Wemyss Castle (pronounced eems is situated in Wemyss on the sea cliffs between the villages of

East Wemyss East Wemyss () is a village situated on the south coast of Fife, Scotland. According to the 2011 census, the village has a population of 1,928. History East Wemyss was traditionally one of several coal mining communities along the south coa ...

and West Wemyss in

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

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 ...

. Wemyss Castle is considered to be a multi-period building, and today's castle includes many elements from former periods such as the 15th century tower and the 19th century stables and gatepiers.

History

Accounts date the construction of the castle to 1421 when Sir John Wemyss decided to build a fortified castle to replace one destroyed by the

Duke of Rothesay Duke of Rothesay ( ; gd, Diùc Baile Bhòid; sco, Duik o Rothesay) is a dynastic title of the heir apparent to the British throne, currently William, Prince of Wales. William's wife Catherine, Princess of Wales, is the current Duchess of R ...

Kilconquhar Kilconquhar ( or ; sco, also Kinneuchar, from the gd, Cill Dhúnchadha or gd, Cill Chonchaidh, Church of (St) Duncan or Conchad) is a village and parish in Fife in Scotland. It includes the small hamlet of Barnyards. It is bounded by the paris ...

in 1402. The castle is thus the ancient seat of the

Earls of Wemyss Earl of Wemyss ( ) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland created in 1633. The Scottish Wemyss family had possessed the lands of Wemyss in Fife since the 12th century. Since 1823 the earldom has been held with the Earldom of March, created in ...

and their families. Historically, the castle is perhaps best known as the location where

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

, met her future husband

Lord Darnley Lord Darnley is a noble title associated with a Scottish Lordship of Parliament, first created in 1356 for the family of Stewart of Darnley and tracing a descent to the Dukedom of Richmond in England. The title's name refers to Darnley in Scot ...

, on 17 February 1565. The court of

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 ...

stayed at Wemyss Castle in July 1583. On 11 May 1590 a party of Danish commissioners led by

Peder Munk Peder Munk of Estvadgård (1534–1623), was a Danish navigator, politician, and ambassador, who was in charge of the fleet carrying Anne of Denmark to Scotland. The events of the voyage led to witch trials and executions in Denmark and Scotland ...

and the Scottish lawyer John Skene stayed at Wemyss Castle. Their task was to view and take

sasine Sasine in Scots law is the delivery of feudal property, typically land. Feudal property means immovable property, and includes everything that naturally goes with the property. For land, that would include such things as buildings, trees, and unde ...

Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, providing an escape from political and religious turmoil. Today it is under the stewardship of ...

and

Dunfermline Palace Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish royal palace and important tourist attraction in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent Dunfermline Abbey, under the care of Historic Environment ...

and Linlithgow Palace, the properties given to

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional fo ...

by James VI as a "

morning gift Dower is a provision accorded traditionally by a husband or his family, to a wife for her support should she become widowed. It was settled on the bride (being gifted into trust) by agreement at the time of the wedding, or as provided by law. ...

". In April 1591 King James had Lilias (or Sophia) Ruthven, a daughter of

William Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie William Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie, 4th Lord of Ruthven (c. 1541May 1584) was a Scottish peer known for devising the Raid of Ruthven. Life and career William Ruthven was born in 1541 in Ruthven Castle, in Perthshire, Scotland, the son of Patr ...

, shut away in Wemyss Castle to prevent her marrying

Ludovic Stewart, 2nd Duke of Lennox Ludovic Stewart, 2nd Duke of Lennox and 1st Duke of Richmond (29 September 157416 February 1624), lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was a Scottish nobleman who through their paternal lines was a second cousin of King James VI of Scotland ...

. Lennox managed to get his bride out of the castle and marry her at

Dunkeld Dunkeld (, sco, Dunkell, from gd, Dùn Chailleann, "fort of the Caledonians") is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The location of a historic cathedral, it lies on the north bank of the River Tay, opposite Birnam. Dunkeld lies close to t ...

