Barra Castle
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Barra Castle is an unusual
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 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 ...
dating from the early 16th century, about south of
Oldmeldrum Oldmeldrum (commonly known as Meldrum) is a village and parish in the Formartine area of Aberdeenshire, not far from Inverurie in North East Scotland. With a population of around 2,187, Oldmeldrum falls within Scotland's top 300 centres of popu ...
, above the Lochter Burn, in the parish of Bourtie,
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 ...
.Lindsay, Maurice (1986) ''The Castles of Scotland''. Constable. p77 It occupies the site of the
Battle of Inverurie (1308) The Battle of Inverurie, also known as the Battle of Barra, was fought in the north-east of Scotland and was a victory for the Scottish king Robert Bruce over his chief domestic enemy, John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan. Though part of the wide ...
, in which
Robert 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 eventuall ...
defeated
John Comyn, Earl of Buchan John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan (circa 1260 – 1308) was a chief opponent of Robert the Bruce in the civil war that paralleled the War of Scottish Independence. He should not be confused with the better known John III Comyn, Lord of Badenoch ...
.


History

A castle on this site was, from the mid-13th century, the seat of the King family. An earlier castle associated with the hereditary Forester and Coroner of the
Garioch Garioch ( sco, The Geerie, , gd, Gairbheach) is one of six committee areas in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It has a population of 46,254 (2006 estimate), which gives it the largest population of Aberdeenshire's six committee areas. The Garioch con ...
, a Blackhall, may be incorporated in the main block and south-eastern wing, but the present castle owes its form mainly to George Seton,
chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
of the
University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen ( sco, University o' 'Aiberdeen; abbreviated as ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; gd, Oilthigh Obar Dheathain) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Sc ...
, Tutor and Vicar of Meldrum who was granted the estate in 1598. A charter of 1599 to George Seton, tutor of Meldrum, mentions the erection of the lands of Barra as a free barony, while a charter of 1615, ordains that the 'fortalice of Barra' is to be the chief seat of the barony. James Reid, an Aberdeen advocate, was in possession of the estate by 1630, and the Reid family retained it until 1754. Dame Margaret Abercrombie, the wife of John Reid (who was made a baronet in 1703), refitted parts of the house; she may be responsible for the fireplace in the Great Hall. The purchaser in 1754 was John Ramsay of Melrose, a merchant trading in Russia, who added the north wing, and his descendants still own it; a Ramsay heiress married Andrew Irvine, one of the Irvines of Drum, early in the 20th century. John Ramsay preferred his estate at Straloch, and after his death in 1787 the property came to be used as a farmhouse. It was restored as a
dower house A dower house is usually a moderately large house available for use by the widow of the previous owner of an English, Scottish or Welsh estate. The widow, often known as the "dowager", usually moves into the dower house from the larger family h ...
, to plans by George Bennet Mitchell, in the first decade of the twentieth century.


Structure

The plan of the castle is an unusual variation on the L-plan, with the main block of the castle lying north to south. There is a circular tower at the south-west. A D-plan tower at the south-east contains the main stair and entrance. This tower, corbelled square at the top to give a watch room, links to a large square wing. At its north-west angle, this wing has a second circular tower. The castle’s entrance is in the main re-entrant angle. The towers have conical roofs. Running eastward from the north end of the main block there is an addition, dating from the 18th century. A wall to the east, which contains the entrance, forms the fourth side of a square court. The buildings around the courtyard are three storeys high, built of pinned boulder rubble. The main gables are crow stepped. The drawing room, which is panelled, has a large chimneypiece, with a later one inserted in it. The first floor bedroom in the South-East wing has panelling, dating from the early to mid-18th century. There is a panelled sitting room in the North wing. The castle is a category A
listed building 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 ...
and is constructed on the site of
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 ...
's successful
battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
against
John Comyn, Earl of Buchan John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan (circa 1260 – 1308) was a chief opponent of Robert the Bruce in the civil war that paralleled the War of Scottish Independence. He should not be confused with the better known John III Comyn, Lord of Badenoch ...
in 1308. The
Hunterian Museum The Hunterian is a complex of museums located in and operated by the University of Glasgow in Glasgow, Scotland. It is the oldest museum in Scotland. It covers the Hunterian Museum, the Hunterian Art Gallery, the Mackintosh House, the Zoology M ...
in
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
has a
hammerstone In archaeology, a hammerstone is a hard cobble used to strike off lithic flakes from a lump of tool stone during the process of lithic reduction. The hammerstone is a rather universal stone tool which appeared early in most regions of the wo ...
from Barra Castle.


Paintings

There are two paintings of the interior of the castle by
James Cassie James Cassie Royal Scottish Academy, RSA (1819 – 11 May 1879) was a Scotland, Scottish Landscape painting, marine landscape, Portrait painting, portrait, genre works, genre and animal painter. Life and work Cassie was born at Keith Hall (hou ...
in the
Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...
:
The Kitchen, 1854On the terrace, 1854
File:The Kitchen of Barra Castle, Aberdeenshire - James Cassie - ABDAG011565.jpg, alt=interior of castle kitchen, with large fireplace in background, and woman and child in foreground, The Kitchen of Barra Castle, Aberdeenshire - by James Cassie File:On the Terrace, Barra Castle, Aberdeenshire - James Cassie - ABDAG000181.jpg, alt=external view of castle, with gardens on left and castle on On the Terrace, Barra Castle, Aberdeenshire - by James Cassie


References

{{Authority control Castles in Aberdeenshire Category A listed buildings in Aberdeenshire Listed castles in Scotland