Invergarry Castle in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

was the

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...

of the Chiefs of the

Clan MacDonell of Glengarry Clan MacDonell of Glengarry, also known as Clan Ranald of Knoydart & Glengarry () is a Highland Scottish clan and is a branch of the larger Clan Donald. The clan takes its name from River Garry where the river Garry runs eastwards through Loch ...

, a powerful branch of the

Clan Donald Clan Donald, also known as Clan MacDonald or Clan McDonald ( ), is a Highland Scottish clan and one of the largest Scottish clans. Historically the chiefs of the Clan Donald held the title of Lord of the Isles until 1493 and two of those chiefs a ...

. The castle's position overlooking

Loch Oich Loch Oich (; ) is a freshwater loch in the Highlands of Scotland which forms part of the Caledonian Canal, of which it is the highest point. This narrow loch lies between Loch Ness (to the north-east) and Loch Lochy (to the south-west) in the G ...

on Creagan an Fhithich – the Raven's Rock – in the Great Glen, was a strategic one in the days of clan warfare. It is not certain when the first structure was erected on Creagan an Fhithich but there are at least two sites prior to the present castle.

Early history

After raids by the

Clan Mackenzie Clan Mackenzie ( ) is a Highland Scottish clan associated with Kintail and Ross-shire. Its chiefs trace their lineage to the 12th century, though the earliest recorded chief is Alexander Mackenzie of Kintail, who died after 1471. The clan suppo ...

in 1602 which included the burning of

Strome Castle Strome Castle is a ruined castle on the shore of Loch Carron in Stromemore, 3.5 miles south-west of the village of Lochcarron, on the headland between Loch Carron and Loch Kishorn, on the west coast of the Scottish Highlands. History The cas ...

, the MacDonells of Glengarry fortified Creagan an Fhithich. The result was an imposing six storey L-plan tower house, although the exact form of the earlier castle is not known. According to clan tradition, the castle was built with stones passed hand to hand by a chain of clansmen from the mountain Ben Tee. During the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

's troops under

General Monck George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle (6 December 1608 3 January 1670) was an English military officer and politician who fought on both sides during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A prominent military figure under the Commonwealth, his support ...

burned the castle down in 1654. Repaired, it was held for King

James VII of Scotland James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685, until he was deposed in the 1688 Glori ...

from 1688 until its surrender to the Government forces of William and Mary in 1692. It was then held by the Jacobites during the 1715 uprising, but taken for the government in 1716. During the 1745 uprising it was again held by Jacobites and visited twice by

Bonnie Prince Charlie Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...

. During the Jacobite risings of 1745 to 1746,

Prince Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...

– "Bonnie Prince Charlie" – visited the Castle shortly after the raising of the Royal Standard at Glenfinnan and is said to have rested there after his defeat at the

Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden took place on 16 April 1746, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. A Jacobite army under Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, thereby endi ...

, in 1746. The MacDonells were closely involved throughout the Jacobite risings, Lord MacDonnell being a Member of the Prince's Council. In the aftermath of Culloden the castle was sacked and partially blown up by troops under the

Duke of Cumberland Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British royal family, named after the historic county of Cumberland. History The Earldom of Cumberland, created in 1525, became extinct in 1643. The dukedom w ...

as part of his systematic suppression of the Highlands. However the stout walls refused to yield and have survived the centuries to serve as a reminder to their history. More prosaically, the Duke of Cumberland's men no doubt felt that they had '

slighted Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative, or social structures. This destruction of property is sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It ...

