The original Finlaystone House was built in the 14th century and incorporates a 15th century castle.

The original house was extended and remodeled in 1760 and again between 1899 and 1903. The castle was originally the property of the Cunningham Earls of Glencairn and the 5th Earl invited John Knox to preach there in 1556. There is still an ancient yew tree under which Knox is said to have preached – though a later owner had the tree moved away from the house as it was blocking the light to the windows! Robert Burns, who was a friend of one of the Earls of Glencairn also visited the house.

Finlaystone is now a centre for the MacMillans and the clan is featured in a number of areas and have held gatherings there in recent years.

Finlaystone Castle

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Dumbarton Castle has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton, and sits on a plug of volcanic basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is 240 feet (73 m) high. According to the local museum, Dumbarton Rock is a volcanic plug of basalt created 334 million years ago, with the softer exterior of the volcano having weathered away.

Iron Age
At least as far back as the Iron Age, this has been the site of a strategically important settlement as evidenced by archaeological finds.

The people that came to reside there in the era of Roman Britain were known to have traded with the Romans - though these may or may not have been the Picts that dwelled in Dumbarton in the Bronze Age & early-mid Iron Age. However the first written record about a settlement there was marked in a letter Saint Patrick wrote to King Ceretic of Alt Clut in the late 5th century.

Early Medieval Era
David Nash Ford has proposed that Dumbarton was the Cair Brithon ("Fort of the Britons") listed by Nennius among the 28 cities of Sub-Roman Britain. From the fifth century until the ninth, the castle was the centre of the independent Brythonic Kingdom of Strathclyde. Alt Clut or Alcluith, the Brythonic name for Dumbarton Rock, became a metonym for kingdom. The king of Dumbarton in about AD 570 was Riderch Hael, who features in Welsh and Latin works.

During his reign Merlin was said to have stayed at Alt Clut. The medieval Scalacronica of Sir Thomas Grey records the legend that "Arthur left Hoël of Brittany his nephew sick at Alcluit in Scotland." Hoël made a full recovery, but was besieged in the castle by the Scots and Picts. The story first appeared in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae. Amongst lists of three things, in the triads of the Red Book of Hergest, the third "Unrestrained Ravaging" was Aeddan Fradog (the Wily, perhaps Áedán mac Gabráin), coming to the court of Rhydderch the Generous at Alclud, who left neither food nor drink nor beast alive. This battle also appears in stories of Myrddin Wyllt, the Merlin of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Vita Merlini, perhaps conflated with the battle of Arfderydd, located as Arthuret by some authors.

In 756, the first (and second) losses of Dumbarton Rock were recorded. A joint force of Picts and Northumbrians captured the fortress after a siege, only to lose it again a few days later. By 870, it was home to a tightly packed British settlement, which served as a fortress and as the capital of Alt Clut. In 871, the Irish-based Viking kings Amlaíb and Ímar laid siege to Dumbarton Rock. The fortress fell in four months, after its water supply failed. The kings are recorded to have returned to Ireland with 200 ships and a host of British, English, and Pictish captives. These prisoners may have included the ruling family of Alt Clut including the king Arthgal ap Dyfnwal, who was slain the following year under uncertain circumstances. Following the Viking destruction of the fortress, Dumbarton Rock does not appear on record again until the 13th century, and the capital of the restructured Kingdom of Strathclyde appears to have relocated up the Clyde to the vicinity of Partick and Govan.

Medieval Era
In medieval Scotland, Dumbarton (Dùn Breatainn, which means "the fortress of the Britons") was an important royal castle. It sheltered David II and his young wife, Joan of The Tower after the Scottish defeat at Halidon Hill in 1333.

In 1425 the castle was attacked by James the Fat, youngest son of Murdoch Stewart, Duke of Albany, who had been imprisoned by King James I of Scotland on charges of treason. James the Fat became a rallying point for enemies of the King, and raised a rebellion against the crown. He marched on the town of Dumbarton and burned it, but was unable to take the castle, whose defender John Colquhoun successfully held out against James' men.

James IV and Dumbarton
The former supporters of James III under the leadership of John Stewart, 1st Earl of Lennox met up at Dumbarton Castle in October 1489. They had hoped to gain the support of Henry VII of England. James IV defeated them in a battle between the Touch and Menteith hills near Stirling on 11 and 12 October. James IV used Dumbarton as the west coast base for his navy and campaigns to subdue the Western Isles. James was at Dumbarton with the Chancellor of Scotland, Colin Campbell, 1st Earl of Argyll, in November 1489. He had the use of a ship belonging to the Laird of Luss. In the following February a royal ship was 'chaysit' by the English and lost some of her cables. In 1494 a row barge was built at Dumbarton for the king using timber from Loch Lomond.

