Plean Castle, Stirling, United Kingdom

Plean Tower comprises a small oblong tower house probably dating from the 15th century, and an adjoining 16th-century manor house.

Robert Bruce granted the barony of Plean, or Plane, to John d’Erth soon after 1314. The castle was probably built by Lord Somerville, who acquired the lands of Plean in 1449, through marriage.

An adjoining manor house was built in about 1528. In 1643 James Somervell, 8th Lord of Plane, sold the barony and lands to meet debts. It passed to the Nicholsons and the Elphinstones, but both the tower and the manor fell into disrepair. During the 1745 rebellion the Jacobite troops used the property.

Sir David Menzies restored the buildings in 1908, but by the 1930s they were again no longer in use. It was rebuilt from ruins by Nancy and John Patrick Wright and their sons in 1991-1997 to form a home and holiday accommodation.

Plean Castle originally had three stories and a garret, with parapet corbelling. In its rebuilt 1990s form there is a great hall in the tower with painted ceiling beams and a large fireplace. The adjoining modern 'manor house' is connected to the tower by a wooden walkway and is built over a vaulted basement surviving from the 1528 manor house.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Claire Taylor (4 months ago)
Beautiful inside and out

mark “Markymark” turner (7 months ago)
Right alongside cycle route 76 , beautiful castle

Ross (12 months ago)
Words cannot express the gratitude my husband and I have for Eliese and her team who gave us the most amazing wedding! Plane Castle is one in a million. Quirky, homely and full of character there was no where else we wanted to be for our big day. From the moment we met Sonja and Eliese the were so welcoming and supportive. They went above and beyond to give as a weekend and wedding to remember. Plane castle and Eliese will forever be in our memories and our hearts. X Thank you to everyone who helped make our day Perfect! X

Gillian Nash (2 years ago)
Visited Plane Castle as family members were staying for the weekend. Great place, easy to get lost in. Lots of rooms to explore up and down all the various spiral staircases.

Mandy McIsaac (2 years ago)
We held our 4-day wedding with 17 guests at Plane Castle, and it was an actual dream come true. I'm a Wedding Planner and Catering Manager, and I coordinated this trip from Canada. Sonja and Eliese were extremely attentive despite how busy they are. The Castle itself was beyond what I expected. It was so clean and well taken care of - medieval and yet extremely functional. The idea that it's blends self-catering with the most outstanding Chef who can make culinary masterpieces, is a dream for a budget-conscious bride. I would be happy to chat directly with anyone who has further questions - my rave reviews know no end for this experience and this team.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Giåm

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Glimmingehus

Glimmingehus is the best preserved medieval stronghold in Scandinavia. It was built 1499-1506, during an era when Scania formed a vital part of Denmark, and contains many defensive arrangements of the era, such as parapets, false doors and dead-end corridors, 'murder-holes' for pouring boiling pitch over the attackers, moats, drawbridges and various other forms of death traps to surprise trespassers and protect the nobles against peasant uprisings. The lower part of the castle's stone walls are 2.4 meters (94 inches) thick and the upper part 1.8 meters (71 inches).

Construction was started in 1499 by the Danish knight Jens Holgersen Ulfstand and stone-cutter-mason and architect Adam van Düren, a North German master who also worked on Lund Cathedral. Construction was completed in 1506.

Ulfstand was a councillor, nobleman and admiral serving under John I of Denmark and many objects have been uncovered during archeological excavations that demonstrate the extravagant lifestyle of the knight's family at Glimmingehus up until Ulfstand's death in 1523. Some of the most expensive objects for sale in Europe during this period, such as Venetian glass, painted glass from the Rhine district and Spanish ceramics have been found here. Evidence of the family's wealth can also be seen inside the stone fortress, where everyday comforts for the knight's family included hot air channels in the walls and bench seats in the window recesses. Although considered comfortable for its period, it has also been argued that Glimmingehus was an expression of "Knighthood nostalgia" and not considered opulent or progressive enough even to the knight's contemporaries and especially not to later generations of the Scanian nobility. Glimmingehus is thought to have served as a residential castle for only a few generations before being transformed into a storage facility for grain.

An order from Charles XI to the administrators of the Swedish dominion of Scania in 1676 to demolish the castle, in order to ensure that it would not fall into the hands of the Danish king during the Scanian War, could not be executed. A first attempt, in which 20 Scanian farmers were ordered to assist, proved unsuccessful. An additional force of 130 men were sent to Glimmingehus to execute the order in a second attempt. However, before they could carry out the order, a Danish-Dutch naval division arrived in Ystad, and the Swedes had to abandon the demolition attempts. Throughout the 18th century the castle was used as deposit for agricultural produce and in 1924 it was donated to the Swedish state. Today it is administered by the Swedish National Heritage Board.

On site there is a museum, medieval kitchen, shop and restaurant and coffee house. During summer time there are several guided tours daily. In local folklore, the castle is described as haunted by multiple ghosts and the tradition of storytelling inspired by the castle is continued in the summer events at the castle called "Strange stories and terrifying tales".

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