Grampian - Castles in Aberdeenshire and Moray
Chances are that if you think of the term 'Scottish Castle', you picture a fanciful turreted castle like those that dot the landscape of Aberdeenshire and Moray, Grampian. Aberdeenshire, in particular, is blessed with an extraordinary number of fabulous castles, some of which have been inhabited for at least 600 years.
The exact date of Drumin Castle's construction is unknown. The castle stands on a rise of ground overlooking the confluence of the rivers Avon and Livet, just north-west of Glenlivet. Sometime in the 1370s, King Robert II granted the lands of Badenoch and Strathavon to his son, Alexander Stewart.
Glenlivet, Grampian, Scotland, AB37 9AN
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Heritage Highlight: Probably built by the infamous Wolf of Badenoch
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Duffus Castle is a Norman motte and bailey castle augmented by a later stone keep. The original Norman motte and bailey fortress was composed of an impressive earthwork mound standing out from the low-lying Leigh of Moray, surrounded by a timber palisade.
Duffus, Grampian, Scotland
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The striking, conical hill of Dunnideer stands just west of the village of Insch. There are two fascinating historic monuments atop Dunnideer Hill. The first is a ruined 13th-century castle set within the ramparts of a vitrified hillfort dating to at least 1300 BC (the information sign erected by Aberdeenshire County Council gives a possible time span of 1000 BC to 1000 AD, a huge span of years!)
Insch, Grampian, Scotland
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A spectacular ruined fortress in a superb coastal location, Dunnottar Castle is a medieval fortress on a rocky headland just south of Stonehaven. The site was originally occupied by a Pictish fort, and in the 5th century AD St Ninian established an early Christian church here.
Dunnottar Castle Lodge, Stonehaven, Grampian, Scotland, AB39 2TL
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Findlater is one of the most dramatical situated of any Scottish castle, perched on a promontory joined to the mainland by a narrow neck of land, with almost sheer cliffs on the other three sides. The cliffs reach 90 feet in places, while the level surface of the castle promontory is some 30 feet below the level of the surrounding mainland cliffs, meaning that it can only be reached by a steep and irregular path.
Cullen, Grampian, Scotland
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Fyvie Castle can make a good claim to being just about the perfect Scottish baronial castle (Brodie Castle, also in Grampian, might make the same claim!). Your first sight of the turreted castle can make you stop dead in your tracks, it is just that pretty.
Fyvie, Turriff, Aberdeenshire, Grampian, Scotland, AB53 8JS
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Heritage Highlight: 14th century Preston Tower
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Glenbuchat is a good example of a late 16th-century Z-plan tower house, located in remote Strathdon countryside between the River Don and the Water of Buchat. The builder of Glenbuchat was John Gordon of Cairnburrow, who erected the new house to mark his marriage to Helen Carnegie, his second wife, in 1590.
Glenkindie, Grampian, Scotland
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Huntly is as much an elegant early 17th-century palace as it is a castle. But the origins of this imposing historic building go back long before the 17th century, back to the turbulent years of the 12th century, when Earl Duncan II of Fife built a motte and bailey fortress here. At that time Huntly was called Strathbogie, so Duncan's fortress became the Peel of Strathbogie.
Huntly, Grampian, Scotland, AB54 4SH
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Inverurie Bass is a 12th-century motte and bailey castle, rather oddly set within a later burial ground, one of the few Norman style mottes in northeastern Scotland. David, Earl of Huntingdon, was a powerful Norman noble and heir to the Scottish throne.
B993, Inverurie, Grampian, Scotland
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The powerful castle at Kildrummy was begun around 1250, probably by William, Earl of Mar, chamberlain of Scotland under Alexander III. Throughout its long and turbulent history Kildrummy has seen siege and counter-siege, historical drama, forced marriage, treachery, and treason.
Kildrummy, Alford, Aberdeenshire, Grampian, Scotland, AB33 8RA
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