Clackmannan Tower

Clackmannan Tower is one of a group of impressive great towers built around the Forth estuary in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. It was erected for Robert Bruce, perhaps an illegitimate descendant of King Robert I – a suggestion possibly reinforced by the knowledge that Clackmannan had been a royal property in the 13th century.

The tower is built on high ground at the end of the old high street of the town, and started off life as a rectangular tower, extended in the 15th century with the addition of a wing, and later again with a forebuilding in the angle between the two, although the principal stair was retained in the thickness of the walls of the old tower. The Bruces of Clackmannan retained the tower up to the end of the 18th century, by which time their fortune had dissipated and there were farm buildings and a mansion added to the tower, now all removed. Today the tower is in the care of Historic Environment Scotland, but not usually open to the public.

Official Historic Scotland page

HES Canmore database entry