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Stirling Castle
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- For ships named after the castle, see Stirling Castle (disambiguation)
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The Castle sits atop the Castle Hill, a volcanic crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs, giving it a strong defensive position. Its strategic location, guarding what was, until the 1930s, the farthest downstream crossing of the River Forth, has made it an important fortification from the earliest times.
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- For ships named after the castle, see Stirling Castle (disambiguation)
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The Castle sits atop the Castle Hill, a volcanic crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs, giving it a strong defensive position. Its strategic location, guarding what was, until the 1930s, the farthest downstream crossing of the River Forth, has made it an important fortification from the earliest times. Most of the principal buildings of the Castle date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. A few structures of the fourteenth century remain, while the outer defences fronting the town date from the early eighteenth century. Several Scottish Kings and Queens have been crowned at Stirling, including Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1543. There have been several sieges of Stirling Castle, including several during the Wars of Scottish Independence, with the last being in 1746, when Bonnie Prince Charlie unsuccessfully tried to take the castle. The Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and is managed by Historic Scotland.
History
Early history
Castle Hill, on which Stirling Castle is built, forms part of the Stirling Sill, a formation of quartz-dolerite around 350 million years old, which was subsequently modified by glaciation to form a "crag and tail". It is likely that this natural feature was occupied at an early date, as a hill fort is located on Gowan Hill, immediately to the east. The Romans bypassed Stirling, building a fort at Doune instead, but the rock may have been occupied by the Maeatae at this time. It may later have been a stronghold of the Manaw Gododdin, and has also been identified with a settlement recorded in the 7th and 8th centuries as Iudeu, where King Penda of Mercia besieged King Oswy of Bernicia in 655. The area came under Pictish control after the defeat of the Northumbrians at the Battle of Nechtansmere thirty years later. However, there is no archaeological evidence for occupation of Castle Hill before the late medieval period.
Other legends have been associated with Stirling, or "Snowdoun" as it was more poetically known. The 16th-century historian Hector Boece claims in his Historia Gentis Scotorum that the Romans, under Agricola, fortified Stirling, and that Kenneth MacAlpin, traditionally the first King of Scotland, besieged a castle at Stirling during his takeover of the Pictish kingdom in the 9th century. Boece is, however, considered an unreliable historian. Another chronicler, William Worcester, associated Stirling with the court of the legendary King Arthur. Tradition suggests that St Monenna founded a chapel here, as she is said to have done at Edinburgh, although it is now thought that the legend of Monenna results from a later confusion of early Christian figures, including Modwenna and Moninne.
The first record of Stirling Castle dates from around 1110, when King Alexander I dedicated a chapel here. It appears to have been an established royal centre by this time, as Alexander died here in 1124. During the reign of his successor David I, Stirling became a royal burgh, and the castle an important administration centre. King William I formed a deer park to the south-west of the castle, but after his capture by the English in 1174 he was forced to surrender several castles, including Stirling and Edinburgh, under the Treaty of Falaise. There is no evidence that the English actually occupied the castle, and it was formally handed back by Richard I of England in 1189. Stirling continued to be a favoured royal residence, with William himself dying there in 1214, and Alexander III laying out the New Park, for deer hunting, in the 1260s.
Wars of Independence
, near Stirling Castle, commemorates the actions of William Wallace during the Wars of Independence]]
Stirling remained a centre of royal administration until the death of Alexander III in 1286. His passing triggered a succession crisis, with Edward I of England invited to arbitrate between competing claimants. Edward came north in 1291, demanding that Stirling, along with the other royal castles, be put under his control during the arbitration. Edward gave judgement in favour of John Balliol, hoping he would be a "puppet" ruler, but John refused to obey Edward's demands. In 1296, Edward invaded Scotland, beginning the Wars of Scottish Independence, which would last for the next 60 years. The English found Stirling Castle abandoned and empty, and set about occupying this key site. They were dislodged the following year, after the victory of Sir Andrew Murray and William Wallace at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. Many of the garrison were killed during the battle, after which the English commanders under Sir Marmaduke Tweng retreated into the castle. However, they were quickly starved into surrender by the Scots. Next summer, the castle changed hands again, being abandoned by the Scots after the English victory at Falkirk. Edward strengthened the castle, but it was besieged in 1299 by forces including Robert Bruce. King Edward failed to relieve the garrison, who were forced to surrender.
