Auchindoun Castle is a 15th-century

L-Plan An L-plan castle is a castle or tower house in the shape of an L, typically built from the 13th to the 17th century. This design is found quite frequently in Scotland, but is also seen in England, Ireland, Romania, Sardinia, and other location ...

tower castle A tower castle is a small castle that mainly consists of a fortified tower or a tower-like structure that is built on natural ground. It is thus different from the motte-and-bailey castle, which it may resemble, but whose main defensive structure ...

located in Auchindoun near

Dufftown Dufftown ( gd, Baile Bhainidh ) is a burgh in Moray, Scotland. While the town is part of the historic Mortlach parish, the town was established and laid out in the early 19th century as part of a planned new town settlement. The town has several ...

Banffshire Banffshire ; sco, Coontie o Banffshire; gd, Siorrachd Bhanbh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. It borders the Moray ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

History

While there is evidence of

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

Pictish Pictish is the extinct language, extinct Brittonic language spoken by the Picts, the people of eastern and northern Scotland from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages. Virtually no direct attestations of Pictish remain, short of a limited num ...

earthworks Earthworks may refer to: Construction *Earthworks (archaeology), human-made constructions that modify the land contour * Earthworks (engineering), civil engineering works created by moving or processing quantities of soil *Earthworks (military), m ...

in the grounds of the castle, the remains most visible today are of the castle constructed in the mid-15th century. This building is sometimes said to be the work of Robert Cochrane, a favourite of James III. It passed to the

Clan Ogilvy Clan Ogilvy/Ogilvie is a Scottish Highland clan from Angus, Scotland.Way, George and Squire, Romily. (1994). ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The Standing Council of Scott ...

in 1489 and from them to the

Clan Gordon Clan Gordon is a Scottish Highlands, Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the most powerful Scottish clans. The Gordon lands once spanned a large territory across the Highlands. Presently, Gordon is seated at Aboyne Castle, Aberdeenshire ...

in 1535.Coventry (2008). p. 228. There are accounts, including by

William Forbes Skene William Forbes Skene Writer to the Signet, WS FRSE Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, FSA(Scot) Doctor of Civil Law, DCL Legum Doctor, LLD (7 June 1809 – 29 August 1892), was a Scotland, Scottish lawyer, historian and antiquary. He co-founde ...

and Alexander Macbain, that state that

William Mackintosh, 15th of Mackintosh William Mackintosh, 15th of Mackintosh (died 1550) was the chief of the Clan Mackintosh, a Scottish clan of the Scottish Highlands. He was also chief of the confederation of clans that was known as the Clan Chattan. Early life William Mackintosh, ...

had burned the Earl of Huntly's Auchindoun Castle which is why Huntly had him executed in 1550. However, Alexander Mackintosh-Shaw states that this story is entirely fictitious. The castle was damaged by the

Clan Mackintosh Clan Mackintosh (''Clann Mhic an Tòisich'') is a Scottish clan from Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. The chiefs of the clan are the Mackintoshes of Mackintosh. Another branch of the clan, the Mackintoshes of Torcastle, are the chiefs of Cl ...

in 1592 in retaliation for Huntly's killing of the '' Bonny Earl O'Moray'', their ally. In March 1593

Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun (1538–1594) was a Scottish landowner and rebel. He was a son of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly and Elizabeth Keith, a daughter of Robert Keith, Master of Marischal, who was killed at the battle of Flodden. Hi ...

was forfeited as a rebel, and Auchindoun Castle was given to Sir George Home, whose wife Elizabeth Gordon was Patrick Gordon's stepdaughter. After the

battle of Glenlivet The Battle of Glenlivet was a Scottish clan battle fought on 3 October 1594 near Glenlivet, Moray, Scotland. It was fought between Protestant forces loyal to King James VI of Scotland who were commanded by Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argy ...

in October 1594, the wounded followers of the Earl of Huntly came to Auchindoun for safety.

