Ardvreck Castle

Ardvreck Castle Details

Ardvreck Castle, a ruined C16 MacLeod tower house on Loch Assynt destroyed in C18. Danger of falling masonry.

  • Closest To: Inchnadamph,Assynt,Lochinver
  • Access: Free Public Access
  • Grid Reference: NC239236

Ardvreck Castle is an often photographed ruined tower house in the far north-west of Scotland. It is built on a peninsular on the shore of Loch Assynt and is freely accessible to the public, although the masonry does appear to be unsafe.

The area was in the hands of the Macleods from the 14th century, and a ditch and bank across the peninsular probably represent an early occupation of the site. However the tower house of the Macleods, probably erected in two phases from the 15th century onwards, is much later than this. In 1650, the Macleod laird captured the fugitive Marquis of Montrose, and handed him over to his enemy Argyll for execution, resulting in a retaliatory attack on Ardvreck, which was burned in 1672 and never reoccupied. Instead Calda House was built nearby – also now in ruins.

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