Inverness Castle () sits on a cliff overlooking the River Ness in

Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. A succession of castles have stood on this site since 1057, although the present structure dates from 1836. The present structure is a Category A

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

History

Medieval history

A succession of castles have stood on this site since 1057. The castle is said to have been built by

Malcolm III of Scotland Malcolm III (; ; –13 November 1093) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Alba from 1058 to 1093. He was later nicknamed "Canmore" (, , understood as "great chief"). Malcolm's long reign of 35 years preceded the beginning of the Scoto-Norma ...

(Máel Coluim mac Donnchada). The first chief of

Clan Mackintosh Clan Mackintosh (''Clann Mhic an Tòisich'') is a Scottish clan from Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. The chiefs of the clan are the Mackintoshes of Mackintosh. Another branch of the clan, the Mackintoshes of Torcastle, are the chiefs of Cl ...

, Shaw Macduff is said to have been appointed constable of Inverness Castle by

Malcolm IV Malcolm IV (; ), nicknamed Virgo, "the Maiden" (between 23 April and 24 May 1141 – 9 December 1165) was King of Scotland from 1153 until his death. He was the eldest son of Henry of Scotland, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon, Henry, Earl of Huntingdon ...

in 1163 after assisting the king in putting down a rebellion in Moray. The first Inverness Castle was partially destroyed by King

Robert I of Scotland Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...

in 1307 who razed its battlements to the ground. In 1428, James I, in his effort to bring the Highlanders to heel, summoned fifty clan chiefs to a parley at Inverness Castle. However, "where the Parliament was at the time sitting, they were one by one by order of the King arrested, ironed, and imprisoned in different apartments and debarred from having any communications with each other or with their followers." Several chiefs were executed on the spot. Among those arrested were

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

, 3rd

Lord of the Isles Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles ( or ; ) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was ...

, and his mother, Mariota, Countess of Ross. Lord Alexander remained imprisoned for twelve months, after which he returned to Inverness with 10,000 men and burnt the town, though he failed to take the Castle. The castle was occupied during the Raid on Ross in 1491. Walter Ogilvy was paid in February 1498 for repairing the two "gemmel" towers of Inverness Castle. A "gemmel" is a pair. In February 1509

James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauch ...

made Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly hereditary keeper of the castle and sheriff of Inverness.

Mary, Queen of Scots

Jacobite_broadside_-_Castle_of_Inverness

In 1548 another castle with tower was completed by

George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly (151428 October 1562) was a Scottish nobleman. Life He was the son of John Gordon, Lord Gordon, and Margaret Stewart, daughter of James IV and Margaret Drummond. George Gordon inherited his earldom and esta ...

(1514–1562). Huntly had been obliged to build a hall and chapel at the castle by

James V James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV a ...

and

Margaret Tudor Margaret Tudor (28 November 1489 – 18 October 1541) was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from 1503 until 1513 by marriage to King James IV. She then served as regent of Scotland during her son's minority, and fought to exte ...

in connection with his marriage to Elizabeth Keith in 1530. Huntly was constable of the castle until 1562.

Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from 1538 until 1542, as the second wife of King James V. She was a French people, French noblewoman of the ...

, Regent of Scotland, came to Inverness in August 1556 to hold justice courts. The castle was later taken by the Clan Munro and Clan Fraser, who supported

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 List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

during the Siege of Inverness (1562). Robert Mor Munro, 15th Baron of Foulis, chief of the Clan Munro, was a staunch supporter and faithful friend of Mary Queen of Scots and was consequently treated favourably by her son James VI. Mary, Queen of Scots came to Inverness in September 1562. She travelled from Aberdeen. She crossed the

River Spey The River Spey () is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom and the third longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is an important location for the traditions of salmon fishing an ...

at Boharm by ferry boat. The boat cost 40 shillings and her almoner gave money to the poor folk in Boharm. There was a wayside Hospital dedicated to St Nicholas at Boat o'Brig in Boharm, a Spey crossing where there had formerly been a wooden bridge.

