Craignish Castle facts for kids
Craignish Castle is an old castle found on the Craignish peninsula in Argyll, western Scotland. The castle you see today includes a tower that was built in the 1500s. This tower was once the main home for the Campbell family of Craignish and Jura. In the 1800s, the castle was sold to the Trench-Gascoigne family from Parlington Hall in Yorkshire. They added a big new part to the old tower. Later, in the late 1900s, the castle was fixed up, and some of the additions from the 1800s were removed.
Contents
The Castle's Story
Early Campbell Family History
The Campbells of Craignish say they are related to Dugald Maul Campbell. He was the first Laird (a Scottish word for a landowner or lord) of Craignish, living from 1156 to 1190. He was the second son of Sir Archibald Gillespic Campbell, who was an ancestor of the Dukes of Argyll.
The seventh Laird of Craignish had only one daughter, Christine Campbell, born in 1323. Because of some difficulties, most of the family's land was given to the Knight of Lochow. Christine was left with only a small part of the Craignish estate. A male relative named Ronald Campbell worked hard to get the family's land back. The leader of Clan Campbell at the time had to let him have a large part of the estate. However, the Argyll family kept control over it. They also added a rule: if there were no male heirs in the direct family line, the lands would automatically go back to the Argyll family.
Building the Castle and Early Challenges
The main part of the castle, a tower house, was built in the 1500s. It measures about 12.7 meters by 10.2 meters. People say it survived a six-week attack by a famous warrior named Colkitto MacDonald.
In 1510, Ranald MacCallum was made the permanent keeper of Craignish Castle. In 1544, the direct family line of the Campbells of Craignish ended. The rightful heir, Charles Campbell of Corranmore, faced a difficult situation that made him leave Craignish. He went to Perthshire and lived under the protection of the Breadalbane family. Because of this, Charles could not claim the estate. So, the castle and lands went to the Earls (who later became the Dukes) of Argyll.
Later, Charles's family members in Killin, Perthshire, were recognized as leaders of a branch of Clan Campbell. From them came the Campbells of Inverneill. In the 1980s, a grandson of Duncan Campbell, who was the 8th of Inverneill, owned one of the apartments in Craignish Castle.
In 1848, the title 'Baron of Craignish' was created for Edmund Kempt Campbell by the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. His family members in Britain used this title, even though Craignish Castle had already been sold.
Changes in the 1800s and Modern Use
In the 1800s, Frederick Trench-Gascoigne and his wife Isabella bought Craignish Castle. Isabella was the heir to the Gascoigne family of Parlington Hall. Frederick Trench-Gascoigne owned a lot of land in Argyll in the 1880s, about 5,591 acres.
In 1837, the tower house was made bigger by an architect named David Bryce. He worked from designs made by William Burn.
During World War II, in 1941, the castle was used as a home for children who were moved away from Glasgow for safety.
In the later 1900s, the castle was fixed up and divided into several apartments that are owned by different people. Craignish Castle is now a "category B listed building." This means it is a building of special historical or architectural importance.
