Innes Chonnel Castle or Ardchonnel Castle is a ruined 13th-century castle on an island on Loch Awe near Dalavich, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It was once a stronghold of Clan Campbell.

The castle and the island are jointly a designated scheduled monument.

Innes Chonnel Castle

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Inveraray Castle (Scottish Gaelic Caisteal Inbhir Aora, pronounced is a country house near Inveraray in the county of Argyll, in western Scotland, on the shore of Loch Fyne, Scotland’s longest sea loch.

It has been the seat of the Dukes of Argyll, chiefs of Clan Campbell, since the 18th century.

History and architecture
Work on the castle began in 1743 and replaced an earlier 15th-century castle. In October 1746 the foundation stone was laid. Built in Gothic Revival style, later additions included a third floor with dormer windows and steep conical roofs. The village of Inveraray was moved in the 1770s to give the castle a more secluded setting.

Designers who worked on the house include William Adam and Roger Morris; the interior includes a number of neoclassical rooms created for the 5th Duke by Robert Mylne. These are among the rooms open to the public. James Lees-Milne was not impressed by the house when he visited it in 1943, noting the "ugly" grey stone and calling it "grim and forbidding".

In 1975 a devastating fire struck Inveraray and for some time the 12th Duke and his family lived in the castle's basement, while restorations requiring a worldwide fundraising drive were carried out.

Modern era
The castle is open to visitors. Its collection includes more than 1,300 pikes, muskets, swords and other weapons.

The 13th Duke and his family live in private apartments occupying two floors and set between two of the castle's crenellated circular towers. Recent renovations included the installation of the house's first central heating.

Inveraray Castle is a Category A listed building. It is surrounded by a 16-acre (6.5 ha) garden and an estate of 60,000 acres (240 km2). Besides welcoming visitors to the castle, the estate's activities include commercial forestry, tenanted farming, wind and hydro power and deer hunting.

In popular culture
The 2012 Christmas episode of Downton Abbey was partly filmed here; the castle portraying the fictional "Duneagle Castle". Inveraray Castle also featured in a series on Scottish castles made by American broadcaster PBS. The "Best of the West" festival, organised by the Duchess, is held at the castle each September.

Inveraray Castle

New Castle Lachlan, is an 18th-century baronial mansion or country house located at Strathlachlan, Cowal peninsula, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It was built in 1790 by Donald Maclachlan, 19th laird, to replace the 15th century Old Castle Lachlan, which stands nearby on the shores of Loch Fyne. The building is protected as a category C(S) listed building.

The building was remodelled around 1910 by the architect George Mackie Watson.

New Castle Lachlan

Kilmartin Castle is a small, formerly ruined, 16th-century Z-plan tower house. It consists of a main block of three storeys, with projecting round towers at opposite corners. A small stair-tower stands against one side of the main block. The walls are pierced by shot-holes, and the windows still have iron yetts.

The entrance leads to the vaulted basement, which contains three chambers, one the kitchen, linked by a passage. A turnpike stair climbs to all floors in one of the round towers. The hall, with a large fireplace, was on the first floor of the main block, and had an adjoining private chamber. There were more private rooms above the hall.

The castle is accurately depicted on Pont’s map of mid Argyll, along with the church.

The castle was the residence of John Carswell, who moved to Carnasserie Castle when made Protestant Bishop of the Isles. It had passed to the Campbells by 1674, and Alexander Campbell of Kilmartin is on record four years later. The lands were pillaged in 1685. Archibald Campbell of Kilmartin signed an oath of allegiance to George I in 1715. The Campbells held the castle until 1922.

Kilmartin House dated from around the middle of the 18th century, but this building has been demolished. It was owned by the Malcolms of Poltalloch, who later moved to Poltalloch House and then to Duntrune Castle.

Kilmartin Castle

Carnasserie Castle (also spelled Carnassarie) is a ruined 16th-century tower house, noted for its unusual plan and renaissance detailing.

The castle was built by reforming churchman John Carswell, who was Rector of Kilmartin, Chancellor of the Chapel Royal at Stirling, and later titular Bishop of the Isles. Carswell published the first book to be printed in Scottish Gaelic, a translation of John Knox's Book of Common Order. Construction began in 1565 using masons brought from Stirling; although notionally built for Carswell's patron, the Earl of Argyll, he intended it as a personal residence for himself.

