Doune Castle

Doune Castle is a late 14th century stronghold near the village of Doune, in the Stirling district of central Scotland. The castle is sited on a wooded bend where the Ardoch Burn flows into the River Teith, across a bridge from the village. It lies 8 miles (13 km) north-west of Stirling, and 8 miles (13 km) south-east of Callander. Doune is remarkable among Scottish castles, as it is the product of a single building period, and has survived relatively unchanged and complete.

It was begun in the late 14th century by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany (c.1340–1420), the son of King Robert II of Scotland, and Regent of Scotland from 1388 until his death. The castle passed to the crown in 1425, when Albany's son was executed, and was used as a royal hunting lodge and dower house. In the later 16th century, Doune became the property of the Earls of Moray. The castle saw military action during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms and Glencairn's rising in the mid-17th century, and during the Jacobite Risings of the late 17th and 18th centuries. By 1800 the castle was ruined, but restoration works were carried out in the 1880s, prior to its passing into state care in the 20th century. It is now maintained by Historic Scotland.

Due to the status of its builder, Doune reflected the most curent ideas of what a royal castle building should be. It was planned as a courtyard with ranges of buildings on each side, although only the northern and north-western buildings were completed. These comprise a large tower house over the entrance, containing the rooms of the Lord and his family, and a separate tower containing the kitchen and guest rooms. The two are linked by the great hall. The stonework is almost all from the late 14th century, with only minor repairs carried out in the 1580s. The restoration of the 1880s replaced the timber roofs and internal floors, as well as interior fittings.

History

The site at the confluence of the Ardoch and the Teith had been fortified by the Romans in the 1st century AD, and may be the site of an earlier fortification, as the name Doune, derived from Gaelic dùn, meaning "fort", suggests.

Regent Albany

In 1361, Robert Stewart (c.1340–1420), son of King Robert II (reigned 1371–1390), and brother of King Robert III (reigned 1390–1406), was created Earl of Menteith, and was granted the lands on which Doune Castle now stands. Building may have started any time after this, and the castle was at least partially complete in 1381, when a charter was sealed here. Robert was appointed Regent in 1388 for his elderly father, and continued to hold effective power during the reign of his infirm brother. He was created Duke of Albany in 1398. In 1406, Robert III's successor, James I was captured by the English, and Albany became Regent once more. After this time, the number of charters issued at Doune suggest that Doune became a favoured residence.

Royal retreat

Albany died in 1420, and Doune, the dukedom of Albany, and the Regency all passed to his son Murdoch (1362–1425). The ransom for James I was finally paid to the English, and the King returned in 1424, taking immediate steps to gain control of his kingdom. Albany and two of his sons were imprisoned for treason, and then executed in May 1425. Doune Castle became a royal possession, and served as a retreat and hunting lodge for the Scottish monarchs. It was also used as a dower house by Mary of Guelders (c.1434–1463), Margaret of Denmark (1456–1486), and Margaret Tudor (1489–1541), the widowed consorts of James II, James III and James IV respectively. Mary Queen of Scots (reigned 1542–1567) also stayed at Doune, occupying the suite of rooms above the kitchen.

In 1528, Margaret Tudor, now Regent of Scotland for the infant James V, married Henry Stewart, 1st Lord Methven, a descendant of Albany. His brother, Sir James Stewart (c.1513–1554), was made Captain of Doune Castle, and Sir James' son, also James (c.1529–1590), was created Lord Doune in 1570. Lord Doune's son, another James (c.1565–1592), married Elizabeth Stuart, 2nd Countess of Moray around 1580, becoming Earl of Moray himself. The castle thus came into the possession of the Earls of Moray, who owned it until the 20th century. King James VI visited Doune on occasion, and in 1581 authorised £300 to be spent on repairs and improvements. In 1593, a plot against James was discovered, and the King surprised the conspirators, who included the Earls of Montrose and Gowrie, at Doune Castle.

Prison and garrison

In 1607, the minister, John Munro of Tain, a dissenter against the religious plans of James VI, was imprisoned with a fellow minister at Doune, though he escaped with the contrivance of the then Constable of the Castle, who was subsequently imprisoned for aiding the dissenters. The Royalist James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose occupied Doune Castle in 1645, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. In 1654, during Glencairn's rising against the occupation of Scotland by Oliver Cromwell, a skirmish took place at Doune between Royalists under Sir Mungo Murray, and Cromwellian troops under Major Tobias Bridge. The castle was garrisoned by government troops during the Jacobite Rising of Bonnie Dundee in 1689, and repairs were ordered. During the Jacobite Rising of 1745, Doune Castle was occupied by Charles Edward Stuart, "Bonnie Prince Charlie", and his Jacobite Higlanders. It was used as a prison for government troops captured at the Battle of Falkirk. Several prisoners, held in the rooms above the kitchen, escaped by knotting together bedsheets and climbing from the window. Escapees included the author John Home, and a minister, John Witherspoon, who later moved to the American colonies and became a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence.

