Castles and Great Houses of Scotland Quiz

Answer: Blair Castle

The Murrays of Blair Castle, Earls of Atholl, had been staunchly Royalist before, during, and after the Civil War, and as a reward for their loyalty were raised to the Marquisate of Atholl then to that of Dukes of Atholl. However, when Prince Charles Stuart, Bonnie Prince Charlie, began his bid for the throne in the '45 rebellion, three of the 1st Duke's sons sided with the Prince, and shortly before the disastrous Battle of Culloden, Lord George Murray, one of the sons, actually laid siege to his own home which at the time was occupied by the forces of George II; the siege was not successful! The castle has undergone many changes in appearance since its early days; a Georgian mansion in 1758, and restored in 1869 to its quasi-medieval appearance, which we see today. Blair has received many famous guests throughout history, Edward III, James V, Mary, Queen of Scots, Queen Victoria, and Empress Eugenie, among others.

The castle is owned by a charitable trust set up by the 10th Duke.

The 11th and present Duke is head of the Atholl Highlanders, the only remaining private army in Europe. When Queen Victoria visited Blair in 1844, she was so delighted with the two hundred men of Atholl who formed her bodyguard, that she designated them as a Regiment, and presented them with their own Colours. The Atholl Highlanders today have a yearly parade and inspection by their Colonel-in-Chief, the present Duke.

Answer: Urquhart Castle

The Great Glen, a 96 km long cleft cutting diagonally across Scotland, was created by a huge movement of the earth's crust over 200 million years ago. By glacial movement, four great lochs were created along the length of the Glen, Lochs Linnhe, Lochy, Oich and Ness, the latter being the largest at 36km long and 3km at its widest point. The black waters of Loch Ness are more than 230 meters deep. The first recorded sighting of "Nessie" was by Saint Columba and his party in 565A.D.

The magnificently situated Urquhart Castle, on a rocky outcrop on the north shore of Loch Ness remains an impressive stronghold despite its ruinous state. Once one of Scotland's largest castles, Urquhart's remains include a tower house that commands splendid views of the Glen and loch. From the 13th to 17th century, Urquhart's history was particularly bloody; Edward I of England, the Hammer of the Scots, invaded Scotland in 1296 and Urquhart passed into English hands. Thereafter, the castle was reclaimed and lost several times, eventually reverting to the Scottish Crown, which, in turn, had trouble holding it against some of its own warlike northern Lords of the Isles, passing back and forth like a bone between two dogs. Finally, when the last Crown garrison left in 1692 they blew up some of the remaining buildings, making sure the castle could no longer act as a fortress for anybody. It was never repaired, and is now safeguarded by Historic Scotland and is one of the country's favourite tourist destinations.

On our return from Inverness to Fort William, we stopped for a while at Castle Urquhart, and while we were certainly impressed by the castle and its surroundings, I must say our eyes strayed over the waters of black Loch Ness, but no, we did not see Nessie!

Answer: Lochleven Castle

Forever linked with Mary, Queen of Scots, her imprisonment, and daring escape, Lochleven has played a much larger part in the ups and downs of Scottish royalty and nobility. No records exist to tell exactly who first built a fortification on the small, but strategically positioned island in Loch Leven; it may actually have been the English under Edward I during his invasion of 1296.

There is a tale of Sir William Wallace, Guardian of Scotland, capturing the island from the English before his death in 1305. Robert the Bruce was certainly there in 1313, and again in 1323, and it was Bruce who first used the castle as a state prison in 1316. Lochleven ceased to be a royal castle in 1390 when Robert II granted it to Sir Henry Douglas, the husband of his niece, Marjory.

The Douglases held the castle for almost three hundred years, selling it and the island in 1672 to Sir William Bruce of Balcaskie, the designer of the Palace of Holyroodhouse for Charles II. Never used thereafter, the castle is now in the care of Historic Scotland. Access is gained in the summer by a small motorboat, ensuring that not too many tourists can be on the island at one time. Speaking personally, while the remaining buildings are formidable, there is also a hushed air of serenity which belies the castle's turbulent history; quite lovely!

