A clifftop castle in Scotland, which played a pivotal role in the nation’s history, began to crumble into ruin in the 1720s after its owner got embroiled in the Jacobite rebellion.
Perched near Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire is the cliffside fortress of Dunnottar Castle. Despite being in ruins now, it was once a grand and impenetrable structure.
The ruins that are currently visible and open for visitation date back to the 15th and 16th centuries. However, the site was initially fortified much earlier, with a chapel being established on the site in the 5th century, supposedly by St Ninian.
It remains uncertain exactly when this chapel was fortified, but two sieges were recorded in the Annals of Ulster, occurring in 681 and 694, respectively.
During King William I’s reign in Scotland, Dunnottar became the administrative hub for the Mearns region. Around the same time, the castle featured in the Arthurian romance Roman de Fergus, where the protagonist must retrieve a magical shield from Dunnottar.
Dunnottar eventually fell into English possession until William Wallace seized it in 1297 during the Scottish War of Independence. It’s believed he held 4,000 prisoners in the castle before having them burned alive in the church.
After the war of independence, the castle began to crumble until 1336, when King Edward III of England ordered its reconstruction and fortification to serve as a resupply base for his Northern campaigns in support of Edward Balliol’s claim to the Scottish throne.
By around 1359, William Keith had taken control of the castle following his marriage to Margaret Fraser, Robert the Bruce’s niece.
He then finished building the tower house at Dunnottar but was excommunicated by the Pope for constructing on sacred ground without the church’s approval. This excommunication was eventually lifted in 1395, and the Keith family continued to live at Dunnottar until the 1700s.
During this period, the castle hosted numerous Royal visitors, including Mary, Queen of Scots, and James VI of Scotland and I of England.
During the English Civil War, the Keith family initially supported the Covenanters, but later became Royalists and after the execution of King Charles I, they were among the Scots who pledged allegiance to his son Charles II.
Charles II even visited Dunnottar in July 1650, and his presence in Scotland prompted Oliver Cromwell to invade the country. During this period, the Scottish Crown Jewels, known as the Honours of Scotland, were stored at the Castle for safekeeping.
In 1715, George Keith, the 10th Earl Marischal, played a pivotal role in the Jacobite rebellion. The aim was to overthrow King George I and place James Edward Stuart, known historically as the Old Pretender, on the British throne.
After the Keith family’s involvement in this plot, they were compelled to forfeit their lands and titles, leading to the castle’s decline. Despite numerous conservation attempts, these efforts came slightly too late to fully preserve Dunnottar.