Kames Castle is a 16th-century

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...

located on the shore of Kames Bay near

Port Bannatyne Port Bannatyne ( gd, Port MhicEamailinn) is a coastal village on the Isle of Bute, Firth of Clyde, Scotland that is home to many steamers. Port Bannatyne developed into the 1900s as a quieter and more unusual alternative to Rothesay. It is a pop ...

, on the

Isle of Bute The Isle of Bute ( sco, Buit; gd, Eilean Bhòid or '), known as Bute (), is an island in the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, United Kingdom. It is divided into highland and lowland areas by the Highland Boundary Fault. Formerly a constituent isl ...

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 ...

. The castle, which is set in of planted grounds, includes a 18th-century walled garden. It is extended through the addition of a range of stone cottages. The castle, cottages, walled garden and other estate buildings are category B

listed buildings In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

The lands of Kames were granted to the Bannatyne family by

Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventual ...

in the 14th century. Although of 14th-century appearance, the present tower house is thought to date from the 16th century. The last Bannatyne owner was Sir William Macleod Bannatyne (1743–1833), a distinguished lawyer and judge in Edinburgh, who took the title Lord Bannatyne on promotion to the

College of Justice The College of Justice includes the Supreme Courts of Scotland, and its associated bodies. The constituent bodies of the national supreme courts are the Court of Session, the High Court of Justiciary, the Office of the Accountant of Court, an ...

in 1799. In the later 18th and early 19th century he laid out the walled garden and constructed a mansion adjoining the tower house. Kames was the birthplace and early home of the critic and essayist John Sterling (1806–1844).

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...

in his biography of Sterling refers to the castle as "a kind of dilapidated baronial residence to which a small farm was then attached". Lord Bannatyne sold the estate around 1810, to James Hamilton WS (1775–1849), preferring his social life in Edinburgh. Kames Castle became part of the

Marquess of Bute Marquess of the County of Bute, shortened in general usage to Marquess of Bute, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1796 for John Stuart, 1st Marquess of Bute, John Stuart, 4th Earl of Bute. Family history John Stuart ...

's estate in 1863. Some alterations to the tower house were undertaken in the later 19th century. Around 1900 the mansion was demolished and replaced with a series of cottages around a courtyard, with the intention of creating a hunting lodge. Lodge House for Kames Castle - geograph

In the mid to late 20th century, Kames was used as a children's holiday home, run by the Scottish Council for Spastics. It is now privately owned, with a number of cottages available as holiday lets.

References

{{coord, 55, 51, 44, N, 5, 5, 45, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Isle of Bute Castles in Argyll and Bute Category B listed buildings in Argyll and Bute Listed castles in Scotland

History

See also

References