, and after 10 days the king allowed the couple to come to court. In 1592

Sir John Wemyss Sir John Wemyss (1558–1621) was a Scottish landowner. Biography He was the son of David Wemyss (d. 1596) and Cecilia Ruthven, a daughter of William Ruthven, 2nd Lord Ruthven. His home was Wemyss Castle in Fife. The coastal location was somet ...

of Wemyss provided a refuge at the castle for the queen's Danish lady-in-waiting

Margaret Vinstarr Margaret Vinstarr (fl. 1590–1600), was a Danish or German courtier in Scotland to Anne of Denmark commemorated by the ballad " The Laird o Logie" for rescuing her imprisoned lover. A gentlewoman at the Scottish court of Anne of Denmark Margare ...

whose partner

John Wemyss of Logie John Wemyss younger of Logie, (1569-1596), was a Scottish courtier, spy, and subject of the ballad "The Laird o Logie", beheaded for plotting to blow up a fortification at Veere in the Netherlands Life John Wemyss was a brother or son, the famil ...

had plotted with

Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Francis (surname) Places *Rural Mu ...

against the king. The incident is celebrated in a ballad, ''

The Laird o Logie The Laird O Logie or The Laird Of Logie is Child ballad number 182. Synopsis Young Logie (or Ochiltrie) is imprisoned, to hang. May Margaret comes to court to plead for his life. She is unable to win a pardon but steals some token or a forged p ...

''.

John Wemyss was obliged to keep prisoners for the king at Wemyss, including in 1597 Archie Armstrong of Whitehaugh from the

Scottish borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...

. Wemyss and other Lairds complained about this duty, and in April James VI wrote to him and asked him to bring Armstrong as a prisoner to be kept at

instead. In the 1890s the nearby Coaltown of Wemyss was established as an

estate village An estate village is a village wholly within and part of a private estate. Usually several hundred years old, they are often well preserved by the family that owns the estate. They often have small commercial operations such as pubs, craft shops, an ...

on land belonging to Wemyss Castle, in order to house mineworkers employed in several coal mines in the area.

Architecture

Wemyss is an imposing castle sitting high atop cliffs with a view over the Firth of Forth. Two particular points of interest are that one of the towers from an earlier building has been re-used, first as a windmill and later as a

dovecote A dovecote or dovecot , doocot ( Scots) or columbarium is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be free-standing structures in a variety of shapes, or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pige ...

. There is also an oval-shaped dungeon within the castle, connected to the building by a passage.

Ghostlore

Some believe Wemyss possesses, like a number of Scottish castles, a "Green Lady". Folk beliefs in Scotland and Britain have traditionally associated the colour green with misfortune. Wearing green at a wedding was considered particularly unlucky, with a Scottish saying recorded in 1892 explaining that "Married in May, and kirked in green / Baith bride and bridegroom winna lang be seen". In the case of Wemyss, the ghost is that of a young woman wearing a trailing dress of green silk which rustles as she floats along the corridors within the castle. A news report in 2007 suggested that sightings had ceased in recent years.

Notable residents

James Hay Erskine Wemyss James Hay Erskine Wemyss (29 August 1829 – 29 March 1864) was a Scottish Member of Parliament, representing Fife from 1859 until his death. Family He was the son of James Erskine Wemyss by his wife Emma, daughter of William Hay, 17th Earl of ...

Rosslyn Wemyss, 1st Baron Wester Wemyss Admiral of the Fleet Rosslyn Erskine Wemyss, 1st Baron Wester Wemyss, (12 April 1864 – 24 May 1933), known as Sir Rosslyn Wemyss between 1916 and 1919, was a Royal Navy officer. During the First World War he served as commander of the 12th C ...

References

External links

http://www.wemysscastlegardens.com
{{Authority control Castles in Fife Category A listed buildings in Fife Listed castles in Scotland Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes Gardens in Fife Reportedly haunted locations in Scotland Clan Wemyss