Cairnbulg Castle is a z-plan castle situated in

Cairnbulg The villages of Inverallochy (Scottish Gaelic: ''Inbhir Aileachaidh'') and Cairnbulg (from the Gaelic ''càrn builg'' meaning 'gap cairn') lie some east of Fraserburgh, in North East Scotland. It formerly consisted of the three fishing villages ...

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

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 ...

. It was described by

W. Douglas Simpson William Douglas Simpson CBE (2 August 1896 – 9 October 1968) was a Scotland, Scottish academic and writer who focused on the study of medieval architecture and archaeology. Career Simpson was appointed Assistant in History at the Univers ...

as one of the nine castles of the Knuckle, referring to the rocky headland of north-east Aberdeenshire. It stands by the River Philorth and was originally known as Philorth Castle (or Philorth House). The 17th-century Philorth Castle, an L-plan house consisting of a sizeable

crow-step A stepped gable, crow-stepped gable, or corbie step is a stairstep type of design at the top of the triangular gable-end of a building. The top of the parapet wall projects above the roofline and the top of the brick or stone wall is stacked in a ...

ped block, was demolished after a fire in 1915.

History

The castle was built in the early 14th century but destroyed in the winter of 1308–1309 in the

Wars of Independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence. List See also * Lists of active separatist movements * List of civil wars * List of o ...

. After being owned by the Comyns up until 1375, it was subsequently granted to the Earls of Ross. It was rebuilt in 1380 after the daughter of the 5th Earl married Sir Alexander Fraser of Cowie. In 1545, a second, round, tower, a courtyard and outbuildings were added to the original main square tower. In 1613, after nearly

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debt ...

ing themselves, the Frasers of Philorth sold the castle, which — after passing through several other families of the Fraser clan, including the Frasers of Durris — ended up in 1775 with

George Gordon, 3rd Earl of Aberdeen George Gordon, 3rd Earl of Aberdeen (19 June 1722 – 13 August 1801), styled Lord Haddo until 1745, was a Scottish peer. He sat in the House of Lords as a Scottish Representative Peer from 1747 to 1761, and from 1774 to 1790. He was against Willi ...

, who removed anything of value. It lay abandoned by 1799. In 1896, the two towers were restored and its central building rebuilt by

Jenkins & Marr Jenkins may refer to: People * Jenkins (name), history of the surname * List of people with surname Jenkins * The Jenkins, country music group Places United States * Jenkins, Illinois * Jenkins, Kentucky * Jenkins, Minnesota * Jenkins, Missou ...

for Sir John Duthie. In the late Victorian period the castle, by now almost a ruin after a 1915 fire, was purchased and restored by the wealthy Duthie family of Aberdeen. In 1934 it returned to the Fraser family after being bought by Lord Saltoun, a direct descendant of the 8th Laird.

Flora Fraser, 21st Lady Saltoun Marjorie Flora Fraser, 21st Lady SaltounIt has recently been determined that Margaret Abernethy succeeded her brother, Alexander Abernethy, 9th Lord Saltoun, in 1668, but only survived him by about 10 weeks and had not previously been counted ...

, and her husband, Captain

Alexander Ramsay of Mar Captain Alexander Arthur Alfonso David Maule Ramsay of Mar DL (21 December 1919 – 20 December 2000) was the only child of Princess Patricia of Connaught, who renounced her royal title and style when she married then-Captain the Hon. Alexand ...

, who was one of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

's great-grandchildren, lived there for a while. Their daughter,

Katharine Fraser, Mistress of Saltoun Katharine Fraser, Mistress of Saltoun, DL (born 11 October 1957) is the daughter of Captain Alexander Ramsay of Mar and Flora Fraser, 21st Lady Saltoun. Biography She was born Katharine Ingrid Mary Isabel Ramsay in Fraserburgh, Scotland. Her ...

, took possession of the castle in 1997. During the Second World War, the castle was used as the

Officers' Mess The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...

for nearby

RAF Fraserburgh Royal Air Force Fraserburgh, or more simply RAF Fraserburgh, is a former Royal Air Force station located in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, south east of Fraserburgh and north west of Peterhead. History The following units were based at Fraserburgh ...

Philorth Bridge Halt railway station Philorth Bridge Halt railway station, not to be confused with Philorth railway station on the old Formartine and Buchan Railway, was a request stop on the Fraserburgh and St Combs Light Railway, Aberdeenshire. It was opened in 1903 as Philorth ...

once stood nearby on the old Fraserburgh and St Combs Light Railway. Cairnbulg Castle is open to the public only by appointment.

References

External links

Official Website of Lady Saltoun
Castles in Aberdeenshire Category A listed buildings in Aberdeenshire Listed castles in Scotland {{Scotland-castle-stub