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Bericht über die Entdeckung einer wikingerzeitlichen Bootsbestattung auf der schottischen Halbinsel Ardnamurchan. Dem Toten waren Axt, Schwert und Speer mit ins Grab gegeben worden. Es ist die erste vollständig erhaltene Bootsbestattung eines Wikingers auf der Britischen Insel. (englisch, 02:33)

Burg in Schottland, erbaut um 1515
Dirleton Castle is a medieval fortress in the village of Dirleton, East Lothian, Scotland. It lies around 2 miles (3.2 km) west of North Berwick, and around 19 miles (31 km) east of Edinburgh. The oldest parts of the castle date to the 13th century, and it was abandoned by the end of the 17th century.

Begun in around 1240 by John De Vaux, the castle was heavily damaged during the Wars of Scottish Independence, when it was twice taken by the English. In the 14th century, Dirleton was repaired by the Haliburton family, and it was acquired by the Ruthvens in 1505. The Ruthvens were involved in several plots against Mary, Queen of Scots, and King James VI, and eventually forfeited the castle in 1600. Dirleton ceased to be a residence, although Oliver Cromwell was forced to besiege the castle to flush out a band of mosstroopers, during the Third English Civil War in 1650. The damaged castle was then acquired by John Nisbet, Lord Dirleton, who decided to build a new country house on the nearby Archerfield Estate. The Nisbet family of Dirleton continued to maintain the castle´s gardens, before handing Dirleton into state care in 1923. The ruins and gardens are now maintained by Historic Scotland.

Dirleton Castle stands on a rocky outcrop, at the heart of the rich agricultural lands of the former barony of Dirleton, and guards the coastal approach to Edinburgh from England, via the port of North Berwick. The ruins comprise a 13th-century keep, and a 16th-century house which the Ruthvens built adjacent. Only the basement levels survive of the 14th- and 15th-century additions built by the Haliburtons, although these comprised a large hall and tower house along the east range. Other buildings within the courtyard have also been demolished. Surrounding the castle are gardens, which may have been first laid out in the 16th century, although the present planting is largely of the 20th century. The garden walls enclose a 16th-century doocot, or pigeon house.

Dirleton Castle And Garden

A residence of three noble families | The de Vaux castle | The Haliburton castle | The Ruthven castle | The gardens

A residence of three noble families
Dirleton Castle has graced the heart of Dirleton since the 13th century. For the first 400 years, it served as the residence of three noble families ? the de Vauxes, Haliburtons and Ruthvens. The subsequent downfall of the Ruthvens saw the castle abandoned as a noble residence.

The siege by Oliver Cromwell?s soldiers in 1650 rendered it militarily unserviceable. When the Nisbets purchased the estate in the 1660s, they built a new mansion house, Archerfield, nearby. But they didn?t forget the ancient castle. The graceful ruins became an eye-catching feature in their new designed landscape. Today, both castle and gardens are attractions in their own right.

The de Vaux castle
The oldest part of the castle dates from the de Vauxes? time in the 13th century. The impressive cluster of towers ? including the imposing keep at the SW corner ? is among the oldest castle architecture surviving in Scotland. The builder, John de Vaux, was steward in the household of Alexander II?s queen, Marie, daughter of the Duke of Coucy, near Amiens in northern France, where a remarkably similar castle can still be seen.

The Haliburton castle
The de Vaux castle suffered badly during the Wars of Independence with England that erupted in 1296. Dirleton was captured in 1298, on the specific orders of King Edward I of England, ?Hammer of the Scots?, and changed hands several times thereafter.

By 1356 Dirleton had a new lord, John Haliburton. He rebuilt the battered castle, adding a new residential tower and great hall along the east side of the courtyard. Although largely ruined, the surviving cavernous storage vaults, family chapel and grim pit-prison convey a wonderful impression of lordly life in the later Middle Ages.