Answer: All of these

In 1453 Blackness became a royal castle, taken from the Crichton family who had built it only a few years earlier. Very strong defensively, the castle was used as both fortress and state prison. Its most famous prisoner probably was Cardinal David Beaton, a man highly involved in the politics of the day, siding against Henry VIII of England in his "rough wooing" of the infant Mary, Queen of Scots as a bride for his son, Edward. Beaton eventually came to a very bad end, but that's another story.
In 1870, Blackness was converted from a fortress prison to the central ammunition depot for Scotland and remained as such until after World War I. What was then the Office of Works did major conservation and repair between 1926 and 1935, and what we can enjoy now is a fortification restored to a likeness of its medieval aspect.
Several motion pictures have been filmed at Blackness, notably Franco Zefferelli's "Hamlet" starring Mel Gibson and Glenn Close. On our visit I had the strangest feeling of deja vu, until the clerk in the visitors' shop told us about "Hamlet" and I realized that that was where I'd seen the castle before.
Shaped like a ship, strength in every block of stone, Blackness is well worth a visit

Answer: Craigmillar Castle

Lying only three miles from Edinburgh, Craigmillar Castle stands as one of Scotland's most completely preserved medieval castles. Construction began around 1400 by the Preston family and it stayed with the family until sold in 1660 to the Gilmours, who abandoned the castle early in the next century. Over the next two hundred years the castle was neglected and began to fall into ruin. In 1949 it passed into the care of the Secretary of State for Scotland and is now cared for by Historic Scotland.
Queen Mary stayed at Craigmillar twice, first in 1563 then in 1566. It was during her second stay that the "Craigmillar Bond" was drawn up and signed by several of Mary's lords, stating their intent to solve the problem of the Queen's husband. The document no longer exists, although it is known that the lords Huntly, Argyll, and Maitland signed. It is possible that Mary knew of the Bond but did not know any details, requiring only that neither she nor her infant son would be harmed by implication. Unfortunately, the subsequent murder of Darnley was the beginning of the end for the young Queen.
Craigmillar castle is in excellent repair and the views from the tower rooftop are wonderful. I'd love to write about our own experience at Craigmillar, but again, that's another story!

Answer: Culzean Castle

The history of Culzean, pronounced Kullane, is bound up with the feuding family of the Kennedys which is far too complicated to summarize here. Suffice to say that by the 1400's the two branches of the Kennedys and their descendants would own forty-three homes and castles in south-west Scotland, and this would lead to endless fighting over property. The family title was Earls of Cassillis, pronounced Kassels, and the fourth earl was probably the most brutal. For example, he wanted land belonging to the abbey of Crossraguel and when the cleric in charge refused, the earl had him roasted alive in the dungeons of Dunure Castle.

The castle sits on top of a cave-riddled cliff (the Kennedys were also smugglers), overlooking the Firth of Clyde. Almost all of the original buildings have disappeared and in their place is the beautiful 18th century castle designed and built by architect Robert Adam. When the family turned Culzean over to the National Trust in 1945, one of the stipulations was that General Dwight D. Eisenhower be given life tenure of the top floor as a tribute from the Scottish people to a great soldier. General Eisenhower accepted and used the apartment several times and later as President of the United States. (The golfing is great in Ayrshire.) Following Ike's death in 1969, the apartment has been used as the National Guest Flat for government hospitality.

Answer: Linlithgow Palace

The king was James V, born at Linlithgow on 10th April, 1512; the queen was his baby daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, born there on 8th December, 1542.

Following a disastrous fire in 1424 which destroyed the original manor house and the town of Linlithgow, James I began a building campaign which would see a massive royal residence completed in just over a hundred years by James' successors, James II, III, IV, and V. James V's queen, Mary of Guise-Lorraine compared Linlithgow to the noblest chateaux in France. It was after Mary Stuart's abdication that Linlithgow began to decline from lack of use, and it was only by the persistence of the Palace's Keeper, Alexander, Earl of Linlithgow, that King James VI authorized any repairs. After James VI succeeded to the English throne in 1603, Linlithgow would not see a royal visit until that of Charles I in 1633. As with so many of Scotland's fine heritage sites, it was the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745 which saw the end of Linlithgow as a residence. Forces of the Duke of Cumberland, in Scotland to put down the rebellion, were billeted in the palace, and when they left they burned what they could. Since then, the palace has been left unroofed and uninhabited. It has, however, been in good hands and much excellent restoration has taken place, so that now we can again imagine the grandeur that once housed the royals of Scotland.

