Rampant Scotland Directory! The sometimes turbulent history of Scotland has left a legacy of castles and fortified houses in many parts of the country - particularly in the Scottish Borders and the Highlands. Inevitably, many have been reduced to ruins but what is perhaps surprising is that so many of them still survive as tourist attractions or even as hotels or family homes.
Note that there is a version of this page which has all the castle links (over 500 of them!) listed in Alphabetical Order which can be useful if you want a specific castle or if you are not sure of the spelling.
Other areas and aspects in the Rampant Scotland site of interest to the virtual tourist include:
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Joanne Winters, whose Internet Guide to Scotland already provides a wealth of information about the West of Scotland and the Inner Hebrides in particular, has been taking her camera around castles in the area and is thus providing an extensive list of castles (some quite unusual and not covered elsewhere) with information and graphics. She also provides an extensive list of castle links. Her own pages include the following castles:
This is a very comprehensive site covering the Scottish Borders (and drifting also into Lothian). Its main purpose is to provide access to the Hotels, Bed and Breakfast and Self Catering Rentals. But there is extensive coverage of Castles and History of the area, as the list below confirms! In addition to describing Mary Queen of Scots House and Linlithgow Palace plus Traquair House the following castles are covered: A large number of pages about individual tourist attractions in Southern and Central Scotland. There is an equivalent page for Northern Scotland. The castles pages have basic information, opening times, how to get there and links to other nearby tourist attractions. The castles include:
Providing a number of atmospheric black and white photos of castles and some other locations, this site has thumbnails and larger (50kb) graphics plus extensive histories of the castles themselves. Copies of all the photographs are also available for purchase. The castles covered are: A large collection of Scottish Castles, Manors and Abbeys with a vast library of pictures together with histories and explanations of various features of the castles which are covered. As can be seen, while a number of the locations are well known, there are a number of castles included in this web site which are not described anywhere else. The site also contains sections on Grave Slabs and Pictish Stones and Stone Circles and Cairns in a similar detailed style. The specific castles covered in the castles section are: Here is a large collection of over 60 castles and towers, a number not covered in other Web sites, with many illustrations and a backround on their history. Created by Robin Fingerson after what must have been a busy vacation in Scotland. And there are pages on abbeys and kirks as well! The castles include:
Brief histories, drawings and layouts of a large number of Scottish castles, based on the work of David MacGibbon and Thomas Ross toward the end of the 19th century. In a few cases, the castles covered are no longer in existence. The list of castles include: A vast collection of photos of castles, mansions, towers, standing stones, churches, abbeys in the UK, including many which are not often seen on the Web, in some cases because they are particularly ruinous. The Scottish castles covered include: Scottish castles from around the country, with a number of excellent photos of each location. Castles covered include: About half of the members of the association are owners of castles in Scotland (though not all castle owners in Scotland have joined, so far). The aim is to improve public awareness of Scotland's castles as a valuable inheritance and encourage the responsible ownership, conservation and restoration of ruined structures at risk. One of the the other aims of the association is to create a permanent record of Scotland's castles and their individual histories. To that end they are creating web pages on the castles of all their members with pictures and information. The project is not yet complete but the list of potential buildings includes such locations as Ackergill Tower, Aikwood Tower, Airlie Castle, Arnot Tower, Balbithan House, Balcomie Castle, Balgonie Castle, Barns Tower, Blackhall Manor, Blairlogie Castle, Bognie Castle, Bonshaw Tower, Carriden House, Castlecary, Cloghan Castle, Colliston Castle, Cortachy Castle, Castle Craig, Cramond Tower, Dairsie Castle, Dalhousie Castle, Delgatie Castle, Denmylne Castle, Drochil Castle, Dunderave Castle, Earlshall Castle, Eilean Donan Castle, Elcho Castle, Fa’side Castle, Fernie Castle, Frendraught Castle, Garth Castle, Hatton Castle, Howgill Castle, Hunterston Castle, Castle Huntly, Kames Castle, Kelly Castle, Killochan Castle, Kilmartin Castle, Leny House, Leslie Castle, Liberton House, Liberton Tower, Lochhouse Tower, Lordscairnie Castle, Lundin Tower, Mauchline Castle, Melville Castle, Castle of Mey, Neidpath Castle, Niddry Castle, Ochiltree Castle, Peffermill House, Pitcairlie House, Plane Tower, Powrie Castle, Redhouse Castle, Rockhall, Rusko Castle, Sinclair/Girnigoe, Castle Stalker, Stoneypath Tower, Strathendry Castle, Castle Stuart, Wormiston House. This site provides a set of good pictures plus some text about a small number of castles around Scotland which formed part of a tour by an American visitor. We can all hope that our holiday snapshots turn out as good as this. Illustrations (in some cases paintings) of most of the castles to be found in this northern corner of Scotland. There are individual pages on:
Part of a larger tourism site, this section has illustrations and brief notes on the following castles in Scotland:
Based on an image map of Scotland showing the location of the castles, clicking on each item brings up a java driven graphic. The castles covered are :