In March 1495 James IV was provided with a camp bed for use at sea and a boat carried cannon to Dumbarton. Patrick Hepburn, 1st Earl of Bothwell, was made Captain of the castle on 1 April 1495. A man played on the clarschaw, a Gaelic harp, for the King. In 1505 Dumbarton was the King's base for visiting the Western Isles. One ship's mast was made from timber from Drymen. On 5 June James was entertained by a French 'quhissilar', perhaps playing a recorder and on 8 June James played cards with John Murray and Master Robert Cockburn losing £4-10 shillings, and later that day attended Evensong in the Parish kirk and College of Dumbarton. In 1505 John Ramsay built a ship for the King called the Columb, ( Saint Columba being the father of Christianity in Scotland ). In December 1505 a sword that had belonged to William Wallace was repaired.

Regent Albany, James V and the circumnavigation of Scotland
On 18 May 1515 the James or the Margaret with six other ships brought John Stewart, Regent Albany to Dumbarton. These royal ships were repaired at Dumbarton in July and new docks were made for them. John Drummond of Milnab brought fourteen of their guns to Glasgow. In September Regent Albany held court at Dumbarton, and received Thomas Benolt, the English Clarenceux King of Arms. The Carrick Herald and Clarenceux were sent to Lord Maxwell. In March 1516 Albany issued six letters of remission (forgiveness) to those who had held the castle for Lennox against the king in 1489. Regent Albany returned to France from Dumbarton in 1524.

In 1526 John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox fortified Dumbarton against the Douglas faction who had control of the young James V, but his forces were defeated by Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus at the battle of Linlithgow Bridge. James Hamilton of Finnart, who was implicated in the death of the Earl of Lennox, was given custody of the castle till 1531. Later in his personal reign James V used the castle as a prison for those convicted at the justice ayre, receiving their fines and composition payments in 1539. In 1540 James circumnavigated Scotland from the Forth and arrived at Dumbarton with Cardinal Beaton, the Earl of Huntly, and the Earl of Arran each leading a force of five hundred men. This expedition was later published by Nicolas de Nicolay Seigneur d'Arfeville, cosmographer to the King of France in 1583, with the first modern map of Scotland's coastline.

Lennox and Mary, Queen of Scots
Matthew, Earl of Lennox had been an ally of the French party in Scotland led by Mary of Guise but committed himself to the pro-English faction. In 1544 munitions and ten thousand French crowns of the sun arrived with Jacques de la Brosse at Dumbarton's harbour and were secured by Lennox and the Earl of Glencairn. Lennox then went into England, leaving the castle in the keeping of William Stirling of Glorat. Lennox signed a deal with Henry VIII of England offering Dumbarton Castle and the Isle of Bute in return for land in England and marriage to Henry's niece Margaret Douglas, and the future Governorship of Scotland if circumstances permitted. Lennox undertook to prevent the infant queen Mary being taken from Scotland. However, George Stirling of Glorat, unhappy at this policy, prevented Lennox returning into the castle and he was forced to sail to Ireland. George Stirling declared that he would hold the castle in the name of the young queen only. The Privy Council of Scotland agreed to George Stirling's plan. Despite this, more French troops landed at Dumbarton under the leadership of Lorges Montgomery, the soldier who later killed Henry II of France at a joust in 1559.

In May 1545 Lennox tried to take the castle, with soldiers commanded by his brother, Robert Stewart, Bishop of Caithness. He had sailed from Chester with around 20 followers in May 1546 in the Katherine Goodman and a pinnace. Regent Arran besieged the castle with a superior force, having borrowed the artillery of the Earl of Argyle. George Stirling of Glorat surrendered after 20 days and made terms. The chronicle historian John Lesley wrote that the Captain and the Bishop surrendered the castle to Arran and were rewarded, after negotiation by the Earl of Huntly. The siege at Dumbarton delayed Arran's action at the siege of St Andrews Castle on the East coast of Scotland. Thereafter the castle was in the hands of Regent Arran and he held court in person there in July giving legal remission to the keeper of the Castle and in March 1547 acknowledging the good service of George Stirling of Glorat in rendering the castle to him.

As the war of the Rough Wooing continued, by 22 February 1548 Mary, Queen of Scots was in the castle. Alexander Cunningham, 5th Earl of Glencairn wrote to Mary of Guise from Dumbarton that he had received a French cargo, and it would be as safe as if it were in Stirling Castle. Mary of Guise was at the castle in the first days of May 1548 and Mary, Queen of Scots was kept at the castle for several months before her embarkation for France for safety on 13 July 1548. The sailing however was delayed by adverse winds till 7 August 1548. Her party including the Four Marys left the Clyde in a fleet under the command of Nicolas de Villegagnon. They sailed around the west coast of Ireland, to avoid English ships commanded by Edward Clinton.

In France she was soon betrothed to the young dauphin Francis. Seven years after the end of the war of the Rough Wooing, in 1557, five hundred Gascon soldiers arrived at Dumbarton destined to serve on the borders against the English for Mary of Guise according to a rumour heard by Gilbert Kennedy, 3rd Earl of Cassilis.

Marian Civil War, Regent Morton, and the Duke of Lennox
After the defeat at the battle of Langside John Fleming, 5th Lord Fleming, keeper of the Castle went with Queen Mary into England but was allowed to return. When William Kirkcaldy of Grange governor of Edinburgh Castle changed to support Mary, this became a problem for Regent Moray. The first siege was lifted because of the assassination of Regent Moray. The assassin James Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh was welcomed at the castle. Fleming's defence of Dumbarton for Mary was satirized in a ballad printed by Robert Lekprevik in May 1570; The tressoun of Dumbertane. Attributed to Robert Sempill, the ballad describes Fleming's failed ambush of Sir William Drury in May 1570. In October 1570 during the Marian civil war the castle was fortified the castle for Mary against the supporters of James VI of Scotland with stones obtained by demolishing churches and houses in Dumbarton and Cardross. The castle was captured by the forces of [Regent Lennox led by Thomas Crawford of Jordanhill and John Cunningham of Drumquhassle in the early hours of 2 April 1571, who used ladders to scale the rock and surprise the garrison.

Dumbarton Castle was used as prison for Regent Morton in June 1581 before his execution in Edinburgh. On 8 September 1582 the castle was put unto the keeping of Walter Stewart of Taberstoun an ally of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, the King's favourite. The Duke of Lennox was displaced by the Gowrie Regime and went to the castle in secret pretending to be travelling from Edinburgh to nearby Dalkeith Palace. Lennox had his own ship there described as a barque. Robert Bowes, the English resident agent, expected the Duke of Lennox would sail to France from Dumbarton "having well victualled his shippe there." Other observers were anxious that the castle might become a foothold for French forces in Scotland allied to Lennox and his faction. In December 1582 two Englishmen in Lennox's service at Dumbarton left by his ship from Largs. Lennox himself travelled to France through England, never to return.

Seventeenth century
Although few buildings remain from this period there are records of works in 1617, 1618, and 1628-9. A replacement Wallace Tower was built superseding the medieval building. In June 1618 masons were working on the upper storey and it was decided to make the tower larger. Externally it was finished with lime plaster called harling. At the south side there was a bell house. By 1627 it was discovered that the keeper Sir John Stewart of Methven had neglected the fortress. He was replaced by Sir John Stewart of Traquair who recorded the poor state of the building. Surviving accounts mostly record work on the artillery and the 'foir yet wall' a defence on the southern side. The Scottish Parliament in 1644 judged that the castle was likely to more hurtful than useful to the country.

In November 1645 the Committee of Estates approved the recruitment of thirty extra soldiers by the keeper John Semple to guard the increased number of prisoners. The castle's strategic importance declined after Oliver Cromwell's death in 1658. However, due to threats posed by Jacobites and the French in the eighteenth century, new structures and defences were built and the castle was garrisoned until World War II. Some documentation for these later works is preserved in the National Archives of Scotland.

Inventories
Several lists of the castle's contents survive, including inventories from 1510, 1571, 1580, 1644, and 1668. These list guns and furniture and name many locations in the castle. There is also a list of cannon transported by John Drummond of Milnab to Dumbarton in 1536. In 1510 St Patricks chapel contained an old parchment mass book, a pewter chalice, and liturgical cloths. The hall had four tables and next to that was a chalmer of Dess, a 'solar' in English terms with a bed. The Wallace tower was protected with an iron yett and draw bar, there were bedchambers within and a bell at the head of the tower; the 'Wynde Hall' contained another bed.

In August 1536 George Stirling of Glorat took delivery from John Drummond the king's Master Wright of four great guns and six falcons on carriages with wheels, thirty three bronze hagbut hand-guns and four iron culverins, with ammunition and powder and ramrods for the big guns. John Drummond took away an old brass gun that was ten feet long.

In 1571 amonngst the cannon and guns there was a "gross culverin", two small "batteris", and a French "moyen" mounted for use on the walls. Another moyen was suitable for action in the field. There were two Brittany-made falcons on the walls, a quarter falcon and a "double barse". Provisions included eleven hogshead of biscuit. Some of the guns were subsequently taken to besiege Edinburgh Castle during the Marian civil war.

The document compiled in 1580 was "the inventar of the munitioun and uther insicht geir underwrittin left in the castell of Dumbertane be Johnne Conninghame of Drumquhassill and deliverit be the said Johnne to William Stewart of Cabirston in name and behalf of ane noble and potent lord Esme erll of Lennox lord Darnley and Obeigny on the 27 August 1580". There were six large cannon. The bed in the chamber of dais was now described as 'ane stand bed of eistland tymmar with ruf and pannell of the same', a bed made from imported Baltic oak.

