Muness Castle facts for kids
Muness Castle is an old castle found on Unst. Unst is one of the Shetland Islands in Scotland. The castle is about 3 kilometers (2 miles) east of a village called Uyeasound.
Unst is the most northern island in Scotland where people live. This makes Muness Castle the most northern old fort in the British Isles. Today, it is a special protected site called a scheduled monument. Historic Environment Scotland looks after it as a museum.
History of Muness Castle
Muness Castle was built in 1598. It was made for a man named Laurence Bruce of Cultmalindie. He was the half-brother of Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Orkney, a powerful leader.
The castle might have been designed by Andrew Crawford. He was also in charge of building other famous places. These include Scalloway Castle and the Earl's Palace in Orkney.
In 1617, Laurence Bruce gave the castle to his son, Andrew. But in August 1627, the castle was attacked. Foreign privateers, who were like pirates, burned it.
The castle may never have been fully fixed after that. It was left empty before the end of the 1600s. In 1718, it was sold to a new owner.
Today, Muness Castle has no roof. Its top floor was taken down. The stones were used to build a wall around the castle. Pictures from above show there might have been a fancy garden near the castle long ago.
What Muness Castle Looks Like
Muness Castle is shaped like a long rectangle. It is about 22 meters (73 feet) long and 8 meters (26 feet) wide. It has round towers at its north and south corners.
The ground floor and the first floor are still mostly whole. You can still see the stone supports for small turrets on the second floor. The roof probably had a pointed shape. The towers likely had cone-shaped roofs.
The main door is on the southwest side of the castle. It was protected by special openings called gun loops. These were narrow holes in the walls. They allowed people inside to shoot at attackers safely.