On Carswell's death in 1572, the castle passed to the Earl of Argyll and sold in 1643 to Sir Dugald Campbell, 3rd Baronet of Auchinbreck. His successor Duncan Campbell was one of the few to actively support Argyll's Rising against James VII in 1685. The Atholl Raid that followed the failure of the Rising devastated large parts of Argyllshire; despite recovering his estates in 1689, Duncan Campbell was financially ruined. In 1690, he petitioned Parliament claiming Maclean clansmen burnt Carnasserie Castle, stole 2,000 cattle and murdered his uncle Alexander Campbell of Strondour. Although the outer walls remain largely undamaged, Carnasserie was never rebuilt and the Auchinbrecks eventually went bankrupt. In the 19th century the estate was sold to the Malcolms of Poltalloch, who also own nearby Duntrune Castle. Today the castle and its surroundings are protected as a scheduled monument. The castle is in the care of Historic Environment Scotland and is open to the public.

Architecture
Carnasserie has only ever been slightly altered, in the late 17th century, and so presents an accurate picture of 16th-century architecture. Although sited on raised ground close to a strategic pass at the head of Kilmartin Glen, it was designed more for domestic rather than military purposes.

The castle comprises a 5-storey tower house, with a longer three storey hall house, providing a substantial range of accommodation. At basement level are the remains of cellars and a kitchen with a large fireplace and water inlet. Above this is the large hall. This is connected to a large drawing room in the tower house, which retains its stone floor and large fireplace with finely carved stone decoration. A broad stair rises from the entrance to the hall, contained in a small tower to the north-west. A second smaller stair leads up from the hall to the parapet walk on three sides of the tower house. Upper rooms would have contained bedrooms.

The exterior displays numerous "double keyhole" gunloops, as well as decorative string courses and corbelling. Over the entrance are blank panels framed by carved supports, as well as the arms of the 5th Earl of Argyll with the Gaelic motto DIA LE UA NDUIBHNE, "God be with O'Duine", referring to the semi-legendary ancestors of Clan Campbell. At the top of the tower are the remains of open rounds along the parapet, and a caphouse above the stair. Fragments of carved drain spouts have been found, and are on display in the cellars.

To the south and west is a partially walled courtyard garden. An archway bears the inscription SDC LHL 1681, for Sir Duncan Campbell, 4th Baronet and Lady Henrietta Lindsay, whose support for Argyll's uprising led to the castle's destruction.

Carnasserie Castle

Dunans Castle is a historic structure located in Glendaruel, on the Cowal peninsula, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The property is owned by Charles and Sadie Dixon-Spain. A property at Dounens was shown on maps in 1590; Dunans House was elaborated into its present mock castle form in 1864. Once part of a much larger estate the property presently includes 16 acres (65,000 m2) of ground and in 2001 was ruined by fire.

For over two centuries Dunans was home to the Fletcher Clan who moved to the site between 1715 and 1745 carrying with them the door of their previous home at Achallader Castle (the door was used for the private chapel and was reported missing in 1999). The original mansion-style house (to the left in the picture) was extended into its present dramatic Franco-baronial "castle" form by the architect Andrew Kerr with the additions consisting of four main apartments and 6 bedrooms. The building passed out of Fletcher hands in 1997 when the entire 3000 acre Dunans estate was sold off by Colonel Archibald Fletcher's heirs and subsequently split up. Following a number of financial problems, the Category B listed castle was gutted by fire on 14 January 2001 while being run as a hotel and the building was left as a ruin. The fire began in the attic space of the castle section and destroyed three floors with only the pre Victorian west wing surviving undamaged. The owner Ewa Lucas-Gardener had ignored fire safety experts warnings that the building's fireplaces were unsafe and abandoned the building after the insurers refused to pay out. Now under new ownership, the site, including a Victorian path network, has undergone some restoration supported by the Dunans Charitable Trust. The castle was reported to have three resident ghosts.

Present day
Dunans Castle Limited, which runs the ScottishLaird.com website, published the Conservation Plan for Dunans in April 2014. Written by conservation architect Robin Kent, the book outlines the programme for the restoration of the castle and the bridge.