By 1303, the English again held the upper hand, and Stirling was the last remaining castle in Scottish hands. Edward's army arrived in April 1304, with at least 17 siege engines. The Scots, under Sir William Oliphant, surrendered on 20 July, but part of the garrison were ordered back into the castle by Edward, as he had not yet deployed his latest engine, "Warwolf". It is not clear what Warwolf was, although it is believed to have been a large trebuchet, which destroyed the castle's gatehouse. Although Edward's victory seemed complete, he was dead by 1307, and Robert Bruce was now King of Scots. By 1313, only Stirling, Bothwell, and Berwick castles were held by the English. Edward Bruce, the king's brother, laid siege to Stirling, which was held by Sir Philip Mowbray. Mowbray proposed a bargain: that he would surrender the castle, if it were not relieved by 24 June 1314. Bruce agreed, and withdrew. The following summer, the English duly headed north, led by Edward II, to save the castle. On 23-24 June, King Robert's forces met the English at the Battle of Bannockburn, within sight of the castle walls. The resulting English defeat was decisive. King Edward attempted to take refuge in the castle, but Mowbray was determined to keep to his word, and the English were forced to flee. Mowbray handed over the castle, changing sides himself in the process. King Robert ordered the castle to be slighted; its defences destroyed to prevent reoccupation by the English.
The war was not over, however. The second War of Scottish Independence saw the English in control of Stirling Castle by 1336, when Sir Thomas Rokeby was the commander, and extensive works were carried out, still largely in timber rather than stone. Andrew Murray attempted a siege in 1337, when guns may have been used for one of the first times in Scotland. Robert Stewart, the future King Robert II, retook Stirling in a siege during 1341–1342. Stirling remained Scottish until the end of the war in 1357.
Early Stewarts
Under the early Stewart kings, Robert II (reigned 1371–1390) and Robert III (reigned 1390–1406), the earliest surviving parts of the castle were built. Robert Stewart, Earl of Menteith, brother of Robert III and Regent of Scotland, undertook works on the north and south gates. The present north gate is built on these foundations of the 1380s, the earliest surviving masonry in the castle. In 1424, Stirling Castle was part of the jointure, or marriage settlement, given to James I's wife Joan Beaufort, establishing a tradition which later monarchs continued. After James' murder in 1437, Joan took shelter here with her son, the young James II. Fifteen years later, it was at Stirling Castle that James stabbed and killed William Douglas, 8th Earl of Douglas, when the latter refused to end a potentially treasonous alliance with the Earl of Ross. James III (reigned 1460–1488) was born here, and later undertook works to the gardens and the chapel royal. The manufacture of artillery is recorded in 1475. James' wife, Margaret of Denmark, died in Stirling Castle in 1486, and two years later James himself died at the Battle of Sauchieburn, fought over almost the same ground as the Battle of Bannockburn, just to the south of the castle.
Renaissance palace
Almost all the present buildings in the castle were constructed between 1490 and 1600, when Stirling was developed as a principal royal centre by the Stewart kings James IV, James V and James VI. The architecture of these new buildings shows an eclectic mix of English, French and German influences, reflecting the international ambitions of the Stewart dynasty.
in 1693, and showing James IV's now-demolished Forework]]
James IV (reigned 1488–1513) kept a full Renaissance court, including alchemists, and sought to establish a palace of European standing at Stirling. He undertook building works at the royal residences of Edinburgh, Falkland and Linlithgow, but the grandest works were at Stirling, and inlcude the King's Old Building, the Great Hall, and the Forework. He also renovated the chapel royal, one of two churches within the castle at this time, and in 1501 received approval from the Pope for the establishment of a college of priests. The Forework, of which little now remains, was derived from French military architecture, although military details were added more for style than for defence.
