Mains Castle facts for kids
Mains Castle is an old castle in Dundee, Scotland. It's also known as Claverhouse Castle or Fintry Castle. This castle was built a long time ago, in the 1500s. It has many buildings around a central courtyard.
Imagine a big house with different parts. The family who owned the castle lived in the northern and eastern buildings. Their helpers, called servants, lived in the southern parts. A very tall, square tower, six floors high, stands out. It's a typical design for castles from the 1500s. Mains Castle is considered a very important historical building.
You can find the castle in Caird Park, north of Dundee. It sits on a hill, looking over the Dichty valley. A small stream called the Gelly Burn runs nearby. Across the stream, you can see the old burial place of the Graham family. This area was once home to the local church.
A famous Dundee poet, William McGonagall, even wrote a poem about the castle. It's called The Castle of Mains.
Castle History
The castle was likely built in 1562. It was created by Sir David Graham. He was the nephew of an important church leader, Cardinal Beaton. You can see the date 1562 carved into a stone above the western gate. This stone also has the initials DG and DMO. These stand for David Graham and Dame Margaret Ogilvy. Another date, 1582, is found on a beam inside. This might be when the castle was fully finished.
Owners of Mains Castle
Mains Castle was the main home for the Grahams of Fintry family. They lived there for many centuries. In the 1800s, Robert Graham of Fintry sold the land. He sold it to David Erskine. However, the Graham family kept their special family title. The estate also went back to its older names, Lumlathen or Linlathen.
Later, Shipley Gordon Stuart Erskine sold the estate again. It was bought by James Key Caird. He was a very generous person. In 1913, he gave the castle and its lands to the city council. He wanted it to become a public park for everyone to enjoy. The park officially opened in 1923. It was opened by Caird's half-sister, Mrs. Marryat.
Castle Restoration
By the 1980s, many parts of the castle had lost their roofs. It needed a lot of repair work. The castle was fixed up through a government program. This program helped unemployed people find work. They helped bring the old castle back to life.
Before the Grahams, another powerful family owned the land. The Douglas family, who were Earls of Angus, held an earlier castle here. They owned it from the 1300s until 1530. Then, it passed to the Graham family.