By 1644, when John Sempill was made keeper the 'Chamber of deisse' still contained a bed with a chamber pot and truckle bed for a servant, but it also contained armaments. There were twelve ram-rods, and three worms' - screws for unloading guns, three hagbuts and an iron flail. The hall contained twelve broken pikes, four without their iron blades. The contents of the armoury included thirty-three corslets, 105 helmets, and 43 swords.

In 1668 the Governor Francis Montgomerie of Giffin recorded that the first floor of a lodging called the 'new chamber' contained 'a quantity of old rusty guns and sword, so rusted broke and spoiled that they can never serve for any use, above the beds were 'insufficient' and in the top room there was spoiled matches. The windows of this new lodging were broken. Montgomerie was worried about the water-supply from the loch and the 'laigh' low well.

Dumbarton Castle

Newark Castle is a well-preserved castle sited on the south shore of the estuary of the River Clyde in Port Glasgow, Inverclyde, Scotland, where the firth gradually narrows from the Firth of Clyde and navigation upriver is made difficult by shifting sandbanks. For centuries this location was used to offload seagoing ships, and led to the growth of Port Glasgow close to the castle on either side and to the south. When dredging techniques made the Clyde navigable as far as Glasgow the port became a shipbuilding centre, and the castle was surrounded by shipyards. Ferguson Shipbuilders, the last shipyard on the lower Clyde, stands close to the west of the castle, but the shipyards to the east were removed around the 1980s and new landscaped areas formed to the east of Newark Castle, opening up scenic views of the castle and across the Clyde from a new bypass road.

The castle was built in 1478 by George Maxwell when he inherited the Barony of Finlanstone (Finlaystone) in the parish of Kilmacolm. The original castle had a tower house within a walled enclosure or barmkin entered through a large gatehouse. All that remains of the outer defensive wall is from one of the original corner towers. It is thought that there would have been a hall and ancillary buildings such as a bakehouse and brew house inside the walled enclosure.

Renaissance mansion
In the late 16th century the castle was inherited by Sir Patrick Maxwell, a powerful friend of king James VI of Scotland and who was notorious for murdering two members of a rival family and beating his wife who left him after having 16 children. In 1597 Sir Patrick expanded the building, constructing a new north range replacing the earlier hall in the form of a three storey Renaissance mansion. At this time the barmkin wall was demolished except for the north east tower, which was converted into a doocot.

The central part of the mansion has cellars with tiny windows under a main hall with large windows, and other accommodation above that. An east wing with the main entrance door close to the main block links it to the original tower house which was suitably modified, and a short west wing connects to the gatehouse. The mansion has features of the Scottish baronial style including crow-stepped gables and north corners embellished with corbelled turrets. At the centre of its north wall a stairwell supported out on corbelling gives access to the upper floor.

In 1668 the Glasgow authorities purchased 18 acres (7 hectares) of land around Newark Castle from Sir George Maxwell who was then the laird, and developed the harbour into what they called "Port Glasgow". The last Maxwell died in 1694 and the castle had a series of non-resident owners. An early tenant was a ropemaker called John Orr who also dealt in wild animals such as big cats and bears which he obtained from ships visiting the Clyde and often housed in the castle cellars. The cellars and gardens were later rented by Charles Williamson who blocked access from the hall to stop the joiner John Gardner who rented the hall from stealing fruit stored in the cellars.

John Smith in 1895 records that the stump of the dule tree were carefully preserved in the castle grounds.

Visitor access
Newark Castle came into state care in 1909 and is now a property of Historic Scotland with excellent visitor facilities.

Newark Castle

Balloch Castle is an early 19th-century country house situated at the southern tip of Loch Lomond, in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Balloch was a property of the Lennox family from the 11th century, and the old castle was built in the 13th century. In the 19th century the estate was purchased by John Buchanan of Ardoch, who demolished the ruins of the old castle and erected the present building. The Tudor Gothic architecture is the work of Robert Lugar. In 1915 Balloch was bought by Glasgow City Corporation, and has been leased by West Dunbartonshire Council since 1975. The estate was designated as a country park in 1980, and since 2002 has been part of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. Although the house has been periodically used for visitor facilities and council offices, it is now included on the Buildings at Risk Register. Balloch Castle is a category A listed building, and the estate is included on the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.

The old castle
The lands of Balloch were granted to the Lennox family in 1072 by King Malcolm III, forming part of the ancient earldom of Lennox. The earls of Lennox built the original Balloch Castle around 1238, and held it until approximately 1390. Many of their early charters were dated at Balloch. The earls afterwards moved their base to the island of Inchmurrin in Loch Lomond, where the remains of a late 14th-century castle can still be seen. Situated nearer the water than the present day castle, there are no standing remains, the earthworks can still be seen. An irregular mound, approximately 50 by 45 metres (164 by 148 ft), surrounded by a ditch up to 5 metres (16 ft) across. This site is given statutory protection as a scheduled monument.

