Dalhousie Castle
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Dalhousie Castle is a castle in Midlothian, Scotland. Dalhousie Castle is situated near the town of Bonnyrigg, 8 miles (13 km) south of Edinburgh. The castle was the seat of the Earls of Dalhousie, the chieftains of Clan Ramsay.
[edit] History
Simundus de Ramesie (Simon of Ramsey), an Englishman of Norman descent, followed King David I to Scotland from the Huntingdonshire village of Ramsey, in about 1140. He is considered the founder of the Ramsay clan and the first to have lands at Dalwolsey. The first castle at Dalhousie was constructed by him. The drum tower, oldest part of the current structure, and L Plan Castle dates to the mid 15th century. The majority of the current castle dates to the 17th century.
Dalhousie Castle has seen much history. King Edward I (Longshanks) stayed at the castle on his way to meet Sir William Wallace at the Battle of Falkirk. In 1400, Sir Alexander Ramsay withstood a six month siege at Dalhousie by English forces led by King Henry IV. Many Earls of Dalhousie have taken an active part in British political and military leadership.
At the turn of the 20th century, the seat of Clan Ramsay was moved to Brechin Castle, although the Ramsay family continued to retain ownership of the castle until 1977. The castle was leased out to a series of tenants including a boarding school. In 1972, the castle was converted into a hotel. The castle was purchased by the Von Essen Hotels company in 2003 for a reported price of £10 million.
On June 26, 2004, a major fire erupted in the castle's roof area. The building was evacuated and the Lothian and Borders Fire Brigade was called to extinguish the blaze. The damage was extensive but limited to a relatively small area of the building and no major structural damage occurred. The damage was repaired and the hotel resumed normal operations.
 From the hillside |
 From the rear |
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