On the cliff overlooking Lunan Bay is a ruin located with some rich history stories to be told. This ruin, once a hunting lodge, now just a bunch of bricks that's on the near of collapsing. But there is quite a story that's hidden in these bricks and ruins.
All the way in the late 12th Century, William the Lion build on this cliff a hunting lodge. The lodge looks over the small Lunan Bay, which was a good side for small ships to beach. But all things must come to an end and William granted the lodge and the village of Inverkeilor (about 4 miles from Lunan Bay) to Walter de Berkeley. Walter de Berkeley served as Great Chamberlain of Scotland under William the Lion from 1165 to 1189. Walter was also a descendant of an Anglo-Normans who settled in Gloucestershire.
Walter died in 1194 and the Red Castle and Inverkeilor was inherited by his daughter Agnes and her husband Ingram de Balliol. Ingram rebuild the building and added possibly a stone curtain wall that enclosed the site.
But where did the name 'Red Castle' came from? The first mention of 'red castle' was in a charter deed of 1286, the building was named rubeum castrum (latin for red castle). The naming of the castle was possible due to the red stones it was build with.
De Balliol family remained the ownership of the property and village for two generations, but when the grandson of Ingram and Agnes, Ingram (very original right?) died childless, the property and village passed on to the son of Contsance de Balliol, Henry de Fishburn. However did was the end of the connection between the property and village. Robert de Bruce (Robert I of Scotland) disposed Henry de Fisburn due to his family connection with de Balliol family (I can write an entire blog on the family wars in early Scotland). In 1328 the castle and village were being divided, Inverkeilor was granted to Hugh, Earl of Ross and the castle itself was granted to Donald Campbell. Campbell sold the castle in 1367 to Robert Stewart and it remained in the Stewart family, the Stewarts of Innermeath till the late 15th Century. They added the Tower House to the castle.
We have arrived in the early 16th Century and the Red Castle is owned by the not so popular Cardinal David Beaton who was Archbishop of St Andrews (and the last Scottish Cardinal before the Reformation). His family was afraid to see the Red Castle being attacked but while he was being hated and overthrown, the Red Castle remained safe. It wasn't until the late 16th Century that there was some domestic anger between the family itself. Curious? It's juicy.
So, the Red Castle was still in the Beaton family and after the Cardinal was murdered and lynched in 1546 at St Andrews Castle, the estate was being passed on to Elizabeth Beaton, the daughter of Sir David Beaton of Creich, a landowner and courtier and nephew of the former Archbishop of St Andrews, John Beaton. Both David's where nephews to John. Confused yet?
Elizabeth has quite a resume when it comes to men, she was the mistress of King James V of Scotland, got a daughter with him (Lady Jean Stewart), was married to John Stewart, 4th Lord Innermeath (got two sons, James Stewart, 5th Lord Innermeath and poet John Stewart of Baldynneis) and if that wasn't enough yet ...
Lord Innermeath died in 1569 and she remarried to James Gray, son of Patrick Gray, 4th Lord Gray. Elizabeth thought and hoped that his young man would protect her property, but he turned out to be a gold-digger and tried to rob her of her possessions. In 1579 she discovered that her 'beloved' husband James had an affair with her own niece, Isobel Beaton and fathered a child with her. She pushed for divorce and that prompted James to throw attacks for almost two years against the Red Castle. The divorce was finalised in 1581. James was being 'shit out' by everyone by his actions and was killed in 1586 during a brawl in Dundee. Quite a story isn't it?
The Red Castle was a high status residence considering seen by the attacks it suffered. Reverend James Rait owned and lived at the Red Castle till 1760, it was pretty badly neglected and the building started to fall apart. The roof fell apart and the building fell into ruins. Everything that's still standing today are parts of the 15th Century Keep and probably 13th Century wall.
And that's the story of the Red Castle, which ... had seen some families and their struggles throughout the centuries.
sources:
castlesfortsbattles.co.uk
wikipedia
note: if you're reading into history, please do not trust sites as Wikipedia a 100%, always double check the references and facts. I have used Wikipedia and double checked it with the Centre for History database that's available on my University. Of course I may have some mistakes in here, I'm not a graduated historian with knowledge of a million years (I respect my lecturers so much!) and I happily be made aware of those.
The Red Castle was a high status residence considering seen by the attacks it suffered. Reverend James Rait owned and lived at the Red Castle till 1760, it was pretty badly neglected and the building started to fall apart. The roof fell apart and the building fell into ruins. Everything that's still standing today are parts of the 15th Century Keep and probably 13th Century wall.
And that's the story of the Red Castle, which ... had seen some families and their struggles throughout the centuries.
sources:
castlesfortsbattles.co.uk
wikipedia
note: if you're reading into history, please do not trust sites as Wikipedia a 100%, always double check the references and facts. I have used Wikipedia and double checked it with the Centre for History database that's available on my University. Of course I may have some mistakes in here, I'm not a graduated historian with knowledge of a million years (I respect my lecturers so much!) and I happily be made aware of those.
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