Castle Stalker ( gd, Caisteal an Stalcaire) is a four-storey

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 ...

or keep. It is set on a tidal islet on Loch Laich, an inlet off Loch Linnhe. It is about north-east of

Port Appin Appin ( gd, An Apainn) is a coastal district of the Scottish West Highlands bounded to the west by Loch Linnhe, to the south by Loch Creran, to the east by the districts of Benderloch and Lorne, and to the north by Loch Leven. It lies north ...

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

, Scotland, and is visible from the A828 road about midway between Oban and

Glen Coe Glen Coe ( gd, Gleann Comhann ) is a glen of volcanic origins, in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies in the north of the county of Argyll, close to the border with the historic province of Lochaber, within the modern council area of Highland ...

. The islet is accessible with difficulty from the shore at low tide. The name "Stalker" comes from the Gaelic ''Stalcaire'', meaning "hunter" or "falconer". The

island castle The island castle, or insular castle, is a variation of the water castle. It is distinguished by its location on an artificial or natural island. It is a typical lowland castle. Because the island on which the castle was erected is separated ...

is one of the best preserved medieval tower houses to survive in western Scotland and 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 ...

. It stands in the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area, one of forty such areas in Scotland. The castle was used as one of the locations for the film '' Monty Python and the Holy Grail''.

History

The original castle was a small fort, built around 1320 by

Clan MacDougall Clan MacDougall is a Highland Scottish clan, historically based in and around Argyll. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in Scotland, issuing new grants of coats of arms, and serving as ...

who were then Lords of Lorn. Around 1388 the Stewarts took over the Lordship of Lorn, and it is believed that they built the castle in its present form around the 1440s. The Stewarts' relative King James IV of Scotland visited the castle, and a drunken bet around 1620 resulted in the castle passing to

Clan Campbell Clan Campbell ( gd, Na Caimbeulaich ) is a Scottish Highlands, Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the largest and most powerful of the Highland clans. The Clan Campbell lands are in Argyll and within their lands lies Ben Cruachan. The ...

. After the castle changed hands between these clans a couple of times, the Campbells finally abandoned it about 1840 when it lost its roof. In 1908 the castle was bought by Charles Stewart of Achara, who carried out basic conservation work. In 1965 Lt. Col. D. R. Stewart Allward acquired the castle and over about ten years fully restored it. Castle Stalker remains in private ownership and is open to the public at selected times during the summer. For the 2011 census the island on which the castle stands was classified by the

National Records of Scotland , type = Non-ministerial government department , logo = National Records of Scotland logo.svg , logo_width = , picture = , picture_width = , picture_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = National Archives of Scotland , preceding2 = General Regi ...

as an inhabited island that "had no usual residents at the time of either the 2001 or 2011 censuses."

In popular culture

While most castle scenes in the film '' Monty Python and the Holy Grail'' (1975) were shot in and around

Doune Castle Doune Castle is a medieval stronghold near the village of Doune, in the Stirling council area of central Scotland and the historic county of Perthshire. The castle is sited on a wooded bend where the Ardoch Burn flows into the River Teith. It ...

, Castle Stalker appears in the final scene as "The Castle Aaaaarrrrrrggghhh". A French castle guard ( John Cleese) taunts King Arthur (

Graham Chapman Graham Chapman (8 January 1941 – 4 October 1989) was a British actor, comedian and writer. He was one of the six members of the surreal comedy group Monty Python. He portrayed authority figures such as The Colonel and the lead role in two P ...

) in a French accent from its battlements. The castle also makes a brief appearance in the film '' Highlander: Endgame''. The castle features briefly in Netflix's

Sense8 ''Sense8'' (a play on the word '' sensate'' ) is an American science fiction drama streaming television series created by Lana and Lilly Wachowski and J. Michael Straczynski for Netflix. The production companies behind ''Sense8'' included ...

as the estate belonging to the "Old Man of Hoy" portrayed by

Sylvester McCoy Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith (born 20 August 1943), known professionally as Sylvester McCoy, is a Scottish actor. Gaining prominence as a physical comedian, he became best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor in the lon ...

. Castle Stalker is the inspiration for "Castle Keep" in the children's book '' The Boggart'' by

Susan Cooper Susan Mary Cooper (born 23 May 1935) is an English author of children's books. She is best known for '' The Dark Is Rising'', a contemporary fantasy series set in England and Wales, which incorporates British mythology such as the Arthurian le ...

References

External links

Castle Stalker web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stalker, Castle Castles in Argyll and Bute Category A listed buildings in Argyll and Bute Listed castles in Scotland Clan MacDougall Hunting lodges in Scotland Tower houses in Scotland Tidal islands of Scotland