Castle of the Month

Each month, I showcase a beautiful castle from somewhere around the world. I hope you enjoy this page, and that it inspires you to find your own home and make it your castle.

March 2023 - Dunrobin Castle, Sutherland, Scottish Highlands, Scotland

Dunrobin Castle is the largest castle in the Scottish Highlands. It's origins begin in the 14th century, and the tower that was built during that time still stands in the existing castle. The castle was built in the midst of a tribal turf war between Norse and Gaelic people. The first Earldom was created there in 1445, but it was subject to continuous battles for ownership and control for over three hundred years. Its history includes some rather gory and graphic episodes of beheadings and deaths.

The castle was extensively remodeled in the mid-1800s by Sir Charles Barry, the architect of the Palace of Westminster, the home of the House of Commons. It was used as a naval hospital prior to World War I, before a fire damaged the roof and much of the interior of the castle. After the War, it was again remodeled, and was used as a boy's boarding school. It is now open to the public, and the family of the current Countess of Sutherland has a private residence there, among its 189 rooms.

The castle is open to visitors from April through September every year, and tours include falconry displays held in the castle's gardens by a resident Falconer. (For the uneducated, including me, that means flying demonstrations of golden eagles and peregrine falcons, both residents of the Scottish Highlands, and discussions about the ancient art of falconry.)