Kilchurn Castle

Kilchurn Castle

A ruin on Loch Awe

At the misty north-eastern end of Loch Awe, in the western Highlands, the ruins of Kilchurn Castle stand on a low, rocky spur reaching into the water. When the loch is high, the castle becomes almost an island; when it is low, a stretch of marshy ground links it to the shore. Behind it rise the great mountains of Argyll, crowned by the peak of Ben Cruachan. With its broken tower mirrored in the still water, Kilchurn is one of the most photographed castles in all of Scotland.

The Campbells of Glenorchy

Kilchurn was built around the year 1450 by Sir Colin Campbell, the first laird of Glenorchy and a member of the mighty Clan Campbell. At its heart stood a tall stone tower house — the chief's strong home — later surrounded by walls and ranges of buildings as the family grew in wealth and power. From this remote spot the Campbells of Glenorchy controlled the lands around Loch Awe and far beyond, and the castle remained their stronghold for roughly two hundred years before they moved to grander homes elsewhere.

From castle to barracks

In the late seventeenth century, Kilchurn was given a new role. The first Earl of Breadalbane, a powerful Campbell lord, rebuilt it as a military base, adding what is often described as one of the first purpose-built army barracks in Britain. For a time the castle could house around two hundred soldiers, who garrisoned the Highlands in troubled times. But the very remoteness that had once made Kilchurn safe now made it awkward and out of the way, and its days as a useful fortress were numbered.

Struck by lightning

Around the 1760s, Kilchurn was struck by lightning and badly damaged, and soon afterwards it was abandoned for good. The lightning is said to have toppled one of the castle's turrets, which crashed down into the courtyard — where it still lies today, upside-down, exactly where it fell more than two hundred and fifty years ago. Left to the wind and the rain, the castle slowly became the romantic ruin so beloved by artists and photographers.

Visiting today

Today Kilchurn is reached on foot across the fields, or by boat across Loch Awe, and visitors can wander its roofless halls and climb its tower for sweeping views over the loch and the mountains. Few places capture the wild beauty of the Highlands so perfectly. The sight of Kilchurn's grey walls rising from the misty water — with the fallen turret still lying upside-down where the lightning left it — is one that no visitor ever forgets.