In the 15th century Balloch, along with the earldom of Lennox, came to the Stewarts of Darnley. It stayed in the Stewart family until 1652 when the 4th Duke of Lennox sold it to John Colquhoun of Luss.

Balloch Castle
The present castle was built as a residence in 1808–1809 at the order of John Buchanan of Ardoch (1761–1839), who had bought the estate in 1800. Buchanan was a Glasgow merchant, the son of Thomas Buchanan of Ardoch (died 1789). John Buchanan was involved in his father's hat-making business, and also like his father was a partner in the Ship Bank, Glasgow's oldest banking house, founded in 1749. He represented Dunbartonshire in parliament from 1821–1826.

In 1784, the Scottish Government asked for help from the Balochs to fight against their foreign enemies. This memorandum government had built the government to thank the Baloch nation. Faisal Albalushi

The architect of the Tudor Gothic building was London-based Robert Lugar, who had designed the nearby Tullichewan Castle in 1792. The building's turrets and crenellations are purely decorative with no defensive value. The lancet windows, tracery, hoodmoulds and blind arrow-slits are all borrowings from earlier building styles. Although an unimaginative designer, at Balloch Lugar helped to introduce the asymmetrical, "picturesque" form of castellated house into Scotland. The new castle may incorporate stone from the earlier castle, or the fabric of an earlier building on the site. Buchanan established the parkland around the castle, including the planting of ornamental trees and imported shrubs.

Later history
In 1830, Buchanan purchased the adjacent estate of Boturich, including a ruined castle 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Balloch Castle. He again engaged Robert Lugar to rebuild the castle, which he then occupied, selling Balloch. The latter passed through several owners in the 19th century, including Mr Gibson Stott, who made further improvements to the parks, and the Denniston-Brown family. The estate, comprising 815 acres (330 ha), was purchased in 1915 by the Corporation of the City of Glasgow, the predecessor of the current city council, to provide publicly accessible open space. Although still owned by Glasgow City Council, the park and house have been leased to Dunbarton District Council, and its successor West Dunbartonshire Council, since 1975. It was registered as a country park in 1980.[5] The house has been a category A listed building since 1971.

The house has periodically been used to provide visitor facilities and offices, with past occupants including the Nature Conservancy Council and the local Countryside Ranger Service. By 2008 the building was in poor condition, and was added to the Buildings at Risk Register for Scotland. In January 2014, an application for listed building consent was lodged, to permit repairs to the now-disused structure. In February 2014 West Dunbartonshire Council announced a programme of repairs to preserve the building.

Estate
The castle grounds feature two main pleasure gardens, one to the north of the house including rhododendrons and azaleas that reach full bloom in late May and early June. To the south is a walled garden planted with flowers and shrubs, and surrounded by the second area of ornamental planting. Between these two areas, and sweeping down to the loch shore, is an area of grassed parkland with specimen trees. The whole is framed by ornamental and semi-natural woodlands. In 2001, a £2.3-million programme of works sought to restore the castle grounds, including the reopening of lost views and improved woodland management. Funding was provided by the Heritage Lottery Fund and Scottish Enterprise, as well as the council.

Balloch Castle

Johnstone Castle is a structure and former mansion in the town of Johnstone in Renfrewshire, Scotland.

It belonged to the Houstouns of Milliken, who acquired the estate of Easter Cochrane in 1773. The original structure was substantially enlarged in 1771 and 1812 by George Houstoun, who had the structure remodelled in a castellated style complete with a turret at the left hand of the front elevation, possibly by the architect James Gillespie Graham.

The most notable features were barrel vaulted rooms in the ground floor. Externally in addition to the battlemented decoration there was a rope-styled string course. Although the castle and policies were considered particularly picturesque, the continued growth of the town of Johnstone reduced its size and the estate had largely disappeared by the start of the 20th century. Much of the house was demolished in 1950, and most of the remainder of the grounds was purchased by the local authority for housing in 1956.

Today all that remains is the central square tower along with a crow-stepped bartizaned section of an older date. The tower lay in disrepair until being purchased in 2001, and is now a private residence. It is a protected category B listed building.

Johnstone Castle

Barr Castle is a late medieval tower house. It can be seen today as a ruin on a low ridge to the south of the village of Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire, Scotland.

Barr Castle was constructed in the 15th or early 16th century. It passed into the hands of the Hamiltons of Ferguslie at the end of the 16th century. They retained the castle until the late 18th century, when they sold and abandoned it for a new mansion. The castle is protected as a scheduled monument.

Architecture
The tower is a simple rectangle on plan, measuring about 7.80m east to west by 10.70m transversely, which stands to the level of the corbelling of the four angle turrets, now gone, about 12.0m high; on its south side, the chimney stack and part of the gable remain.