The regional blog ForArgyll.com is run from the site as is the Walking Theatre Company. The building remains in the at risk category of the buildings at risk register and is described as being in very poor condition.

Bridge and mausoleum
Leading to the castle is Dunans Bridge, an A-listed structure, designed by Thomas Telford in 1815 and constructed to commemorate the battle of Waterloo by John Fletcher.

Once part of the Dunans estate, but still in the ownership of the Fletchers is the Fletcher of Dunans Mausoleum, a grade C listed structure located in the gardens of the neighbouring Stronardron house.

Further buildings once part of the estate but now privately owned include Dunans Lodge, the original gate house to the estate and Dunans Cottage, 2 workers cottages combined into one dwelling.

Dunans Castle

Kilchurn Castle is a ruined structure on a rocky peninsula at the northeastern end of Loch Awe, in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It was first constructed in the mid-15th century as the base of the Campbells of Glenorchy, who extended both the castle and their territory in the area over the next 150 years. After the Campbells became Earls of Breadalbane and moved to Taymouth Castle, Kilchurn fell out of use and was in ruins by 1770. It is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland and is open to the public in summer.

History
The Campbells of Glenorchy were the most powerful cadet branch of the Clan Campbell, and over two centuries from the 1430s came to dominate the central Highlands. The building of several castles, of which Kilchurn was the first, was a key part of their territorial expansion during this period. Sir Colin Campbell, 1st of Glenorchy (died 1475), was a younger son of Duncan Campbell, 1st Lord Campbell, ancestor of the Earls of Argyll. Sir Colin was granted Glen Orchy and other lands by his father in 1432, and afterwards established Kilchurn around 1450. The first castle comprised the five-storey tower house, with a courtyard defended by an outer wall. At the time Kilchurn was on a small island scarcely larger than the castle itself, and would have been accessed via an underwater or low-lying causeway.

Sir Colin's son, Sir Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy, built the 'laich hall' - a single-storey dining hall built along the inside of the south curtain. Sir Duncan was one of the many Scottish nobles killed at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. During the second half of the 16th century, another Sir Colin Campbell, the 6th Laird (1499–1583), further improved the castle's accommodation by adding some chambers to the north of the tower house, and remodelling the parapet. This included the introduction of the circular corner turrets adorned by corbels. Sir Colin also constructed Balloch Castle (now Taymouth Castle) by Loch Tay, to consolidate the Campbell's territorial gains in Perthshire, which had been achieved largely at the expense of their former allies, the Clan MacGregor of Glenstrae.

Sir Duncan Campbell, (c.1550–1631), known as "Black Duncan", represented Argyll in the Scottish Parliament and was created a baronet, of Glenorchy in the County of Perth, in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia in 1625. Sir Duncan had the south range of the castle rebuilt and enlarged in 1614, and constructed a new range incorporating a chapel in the south-east part of the courtyard. The ambitious Black Duncan also began construction of Finlarig Castle at the west end of Loch Tay, and improved farmland around Finlarig, Kilchurn and Balloch Castles.

In 1681 Sir John Campbell, 5th Baronet, was created Earl of Breadalbane and Holland. He took advantage of the turbulence of the times, negotiating with Jacobite rebels at the same time as serving William III. In the 1690s he promoted a scheme to pacify the Highlands, and as part of this he began conversion of Kilchurn into a modern barracks, capable of housing 200 troops. His main addition was the three-storey L-shaped block along the north side. In 1714, on the death of Queen Anne, Breadalbane held a conference of Jacobites at Kilchurn, and he subsequently joined the Earl of Mar's Jacobite rising of 1715. Following the failure of the rising he returned home to find pro-government members of his household had turned Kinchurn and Finlarig over to Alexander Campbell of Fonab, to whom Breadalbane was obliged to surrender in February 1716. He remained under house arrest at Taymouth until his death the next year. Kilchurn was also used as a government garrison during the 1745 Jacobite rising. The Campbells attempted, unsuccessfully, to sell Kilchurn to the government after they moved in 1740 to the reconstructed Taymouth Castle. In 1760, the castle was badly damaged by lightning and was completely abandoned; the remains of a turret of a tower, still resting upside-down in the centre of the courtyard, attest to the violence of the storm. The castle was unroofed by 1770. J M W Turner painted the castle on one of his tours of Scotland in the early 19th century. In 1817 the water level in Loch Awe was altered, so that the castle now stands on a long peninsula. MacGibbon and Ross surveyed the castle in about 1887, after which restoration works appear to have altered some of the castle's original features.

