Places to visit

Portencross Castle

Portencross Castle is located in the village of Portencross (Scottish Gaelic: Port na Crois) near Farland Head in North Ayrshire, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Siorrachd Àir a Tuath, Alba). It overlooks the Firth of Clyde and is about 2 miles from West Kilbride (Cille Bhrìghde an Iar). Portencross Castle is a tower house that was constructed in three phases starting around the mid 14th century.  It was built on land given to Sir Robert Boyd of Kilmarnock following the victory over the English at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 by King Robert I (Robert the Bruce). It was his grandson, also Robert Boyd,  that first built the castle replacing an earlier fortification nearby. After the 1600s, it was occupied by local fishermen and remained in use until the roof was destroyed in a storm in January 1739. By the 20th century, the Adams of  Auchenames owned the castle. It became a scheduled ancient monument in 1955.

Kelburn Castle

Kelburn Castle is a large house near the village of Fairlie which is on the A78 road south of Largs (Scottish Gaelic: An Leargaidh Ghallda). It is in North Ayrshire, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Siorrachd Àir a Tuath, Alba) and Kelburn stands on a stretch of the coast that looks over the Firth of Clyde. It is thought the first Kelburn Castle was built in about 1143 and to have been a wood tower. The Castle seen today comprises a 13th-century Norman keep enclosed in a 16th-century castle alongside an 18th-century century mansion house. The building has been continuously inhabited by the same family, the Boyles of Kelburn. Kelburn is the seat of the Earl of Glasgow who is the hereditary Clan Chief of Clan Boyle

Brodick Castle

Brodick Castle image courtesy The Herald

Brodick Castle is located close to the port of Brodick, Isle of Arran, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Tràigh a' Chaisteil, Eilean Arainn, Alba). This is an island in the Firth of Clyde. The history of a fortress on this site can be traced back to the fifth century and the present structure dates to the early sixteenth century. The castle and gardens are now owned by the National Trust for Scotland. The Isle of Arran has rich history dating back to pre-history and onwards to the Gaeic kingdom of Dál Riata. It also has strong Goidelic and Norse influences and at one time was part of the Kingdom Mann and the Isles which from the ninth to the thirteenth centuries comprised of the Hebrides, the islands of the Firth of Clyde and the Isle of Man. They were known to the Norse as Sudreyjar (Southern Isles) with Nodrejar (Northern Isles) comprising of Orkney and Shetland).

Kildonan Castle

Kildonan Castle remains stand in the village of Kildonan (Scottish Gaelic: Cill Donnain) on the southern coast of the Isle of Arran, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Eilean Arainn, Alba). It was built in the 13th century by the MacDonalds, Lords of the Isles, in a strategically defensive position. It is at the entrance to the Firth of Forth looking towards the uninhabited island of Pladda (Scottish Gaelic: Pladaigh). The castle was later used as a hunting lodge by the Kings of Scotland and became the property of the Earls of Arran in 1544.

Lochranza Castle

The remains of this tower house which was originally built in the thirteenth century and remodelled in the sixteenth century.

Crookston Castle

Crookston Castle is a ruined medieval castle located in the Pollok (Scottish Gaelic: Pollag) area and about 5 miles southwest of the city of Glasgow, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu, Alba). The present castle, built by the Stewarts of Darnley around 1400, is built on the site of a previous 12th century timber and earth castle constructed by Sir Robert de Croc. A defensive ring-ditch from this earlier fortress surrounds the remaining structure.  The castle was once in the possession of the Earls and Dukes of Lennox. Following previous damage sustained by bombardment in 1489 and a siege in 1544 the castle underwent significant repairs. 

Glasgow Cathedral

Engraving of Glasgow Cathedral from Theatrum Scotiae (1693) by John Slezer.

Glasgow Cathedral (Scottish Gaelic: Cathair-eaglais Ghlaschu) is located off Castle Street at the eastern end of Cathedral Street in Glasgow, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu, Alba). The first stone built Glasgow Cathedral was dedicated in the presence of King David I of Scotland (Dauíd mac Maíl Choluim c. 1084 – 24 May 1153) in 1136. The present building was consecrated in 1197. It has remained as a place of religious worship since that time. Glasgow Cathedral is built on the site where St Kentigern known as Mungo is thought to have been buried in 612 AD. He is the founder and patron saint of the city of Glasgow. The Cathedral is the oldest cathedral in mainland Scotland and is the oldest building in Glasgow.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

Man in Armour by Rembrandt (1655) Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum collection.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is one of Scotland's most popular free attractions and features 22 themed galleries displaying some 8000 objects. It is located on Argyle Street, in the West End of Glasgow, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu, Alba). The building stands on the banks of the River Kelvin (Scottish Gaelic: Abhainn Cheilbhinn). It is built in a Spanish Baroque style, using red sandstone. It was designed by Sir John W. Simpson and E.J. Milner Allen and opened in 1901. It includes a series of architectural sculpture including by George Frampton, William Shirreffs and Francis Derwent Wood. Major refurbishment of the building was undertaken between 2003-6.

Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery

La Rue du Soleil, Port Vendres, Charles Rennie Mackintosh Date: 1926. Hunterian collection.

Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery (The Hunterian) in Glasgow, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Glaschu, Alba) was founded in 1807. The Hunterian is Scotland's oldest public museum and home to one of the largest collections outside the National Museums. The museum is dedicated to Scottish anatomist and physician William Hunter FRS (23 May 1718 – 30 March 1783) who donated his collections to the University of Glasgow on his death. The Hunterian covers the Hunterian Museum, the Hunterian Art Gallery, the Mackintosh House, the Zoology Museum and the Anatomy Museum. All of which are located in various buildings on the main campus of the University of Glasgow (Scottish Gaelic: Oilthigh Ghlaschu) in the west end of the city. 

Rothesay Castle

Rothesay Castle, Bute. Engraving by William Miller after W Browndate 1830

Rothesay Castle is a ruined castle in the town of Rothesay, Isle of Bute, Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Baile Bhòid,Eilean Bhòid or An t-Eilean Bòdach, Alba). It dates to the early 13th-century and is thought to have been built by either Alan fitz Walter, Steward of Scotland (1140 – 1204), or by his son Walter Steward of Dundonald (died 1246). The castle is known for its close links with the Stewarts. They were hereditary high stewards and, from 1371, a royal dynasty.  Major works were undertaken on Rothesay Castle in the later 1400s and early 1500 by James IV and James V.  Rothesay then fell into ruins and was restored only in the 1800s, by the Crichton Stuarts, as keepers of the castle. The castle comprises a large curtain wall, with four round towers, together with a 16th-century forework. It is surrounded by a broad moat.

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