Glamis Castle, Forfar, United Kingdom

Glamis Castle is one of the most impressive, romantic and reputedly haunted castles in Scotland, home to the Bowes Lyon Earls of Strathmore and Kinghorne for hundreds of years and with a splendid interior, and set in beautiful gardens and grounds near Forfar in Angus.

The vicinity of Glamis Castle has prehistoric traces; for example, a noted intricately carved Pictish stone known as the Eassie Stone was found in a creek-bed at the nearby village of Eassie.

In 1034 King Malcolm II was murdered at Glamis, when there was a Royal Hunting Lodge. In William Shakespeare's play Macbeth (1603–1606), the eponymous character resides at Glamis Castle, although the historical King Macbeth (d. 1057) had no connection to the castle.

By 1372 a castle had been built at Glamis, since in that year it was granted by King Robert II to Sir John Lyon, Thane of Glamis, husband of the king's daughter. Glamis has remained in the Lyon (later Bowes-Lyon) family since this time. The castle was rebuilt as an L-plan tower house in the early 15th century.

During the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, soldiers were garrisoned at Glamis. In 1670 Patrick Lyon, 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, returned to the castle and found it uninhabitable. Restorations took place until 1689, including the creation of a major Baroque garden. John Lyon, 9th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, succeeded in 1753, and in 1767 he married Mary Eleanor Bowes, heiress to a coal-mining fortune. He set about improving the grounds of the castle in the picturesque style in the 1770s. The south-west wing was rebuilt after a fire in the early 19th century. In the 1920s a huge fireplace from Gibside, the Bowes-Lyon estate near Gateshead, was removed and placed in Glamis' Billiard Room. The fireplace displays the coat of arms of the Blakiston family; Gibside heiress Elizabeth Blakiston had married Sir William Bowes. Several interiors, including the Dining Room, also date from the 18th and 19th centuries.

In 1900, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was born, the youngest daughter of Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne and his wife, Cecilia (née Cavendish-Bentinck). She spent much of her childhood at Glamis, which was used during the First World War as a military hospital. She was particularly instrumental in organising the rescue of the castle's contents during a serious fire on 16 September 1916. On 26 April 1923 she married Prince Albert, Duke of York, second son of King George V, at Westminster Abbey. Their second daughter, Princess Margaret, was born at Glamis Castle in 1930.

Since 1987 an illustration of the castle has featured on the reverse side of ten pound notes issued by the Royal Bank of Scotland. Glamis is currently the home of Simon Bowes-Lyon, 19th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, who succeeded to the earldom in 2016.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Don Corleone (46 days ago)
Glamis Castle is a fairytale come to life! The stunning architecture and beautifully manicured gardens are breathtaking. The guided tours are informative, revealing fascinating history and legends. It's an enchanting experience that shouldn't be missed. Five stars! ? ???????

Lyndsey Hay (2 months ago)
Enjoyed our visit, the castle is beautiful and the guide was funny and very informative. However for the money you don't see many rooms in the house and I understand the house is lived in but still the tour was very short and we were hurried along quickly. The cafe was lovely although costly as was the gift shop. Enjoyed our visit but don't think there is enough to warrant a second trip

Ellen Murray-Pym (2 months ago)
Lovely visit, this was our second visit. Our first visit 3 years ago you were free to wonder around the castle at your own leisure and take photos but this time we had to have a tour which lasted about an hour. It was OK but we definitely got more information our of the audio tour we had the first time we visited, that being said our guide was lovely and was clear and easily herd.

Andrew Smail (2 months ago)
Of all the castles visited in Scotland this one was probably the best. No photos are allowed on the inside, but it is well worth the visit. This one stands apart as some of the areas you go through have the actual medieval feel as the original interior stone work is still visible. You only tour a small portion of the castle, but all of the rooms really take you back to the times.

Wild Rose (2 months ago)
I definitely recommend visiting. The tour of the palace is interesting and lasts 50 minutes. Here is a nice place for walks and picnics. A very beautiful park with ancient trees. There is also a cafe and a souvenir shop on site. You can come by bus quite easily.

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The well-maintained condition of the castle today is thanks to the late Wilfried Grewing, the former lord of the castle. The foundation named after him has been particularly committed to preserving the property since 2020.

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