is a tower house in Scalloway, on the Shetland Mainland, the largest island in the Shetland Islands of Scotland. The tower was built in 1600 by Patrick Stewart, 2nd Earl of Orkney, during his brief period as de facto ruler of Shetland.
Smailholm Tower is a peel tower at Smailholm, around five miles (8 km) west of Kelso in the Scottish Borders. Its dramatic situation, atop a crag of Lady Hill, commands wide views over the surrounding countryside. The tower is located at grid reference NT637346, just west of Sandyknowe farm, and is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument in the care of Historic Environment Scotland. In June 2007, it was awarded the maximum "five-star" status as a tourist attraction from VisitScotland, a rating bestowed on only eight other sites in Scotland.
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.
The Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall is a 12th-century palace built at the same time as the adjacent St Magnus Cathedral in the centre of Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland. It housed the cathedral's first bishop, William the Old of the Norwegian Catholic Church who took his authority from the Archbishop of Nidaros (Trondheim). The ruined structure now looks like a small castle.
Laurence Bruce of Cultmalindie was a Scottish landowner and factor to the Earl of Orkney. He features in a number of traditional stories of Shetland.
Strathaven Castle is located in the centre of the small town of Strathaven, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The ruin is closed to the public and has been for 5 years. A Friends of Strathaven Castle Group was set up in February 2023 to promote the repair and renewed access to the towns major landmark.
Crichton Castle is a ruined castle near the village of Crichton in Midlothian, Scotland. It is situated at the head of the River Tyne, 2 miles (3.2 km) south of the village of Pathhead, and the same distance east of Gorebridge.
Morton Castle is located by an artificial loch in the hills above Nithsdale, in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. It lies 2.5 miles (4 km) north-east of Thornhill, and once formed part of a chain of castles along the strategically important Nith Valley, which runs from the Solway Firth north to the Clyde Valley.
Barholm Castle is a tower house located 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Gatehouse of Fleet, in Kirkcudbrightshire, Galloway, Scotland. The tower dates back to the late 15th century, and it was a stronghold of a branch of the MacCulloch family. The present form of the castle dates from rebuilding in the 16th or 17th century, and in the early 2000s it was restored from a roofless state to residential use. The tower is sometimes identified with the fictional Ellangowan, in Sir Walter Scott's Guy Mannering.
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.
Ravenscraig Castle is a ruined castle located in Kirkcaldy which dates from around 1460. The castle is an early example of artillery defence in Scotland.
St Magnus Church is a ruined medieval round-tower church located on the island of Egilsay, in Orkney, Scotland. The site is recognized as the place of execution of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, in the 12th century. The roofless structure dates back to the 12th century, and has been described by Historic Environment Scotland (HES) as second only to St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall, as a surviving Norse church in Scotland.
Noltland Castle is located near Pierowall on the island of Westray in the Orkney Islands of Scotland. It dates mainly to the later 16th century, although it was never fully completed. The castle is protected as a scheduled monument.
William Bruce of Symbister and Sumburgh was a Scottish landowner.
Breckness House, sometimes known as Breckness Castle, is the site of the 17th-century mansion, chapel and burial ground, built by George Graham (1565–1643), the Bishop of Orkney. It is located near Stromness, Orkney in Scotland. Historic Environment Scotland established the site as a scheduled monument in 1957.
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