Skibo Castle
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Skibo Castle is located to the west of Dornoch in Sutherland, Highland, Scotland overlooking the Dornoch Firth. .
Construction of Skibo Castle was started by Gilbert de Moravia, the Bishop of Caithness around 1186 at Schytherbolle in the southern area of his bishopric. Schytherbolle is the Scottish Gaelic name for Skibo and roughly translates as place of peace or fairlyland.
Skibo Castle remained the residence of subsequent bishops until 1545 when the estate was, as a tactical measure by the church, given to John Gray in order to reinforce its alliance with a powerful family as the threat of Protestant uprising spread towards the north.
In 1745, Robert Gray surrendered the estate. Its ownership changed frequently and its condition declined until 1897 when Andrew Carnegie took a one year lease with an option to buy. In 1898 he exercised that option for £85,000. However its condition had declined so much by this time that a further £2 million was spent on improvements, including an increase in area from 16,000 square feet to over 60,000 square feet, plus the creation of Loch Ospisdale and an 18-hole golf course. The cafe at Carnegie Mellon University is named Skibo Coffeehouse in honor of Andrew Carnegie's Skibo Castle connection.
The castle was purchased by Peter de Savary and used as the foundation of a private members club, the 'Carnegie Club'. Establishment of the club required restoration of the castle to recreate the luxury of an Edwardian sporting estate. Similar renovation was undertaken on the many lodges located amongst the castle grounds to provide additional accommodation for club members.
In 2003 Mr de Savary sold Skibo castle to Ellis Short. Mr Short is currently facing extradition charges relating to a business deal in South Korea. [1]
The Carnegie Club is an 'exclusive' members only club. The annual membership fee is around £4000 and each night spent on the estate costs around £600, including certain activities and meals.
The Carnegie Club hosted Madonna's wedding to Guy Ritchie on December 22, 2000. In December 2001, Ashley Judd married Dario Franchitti here also. On 28 December 1997 Robert Carlyle planned a secret midnight wedding with Anastasia Shirley at Skibo Castle, but a journalist phoned the minister posing as a friend, "confirming details", and splashed Carlyle's romantic plans all over the front page. Other weddings include Ewan MacGregor and golfer Sam Torrance.
On Sunday 3rd December 2006 the BBC Television programme 'Landward' featured the Burnett family who for several generations had been tenants of a farm on Skibo estate. The programme highlighted their search for a new farm following their eviction by the estate. The farm is now part of an off-road driving facility for the use of paying guests of the castle.
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