Dunnottar Castle last Monday

[Ken Rennie]

There have been castles here for at least 1,000 years, this one was built in the 14thC and has been at the centre of a lot of Scottish history. Its present state of disrepair however is not directly down to warfare but as a result of the owner the 10th Earl Marishchal picking the wrong side in the first Jacobite rising of 1715. When it failed to reinstate James as King the castle and all of the lands were forfeit to the crown and the castle sold to a builder who removed all things of value including roof timbers and slates and left the weather to take its toll. I was hoping for some gloom to complement the castle and as I walked the couple of miles along the coast big clouds were showing promise. However the weather changed markedly with the clouds disappearing and the haar washing in and out. Haar is coastal fog that can reduce the visibility to a few feet but in this case was fairly mild.

My first view of the castle

I scrambled down the cliff and walked along the beach and the haar started to come in

Back up onto the cliff top for a few images

Lots of visitors coming from the nearby expensive car park

 

[AlanLichty]

Beautiful castle and location - must have been magnificent in its day. The masonry work has withstood the elements well given its exposed condition. I like the land views in #4 and #5. Some really gloomy skies would have added a neat mood to your visit.

 

[JimFox]

What a great job despite not the best conditions. The B&W is my favorite.

And thanks for including that history, that was fun to read!

 

[Jim Sanderson]

Nice set of the castle and surrounds.

 

[Beth]

awesome series of photos. love the old castle structures.

 

[Aaron Cowan]

great looking area...the B&W is the best of the bunch to me.