Dunskeath Castle

Dunskeath Castle is a much eroded clifftop castle that occupied a promontory overlooking the entry into the Cromarty Firth. Consisting primarily of ditch defences, it is likely that a considerable proportion of the enclosure has fallen into the sea.

The main defence is a subcircular ditch which seems to have provided material for an internal upcast bank, beyond with is the eroded enclosure. A second ditch depicted on the Ordnance Survey in the 19th century as curved is actually straight when examined on LIDAR and is may not be defensive or medieval. The enclosure has been damaged by the installation of concrete platforms for gun batteries in the Second World War, and the cliff edge is unsecured so the site is extremely dangerous.

The castle is believed to have been founded by King William the Lion in 1179 when he and his brother were in Ross dealing with one of the wars with the rival MacWilliam family, and is specifically mentioned in Bower’s Scoticronicon, which describes that campaign as follows – “There he fortified two castles, Dunskeath and Etherdouer“. However the location is unusual and the promontory does not seem to suit the purpose assigned to it, not to mention that the chronicle in question is non-contemporary and seems to repeat the same events under 1211. For me personally, the case is not so clear cut, and it may be that the site is an old fort rather than a medieval castle.

HES Canmore database entry