' the castle sufficiently by removing the SE wall and demolishing the NW "L" extension. The castle was never rebuilt, being abandoned by the MacDonells in favour of a new Invergarry House. This seems to have been commenced within a few years,

Richard Pococke Richard Pococke (19 November 1704 – 25 September 1765)''Notes and Queries'', p. 129. was an English clergyman and writer. He was the Bishop of Ossory (1756–65) and Meath (1765), both dioceses of the Church of Ireland. However, he is best kn ...

reporting this on his 1760 tour. The Glengarry estates were sold by Aeneas Ranaldson MacDonell of Glengarry, the son of

Alexander Ranaldson MacDonell of Glengarry Colonel Alexander Ranaldson MacDonell of Glengarry (15 September 1773 – 17 January 1828), sometimes called by the Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic version of his name, Alastair or Alasdair, was Scottish clan chief, clan chief of Clan MacDonell of Glenga ...

(1771–1828), when he came of age, but he retained Invergarry Castle, Invergarry House, the "Well of Heads" and the ancient clan burial ground, which instead passed through Aeneas's daughter to the Erskine Cuninghames of Balgownie and Corrie.

Architecture of the castle

The present structure completed post- c.1670 '''' and by 1691 was designed on an "L" plan, with a substantial 'scale and platt' stair leading to the first floor in the NW part of the "L". From

MacGibbon and Ross David MacGibbon (2 April 1831 – 20 February 1902) and Thomas Ross (10 November 1839 – 4 December 1930) were Scottish architects. Their practice, MacGibbon and Ross was established in 1872 and continued until 1914. They are best known today f ...

, the main building rose to five stories and the tower to six stories in height. The main building measured 55 by 32 feet (17 × 10 metres). The hall, on the first floor, measured 44 by 20 feet (13 × 6 metres). The main entrance was in the north wall of the NW wing of the castle, opposite the staircase. Accommodation would have been in the floors above the great hall. The un-vaulted basement most likely contained the kitchens. Invergarry Castle Petit plan

In the wider picture of Scottish architecture, by this date Invergarry was a quite old fashioned design. As well, buildings such as Invergarry were not true fortified buildings, more 'country house' than castle. In its now ruinous state, it is difficult to appreciate the former appearance of the castle. However, an accurate representation of how the castle looked in the early 18th century, shortly after completion, is available. This is a drawing prepared in 1714 by the

Board of Ordnance The Board of Ordnance was a British government body. Established in the Tudor period, it had its headquarters in the Tower of London. Its primary responsibilities were 'to act as custodian of the lands, depots and forts required for the defence ...

(see illustration left and note below). These 'military' drawings were prepared with considerable care and accuracy, so it reasonable to assume that this is a true representation of the castle as it was at that date. This drawing was used by

Charles McKean Charles McKean FRSE FRSA FRHistS FRIBA (16 July 1946 – 29 September 2013) was a Scottish historian, author and scholar. Biography McKean was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on 16 July 1946. He was educated at Fettes College, the University of P ...

to prepare a conjectural reconstruction of the castle. While plainer and simpler, the castle very much follows the form of castles such as Crathes and Craigievar, with their tall narrow structure and wall top elaboration. While Invergarry had some six '

bartizan A bartizan (an alteration of ''bratticing''), also called a guerite, ''garita'', or ''échauguette'', or spelled bartisan, is an overhanging turret projecting from the walls of late-medieval and early-modern fortifications from the early 14th c ...

s', it had no defensive parapets. Indeed, despite the thickness of the walls, a structure such as Invergarry would have stood very little military bombardment. The "L" wing with its open staircase was contained within a chamber approx 16 by 23 feet (5 × 7 metres), offering little defence. At ground floor level, the castle did have some defensive elements including shot-holes and barred windows, also no doubt a stout door with an iron '

yett A yett (from the Old English and Scots language word for "gate") is a gate or grille of latticed wrought iron bars used for defensive purposes in castles and tower houses. Unlike a portcullis, which is raised and lowered vertically using mech ...