James' building works were not finished at the time of his death at the Battle of Flodden. His successor, James V (reigned 1513–1542), was crowned in the chapel royal, and grew up in the castle under the guardianship of Lord Erskine. In 1515, the Regent Albany brought 7,000 men to Stirling to wrest control of the young king from his mother, Margaret Tudor. As monarch, James is said to have travelled in disguise, under the name "Gudeman of Ballengeich", after the road running under the eastern wall of the castle. Ballengeich means "windy pass" in Gaelic. He continued and expanded his father's building programme, creating the centrepiece of the castle, the Royal Palace, built under the direction of Sir James Hamilton of Finnart and masons brought from France. James V also died young, leaving unfinished work to be completed by his widow, Mary of Guise. His infant daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, was brought to Stirling Castle for safety, and crowned in the chapel royal on 9 September 1943. She too was brought up here, until she was sent to Inchmahome Priory, and then to France in 1548. In the 1550s, during the Regency of Mary of Guise, Anglo-French hostilities were fought out in Scotland. Artillery fortifications were added to the south approach of the castle, and these form the basis of the present Outer Defences.
Queen Mary returned to Scotland in 1561, and visited Stirling Castle frequently. She nursed Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley through an illness here in 1565, and the two were soon married. Their son, James VI, was baptised here the following year, but Darnley was already estranged, and did not attend. James' guardian, the Earl of Mar, was made hereditary governor of the castle in 1566. Mary was travelling from Stirling when she was abducted by the Earl of Bothwell, beginning the chain of events that led to her forced abdication, and her flight to England.
The young King James was crowned in the Church of the Holy Rude, by the castle, and grew up within the castle walls, under the tutelage of the humanist scholar George Buchanan. Frequently used as a pawn in the struggles between his regents and the supporters of Mary, the young king was closely guarded. Stirling became the base for James' supporters, while those nobles who wished to see Queen Mary restored gathered at Edinburgh, under William Kirkcaldy of Grange. Grange led a raid on Stirling in 1571, attempting to round up the Queen's enemies, but failed to gain control of the castle, or the King. The rebellious Earls of Mar and Angus seized the castle in 1584, but surrendered and fled to England when the King arrived with an army. They returned the following year, forcing the King to surrender, although they proclaimed their loyalty to him.
James' first child, Henry, was born in the castle in 1594, and the present Chapel Royal was constructed for his baptism on 30 August. Probably built by William Schaw, the chapel completed the quadrangle of the Inner Close. Like his predecessors, Henry spent his childhood here, under the 2nd Earl of Mar, until the Union of the Crowns, when his father succeeded as King of England, and the royal family left for London, in 1603.
Military fortress
After their departure, Stirling's role as a royal residence declined, and it became principally a military centre. It was used as a prison for persons of rank during the 17th century, and saw few visits by the monarch. James returned to Scotland in 1617, staying in Stirling during July. From 1625, extensive preparations were made for the anticipated visit of the new king, Charles I, including works to the gardens and painting of the Chapel Royal. Charles did not come to Scotland until 1633, and only stayed in the castle for two days. The castle did not feature in the civil and religious wars of the 1630s and 1640s. Following the execution of Charles I, the Scots crowned his son Charles II, and he became the last reigning monarch to stay here, living at the castle in 1650. The Royalist forces were defeated at Dunbar by those of Oliver Cromwell, and the King marched south to defeat at Worcester. General Monck laid siege to the castle on 6 August 1651, erecting gun platforms in the adjacent churchyard. After the garrison mutinied, Colonel William Conyngham was obliged to surrender on the 14 August. Damage done during the siege can still be seen on the church and the Great Hall.