The ruin is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland, and is open to the public during the summer. Access is either by boat from Lochawe pier, or on foot from the A85 near Dalmally. The access is under the railway viaduct that crosses Loch Awe, and access is sometimes restricted by higher-than-usual levels of water in the loch, at which times the site effectively becomes a temporary island. The castle is a scheduled monument.

Kilchurn Castle

Gylen Castle is a ruined castle, or tower house, at the south end of the island of Kerrera in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, on a promontory overlooking the Firth of Lorne. It was made a scheduled monument in 1931.

History
Built in 1582 by the Clan MacDougall. Gylen was only occupied for a relatively short time. The castle was besieged then burned by the Covenanters under General Leslie in 1647 during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.

In May 2006 a partial restoration of the castle was completed with a £300,000 grant by Historic Scotland and £200,000 raised by worldwide members of Clan MacDougall.

Gylen Castle

Dunollie Castle is a small ruined castle located on a hill north of the town of Oban, on the west coast of Scotland in Argyll. The site enjoys views over towards the island of Kerrera and a view of the town, harbour, and outlying isles. The castle is open to the public as part of the Dunollie Museum, Castle and Grounds.

There was a fortification on this high promontory in the Early Middle Ages, when Dunollie was the royal centre of the Cenél Loairn within the kingdom of Dál Riata. The Irish annals record that "Dun Ollaigh" was attacked or burned down three times, in 686, 698, and in 701. It was subsequently rebuilt in 714 by Selbach mac Ferchair (died 730), the King of Dál Riata credited with destroying the site in 701. Excavations in the 1970s suggest that this early fortification was abandoned some time in the 10th century.

The area around Dunollie subsequently became part of the semi-independent Kingdom of the Isles, ruled over by Somerled in the 12th century. On his death the MacDougalls became Lords of Lorne. Dougall, Somerled’s son, held most of Argyll and also the islands of Mull, Lismore, Jura, Tiree, Coll and many others in the 12th century.

Excavations show that Dunollie was refortified with an earthwork castle in the 13th century or potentially the late 12th century. The builder may have been Dougall, or his son Duncan. Ewan MacDougall, great-grandson of Somerled and the third chief of the MacDougalls, switched the clan's allegiance in the mid 13th century: initially allied with Haakon IV of Norway, from the 1250s Ewan remained loyal to the kings of Scotland.

In the 14th century Ewan's grandson John MacDougall, along with his kinsmen the Comyns, sided with the Balliols against the interests of Robert the Bruce. John MacDougall's army defeated the Bruce at the Battle of Dalrigh in 1306, but Bruce returned in 1308 and crushed the MacDougalls at the Battle of the Pass of Brander. The MacDougall lands of Lorne were subsequently forfeit and were given to the Campbells, though Dunollie and other estates were regained later in the 14th century.

The existing castle ruins date largely from the 15th century.

The Marquis of Argyll captured the castle in 1644, but it was returned to the MacDougalls in 1661. In 1746, the MacDougalls abandoned Dunollie Castle and built Dunollie House just downhill from the castle ruins.

In recent years, descendants and members of Clan MacDougall have been encouraged by clan leadership to support local tourism and pay visits to Dunollie, as an ancestral site and important cultural location. Remains of a historical herb garden have recently been discovered in the castle grounds.

Dunollie Castle

Dunstaffnage Castle is a partially ruined castle in Argyll and Bute, western Scotland. It lies 3 miles (4.8 km) N.N.E. of Oban, situated on a platform of conglomerate rock on a promontory at the south-west of the entrance to Loch Etive, and is surrounded on three sides by the sea.

The castle dates back to the 13th century, making it one of Scotland's oldest stone castles, in a local group which includes Castle Sween and Castle Tioram. Guarding a strategic location, it was built by the MacDougall lords of Lorn, and has been held since the 15th century by the Clan Campbell. To this day there is a hereditary Captain of Dunstaffnage, although they no longer reside at the castle. Dunstaffnage is maintained by Historic Scotland, and is open to the public, although the 16th century gatehouse is retained as the private property of the Captain. The prefix dun in the name means "fort" in Gaelic, while the rest of the name derives from Norse stafr-nis, "headland of the staff".