'. The thickness of some walls may be judged as being from the incorporation of elements of the former castle and simply the requirement for strength for a five storey building. The interior of the castle, especially the hall, would have been much richer than might be expected, with possibly painted ceilings, white painted walls with wall hangings such as tapestries, a large chimney piece and furniture. Outside, the castle had a 'close' or courtyard or service yard. This would have contained various outbuildings, such as stables, workshops, a bakehouse, a brewhouse and other essential services. There would also most likely have been a

barmkin Barmkin, also spelled barmekin or barnekin, is a Scots word which refers to a form of medieval and later defensive enclosure, typically found around smaller castles, tower houses, pele towers, and bastle houses in Scotland and the north of Engla ...

or perimeter wall around the close. All traces of these buildings have gone.

Later history

In 1960, the castle, Well of Heads and the burial ground were transferred to a trust, the 'Invergarry Castle Preservation Trust'. This trust is not linked in any way to the

National Trust for Scotland The National Trust for Scotland () is a Scottish Building preservation and conservation trusts in the UK, conservation organisation. It is the largest membership organisation in Scotland and describes itself as "the charity that cares for, sha ...

, as stated on some websites. The castle suffered a significant collapse circa 2000, when the remaining north staircase collapsed. This led to a programme of consolidation in 2007 (see photo), under the direction of Historic Scotland (now

Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) () is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the merger of government agency Historic Sc ...

). This included the insertion of stabilising beams to the interior. A thorough account of the conservation work is contained in Fawcett & Rutherford, '''Renewed Life for Scottish Castles, Chapter Ten. The ruined castle is a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

. In 1957, the ''Glengarry News'' printed a call to all McDonalds, MacDonalds, MacDonells and all members of Clan Donald to donate a pound (equivalent to US$3.00 at the time) to a fund to preserve Invergarry Castle. In 1960 Invergarry House was reborn as the Glengarry Castle Hotel. It enjoys an enviable position overlooking Loch Oich, with the added attraction of the ruins of Invergarry Castle in the grounds.

Note on the Petit survey drawing

Brigadier General Lewis Petit des Etans was a French engineer, employed by the British Army for nearly 30 years. In 1714, he was sent to Scotland in charge of a

Engineer Train or Corps, this in response to the threatened Jacobite rebellion in the north of Scotland. One of the Board's tasks was to survey all structures which could have a 'military' implication. The

National Library of Scotland The National Library of Scotland (NLS; ; ) is one of Scotland's National Collections. It is one of the largest libraries in the United Kingdom. As well as a public programme of exhibitions, events, workshops, and tours, the National Library of ...

holds a collection o
eighteen drawings
'signed off' by Petit (including some later duplicates.) As Petit was the commanding officer, it seems unlike that he personally carried out the surveying. It will be noted that his statement, 'Survey'd and delivered by Lewis Petit' is in a different hand and ink from the Title and other annotations on the survey drawing. The survey drawing shows a plan and elevations of the castle, called the 'Castle of Glangary' on the drawing. The drawing may appear misleading, as more than one facade is joined together, but by cross-referencing the lettering on the plan to the elevations the appearance can be judged. The plan (at first floor/hall level) shows the importance of the main staircase in the NW extension. The elevations reveal the tall narrow form of the building, with several

s and a

cap-house A cap-house (sometimes written cap house or caphouse) is a small watch room, built at the top of a spiral staircase, often giving access to a parapet on the roof of a tower house or castle. They provided protection from the elements by enclosin ...

, but no other defensive elements at wall top level. The drawing shows no outerworks such as a barmkin wall or service buildings. As the plan was prepared for 'military' purposes, it may not have been thought necessary at the time. (Reproduced by permission of the National Library of Scotland.)

References

External links

* *
glengarry.net

glengarrycountyarchives.ca

Invergarry Castle Virtual Tour
{{coord, 57, 03, 57, N, 4, 46, 51, W, region:GB, display=title 1602 establishments in Scotland Buildings and structures completed in 1602 17th-century fortifications Castles in Highland (council area) Category B listed buildings in Highland (council area) Clan MacDonald of Glengarry Listed castles in Scotland Scheduled monuments in Highland George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle Burned buildings and structures in the United Kingdom Charles Edward Stuart