Details

13th century

Location

NH 974 364
Highlands
6.5m nw of Grantown-on-Spey
w of A939
in the loch
map

Information

on an insland
in Lochindorb

Links

Wikipedia
RCAHMS
Chatelaine's

Questions?
Comments?

Lochindorb Castle

While there is apparently a boat to get to the island from the resort here at Lochindorb, it runs in summer, so we we could only see the castle ruin from the shore.


one end of the island castle

13th century enclosure castle

For a moment, the stone walls on the island in Lochindorb didn't look like a castle at all -- more like an artillery fort of modern armory. It fills the entire island, with a tall curtain wall and rount towers at the corners. The courtyard is roughtly rectangular, and measures 48m x 38m, with a 6m tall wall (which is crumbling in most places).although there was a wide wall-walk along most of the wall.

The round towers are fully round on the eastern side are fully round, but the western towers are only half-rounds, entirely embedded in the wall with flat sides facing the inner courtyard. An outer ward was built (possibly by Edward I in 1303) to deny the large flat area outside the walls to any invaders. THe ouer ward has a large gateway, but there is no entrance to the main castle courtyard from it - the entrance ot the castle lies on the eastern wall instead.

Inside the walls, there are foundations of a hall and other buildings within the couryard. The great iron yett here at Lochindorb was taken to Cawdor Castle.


a rather shadowed view of the outer all (which has crumbled) and the inner

Onwership

The Comyns built he castle here in the 13th century, although it ws occupied during the wars of Independence. It was held for the English in 1335, and used as a prison.

The castle was sold to Alexander STeward in the late 14th century, adn then to the Douglas Earls of Moray. They dismantled the castle when they fell from power in 1455 and it was not rebuilt. It was sold to the Campbells of Cawdor in 1606, when to the Oglivies in 1750.


part of the castle wall


view of the whole castle from the shore