Before Dunstaffnage
Before the construction of the castle, Dunstaffnage may have been the location of a Dál Riatan stronghold, known as Dun Monaidh, as early as the 7th century. It was recorded, by John Monipennie in 1612, that the Stone of Destiny was kept here after being brought from Ireland, and before it was moved to Scone Palace in 843. However, Iona and Dunadd are considered more likely, given their known connections with Dál Riatan and Strathclyde kings. Hector Boece records that the stone was kept at "Evonium", which has traditionally been identified with Dunstaffnage, although in 2010 the writer A. J. Morton identified Evonium with Irvine in Ayrshire.

The MacDougalls
The castle itself was built in the second quarter of the 13th century, as the seat of Duncan MacDougall, Lord of Lorn and grandson of Somerled. He had also travelled to Rome in 1237, and was the founder of nearby Ardchattan Priory. Duncan's son Ewen MacDougall inherited his father's title in the 1240s, and expanded the MacDougall influence, styling himself "King of the Isles". It is probable that Ewen built the three round towers onto the castle, and constructed and enlarged the hall inside.

Following Alexander III's repulse of the Norse influence in Argyll, the MacDougalls backed the Scottish monarchy, and Ewen's son Alexander was made the first sherriff of Argyll in 1293. However, they supported the Balliol side during the Wars of Scottish Independence which broke out a few years later. Robert Bruce defeated the Clan MacDougall at the Battle of the Pass of Brander in 1308 or 1309, and after a brief siege, took control of Dunstaffnage Castle.

Royal fortress
Now a Crown property, Dunstaffnage was controlled by a series of keepers. James I seized the castle in 1431, following the Battle of Inverlochy, as his enemies were hiding inside. In 1455 James Douglas, 9th Earl of Douglas stayed at Dunstaffnage, on his way to treat with John MacDonald, Lord of the Isles. This followed James II's attack on Douglas power, and led to the signing of the Treaty of Westminster-Ardtornish. A later keeper, John Stewart of Lorn, was a rival of Alan MacDougall, and was stabbed by his supporters on his way to his marriage at Dunstaffnage Chapel in 1463, although he survived long enough to make his vows. Although MacDougall took the castle, he was ousted by James III, who granted Dunstaffnage to Colin Campbell, 1st Earl of Argyll in 1470.

Clan Campbell
The Earls of Argyll appointed Captains to oversee Dunstaffnage, and keep it in readiness, on their behalf. Changes were made to the buildings, particularly the gatehouse, which was rebuilt around this time. The Campbells were loyal allies of the royal house, and Dunstaffnage was used as a base for government expeditions against the MacDonald Lords of the Isles, among others, during the 15th and 16th centuries. James IV visited Dunstaffnage on two occasions.

Dunstaffnage saw action during the Civil War, holding out against Montrose's army in 1644. The castle was burned by royalist troops, following the failure of Argyll's Rising in 1685, against the Catholic James VII. During the Jacobite risings of 1715 and 1745, the castle was occupied by government troops. Flora MacDonald, who helped Bonnie Prince Charlie to escape from Scotland, was briefly imprisoned here while en route to imprisonment in London.

According to W. Douglas Simpson the castle appears in Tobias Smollet's Humphry Clinker, which although not naming Dunstaffnage, presents "a fair picture of life in the castle in the third quarter of the eighteenth century".

Decline and restoration
The Campbells continued to add to the castle, building a new house over the old west range in 1725. However, the rest of the castle was already decaying. In 1810 an accidental fire gutted the gatehouse, and the Captains ceased to live here, moving to Dunstaffnage House some 2 km to the south-east. Tenants lived in the 1725 house within the castle until 1888.

Restoration work was undertaken in 1903 by the Duke of Argyll, the castle's owner. This was followed in 1912 by a court case, in which the Court of Session ruled that Angus Campbell, the 20th hereditary Captain, had right of residence notwithstanding the Duke of Argyll's ownership. Works were delayed by World War I, and the planned total restoration was never completed. In 1958, the 21st Captain and the Duke agreed to hand the castle into state care, and it is now open to the public as a Historic Scotland property. Both the castle and chapel are Scheduled Ancient Monuments.