Dunoon Castle

Dunoon Castle

Castle Hill Dunoon - geograph.org.uk - 995906
General information
Status No longer standing
Location Argyll and Bute, Scotland
Address Castle Gardens
Town or city Dunoon
Country Scotland, United Kingdom
Coordinates 55°56′44″N 4°55′26″W / 55.945599°N 4.9238077°W / 55.945599; -4.9238077, National grid reference NS 04064 91102

Dunoon Castle is a ruined castle located at Dunoon on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The castle sat upon a cone-shaped hill of about 80 feet high, a volcanic plug. Very little remains of the castle's structure today.

The remains of the castle, and a surrounding area, are a scheduled monument.[1][2]

The castle was a royal residence in the 14th century, and in the 17th century fell into ruins.[3]

13th–15th century

The castle is first recorded in the thirteenth century.[4], at which time Cowal was dominated by Clan Lamont, who used Dunoon as their principal seat.

The Lamonts had been supporters of John Balliol, so when his son Edward Balliol tried to regain his father's throne, they were willing to assist. In 1333 Dunoon Castle was besieged and taken by Edward Balliol. Having acknowledged Edward I of England as his suzerain, and thus having received English military assistance, Balliol surrendered the castle to Edward I. An insurrection ensued, driving Balliol out of Scotland. Robert the Steward arrived in Cowal and, with the help of Colin Óg, leader of the Campbells of Lochow, retook the castle.[5]

When Robert the Steward unexpectedly became king, many years later, in 1371, he almost at once made Colin Óg the keeper, a hereditary position[6]. From there, Colin and his heirs pushed the Lamonts out of the remainder of Cowal, creating a feud that lasted for centuries. Colin's great-great-great-grandson Colin, still hereditary keeper, became the first Earl of Argyll.

16th century

Dunoon Castle engraving by William Miller after W Brown

In 1544 Dunoon Castle was besieged by Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox. Having eighteen ships and 800 soldiers provided by Henry VIII of England, Lennox succeeded in taking the Castles of Dunoon and Rothesay. Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll, was driven out, sustaining great loss.[7]

In 1563, Mary, Queen of Scots stayed at the castle while visiting her half-sister, Jean Stewart, Countess of Argyll, and granted several charters during her visit.[8]

17th century

In 1646 occurred the Dunoon Massacre in which the Campbells slaughtered men, women, children, and infants of Clan Lamont.[9] After the restoration of the episcopacy under Charles II, Dunoon became the residence of the bishops of Argyll for a time.[10] The castle was destroyed during the Earl of Argyll's rebellion against James VII and II in 1685.

19th Century

Dunoon Castle House
Dunoon Castle Gardens

In 1824, the Lord Provost of Glasgow bought the land surrounding the site, and built a home - Castle House - upon it, in the Scottish Baronial Style typical of the century. It is now a museum; the Gardens include the site of the former castle.

20th century

During World War I and II, military fortifications were established at Dunoon Castle for the defense of the River Clyde and the shipbuilding industry.[11]

References

  1. ↑ http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600002875
  2. ↑ http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/SM5450
  3. ↑ "Dunoon Castle". CANMORE. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  4. ↑ Atkinson, JA; Photos-Jones, E; Roberts, J; Rutherford, A; Smith, C (2000). "Excavation of 10th-Century Burials at Chapelhall, Innellan, Argyll, 1994" (PDF). Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. 130: 651–676 – via Archaeology Data Service.
  5. ↑ Colegate, John (1868). Colegate's Guide to Dunoon, Kirn, and Hunter's Quay (2nd ed.). Dunoon. pp. 20–21. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  6. ↑ Atkinson, JA; Photos-Jones, E; Roberts, J; Rutherford, A; Smith, C (2000). "Excavation of 10th-Century Burials at Chapelhall, Innellan, Argyll, 1994" (PDF). Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. 130: 651–676 – via Archaeology Data Service.
  7. ↑ Colegate. Colegate's Guide. p. 21.
  8. ↑ Colegate. Colegate's Guide. p. 22.
  9. ↑ Colegate. Colegate Guides. pp. 21–22.
  10. ↑ Colegate. Colegate's Guide. pp. 22–23.
  11. ↑ "Clyde Defences, Dunoon, Castle Gardens, Dunoon Battery". Canmore. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
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