George Buchanan George Buchanan (; February 1506 – 28 September 1582) was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar. According to historian Keith Brown, Buchanan was "the most profound intellectual sixteenth-century Scotland produced." His ideology of re ...

states that when the unfortunate queen found the gates of Inverness Castle shut against her, "as soon as they heard of their sovereign's danger, a great number of the most eminent Scots poured in around her, especially the Frasers and Munros, who were esteemed the most valiant of the clans inhabiting those countries in the north". These two clans took Inverness Castle for the Queen, who had refused her admission. The Queen later hanged the governor, a Gordon who had refused entry. George Buchanan's original writings state: which translates in English as: While Mary, Queen of Scots was in Inverness she bought gunpowder and 15 tartan plaids for her lackeys and members of her household. Mary moved on to Speyside escorted by "captains of the Highland men", whose service cost £313-6s-8d Scots. In response to the Chaseabout Raid, Mary, Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley appointed Hucheon Rose of Kilravock keeper of the castle on 22 September 1565. He was to expel George Monro of Dawachcartie and his son Andrew, who had helped to convoy Mary in 1562. In October it was decided the

Earl of Huntly Marquess of Huntly is a title in the Peerage of Scotland that was created on 17 April 1599 for George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly. It is the oldest existing marquessate in Scotland, and the second-oldest in the British Isles; only the English ma ...

should be keeper again.

Other sieges of Inverness Castle

There were later sieges of Inverness in

1562 __NOTOC__ Year 1562 ( MDLXII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January–March * January 6 – Shane O'Neill of Tír Eoghain pleads his cause at the Palace of Whitehall in London, before Qu ...

1649 Events January–March * January 4 – In England, the Rump Parliament passes an ordinance to set up a High Court of Justice, to try Charles I for high treason. * January 17 – The Second Ormonde Peace concludes an allian ...

, 1650,

1689 Events Notable events during this year include: * Coup, war, and legislation in England and its territories. ** The overthrow of Catholic king James of England, Ireland, and Scotland in the Glorious Revolution. ** The latter realms ente ...

1715 Events For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...

and

1746 Events January–March * January 8 – The Young Pretender Charles Edward Stuart occupies Stirling, Scotland. * January 17 – Battle of Falkirk Muir: British Government forces are defeated by Jacobite forces. * February ...

. In May 1619 it was reported that Inverness Castle was in a poor state, and "a great part thereof was quite fallen down". King James wrote from

Theobalds Theobalds House (also known as Theobalds Palace) in the parish of Cheshunt in the England, English county of Hertfordshire, north of London, was a significant stately home and (later) royal palace of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Set in ex ...

to the

Earl of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. Th ...

and

Gideon Murray Sir Gideon Murray of Elibank (died 1621), was a Scottish courtier and landowner, who served as Treasurer-Depute of Scotland. Family Gideon Murray was the third son of Sir Andrew Murray of Black Barony (died 1572), and Grisel Beaton, a daughter o ...

with orders that the castle should be repaired as soon as priority works at

Linlithgow Palace The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are located in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland in the 15th and 16th ce ...

and

Dumbarton Castle Dumbarton Castle (, ; ) has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It sits on a volcanic plug of basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high and overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton. History Dumbarton Rock was forme ...

were completed. James thought that "although it may be that we in our own time shall never see it, much less dwell therein, yet may some of our successors take occasion to remain there". The castle was not repaired at this time.

Current structure

The current structure was built on the site of the original castle. The red sandstone structure, displaying an early castellated style, is the work of a few 19th-century architects. The main (southern), which incorporated the old County Buildings including the Sheriff Court, was designed by

William Burn William Burn (20 December 1789 – 15 February 1870) was a Scottish architect. He received major commissions from the age of 20 until his death at 81. He built in many styles and was a pioneer of the Scottish Baronial Revival, often referred ...