Ruin and restoration

The castle deteriorated through the 18th century, and by 1800 Doune was a roofless ruin. It remained so until the 1880s, when George Stuart, 14th Earl of Moray (1816–1895) began repair works. The timber roofs were replaced, and the interiors, including the panelling in the Lord's Hall, were installed. The castle is now maintained by Historic Scotland, having been donated to that organisation by Douglas Stuart, 20th Earl of Moray in 1984, and is open to the public.

Description

The site is defended on three sides by the ground sloping steeply down to the rivers, and the approach from the north is defended by earthworks. There is a superb view in every direction from the battlements. The Castle is entered through a narrow gateway and a 46 ft (14 m) long vaulted passageway, formerly blocked by two massive timber doors and a 'yett' (iron grille), that leads to a large central courtyard. Off this, steps lead up to the Great hall which is connected by arched servery hatches and a door to the massive kitchen. An enclosed staircase from the courtyard reaches the timber panelled Lord's hall and other apartments, which all together give a vivid impression of life in a medieval castle.

Doune castle in fiction

Waverley

In Walter Scott's first novel Waverley the protagonist Edward Waverley is under government escort when he is rescued by Highlanders, rushed across country and brought to Doune castle. Although the road is now tarmac, the village is pleasant rather than mean and the bridge is a bit wider and less ancient, the description is still good today;

On the opposite bank of the river, and partly surrounded by a winding of its stream, stood a large and massive castle, the half-ruined turrets of which were already glittering in the first rays of the sun. It was in form an oblong square, of size sufficient to contain a large court in the centre. The towers at each angle of the square rose higher than the walls of the building, and were in their turn surmounted by turrets, differing in height and irregular in shape. Upon one of these a sentinel watched, whose bonnet and plaid, streaming in the wind, declared him to be a Highlander, as a broad white ensign, which floated from another tower, announced that the garrison was held by the insurgent adherents of the House of Stuart.

Passing hastily through a small and mean town, where their appearance excited neither surprise nor curiosity in the few peasants whom the labours of the harvest began to summon from their repose, the party crossed an ancient and narrow bridge of several arches, and, turning to the left up an avenue of huge old sycamores, Waverley found himself in front of the gloomy yet picturesque structure which he had admired at a distance. A huge iron-grated door, which formed the exterior defence of the gateway, was already thrown back to receive them; and a second, heavily constructed of oak and studded thickly with iron nails, being next opened, admitted them into the interior court-yard. A gentleman, dressed in the Highland garb and having a white cockade in his bonnet, assisted Waverley to dismount from his horse, and with much courtesy bid him welcome to the castle.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

When Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed on location in Scotland in 1974, the producers had gained permission from the National Trust for Scotland to film scenes at several of their Scottish castles, as well as the permission of the (private) owner of Doune Castle, His Lordship the Rt. Hon. The 20th Earl of Moray. As the date of filming neared, managers at the Trust had cold feet and withdrew their permission to film at their properties, leaving the Pythons' producers with little time to find new locations. In desperation, they decided to use different parts of Doune Castle to depict various of the fictional castles in the film (see below), relying on rather tight framing of shots to maintain the illusion.

• At the start of the film King Arthur and Patsy "ride" up (clip-clopping coconut shells) to the walls of Doune castle to ask for men to join Arthur's court, but a soldier on the battlements argues with them as to how the king acquired coconuts in a temperate zone, and whether a swallow could have brought the coconut. Later, their dream of (only a model) Camelot is illustrated by the Knights of the Round Table doing a song and dance routine in the Great hall. Then John Cleese shouts down abuse in an outrageous French accent and cows and other animals are hurled from the battlement, followed by a failed wooden rabbit of Troy trick.
• Shortly afterwards at "Castle Anthrax" Sir Galahad the chaste is chased by seductive "girlies" in Doune Castle's servery and kitchen.
• An arranged marriage in a room at Doune Castle ("Swamp Castle") turns to mayhem when Lancelot arrives, attacking guards and guests on his way past a wedding dance in the courtyard and up the steps to the room.
• The exception is at the end of the film, when Arthur and the knights get more outrageous French abuse from the battlements of the island keep of Castle Stalker in Argyll, also privately owned.

Doune Castle has become a place of pilgrimage for Monty Python devotees , who can walk about the castle recalling scenes from the film, sometimes with the aid of pairs of coconut shells which they have brought for the purpose, or rented from the custodian for a small fee. Re-enactments go through slightly mangled versions of the plot. The special DVD version of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" includes a documentary ("In Search of the Holy Grail Filming Locations") with Michael Palin and Terry Jones revisiting the sites used for filming, with suitable emphasis on Doune Castle.

References

Bibliography

• Fawcett, Richard Scottish Architecture from the accession of the Stuarts to the Reformation, 1371–1560. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 0748604650.
• Gifford, John and Walker, Frank Arneil Stirling and Central Scotland. Yale University Press. ISBN 0300095945.
• Salter, Mike The Castles of the Heartland of Scotland. Folly Publications. ISBN 1871731186.
• Tabraham, Chris Scotland's Castles. B. T. Batsford/Historic Scotland. ISBN 0713481471.
• Tranter, Nigel The Fortified House in Scotland. Oliver and Boyd.

External links

• Doune Castle: Places to Visit Near Stirling
• Doune Castle feature page on Undiscovered Scotland
• Waverley
• External Picture of the Castle