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

ordered that Auchindoun,

Slains Castle Slains Castle may refer to one of two ruined castles in Aberdeenshire, Scotland: * Old Slains Castle, a 13th-century castle was originally the property of the Comyn Earls of Buchan, near Collieston *New Slains Castle, a 16th-century tower house, b ...

Huntly Castle Huntly Castle is a ruined castle north of Huntly in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, where the rivers Deveron and Bogie meet. It was the ancestral home of the chief of Clan Gordon, Earl of Huntly. There have been four castles built on the site that ...

, and the Gordon castles of Abergeldy and Newton should be slighted or demolished. Following the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

of Charles II, the castle was again awarded to the Marquis of Huntly. In 1689, during the first Jacobite rising, the castle was used as a temporary headquarters (on 6–7 June 1689) by

John Graham, 1st Viscount Dundee John Graham, 7th of Claverhouse, 1st Viscount Dundee (21 July 1648 – 27 July 1689) was a Scottish soldier and nobleman, a Tory and an Episcopalian. He was responsible for policing southwest Scotland during and after the religious unrest and r ...

and his Jacobite army. However, the castle was derelict by 1725. Stones taken from the castle were used in local farm buildings and nearby

Balvenie Castle Balvenie Castle is a ruined castle 1 km north of Dufftown in the Moray region of Scotland. History Originally known as ''Mortlach'', it was built in the 12th century by a branch of the powerful Comyn family (the ''Black Comyns'') and was ...

Courtyard Auchindown Castle, 5265 GWW - George Washington Wilson - ABDMS018116

Architecture

While standing, the castle had a large central tower and high curtain wall. Supporting buildings including a

stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...

and

bakery A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based food baked in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, donuts, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also categorized as cafés, serving coffee and tea to customers who ...

stood inside the wall. A second round tower guarded the north-west corner of the compound. Cellars and possibly

dungeon A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period. An oubliette (from ...

s were dug directly into the bedrock beneath the tower. Today much of the curtain wall and some of the outbuildings remain, but the central tower itself is very dilapidated. An extension is known to have been added in the 16th century by the Gordons before the Ogilvys reclaimed it in 1594. Stones taken from the castle have been used in local farm buildings and nearby

. The ruins of the castle are in the care of

Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...

as a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

,Coventry (2008). p. 462. but were for many years in too dangerous a condition to be open to the public. On the completion of consolidation works, Auchindoun was reopened for public viewing in November 2007.

"The Burning of Auchindoun" song

The sacking of Auchindoun by the

inspired a traditional song, "The Burning of Auchindoun" (lyrics courtesy of the Digital Tradition Folk Music Database),

Child Ballad The Child Ballads are 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies of them were published as '' ...

183, "Willie MacIntosh":

''As A cam in by Fiddichside, on a May mornin''
''A spied Willie MacIntosh an oor before the dawnin''

''Tarn again, tarn again, tarn again, A'se bid ye''
''If ye barn Auchindoun, Huntly he will heid ye''

''Heid me or hang me, that shall never fear me''
''A'll burn Auchindoun tho' the life leave me''

''As A cam in bi Fiddichside on a May mornin''
''Auchindoun was in a bleeze, an hour before the dawning''

''Crawing, crawing, for a' your crouse crawin
''Ye burnt yer crop an tint your wings an oor before the dawnin''

Gallery

File:Auchindoun Castle Keep - geograph.org.uk - 1369204.jpg, Arches and vaults of Auchindoun Castle Keep File:Auchindoun Castle Keep - geograph.org.uk - 1369170.jpg, Auchindoun Castle Keep File:Auchindoun Castle - geograph.org.uk - 1369286.jpg, Auchindoun Castle with Kiln visible File:View from Auchindoun Castle - geograph.org.uk - 1369186.jpg, View from the Castle through a ruined doorway, towards the South East

References

External links