Externally the castle is very plain, and it depends for its appearance on its mass. The tower has walls of roughly-coursed, square-faced masonry with dressed stone corner-quoins. The only remaining ornamental feature is the pediment above the main entrance, inscribed with the initials of Margaret Hamilton and John Wallace.

The main entrance to the castle is at ground level on the west side. This is a later alteration; the original doorway was on the first floor, reached by a stairway. Window openings survive on all four sides of the building. Also visible on the tower walls are several elements which indicate later alterations, probably in the late 17th century, when the tower was converted into a larger residence.

Little now survives of the courtyard as drawn by McGibbon & Ross in the 19th century. Extant photographs and plans indicate that the courtyard supported various subsidiary buildings, including a wing attached to the southern wall of the tower, now gone.

The ground floor was divided into two apartments, both of which had low vaulted ceilings. The entrance doorway opened into a small passage, from which the two apartments could be formally accessed and where the circular stair to the upper floor started. The kitchen possessed a large and very low arched fireplace.

The hall occupied the whole of the first floor, with light entering from the four sides. The hall differed from the great majority in Scottish castles, the ceiling having been flat and low instead of the usual loftily arched form. It is evident from the existing plans of the second floor that it had been divided into two apartments by a light partition starting from between the doors of the two garderobes in the south wall. The two staircases would have given separate access from the hall below to each of these two rooms. The third floor had, like the second floor, been divided into two apartments, with a garderobe for each and separate access from the hall as on the floor below. Closets are formed in the thickness of the walls.

The plan of the battlements shows the common arrangement for the protection of the walls before lead came into use. The stones overlap at the joints, and gargoyles are formed on the lower ones. Formally stairs at the north-west angle led to the battlements as well as the main stair. There was a complete passageway round the top of the building. The corner turrets had been roofed, and checks previously existed for small doors at each, and iron crooks for the hinges. A large gutter, made of stone hollowed on the surface, formed the junction between each turret and the main roof.

Various inscriptions are carved into the fabric of Barr Castle. These include IW and MH on the pediment above the main entrance, IH and IC 1680 above the lintel at the head of the stair, and WO 1699 on the battlements. The carvings are the initials of various Hamilton Lairds of Barr, John Wallace and his wife Margaret Hamilton, John Hamilton and Jean Cochrane.


Barr Castle

Mugdock Castle was the stronghold of the Clan Graham from the middle of the 13th century. Its ruins are located in Mugdock Country Park, just west of the village of Mugdock in the parish of Strathblane. The castle is within the registration county of Stirlingshire, although it is only 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) north of Milngavie, East Dunbartonshire, on the northern outskirts of Greater Glasgow.

The lands of Mugdock were a property of the Grahams from the mid-13th century, when David de Graham of Dundaff acquired them from the Earl of Lennox. It is possible that the castle was built by his descendant, Sir David de Graham (d. 1376), or by his son in 1372. In 1458, the lands were erected into the Barony of Mugdock. Later, in 1505, the Grahams were created Earls of Montrose.

The most famous of the Montrose Grahams, James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, may have been born at Mugdock Castle in 1612. During the Bishops' Wars, a prelude to the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, Montrose briefly supported the Covenanters. He was imprisoned in Edinburgh in 1641 for intrigues against Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll, who was to become his arch-enemy. While Montrose was in prison, Lord Sinclair sacked Mugdock. Montrose returned there, however, until 1644 when he began his Royalist revolt, becoming the King's commander in Scotland. Mugdock was sacked again that year. Following the defeat of Charles I, Montrose was executed in 1650, and the lands were forfeited to the Marquess of Argyll. In 1661 Argyll too was executed, and Mugdock was returned to the Grahams, who restored the castle over a two-year period, building a mansion within the old castle walls. In 1682 the Grahams bought Buchanan Auld House near Drymen, a dwelling more fitting the title of "Marquess", though the family's official seat was kept at Mugdock Castle for a some time.

A terraced walled garden, incorporating a summer house, was built to the east of the castle in the 1820s. Local historian John Guthrie Smith (1834–1894), a relative of the Smith family of nearby Craigend Castle, leased the house from 1874. He had the 17th-century mansion demolished, and commissioned a Scottish baronial style house to be built in the ruins of the old castle.[5] It was designed by architects Cambell Douglas & Sellars, and was extended to designs by James Sellars in the 1880s.

During World War II the house was requisitioned for use by the government. In 1945, Hugh Fraser (later Lord Fraser), owner of the large retail chain now known as House of Fraser, purchased Mugdock Castle from the Duke of Montrose. The 19th-century Mugdock House burned down in 1966, along with the remaining 16th-century outbuildings. In 1981 LOrd Fraser's son Sir Hugh Fraser, 2nd Baronet, gifted the castle and the surrounding estate to Central Regional Council for use as a country park. The estate remains as Mugdock Country Park, and the ruins are publicly accessible. The remaining tower of the 14th-century castle has been renovated as a museum. The castle is protected as a scheduled monument.

