Midhope Castle is a 16th-century
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 strate ...
in
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 th ...
. It is situated in the hamlet of
Abercorn
Abercorn ( Gaelic: ''Obar Chùirnidh'', Old English: ''Æbbercurnig'') is a village and civil parish in West Lothian, Scotland. Close to the south coast of the Firth of Forth, the village is around west of South Queensferry. The parish had a ...
on the
Hopetoun estate, About to the west of
South Queensferry
Queensferry, also called South Queensferry or simply "The Ferry", is a town to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Traditionally a royal burgh of West Lothian, it is administered by the City of Edinburgh council area. It lies ten miles to the nort ...
, on the outskirts of
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
. It is a
Category A listed building
Category, plural categories, may refer to:
Philosophy and general uses
*Categorization, categories in cognitive science, information science and generally
*Category of being
* ''Categories'' (Aristotle)
*Category (Kant)
*Categories (Peirce)
*C ...
.
History
The derelict chateau that can be seen today represents the much-altered 5-storey, oblong tower house.
In the 15th-century Midhope belonged to the Martin family. During the latter 16th century, the castle belonged to Alexander Drummond of Midhope, brother to
Robert Drummond of Carnock
Sir Robert Drummond of Carnock (died 1592) was Master of Work to the Crown of Scotland from 1579 to 1583. This was the responsibility for building and repair of palaces and castles. His appointment was made to be "as Sir James Hamilton of Finnart ...
,
Master of Work to the Crown of Scotland
The Master of Works to the Crown of Scotland was responsible for the construction, repair and maintenance of royal palaces, castles and other crown property in Scotland. The main buildings were; Holyroodhouse; Edinburgh Castle; Stirling Castle; ...
. A stone inscribed "AD 1582 MB" commemorates Alexander and his wife Marjory Bruce, daughter of Robert Bruce of
Airth
Airth is a Royal Burgh, village, former trading port and civil parish in Falkirk, Scotland. It is north of Falkirk town and sits on the banks of the River Forth. Airth lies on the A905 road between Grangemouth and Stirling and is overlooked by ...
.
Alexander Drummond was a servant of the
Earl of Huntly
Marquess of Huntly (traditionally spelled Marquis in Scotland; Scottish Gaelic: ''Coileach Strath Bhalgaidh'') 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 existi ...
. On 7 August 1573, on behalf of the Earl of Huntly, Drummond returned
jewels belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots to
Regent Morton
James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581, aged 65) was the last of the four regents of Scotland during the minority of King James VI. He was in some ways the most successful of the four, since he won the civil war that had b ...
at
Holyrood Palace. Drummond was buried at
Airth Old Kirk.
A
painted ceiling
A painted ceiling is a ceiling covered with an artistic mural or painting. They are usually decorated with fresco painting, mosaic tiles and other surface treatments. While hard to execute (at least in situ) a decorated ceiling has the advantage ...
from the tower survives in the care of Historic Scotland at Edinburgh; it is planned to be put on public display at the
Palace of Holyroodhouse
The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinbu ...
. It includes cinquefoil motifs and probably commemorates the marriage of Sir Robert Drummond, who became laird in 1619, to a Hamilton heiress. The family motto was "ad astra per ardua"
[The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, Bernard Burke, Harrison & Sons, 1884, p. 301] and fragments from another painted ceiling had gold stars on a blue blackgound, represented in the crest of the coat of arms.
In 1678, Midhope was given a facelift when an entrance tower was removed and the extension to the east was heightened and extended. A new doorway was added along with a small courtyard, measuring , to the south.
A large, two-chambered, oblong, late 17th century
dovecot sits about to the southeast.
In popular culture
Midhope Castle is featured as a location in the ''
Outlander'' TV series on
Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consis ...
as the main character's, Jamie Fraser, family home called Lallybroch but also known as Broch Tuarach.
Photographs
Image:Midhope Castle 01.JPG, The castle from the east.
File:Midhope Tower, West Lothian-geograph-2456996.jpg, Courtyard view of castle
Image:Midhope Castle 07.JPG, Approach to the Castle with Dovecot to the left.
Notes
References
*Mike Salter, (1985). ''Discovering Scottish Castles''. Shire Publications Ltd. .
*
(RCAHMS), NMRS Number: NT07NE 5.00
Photos of Midhope Castle* Hopetoun Estate
Midhope Castle
{{Castles in West Lothian
Houses completed in the 16th century
Ruins in West Lothian
Category A listed buildings in West Lothian
Listed castles in Scotland
Scheduled Ancient Monuments in West Lothian
Castles in West Lothian
Tower houses in Scotland