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From its outermost islands to lowland borders, Scotland’s ancient

castles conceal centuries of stories, often bloody, but always rich with history – and their frequently rugged and spectacular locations show the best of this beautiful country. Chris Wright embarks

on a quest to view 10 of the best.

Land of a thousand

CASTLESCASTLESEilean Donan Castle, Scottish Highlands

Eilean Donan Castle

CASTLES SCOTLAND

Castles are also associated with the clan system. Each clan would have a castle on its lands, which was its chief’s seat of power. The clans frequently warred with each other, and many Scottish castles have changed hands involuntarily over the years by force of arms.

The need to be a military stronghold gave Scottish castles their magnificent locations, often on hilltops, cliffs, spurs of volcanic rock or, in one case, on an island where three deep lochs meet. Duart Castle, for example, on the Isle of Mull, is perched on the edge of a cliff with water on three sides – a practical defensive measure, which would make storming such a castle enormously difficult.

There is no better place to start a Scottish castle quest than Edinburgh Castle, high above the city and within sight of most of the town. With the oldest section, St Margaret’s Chapel, dating back to the 12th century, the castle and its grounds house some of Scotland’s most treasured possessions, including the Honours of Scotland (crown jewels), the Stone of Destiny, upon which Scottish kings were historically enthroned, and the Scottish National War Museum. Besieged several times over the centuries, this home of Scottish royalty last saw conflict during the Jacobite rebellions of 1715 and 1745. It is one of Scotland’s finest attractions. £16 adults/£9.60 children ($29/$17).

It is a two-hour drive south to Dumfries and Caerlaverock Castle, once a border stronghold to control the waters of the Solway Firth.

ASTLES show Scotland at its best. It’s the variety:

there are tumbling ruins on the edge of storm-torn bays, rugged hilltop fortresses that have withstood centuries of battles and weather, and immaculate, functional castles that still serve as homes to ancient families. A tour

of its castles is a tour of Scotland in all its diverse beauty. A trip to 10 of Scotland’s most famous castles combines cities, the Lowlands and Highlands, lochs and islands, east and west, and almost 1000 years of history.

Edinburgh Castle is arguably the heart of the nation, the capital city’s focal point physically and historically. Eilean Donan, Duart and Dunvegan showcase the country’s glorious west coast and islands. Cawdor and Glamis, made famous by Macbeth, show the less-visited east, while Caerlaverock, close to the English border, displays the Lowlands.

It’s been estimated that Scotland has had more than 3000 castles in its history. The country owes this abundance of fortification to a long history of invasion: the oldest surviving castles date from Norman incursions in the 11th and 12th centuries.

However, they weren’t the first. The Scots had previously fought Roman invaders and Viking raiders and, until the 18th century, were in almost constant conflict with their English neighbours.

Edinburgh Castle

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The castle is in ruins – and all the more dramatically appealing for that – apart from the front, which is in good condition, with a twin-towered gatehouse and stocky battlements. The moat makes it still more imposing and although the interior has long since crumbled, the place still boasts a tearoom and a castle-themed adventure park nearby is popular with children. £5.50 adults/£3.30 children ($10/$6).

Another two hours north-west is Ayrshire, on the west coast, and Culzean Castle. This is one of many with a powerful cliff-top setting over water, the Firth of Clyde. Linked to the Kennedy family since the 14th century, this castle is in very good shape. Its rooms and Robert Adam-designed art galleries can be toured from March to October; its 243ha gardens and woodlands are open all year. Many come for the park as much as the castle. £15.50 ($28).

After turning inland past Glasgow, then skirting beautiful Loch Lomond, it is time to leave the mainland and catch a ferry from Oban to the Isle of Mull and Duart Castle, which has guarded the Sound of Mull since the 13th century and has been the base of Clan MacLean for most of that time. Restored from ruin, it opens April-October. £5.75 adults/£2.85 children ($10/$5).

Another ferry, from Fishnish to Lochaline, crosses the Sound of Mull back to the mainland and the stark mountainous terrain west of Fort William and Scotland’s highest point, Ben Nevis. From the port of Mallaig, another ferry sails to the Isle of Skye.

