- Type
- Castle
- Origins
- 1628 · 17th century per Wikidata: founding, first mention or construction
- Location
- Scotland, United Kingdom
- Visiting
- probably – Wikidata lists it as a museum or gives tickets, opening hours or visitor numbers; check before you go
- Coordinates
- 57.0148°, -3.3915°
History
John Erskine, Earl of Mar, built the castle in 1628 as a hunting seat and a bulwark against the unruly clans of Deeside. In 1689 the Jacobite John Farquharson of Inverey, known as the Black Colonel, burned it so that government troops could not use it. After the failed Jacobite rising of 1715, which the Earl of Mar launched at Braemar itself, his estates were forfeited and the castle was bought by the Farquharsons of Invercauld. After Culloden, from 1748, the government leased it as a barracks, rebuilt it and surrounded it with a star-shaped curtain wall; a garrison stayed until 1831. The castle then became a Farquharson home again, and since 2007 it has been run by the local community.
What to see
The castle is L-shaped with a round stair tower, encircled by a low star-shaped wall pierced with gunloops from the garrison years. The rooms are furnished with Farquharson family furniture and heirlooms, and a hatch in the floor opens onto the pit prison into which captives were lowered. Graffiti carved by soldiers stationed here survives on the wooden shutters and walls.
Wikipedia article Official website Wikidata Q897169
Popularity: articles about this site in 17 Wikimedia projects (Wikipedia language editions and others).