Publication Account
Date 1995
Event ID 1016681
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1016681
The castle stands in a spectacular setting on a small islet at the junction of Loch Duich, Loch Alsh and Loch Long. Originally accessible only by boat, it is now linked to the shore by a modern bridge. From the old road above the A 87 there are splendid views over the castle to the hills of Skye beyond.
Fragments of vitrified stone found on the shores of the island show that there was once a prehistoric or dark-age fort here. In hi storic times, the site may have been fortified in the 13th century, but the present tower was built in the late 14th century and belonged to the Earls of Ross. It passed to the Mackenzies of Kintail in the early 16th century, when the MacRaes became Constables of the castle.
In 1719 the castle was occupied by a small Spanish garrison, part of a force supporting an unsuccessful Jacobite ris ing on behalf of the Old Pretender, James, the son of King James H. Three English frigates sailed into Loch Alsh and bombarded the castle, which lay in ruins for the next 200 years. It was restored between 1912 and 1932 by a descendant of the MacRaes, so what is seen today is almost entirely modern; though not correct in every detail, it give an excellent idea of the original appearance.
Within the great tower, the stone-vaulted basement would originally have been for storage, reached only by an internal stair from the hall above. The great hall on the first floor had a large canopied fireplace, a wooden ceiling carried on heavy wooden beams, deep window embrasures, and stairs in the thickness of the wall leading to the bedrooms above. The main entrance on this floor would have been reached by an outside wooden stair. Note the two massive wooden bars that secure the door inside and the square bar-holes in the wall that they slide into; brochs had much the same arrangement. In the hall is a fine iron yen, which originally must have reinforced the main entrance door.
The buildings round the tower were reduced to little but the stumps of their walls before restoration, but the hexagonal structure near the bridge is mostly original masonry and appears to have been a large and unusual cistern for storing rain-water.
Information from ‘Exploring Scotland’s Heritage: The Highlands’, (1995).