Architecture
The early castle
The original castle was built in the mid-14th century. It may have been shield-shaped on plan, comprising towers arranged around a courtyard, and linked by curtain walls and ranges of buildings. In the middle of the south wall was the main gate. The castle stood on a natural, steep-sided mound formed of hard volcanic rock, at the west edge of Mugdock Loch, which was larger than its present extent. Of the early castle, only the south-west tower remains complete, and forms the most recognisable feature of the ruins. The narrow tower is of four storeys, with an entrance on the first floor, accessed via exterior steps on the east side. Inside the basement is vaulted, and a single room occupies each storey. On the outside, a line of corbels projects the two upper storeys out from the lower levels, giving the tower a distinctive "top-heavy" appearance. The only other remains are the basement of the north-west tower, part of the gatehouse, and linking sections of curtain wall.

Expansion
The castle was extended in the mid-15th century, probably around the time that the barony was created. An outer wall was built to enclose the majority of the mound as an outer courtyard. This courtyard had its main entrance to the south, adjacent to the south-west tower. Inside the courtyard are the ruins of various stone buildings, mainly dating from the 16th century. These include a chapel at the north extent of the courtyard, and a domestic range at the south-west. Much of the outer curtain wall has also disappeared, although the southern section remains.

The Victorian house
By the late 19th century, much of the castle was in ruins. When John Guthrie Smith built his mansion, any remains of the eastern towers were obliterated. The one surviving tower was incorporated into the new building, via a first-floor covered passage, over a wide-arched bridge. The house itself was L-shaped and three storeys high, and built in the Scottish baronial style. The front door faced the south-west tower, framing a small courtyard. The house was mostly demolished to the foundations in 1967, although some walls stand to first-floor level.

Mugdock Castle

Crookston Castle is located in the Pollok area of south-west Glasgow, Scotland. The castle is located some 5 miles (8 km) south-west of the city centre, and 3 miles (5 km) east of Paisley, overlooking the Levern Water, just before its confluence with the White Cart Water.

Crookston is surrounded by a defensive ring-ditch that dates back to the 12th century when Sir Robert de Croc, who also gave his name to the village of Crookston, built a timber and earth castle. Remains of a chapel founded by de Croc in 1180 have been uncovered. Evidence of an even earlier fortification on the same site has also been found. The lands of Crookston were bought by Sir Alan Stewart in 1330, and passed to Sir John Stewart of Darnley, in 1361. The Darnley Stewarts replaced the early castle with the present stone structure around 1400.

In 1489 the Stewart Earl of Lennox rebelled against James IV. James responded by bringing the cannon Mons Meg from Edinburgh, and bombarding the castle, virtually destroying its western end, and ensuring a quick surrender. In 1544 the castle was besieged and taken by the Earl of Arran and Cardinal Beaton, while the then Earl of Lennox was defending Glasgow Castle. At this time, Crookston was regarded as the principal house of the earls of Lennox.

Most famous of the Darnley Stewarts was Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, who was second husband to Mary, Queen of Scots. It may have been at Crookston that the couple were betrothed, under a yew tree. The yew was felled in 1816, and a model of Crookston Castle, now on display in Pollok House, was carved from its wood. In 1572, Crookston was granted to another Stewart, Charles, the Earl of Lennox.

In 1703 the Duke of Lennox sold the castle to the Duke of Montrose, and it remained the property of the Dukes of Montrose until 1757, when it was sold by William Graham, 2nd Duke of Montrose to the Maxwells of Pollok. Following several years of abandonment, the castle was partially restored by the Maxwells in 1847, to honour Queen Victoria's visit to Glasgow. In 1931, Crookston became the first property acquired by the National Trust for Scotland, having been presented by Sir John Maxwell Stirling-Maxwell, who was one of the Trust's founder members and first Vice Presidents. Today, Crookston Castle is a scheduled monument. Its maintenance is the responsibility of Historic Environment Scotland, and the castle is open to the public.

Crookston Castle sits atop a natural hill, emphasised by the early ring-ditch, which can still be seen. To the north is a steep drop to the Levern Water. The castle has a rectangular main block, which was strengthened by a tower at each corner. This formed an irregular 'X-plan' shape, an unusual layout also seen at Hermitage Castle. Only the north-east corner tower survives to its former height, as well as the basement of the south-east tower. The two western towers were destroyed in the 15th century and never rebuilt, repairs in the 19th century have obscured even the remains of these. The main body of the castle measures about 19m by 12m, with walls up to 3.7m thick, and the north-east tower is around 6m square.