Answer: The Earls of Strathmore and Kinghorne

The hereditary home of the Earls of Strathmore since 1372, when the original royal hunting lodge was given to Sir John Lyon by King David II, son of Robert the Bruce, Glamis has been in the Bowes-Lyon family for over 600 years.

We associate Glamis primarily with three things: The Scottish Play by William Shakespeare; the connection with our present Royal Family; the ghosts and legends.

King Macbeth, poor fellow, actually had a successful seventeen year reign, from 1040 to 1057, and was known as Macbeth the Renowned. And his queen, Gruoch, comes off very badly also, thanks to Shakespeare. All we really know is that Gruoch was a widow when she married Macbeth and he adopted her son, Lulach, but she and Macbeth were childless. Macbeth's involvement in Anglo-Scottish politics eventually led to his mortal wounding at the battle of Lumphanan in 1057 when he was defeated by the man who would become Malcolm III, known as Canmore and husband of Saint Margaret of Scotland.

Glamis was the childhood home of the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, formerly Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, whose parents were the Earl and Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne. Princess Margaret Rose was born at Glamis, during a thunderstorm, it is said!

The hauntings and legends? Well, there are so many that I will only mention one, and that is the ghost of The Grey Lady. She is said to be the spirit of Lady Janet Douglas who had married the 6th Lord of Glamis. Now, King James V had it in for the Douglases, for one reason or another, and eventually drummed up charges of witchcraft against Lady Janet and she was burned at the stake in Edinburgh in 1537 and all lands and property confiscated to the crown. Following the death of James V, Lady Janet's name was cleared and property restored to her son. The Grey Lady is seen most often in the castle chapel and the clock tower. Family services are still held in the chapel, and a seat is always reserved for Lady Janet!

One other interesting fact about Glamis is that it contains one of the very few known portraits of Christ wearing a hat. It is said that the Earl who commissioned the paintings throughout the chapel was not willing to pay the artist, Jacob de Wet, his price, and not being too well pleased, de Wet then painted a large black cardinal's hat on the figure of the resurrected Christ in the garden of Gethsemane. It looks very odd!

Answer: False

The magnificent national shrine honouring the Scottish war dead of World Wars One and Two, and medal areas since 1945, is situated in Crown Square in Edinburgh Castle.

In 1923, when the army removed to modern facilities at Redford, the North Barracks at the castle became the site where architect Sir Robert Lorimer, and over two hundred Scottish craftspeople erected a Hall of Honour and Shrine which ranks as one of the most beautiful war memorials in Britain.

The Shrine contains a steel casket containing the complete Roll of Honour; Memorial Books recording the names of the dead are placed throughout the main hall. Built at the very top of the volcanic plug on which the castle stands, the base of the central altar of the Shrine sits upon living rock.

The brainchild of the 8th Duke of Atholl, himself a soldier of note, the Scottish National War Memorial was opened by Edward, The Prince of Wales, on 14th July, 1927. A visit cannot fail to move.

Answer: Queensberry House

The eldest son of the 2nd Duke of Queensberry, Lord Drumlanrig was certifiably mad, or to quote from "The Scotsman" archives, "...a rabid, bestial maniac..." and was kept chained up in a room of Queensberry house. On the night in 1707 when there was rioting in the streets over the signing of the Act of Union with England, young James got loose and did the deed for which both he and Queensberry House are remembered. The oven in question is still visible!

A fine building in the Canongate of Edinburgh, near the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the house was built in 1681 and bought in 1686 by the 1st Duke of Queensberry as his town residence. After the family sold it in 1801, the house was used first as a barracks, then as a home for the destitute, then as a hospital for the elderly, closing in 1995. It was then taken over by the Scottish Office and integrated into the new Scottish Parliament Buildings. The former kitchen is now part of the Allowances Office.

Queensberry House is said to be haunted, which, all things considered, is not surprising!