(1789–1870) in an early castellated, built in red

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

and completed in 1836. The north block, which was originally used as a prison and later used as an additional courthouse, was designed by Thomas Brown II (1806–) in a similar style, also built in red sandstone and was completed in 1848. Meanwhile, Joseph Mitchell (1803–1883) designed the bastioned enclosing walls. The design of the main building involved a symmetrical main frontage of seven bays facing south. The central section of three bays, which slightly projected forward, involved a round headed doorway flanked by round headed windows on the ground floor, three round headed windows on the first floor and a battlement above. The outer bays took the form of castellated towers, the left-hand tower being round and the right-hand tower being square. In 1920, the castle frontage was adorned by four field guns, a field gun captured by the 5th Battalion Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders at the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used Chemical weapons in World War I, ...

on 25 September 1915, a Bronze field piece captured by the 7th Battalion Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders at an unknown battle in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and a pair of Russian field guns captured after the Siege of Sevastopol during the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

of 1855, which were gifted to

after the Treaty of Paris in 1857. In 1941, to assist with the

war effort War effort is a coordinated mobilization of society's resources—both industrial and civilian—towards the support of a military force, particular during a state of war. Depending on the militarization of the culture, the relative si ...

during the Second World War, the Russian guns were sold off to Williamson & Co., a scrap dealer from

Elgin Elgin may refer to: Places Canada * Elgin County, Ontario * Elgin Settlement, a 19th-century community for freed slaves located in present-day North Buxton and South Buxton, Ontario * Elgin, a village in Rideau Lakes, Ontario * Elgin, Manit ...

, for £25. However due to an error, the 7th Battalion gun was taken away instead of one of the Sevastopol guns, and was scrapped before anyone became aware of the error, with the compensation for it going into the Comfort for the Camerons fund, and the remaining

Sevastopol Sevastopol ( ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea and a major port on the Black Sea. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important port and naval base th ...

gun returning to the front of the castle, before being moved inside the castle until the second courtroom was built in the 1970s. As of 2017, only the gun from the Battle of Loos survives and is on display at the Clan Cameron Museum in

Achnacarry Achnacarry () is a hamlet, private estate (land), estate, and a castle in the Lochaber region of the Scottish Highlands, Highlands, Scotland. It occupies a strategic position on an isthmus between Loch Lochy to the east, and Loch Arkaig to the w ...

. Following the implementation of the

Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 ( 52 & 53 Vict. c. 50) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which was passed on 26 August 1889. The main effect of the act was to establish elected county councils in Scotland. In this it fol ...

, which established county councils in every county, the new county leaders needed to identify a meeting place for Inverness-shire County Council and duly arranged to meet in the courthouse. After Inverness-shire County Council moved to its new headquarters in Glenurquhart Road in 1963, the building continued to serve a judicial function, being used for hearings of the sheriff's court and, on one day a month, for hearings of the justice of the peace court. However, hearings of the Inverness Sheriff Court were moved to the Inverness Justice Centre on 30 March 2020. Due to extensive renovation and remodelling the castle and grounds were closed to the public in 2021. The site is scheduled to re-open to the public in 2025.

£50 note

An illustration of the castle has featured on the reverse side of a £50 note issued by the

Royal Bank of Scotland The Royal Bank of Scotland Public Limited Company () is a major retail banking, retail and commercial bank in Scotland. It is one of the retail banking subsidiaries of NatWest Group, together with NatWest and Ulster Bank. The Royal Bank of Sco ...

, which was introduced in 2005.

In popular culture

Inverness Castle is one of the main settings in William Shakespeare's tragedy,

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

. The castle is the residence of

and

Lady Macbeth Lady Macbeth is a leading character in William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Macbeth'' (). As the wife of the play's tragic hero, Macbeth (a Scottish nobleman), Lady Macbeth goads her husband into committing regicide, after which she becomes quee ...

at the start of the play, and the site of King Duncan's murder.

Gallery

File:Northern Constabulary Pipe Band - TUC Parade in Inverness Scotland (14163727423).jpg,

Pipe band A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common. The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland bagpipe, ...

at Inverness Castle, 2014 File:Southern elevation of Inverness Castle - geograph.org.uk - 1638216.jpg, Inverness Castle in winter with the statue of Flora MacDonald in the foreground File:Castle of Inverness.JPG, Inverness Castle File:Inverness Castle - Inverness Court.jpg, Inverness Castle as seen from across River Ness. Scotland, Inverness Castle - panoramio.jpg, Inverness Castle and River Ness

References

External links

History of Inverness Castle at Am Balie

Inverness Castle, ScotlandPanoramic virtual tour of castle, gardens & view
{{coord, 57.47631, N, 4.22550, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Castles in Highland (council area) Buildings and structures in Inverness Category A listed buildings in Highland (council area) Listed castles in Scotland