The Ruthven castle
The Ruthvens acquired Dirleton around 1510. It was not their main residence, which lay at Huntingtower, near Perth. Nevertheless, they carried out substantial improvements. They built a new residence, the Ruthven Lodging, and laid out gardens to the west. The present bowling green may once have been a parterre, or formal garden. The fine circular dovecot (pigeon house) was theirs also.

The gardens
The gardens that grace the castle grounds today date from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The formal Victorian west garden ? with its foliage plants and pelargoniums ? was faithfully reconstructed in 1993. The beautiful north garden dates from the Arts and Crafts movement of the 1920s, and its fragrant herbaceous borders are the first thing the visitor sees on entering the property.

Duncarron - A fortified village of Scotland

The Clanranald Trust is currently building a full-scale replica of an early Medieval Motte & Bailey Fort. This will be typical of the Scottish Clan Chiefs residence throughout the earlier part of the last millennium.

Duncarron is situated in Carron Valley Forest to the East of the Carron Valley Reservoir. Access to the site is via the B818 Denny to Fintry Road. The B818 can also be reached via the Tak-ma-doon road from Kilsyth to Carron Bridge.

Click on "Link to map" on this entry for a map view of the project location.

The village settlements were based around a ?Bailey? (the Clan Chief?s home and Clan meeting hall), which was usually built on or beside a ?Motte? (a natural man made mound). The level of fortification surrounding the Bailey and any other associated buildings depended upon various aspects including, the wealth & size of the Clan, the fort?s location and the strength of other local Clans or aggressor forces.

An authentic medieval working community atmosphere will be created, where groups, parties and individuals can participate in and view a range of activities, typical of the period.

This development will be used as the physical base for the Trust, working with local education authorities, community & theatre groups, national tourism industry, etc. Through participation with these groups, the Trust will create a unique opportunity for promoting Scottish heritage & culture through interaction, providing educational benefits to school children, students and the general public. Promoted as a popular tourist destination, the raised profile of the area will also benefit the local tourism sector economy.

Generating enthusiasm towards historical culture will be achieved through the provision of a complete interactive learning environment, incorporating national curriculum requirements, with hands-on experience, craftwork, self-sufficiency agricultural methods, ongoing building maintenance and the general living skills typical of the people of these times.

This will be a living-working village where people will produce arts and crafts by traditional methods from their workshops. Every effort will be made to utilise clothing materials similar to the times, and Staff and Volunteers will be in period dress.

To add further to the atmosphere, the Fort will offer banquets for weddings and special occasions, events and other activities. It is also expected that the authentic appearance of the Fort will create demand for its use as a location for film productions and period dramas, etc.

Castle Stalker (Schottisch-Gälisch: Caisteal an Stalcaire) ist ein Tower house, etwa 2,5 Kilometer nordöstlich von Port Appin, einem Dorf in Argyll in Schottland. Die Niederungsburg steht auf einer kleinen, felsigen Gezeiteninsel im Loch Laich, einer Bucht des Loch Linnhe, etwa auf halbem Weg zwischen Oban und dem Glen Coe in den westlichen schottischen Highlands. Sie ist mit dem Boot, bei Ebbe auch zu Fuß zu erreichen.

Der Name der Burg leitet sich vom schottisch-gälischen an Stalcaire ab, was entweder ?Jäger? oder "Falkner" bedeutet. Es sollte daher auch "stalker" ausgesprochen werden (und nicht wie im Englischen "stocker").

Der Standort ähnelt zwar dem der prähistorischen Crannógs, die Insel ist jedoch natürlichen Ursprungs.

Die Burg wurde etwa um 1320 als kleine Befestigung vom Clan MacDougall, den damaligen Lords of Lorn, errichtet. Um 1388 ging die Burg in den Besitz der Stewarts über, die sie ab etwa 1440 in ihre heutige Form als kompaktes, viergeschossiges Tower house ausbauten. Nach mehreren Besitzerwechseln verließen die letzten Bewohner der Familie Campbell um 1840 das langsam verfallende Gebäude.

