Duffus Castle
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| Location | Duffus, Nr Elgin, Moray, Scotland |
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| Established | c.1140 | |||||
| Last occupied | First castle: wood - Motte-and-bailey Second castle: stone - keep with curtain wall |
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| Construction | First castle: wood - Motte-and-bailey Second castle: stone - keep with curtain wall |
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| Built by | First castle: Freskin, of Strabrock and Duffus Second castle: Sir Reginald de Cheyne |
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| Present owner | Historic Scotland | |||||
| Open to public | Yes | |||||
| Entry fee | No | |||||
Duffus Castle, near Elgin, Moray, Scotland, was a motte-and-bailey castle and served as a fortress-residence from c.1140 to 1705 . During that time it had undergone many changes. The most fundamental was the destruction of the original wooden structure and replacing it with one of stone and lime. When first built it was among the most secure fortifications in Scotland. By the time it was abandoned, at the death of the 2nd Lord Duffus in 1705, the castle was becoming totally unsuitable as a dwelling.[1]
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[edit] The wooden castle
The ancient province of Moray was a major region of the Pictish confederation. At the beginning of the 12th century the province was ruled by the mormaer, Angus, grandson of Lulach Macgillecomgan, who had succeeded Macbeth as King of Scots in 1057. Ferociously independent and deeply distrustful of the expansion of the national monarchy, Angus rose up in revolt in 1130. The rising was firmly put down by King David I, and the mormaer deposed. King David immediately began to populate the province with nobles and people of his own choosing.
[edit] Freskin
One significant newcomer was Freskin (also known as Freskyn) who already owned an extensive estate in Lothian (Strabrock, now Uphall). He accepted lands at Duffus from King David I of Scotland.[2] Freskin’s background is uncertain. The historical consensus amongst historians is that he was of Flemish background, the principle argument being that "Freskin" is a Flemish name.[3] Undoubtedly, King David, himself a Normanized magnate with extensive estates in northern England and Normandy, granted lands to many nobles from Flanders as well as Normans. The unlikely alternatives are that he may have been an Anglo-Saxon or a Scot who fought for King David and his English general Edward Siwardsson in Moray. At that time, when Flemish nobles were referred to in writs by nationality (almost never), they were styled "Flandrensis".[4] Freskin appears in no contemporary sources, and was never referred to by his national origin. By the 13th century his descendents were referring to themselves as 'de Moravia' ('of Moray') and had become one of the more powerful families in northern Scotland.[5]
It was Freskin who built the great earthwork and timber motte-and-bailey castle in c.1140. The motte was an immense man-made mound with steeply sloping sides and a wide and deep ditch that surrounded the base. Timber buildings would have stood on its flat top and would have been further protected by a wooden palisade placed around the edge of the summit. The motte was reached from the bailey, a broad expanse of ground raised above the surrounding land though not as high as the motte, either by a bridge carried over the ditch or by steps climbing the mound. Here were the ancillary halls, lodgings and service offices, such as the brewhouse, bakehouse, stables, workshops, and perhaps a chapel, all necessary to maintain the household. None of these structures has survived.
[edit] The stone castle
Freskin’s direct line ended in 1270 and the castle passed into the ownership of Sir Reginald Cheyne, the younger. In around 1350 the last Cheyne, Lord of Duffus died leaving the estate to an heiress who married Nicholas, second son of the 4th Earl of Sutherland. The Sutherlands, themselves were descended from Freskyn and remained in possession until 1705[5] when the castle was abandoned.
In 1305, it was recorded that Reginald Cheyne was granted 200 oaks from the royal forests of Darnaway and Longmorn 'to build his manor of Dufhous'[6] and indicated that a major rebuilding programme was underway. The wood would have been needed for flooring, roofing and for other parts of the rising stone castle. It is known that the original castle was burned down by Robert the Bruce in 1297 because it held a garrison of King Edward I’s English troops and this had been the impetus for building a more secure castle of stone.
A two-storey rectangular tower was built on the motte and was the main residence. The first floor held the lord’s hall, with a latrine and bed chambers. The ground floor was the main storage space and also accommodated the lord’s household. The tower was built as a defensive structure with a small number of narrow windows. There was only the one entrance on the ground floor which also housed a portcullis. On the second floor, two doors exited onto the walkway of the curtain wall. This wall completely enclosed the bailey. The put-log holes built into the curtain wall indicate the presence of a number of buildings. On the north side a later building was erected that housed a kitchen, a great hall with reception room and the great chamber bedroom. It is possible that this building was constructed by the Sutherlands. It is not known when the serious subsidence took place but evidence of repairs to the tower are evident before it slid down the motte. The tower shows no further repairs and may have collapsed early on but the newer hall became the main residence. This building shows continued alterations over time. In 1689, John Graham, 1st Viscount of Dundee was a guest of Lord Duffus just before the battle of Killiekrankie and would be one of the last important visitors before the castle’s abandonment.[7]
[edit] Notes
- ^ MacGibbon, D & Ross, T 1887 The Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland, vol 1. Edinburgh ISBN
- ^ Barrow, GWS 1973 The Kingdom of the Scots. Edinburgh. ISBN
- ^ See G.W.S. Barrow, "The Beginnings of Military Feudalism" in Barrow (ed.) The Kingdom of the Scots, 2nd Ed. (2003), p. 252, n. 16.
- ^ Gray, James 1922 Sutherland and Caithness in Saga-Time or, the Jarls and the Freskyns. Edinburgh
- ^ a b Balfour Paul, J 1906 & 1911 The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh
- ^ Bain, J (ed) 1888 Calendar of Documents relating to Scotland, Vol IV. Edinburgh.
- ^ Shaw, L & Gordon, J 1882 The History of the Province of Moray, vol 2. Edinburgh
