Craigie Castle, Gaelic Caisteil Chreagaidh, was originally built for the Lyndesay or Lindsay clan. The castle passed to John Wallace of Riccarton through marriage about 1371 as the last heir was a daughter. This line of the Ayrshire Wallaces then lived at Craigie Castle until they moved to Newton Castle in Ayr in 1588. Craigie Castle was then left to fall into ruin. It was the belief of Mrs Frances Dunlop of Dunlop, a lineal descendant of William Wallace, that he was born at his grandfather's home of Craigie Castle. William only moved away after a number of years had passed due to the burgeoning size of the family and the lack of space at Craigie.

The present Gothic castellated ruins date mainly from the 15th century, with some 12th or 13th century work. Another view is that the main part of the building was a hall house dating from the 12th or 13th century, incorporating an even earlier building which may have been built by the predecessors of Walter Hose who held sway prior to Anglo-Norman control.

The buildings were surrounded by ditches and natural lochans; enclosing an area of about 4 acres (16,000 m2). It had a high quality rib-vaulted hall consisting of three bays over an unvaulted basement, but architectural historians have found traces of an earlier hall which had a crenellated parapet rising flush with the main wall-face. In the centre of one wall was a round-arched doorway, and opposite this a late medieval fireplace, added in the 15th century, was built over another round-arched opening.

The castle contains one of the finest examples of a vaulted hall in Scotland, easily equal to any Scottish abbey or church. The only rivals of the same period are Tulliallan, Bothwell, and Auchendoun. It has been stated that in its time Craigie was the most impressive building of its kind in Ayrshire.

References:

Comments

Your name



Address

Kilmarnock, United Kingdom
See all sites in Kilmarnock

Details

Founded: 15th century
Category: Miscellaneous historic sites in United Kingdom

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Thaddeus Lindsay (12 months ago)
It’s so cool
Sally Hoare (2 years ago)
Difficult to locate as within a farm but the people said we could cross their fields. Not much left to see but worth the trip for my family history quest.
Keith Clark (2 years ago)
It's a ruin but has some very interesting architectural features
Robert Duncan (3 years ago)
Very good ?
Cam Shaw (4 years ago)
Don’t follow google maps takes you to the complete wrong place.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Monte d'Accoddi

Monte d"Accoddi is a Neolithic archaeological site in northern Sardinia, located in the territory of Sassari. The site consists of a massive raised stone platform thought to have been an altar. It was constructed by the Ozieri culture or earlier, with the oldest parts dated to around 4,000–3,650 BC.

The site was discovered in 1954 in a field owned by the Segni family. No chambers or entrances to the mound have been found, leading to the presumption it was an altar, a temple or a step pyramid. It may have also served an observational function, as its square plan is coordinated with the cardinal points of the compass.

The initial Ozieri structure was abandoned or destroyed around 3000 BC, with traces of fire found in the archeological evidence. Around 2800 BC the remains of the original structure were completely covered with a layered mixture of earth and stone, and large blocks of limestone were then applied to establish a second platform, truncated by a step pyramid (36 m × 29 m, about 10 m in height), accessible by means of a second ramp, 42 m long, built over the older one. This second temple resembles contemporary Mesopotamian ziggurats, and is attributed to the Abealzu-Filigosa culture.

Archeological excavations from the chalcolithic Abealzu-Filigosa layers indicate the Monte d"Accoddi was used for animal sacrifice, with the remains of sheep, cattle, and swine recovered in near equal proportions. It is among the earliest known sacrificial sites in Western Europe.

The site appears to have been abandoned again around 1800 BC, at the onset of the Nuragic age.

The monument was partially reconstructed during the 1980s. It is open to the public and accessible by the old route of SS131 highway, near the hamlet of Ottava. It is 14,9 km from Sassari and 45 km from Alghero. There is no public transportation to the site. The opening times vary throughout the year.