Castles of Scotland

When photographing Scotland there are some things you just cannot avoid. One of the most frequent landscape feature in this small and beautiful country is a castle. There are hundreds of them. Everywhere. Abandoned ruins and posh residences. Some were built for military protection and some were just a fancy place to live.

And thank to the scottish lords, Historic Scotland trust and many private owners most of them is in a great shape. Or at least it is visitable and not falling apart anymore. I have come across dozens of castles, palaces, fortresses and towers in Scotland. And some of them are pretty spectacular. Here are these more interesting ones I managed to take pictures of.

Although it is just a ruin Kilchurn Castle is an icon for the Argyle & Bute region. It sits in the middle of a swamp just by the road to Oban in the western part of Scotland. It is opened for visitors for most of the year and the view from its towers over Loch Awe is just stunning.

Edinburgh castle is one of most visited places in Scotlands. Located in the heart of the capital it is a must see for all. It sits on the hill at the end of Royal Mile - a road that runs from the castle to the Holyrood Palace - the residence of the Queen. Castle's square just in front of the entrance is very often used for big shows and events - including the famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

There is one castle, that is on almost every postcard you can buy in Scotland. Located in the beautiful Kyle of Lochalsh just across from the Isle of Sky sits Eilean Donnan. It is now opened for visitors all year round and is from time to time used for weddings and other venues. This was the house of clan McLeod in the film Highlander.

In the whole history of Scotland there is no other place like Stirling. It is famous for couple of things: the bridge, on which scottish army defeated the english, the huge monument built for the memory of William Wallace and most importantly for a huge castle. It was one of the most important fortresses in all wars for Scotland's independence. The home of Stewarts. Many scottish kings were coronated there, including Mary, Queen of Scots.

As for the coronation, the  other very important place for the scottish monarchy was the Scone Palace. On it's grounds there was a small Abbey, in which the Stone of Destiny (also known as the Stone of Scone, An Liath Fàil, Coronation Stone, Jacob's Pillow and Tanist Stone) was kept. It was used in all coronations of scottish kings. Later it was used for coronations of monarchs of England and Britain.

There are many, many more castles in Scotland. It is a real challenge to visit them all. You can however try to see some, because wherever you would go, there is always at least one somewhere along the way. Like Culzean castle in Ayrshire:

Drummond, Perthshire:

Blackness, West Lothian:

St Andrews, Fife:

Inveraray, Argyle & Bute: