Tantallon Castle, East Lothian
Tantallon Castle sits on a cliff top overlooking the Firth of Forth and the North Sea beyond and was the stronghold of the Douglases, a family that rose to power at the time of King Robert the Bruce.
History of Tantallon Castle
Mighty Tantallon Castle was built in the 1350s by a nobleman at the height of his power. In 1354, William Douglas came into possession of all his father’s lands, as well as those of his uncle, ‘the Good Sir James of Douglas’, a close friend of King Robert Bruce. The estates included the barony of North Berwick. In 1358 William was created Earl of Douglas, by which date the builders may already have begun to build his new stronghold.
In the 1380s the dynastic house of Douglas split into two branches, known as the ‘Black’ and the ‘Red’. Tantallon passed to the junior line, the ‘Red Douglases’, Earls of Angus. For the next 300 years, the earls of Angus held sway at the castle, acting out their role as one of the most powerful baronial families in Scotland.
During that time it endured three great sieges, in 1491, 1528 and 1651. The last, by Oliver Cromwell’s army, resulted in such devastating destruction that the mighty medieval fortress was abandoned to the birds.
For more information on Tantallon Castle visit the Historic Scotland website HERE
History of Tantallon courtesy of Historic Scotland
ALL IMAGES ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION
 |
| Tantallon Castle and Bass Rock - 364 second exposure has blurred the sky and the sea |
Mighty Tantallon Castle was built in the 1350s by a nobleman at the height of his power. In 1354, William Douglas came into possession of all his father’s lands, as well as those of his uncle, ‘the Good Sir James of Douglas’, a close friend of King Robert Bruce. The estates included the barony of North Berwick. In 1358 William was created Earl of Douglas, by which date the builders may already have begun to build his new stronghold.
In the 1380s the dynastic house of Douglas split into two branches, known as the ‘Black’ and the ‘Red’. Tantallon passed to the junior line, the ‘Red Douglases’, Earls of Angus. For the next 300 years, the earls of Angus held sway at the castle, acting out their role as one of the most powerful baronial families in Scotland.
During that time it endured three great sieges, in 1491, 1528 and 1651. The last, by Oliver Cromwell’s army, resulted in such devastating destruction that the mighty medieval fortress was abandoned to the birds.
 |
| Tantallon Castle, former home of the Douglas family |
History of Tantallon courtesy of Historic Scotland
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY CLICKING THE GOOGLE ADVERTS
It doesn't cost you anything to click on an advert but we get a small fee for every click thru from Google and this helps support this blog - thank you for helping
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ALL IMAGES ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION
If you like what you see on this blog please visit our Facebook page and click 'like'
Comments
Post a Comment