MHG3343 - Site of Lovat Castle
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (1)
- CASTLE (Medieval to 19th Century - 1058 AD to 1900 AD)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
NH54NW 2 5393 4606.
(NH 5393 4606) Lovat Castle {NR} (Site of)
OS 6"map, Inverness-shire, 2nd ed., (1906)
Lovat Castle was extant in 1230. J Barron 1891
'The Tower and Fort of Lovat' was the seat first of the Bissets of Lovat, and later of the Frasers. L Shaw 1882
Lovat Castle ' was finally destroyed by Oliver Cromwell who removed the stones for other building purposes.'
Name Book 1872
Lovat Castle was destroyed after 1745. Only the foundations remain. ISSFC 1888
Nothing remains of the castle. A tall ash tree in the farm steading is said to mark its site. W R MacDonald 1902
Lovat Castle is first mentioned in C12 when it was held by the Bissets. It was granted to Frasers in 13 century, and was held by them until it was dismantled to build a new house at Beauly in 1671. In 12 century, the outer ditch and ramparts, the tower, front wall and great gate were built (It cannot be ascertained whether these were of stone or timber). About 1500 it is noted that the castle was repaired, a draw-well built, and the orchard enlarged. In mid 17th century., the castle walls were"made up", "St Laurence's Chapel in the E corner of the castle repaired, and a further defence comprising a deep ditch with earthen rampart was constructed around the "great wide green".
J Fraser 1905
There is now no ground evidence of a castle on a natural escarpment overlooking reclaimed mud flats, upon which farm buildings have been erected. Mr Coghill (D E Coghill, Wester Lovat) of Wester Lovat has produced a plan at 1/2500 scale showing what he believes to be the site of the castle and outer defences, but his evidence is conjectural based on occasional sections of ditches exposed during drainage operations supported by local history and an estate plan. Whilst there is no doubt that this is the site of Lovat Castle, the details shown by Coghill may be incorrect.
Visited by OS (N K B) 12 January 1971
Fragments of stonework found in drainage operations include one piece of a door- or window-jamb wrought with a broad chamfer and probably of medieval date. Cropmarks on an air photograph reveal what may be the SW side and parts of the NW and SE sides of a ditch surrounding the castle. (See NH54NW 34).
RCAHMS 1979.
Sources/Archives (11)
- --- SHG1127 Text/Publication/Article: Barron, J. 1898. 'Monastries in the north - Beauly Priory', Trans Inverness Sci Soc Fld Club Vol. 4 1888-95. Trans Inverness Sci Soc Fld Club. 131.
- --- SHG1131 Text/Publication/Article: Yeoman, P A. 1988. 'Mottes in Northeast Scotland', Scot Archaeol Rev Vol. 5 1988, p.125-33. Scot Archaeol Rev. 125-33. 131, no. 88.
- --- SHG120 Text/Publication/Article: Coghill and Hanley, D and R. 1993. 'Aird survey (Kirkhill, Kiltarlity & Convinth, Kilmorack parishes): multi-period sites', Discovery and Excavation in Scotland 1993, p.44-5. Discovery and Excavation in Scotland. 44-5. 44.
- --- SHG1679 Text/Publication/Article: Macdonald, W R. 1902. 'The heraldry in some of the old churchyards between Tain and Inverness', Proc Soc Antiq Scot Vol 36 1901-2, pp 688-732. 716.
- --- SHG2226 Text/Publication/Volume: Fraser, J. 1905. Chronicles of the Frasers. 43, 56, 122, 131, 288, 496.
- --- SHG2356 Text/Manuscript: Jacks, S E (ed.). 1989. Some unrecorded sites in the Aird noted between Oct 1987 & May 1989. Inverness Field Club. Digital. no. 9.
- --- SHG2673 Text/Report: RCAHMS. 1979. The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. The archaeological sites and monuments of North-east Inverness, Inverness District, Highland Region. . 27, No. 209.
- --- SHG2787 Text/Publication/Volume: Shaw, L. 1882. The history of the province of Moray: comprising the counties of Elgin and Nairn, the greater part of the County of Inverness, and a portion of the County of Banff - all called the Province of Moray before there was a division into counties. 373.
- --- SHG3385 Text/Publication/Volume: Name Book (County). Object Name Books of the Ordnance Survey. Book No. 52, 7.
- --- SHG693 Text/Publication/Article: Talbot, E [J]. 1975. 'Early Scottish castles of earth and timber - recent field-work and excavation', Scot Archaeol Forum Vol. 6 1974, p.48-57. Scot Archaeol Forum. 48-57. 55.
- --- SHG769 Text/Publication/Article: ISSFC. 1888. 'Excursion to Kirkhill, Beauly, and Struy', Trans Inverness Sci Soc Fld Club Vol. 2 1880-3, p.227-36. Trans Inverness Sci Soc Fld Club. 227-36. 230.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NH 5393 4606 (300m by 300m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NH54NW |
| Civil Parish | KIRKHILL |
| Geographical Area | INVERNESS |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (1)
Related Investigations/Events (0)
External Links (1)
- https://canmore.org.uk/site/12678 (View RCAHMS Canmore entry for this site)
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