Im Jahr 1908 wurde die Burg von Charles Stewart of Achara gekauft, der erste Renovierungsarbeiten durchführte. 1965 übernahm Stewart Allward die Anlage und stellte sie vollständig wieder her.

Castle Stalker ist nahezu authentisch renoviert und gilt als einer der am besten erhaltenen mittelalterlichen Wohntürme im Westen von Schottland. Es ist Bestandteil der "Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area", einer der 40 schönsten Landschaften in Schottland.

Die Burg befindet sich in Privatbesitz und ist nur nach vorheriger Vereinbarung zu besichtigen.


Die malerische Silhouette der trutzig-düsteren Inselburg vor einer dramatischen Gebirgsszenerie hat sie zu einem beliebten Foto- und Filmmotiv werden lassen. Besonders bekannt ist Castle Stalker als Gralsburg ?Schloss von Aaaaaaaargh? in der Schlussszene des Kinofilms Die Ritter der Kokosnuß der englischen Komikertruppe Monty Python. Auch im Film "Highlander III - Die Legende" ist sie zu sehen.

Kilchurn Castle is a ruined 15th and 17th century structure on a rocky peninsula at the northeastern end of Loch Awe, in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Access to the Castle is sometimes restricted by higher-than-usual levels of water in the Loch, at which times the site effectively becomes a temporary island.

It was the ancestral home of the Campbells of Glen Orchy, who later became the Earls of Breadalbane also known as the Breadalbane family branch, of the Clan Campbell. The earliest construction on the castle was the towerhouse and Laich Hall (looks onto Loch Awe).

Kilchurn Castle was built in about 1450 by Sir Colin Campbell, first Lord of Glenorchy, as a five storey tower house with a courtyard defended by an outer wall. By about 1500 an additional range and a hall had been added to the south side of the castle. Further buildings went up during the 16th and 17th centuries. Kilchurn was on a small island in Loch Awe scarcely larger than the castle itself, although it is now connected to the mainland as the water level was altered in 1817. The castle would have been accessed via an underwater or low lying causeway.

At the turn of the 16th century Kilchurn Castle was extended by Sir Duncan Campbell with the addition of a single storey dining hall built along the inside of the south curtain. During the second half of the century, another Sir Colin Campbell, the 6th Laird, continued to improve the castle´s accommodation by adding some chambers to the north of the tower house, and remodelling the parapet. This included the introduction of the circular corner turrets adorned by corbels, most of which have survived remarkably well.

Towards the end of the 16th century the Clan MacGregor of Glenstrae were occupying the castle. Once owning the lands of Glenorchy during the 14th century, until they passed through marriage to the Campbells, the MacGregors were appointed keepers to Kilchurn Castle as the Campbells spent much of their time at Fincharn. This arrangement lasted until the very early part of the 17th century, when a violent feud between the two families brought it to an end and the Campbells retook possession.

In 1681, Sir John Campbell of Glenorchy was made 1st Earl of Breadalbane. To take advantage of the turbulence of the times, he converted Kilchurn into a modern barracks, capable of housing 200 troops. His main addition was the three storey L-shaped block along the north side.
Engraving of Kilchurn Castle by William Miller, 1846

Kilchurn was then used as a Government garrison during the 1715 and 1745 Jacobite risings. The Campbells attempted, unsuccessfully, to sell Kilchurn to the government, after they moved in 1740 to Taymouth Castle in Perthshire.

In 1760, the castle was badly damaged by lightning and was completely abandoned; the remains of a turret of a tower, still resting upside-down in the centre of the courtyard, attest to the violence of the storm.

William Turner´s watercolour Midday depicts the castle amidst the weather conditions and the geology of Scotland. It was created in 1802.