Dunvegan Castle is at the far north-western extreme, requiring a journey across this beautiful island. Despite its remoteness – or perhaps because of it – Dunvegan is the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland and has been the ancestral home of the chiefs of Clan MacLeod for 800 years. Another castle facing the sea from a high vantage point on rock, Dunvegan is in excellent condition despite its age, and displays many of the clan’s ancestral accumulations, among them the 7th century Fairy Flag, which supposedly has miraculous powers when unfurled in battle. Another prized possession, the Dunvegan Cup, which dates back to the Middle Ages, was given to the clan by the O’Neils of Ulster in gratitude for its support against the colonial predations of Queen Elizabeth I in the 1590s. The castle and its grounds can be toured, and there is a boat trip onto Loch Dunvegan to view a seal colony. Open to visitors April-October. £10 adults/£7 children($18/$13).

It’s a drive back over the Skye Bridge to the mainland and Eilean Donan Castle, perhaps the most evocative castle of them all. A dream for any photographer – and any manufacturer of shortbread biscuit tins – the castle is considered an essential visit in the Scottish Highlands. Linked to the shore by an immaculate stone bridge, it sits on a small island overlooking Skye, where three sea lochs meet, the forested mountains of Kintail in the background. It was built as a monastic cell in 634AD, before becoming a castle in the 13th century to defend against marauding Vikings. Blown up by the Royal Navy in 1719 for its role in the Jacobite rebellion, it lay in ruin for almost 200 years until it was rebuilt as a family home in the early 20th century, when the bridge was added. You can even hold a wedding in the banqueting hall. £6.50 ($12), children under five free.

Travelling from west to east, past Loch Ness and through Inverness, brings you to Cawdor Castle, on the flatlands near Nairn. Shakespeare aficionados will know the name: Macbeth becomes Thane of Cawdor in the play, thane being a title of Scottish peerage. Indeed, the historical King Macbeth fought a Thane of Cawdor,

Dunvegan Castle, Isle of Skye

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but well before this castle was built. In the 16th century, it passed from the Cawdor clan to the Campbells. This romantic castle is open for visits, has hundreds of years of art and history, and even a nine-hole golf course. £10 adults/£6.50 children($18/$12).

One castle that competes with Cawdor for the fairytale title is Craigievar in Aberdeenshire. The country here is more pleasant than striking, but the castle, with its Scottish baronial architecture and turrets and cupolas reminiscent of Bavaria’s Neuschwanstein castle, stands out dramatically. Open April-September. £12.50 ($23).

Heading south towards Edinburgh brings the explorer to Glamis Castle, ancestral home of the Earls of Strathmore for more than 600 years. It’s a grand building in the foothills of the Angus Glens. Aside from its Macbeth links, it was also the childhood home of the Queen Mother and birthplace of Princess Margaret. However, its history is proudly Scottish. Glamis prides itself on hospitality, from the piper at the gates to the gala dinners that are held within, and both its interior and its grounds are renowned. £11 adults/£8 children($20/$15).

The last stop before reaching Edinburgh is Stirling Castle, often done as a daytrip from the capital. This castle feels very much the mediaeval fortress – it’s certainly draughty enough – and is steeped in battle. Henry II took it for England in 1174, and Richard I returned

Glamis Castle, Angus (above); nine-year-old Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the future Queen Mother, at Glamis Castle in 1909 (left)

Duart Castle, Isle of Mull

it to the Scots in 1189. During the Wars of Independence it changed hands many times. Edward I captured it in 1296, the Scots retook it in 1297. And so on, throughout its history. It is a place of sieges, beheadings, assassinations and coronations (Mary Queen of Scots and her son James VI), of legendary Scottish heroes such as William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. Stirling Castle has witnessed many pivotal moments in Scots-English relations. The Great Hall, kitchens

and vaults evoke a sense of the castle’s tumultuous past, while a good exhibition delves into the historical detail. £14 adults/£7.50 children ($25/$14).