This company arranges accommodation at Scottish castles and country mansions in a variety of formats - Serviced accommodation or Self-catering as well as Staffed accommodation for House Parties or conventional hotel arrangements. The various castles (with individual illustrations) involved are:
A database of every British and Irish country house (from circa 1500 to 1945) ever built, extant or demolished. There are currently 6,000 country houses and castles listed, of which 770 are in Scotland. While many of the entries have only basic information, there is the potential to add more details in the future. Luxury hotels with a difference are provided by this company who arrange accommodation at a variety of castles. Those with individual web pages include:
Another tourist who has fallen in love with Scotland, this time Jos van Geffen from Holland. His list of castles visited and illustrated includes: One of the strongest clans in the Western Highlands, the Campbells were associated with a number of castles in the region. This site provides a detailed narrative on each and graphics on most. The castles are : The National Trust looks after a wide range of properties around Scotland. The Web pages give brief description of each one, together with opening times and a (small) illustration. The castles they are responsible for are as follows:
A comprehensive (and I do mean comprehensive) list of known castle sites and fortified buildings within the watershed of the River Clyde. A history is given on each site, complete with architectural description, legends and spooky tales. Family histories and place name origins are also explained. An extensive, liberally illustrated description of the history and architecture of the former home of the Kennedy family which was built by Robert Adam (between 1777 -1792). The author has plenty of "inside knowledge" of the castle - she is an official Secretarty/Tour Guide at the Castle! A large collection of good photographs taken on a holiday in 1994. The castles include Findlater Castle, Banff and Huntly Castle, Aberdeenshire.
Although mainly photographs of glorious scenery taken on walks around Scotland, there are illustrations also of Ardvreck Castle in Sutherland and Dunrobin Castle Part of a site dealing with images of William Wallace and Robert the Bruce, a number of castles are illustrated and briefly described, including: While the purpose of this site is to sell drawings of castles - particularly a castle which is associated with your clan or family - there are sample drawings and a background to the development of castles in Scotland. Libby's trip took in a number of castles, and the resulting web page on Dundonald Castle is detailed and well illustrated. There are also graphics on Stirling Castle and Kilchurn Castle as well as Urquhart Castle A number of Scottish castles have been converted into hotels and where better to have a romantic wedding? This company can arrange such a function at a number of locations including the following castles :
Part of a larger site by Cameron Cunningham this slide show presents graphics and a description of a dozen castles - Stalker, Glamis, Urquhart, Stirling, Menzies, Caerlaverock, Eilean Donan, Edinburgh, Blair, Inverness, Dunvegan, Blackness. Historic Scotland is responsible for a large number of castles and other buildings within Scotland. Their site covers attractions, publications, sales, links, and a map for historic visitor attractions. There is basic information and one illustration in an irritating Java-driven display box, rather than a full page. Large alphabetic listing of castles of Scotland, with the county in which it is located. Well illustrated and presented Web site on this 14th century castle (with later additions) with its gardens and woods - and an association with Macbeth, due to William Shakespeare. There is a plan of the room layout, with links to illustrated pages on a number of them.
The aim of this site is to create a Building Preservation Trust via the Internet, to restore Ravenstone Castle, in Wigtownshire, south-west Scotland and thereafter other historic buildings. Ravenstone is a 16th century 'L' plan building on 4 floors, originally under the ownership of the Kennedys of Blairquhan. Another set of personal photographs but this time concentrating on the most photographed castle in Scotland. Features around 30 illustrations from around Scotland including Edinburgh Zoo and Cawdor Castle and Inverness Castle Photographs and brief details of Ardtornish, Duntulm, Dunnyveg, Dunscaith, Dunluce, Invergarry, Mingary, Tioram and Urquhart Castles. Scottish Treasures consists of a delightful series of pictures taken around Scotland divided into sections on a range of subjects including Castles. The photographs illustrate Castle Urquhart, Eilean Donan, Castle Tioram and - unusually - Duntulm. Limited edition prints reproduced from oil paintings and featuring Castles Kilchurn, Urquhart, Duart and Eilean Donan. Launched in March 1997, the Web site for the British Monarchy includes one castle in Scotland, Balmoral and a palace - Holyroodhouse.
The folklore associated with this famous castle is covered in this page.
Castles and Stately Homes on the Air (C.A.S.H.O.T.A) aims to promote castles and stately homes via the web site and by running amateur radio stations related to them. In Loch Finlaggan on the island of Islay, lie two islands which contain the remains of buildings, many of which date from Medieval times, when this place was the centre of the realm of the Lords of the Isles. These MacDonald lords were descended from Somerled, a 12th century prince, and took their name from his grandson Donald. They ruled the islands and parts of the west coast of Scotland from Kintyre to Lewis, virtually independent of the control of the Scottish Crown. The illustrated site provides a historical backround and details of Finlaggan and aslo the new visitor centre there.
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Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