The entrance is on the north side, adjacent to the north-east tower, and defended by a portcullis and two doors. A straight mural stair leads up to the right, while ahead is a barrel-vaulted basement with slit windows and a well. The hall is at first-floor level, and was also vaulted, rising to 8.3m high. A turnpike stair in the south-east corner gave access to another storey above the hall, as well as upper rooms in the eastern towers. The towers had one room on each floor. In the basement of the north-east tower is a prison only accessible from above, while at the top there is access to the four storeys of the tower, via modern iron ladders, opening onto an impressive view from the roof. The top of the north-east tower, including corbels, was also rebuilt in the 19th century.

The poets Robert Burns, William Motherwell and Robert Tannahill have all mentioned the castle in their works, while Sir Walter Scott, in his 1820 novel The Abbot, suggested Mary, Queen of Scots, watched the Battle of Langside from beneath its yew tree, although the topography makes this impossible.

Crookston Castle

Knock Old Castle was mentioned by the cartographer Timothy Pont in about 1608. The remains of this small mansion or castle stand on the edge of a stream with an extensive view to the west over Arran and Bute. It consisted of a rectangular block, with a round tower at the south-west angle, and the remains of another at the north-east angle. The latter is about 3 metres (9.8 ft) high. A courtyard wall has a door in it, and it is possible that buildings abutted this.

A modern parapet with angle turret surmounts this wall, which bears a stone inscribed "Repaired in 1853." This restoration is recorded as being by John Thomas Rochead. This wall also contains stones (not in situ) dated '1603' and '1604', the initials 'I B' being on the latter. The whole building has been restored and, in parts, modernised. The walls are only 0.6 metres (2.0 ft) thick. No other traces of courtyard wall are visible. Nigel Tranter gives a similar description in his The Fortified House in Scotland, and adds that Knock Castle was probably built in the late 16th or early 17th century. The old castle is a category B listed building.

Knock Old Castle

The new castle was designed by J. T. Rochead and built in 1851-1852 in a castellated Tudor revival style. It was built for Robert Steele, a Greenock merchant, and his initials and crest are carved on the parapets. Around 1870 it was sold to George Elder FRSE (1816-1897), a Scottish businessman with strong links to Adelaide in Australia, who certainly owned the castle in the later 19th century, and died here in 1897. The house was then sold to Robert Hunter Craig who died there in 1913.

The castle was extended in 1908. It is a category A listed building.

Knock Castle

Kelburn Castle is a large house near Fairlie, North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is the seat of the Earl of Glasgow. Originally built in the thirteenth century (the original keep forms the core of the house) it was remodelled in the sixteenth century. In 1700 the first Earl made further extensions to the house in a manner not unlike a French château which is virtually how it appears today. In 1977 the house and grounds opened to the public as a country park. It is one of the oldest castles in Scotland and has been continuously inhabited by the same family for longer than any other. The castle is protected as a category A listed building, while the grounds are included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.

When it was found in 2007 that the castle's concrete facing would soon need replacing, Lord Glasgow invited four Brazilian graffiti artists to decorate the walls. This was still in place in 2011, when the Earl sought permission from Historic Scotland to keep the graffiti permanently.

The Boyle family have been in possession of the lands of Kelburn since the 12th century. In the late 16th century a tower house was built. This replaced an earlier structure, and may incorporate parts of the earlier masonry its eastern part. In the 17th century, orchards and gardens are recorded at Kelburn. David Boyle (1666–1733), a member of the Parliament of Scotland, was created Earl of Glasgow in 1703. He began the new north-west wing of the house, which was completed circa 1722. George Boyle, 6th Earl of Glasgow (1825–1890), added the north-east wing in 1880. Following the opening of the grounds to the public, the estate buildings and stables were converted in 1980, to provide a tea room, shop and visitor information.

Graffiti project
In 2007 experts told the owners of Kelburn Castle that its concrete facing would eventually need to be replaced to avoid further damage to the stonework. At the suggestion of his children, Lord Glasgow invited four Brazilian graffiti artists (Nunca, Nina and Os Gêmeos twins) to paint the walls. Historic Scotland agreed to the project, on the basis that the graffiti would be removed when the castle was re-harled. The project was featured on the BBC television programme The Culture Show. Also in 2007, Kelburn featured in another BBC programme, Crisis at the Castle which documented the financial problems of running the castle.

In September 2010 it was reported that Historic Scotland were putting pressure on Lord Glasgow to remove the graffiti, although this was later denied by both parties. In August 2011 it was reported that the Earl had formally written to Historic Scotland asking permission to keep the graffiti as a permanent feature.

Fire damage
The castle suffered minor fire damage on 16 February 2009, as a result of an electrical fault. The fire service was called to a blaze at around 1:45 am where flames had engulfed a top-floor room and spread to the roof. Around 25 firefighters battled the blaze for more than five hours before it was extinguished at around 7:20 am.