The ruin is currently in the care of Historic Scotland, and is open to the public during the summer. Access, during summer only, is by either by boat from Lochawe pier, or on foot from Dalmally. Both points are on the A85 road. During 2006 and 2007 there was an access problem to the castle. Network Rail, in accordance with their policy of blocking foot crossings on railway lines, closed the crossing to Kilchurn, effectively removing land access. However in 2007 access via the nearby viaduct was created, restoring landward access once more. As of June 2012 - the gates giving access to the level crossing across the railway were open and being used.

Dunstaffnage Castle is a partially ruined castle in Argyll and Bute, western Scotland. It lies 3 miles (4.8 km) N.N.E. 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 dates back to the 13th century, making it one of Scotland´s oldest stone castles, in a local group which includes Castle Sween and Castle Tioram.[1] Guarding a strategic location, it was built by the MacDougall lords of Lorn, and has been held since the 15th century by the Clan Campbell. To this day there is a hereditary Captain of Dunstaffnage, although they no longer reside at the castle. Dunstaffnage is maintained by Historic Scotland, and is open to the public, although the 16th century gatehouse is retained as the private property of the Captain. The prefix dun in the name means "fort" in Gaelic, while the rest of the name derives from Norse stafr-nis, "headland of the staff".

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 Scotland.

Castle Tioram (pronounced "Chee-rum" from Scottish Gaelic "Caisteal Tioram" meaning "dry castle") is a ruined castle that sits on the tidal island Eilean Tioram in Loch Moidart, Lochaber, Highland, Scotland. It is located west of Acharacle, approximately 80 km (50 mi) from Fort William. Though hidden from the sea, the castle controls access to Loch Shiel. It is also known to the locals as "Dorlin castle".

The castle?a listed building and scheduled ancient monument?is the traditional seat of Clan MacDonald of Clan Ranald, a branch of Clan Donald. Castle Tioram was seized by Government forces around 1692 when Clan Chief Allan of Clanranald joined the Jacobite Court in France, despite having sworn allegiance to the British Crown. A small garrison was stationed in the castle until the Jacobite Uprising of 1715 when Allan recaptured and torched it, purportedly to keep it out of the hands of Hanoverian forces. It has been unoccupied since that time, although there are some accounts suggesting it was partially inhabited thereafter including storage of firearms from the De Tuillay in the 1745 Jacobite Uprising and Lady Grange´s account of her kidnapping.

The curtain wall is believed to date from the 13th century whilst the tower and other interior buildings are of 15th to 17th century construction. Amie mac Ruari is said to have extended the castle in the 14th century.

The castle is now in extremely poor condition and in 1998 was closed to the public at the request of Highland Council; a major structural collapse occurred at the north west curtain wall in 2000.

Urquhart Castle sits beside Loch Ness in the Highlands of Scotland. The castle is on the A82 road, 21 kilometres (13 mi) south-west of Inverness and 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) east of the village of Drumnadrochit.

The present ruins date from the 13th to the 16th centuries, though built on the site of an early medieval fortification. Founded in the 13th century, Urquhart played a role in the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century. It was subsequently held as a royal castle, and was raided on several occasions by the MacDonald Earls of Ross. The castle was granted to the Clan Grant in 1509, though conflict with the MacDonalds continued. Despite a series of further raids the castle was strengthened, only to be largely abandoned by the middle of the 17th century. Urquhart was partially destroyed in 1692 to prevent its use by Jacobite forces, and subsequently decayed. In the 20th century it was placed in state care and opened to the public: it is now one of the most-visited castles in Scotland.

The castle, situated on a headland overlooking Loch Ness, is one of the largest in Scotland in area. It was approached from the west and defended by a ditch and drawbridge. The buildings of the castle were laid out around two main enclosures on the shore. The northern enclosure or Nether Bailey includes most of the more intact structures, including the gatehouse, and the five-storey Grant Tower at the north end of the castle. The southern enclosure or Upper Bailey, sited on higher ground, comprises the scant remains of earlier buildings.