After The Restoration of Charles II, the Earl of Mar was restored as governor, and the castle was frequently used as a prison, housing several Covenanters. James, Duke of Albany, later King James VII, visited the castle in 1681. During this time, the castle's military role became increasingly important, a powder magazine being built in the castle gardens, and a formal garrison installed from 1685. At the accession of King George I in 1714, John Erskine, 6th Earl of Mar was deprived of the governorship, as well as the post of Scottish Secretary. In response, he raised the standard of James Stuart, the "Old Pretender", in the First Jacobite Rising. Government troops, under the Duke of Argyll, quickly moved to occupy the fortress, then advanced to Sheriffmuir to block Mar's way. The Battle of Sheriffmuir was inconclusive, but the rising was effectively over. The Second Jacobite Rising of 1745 saw Charles Edward Stuart lead his army of Highlanders past Stirling on the way to Edinburgh. Following the Jacobites retreat from England, they returned to Stirliing in January 1746. The town soon surrendered, but the castle governor refused to capitulate. Artillery works were set up on Gowan Hill, but were quickly destroyed by the castle's guns. Despite victory at Falkirk, the Jacobites withdrew north on 1 February.
From 1800 until 1964 the Castle was owned by the War Office and run as a barracks and recruiting depot for the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. Many alterations were made to the Great Hall, which became an accommodation block; the Chapel Royal, which became a lecture theatre and dining hall; the King's Old Building, which became an infirmary; and the Royal Palace, which became the Officer's Mess. A number of new buildings were also constructed, including the prison and powder magazine, at the Nether Bailey, in 1810. Queen Victoria visited in 1842, and the Prince of Wales in 1859.
Twentieth century
Efforts to restore the buildings to their original state are still ongoing. The Great Hall has been restored. Stirling Castle remains the headquarters of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, although the regiment is no longer garrisoned there. The regimental museum is also located within the castle.
Since January 2002, the Tapestry Studio at West Dean College has been working on a recreation of The Hunt of the Unicorn tapestries, which will be hung in the restored Queen's Presence Chamber in the Royal Palace. Historians studying the reign of James IV believe that a similar series of Unicorn tapestries were part of the royal collection. The team of weavers visited The Cloisters, part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, to inspect the 15th-century originals, and researched medieval weaving techniques, colour palettes and materials. The weavers are working both at the College in West Sussex, and at a studio at Stirling Castle. The project is due for completion in 2014.
The castle
Outer Defences
The Outer Defences comprise artillery fortifications, and were built in their present form in the 18th century, although parts date back to the regency of Mary of Guise in the 1550s.
Forework
The gatehouse providing entry from the outer defences to the castle proper was erected by King James IV, and was probably completed around 1506. It originally formed part of a "fore-front", known as the Forework, extending as a curtain wall across the whole width of Castle Hill. At the centre is the gatehouse itself, which now stands to less than half its original height. The round towers at the outer corners rose to conical roofs, with battlements carried around the tops of the towers. These were flanked by more round towers, of which only traces now remain, and mirrored by further rounds at the rear of the gatehouse. The overall design, as drawn by John Slezer in 1693, shows French influence, and has parallels with the forework erected at Linlithgow Palace. Like the Linlithgow structure, the Forework was probably intended more for show, evoking the "age of chivalry", than for defence, as it would have offered little protection against contemporary artillery. The entrance was via a central passage, flanked by two separate pedestrian passages. This triple arrangement was unusual in its time, and Classical triumphal arches have been suggested as an influence. The gatehouse was dismantled gradually, and was consolidated in its present form in 1810. At each end of the crenellated curtain wall was a rectangular tower. The west tower, known as the Prince's Tower, probably after Henry, Prince of Scotland, survives to its full height, and is now attached to the later palace. At the east end, the Elphinstone Tower was cut down to form a gun battery, but may have contained an officer's lodging.
Outer Close
Within the Forework is a courtyard known as the Outer Close. To the south-east are Georgian military buildings, and below the east side are the castle kitchens. The small building above the North Gate is traditionally said to have been a Mint, known in Scots as the Cunzie Hoose or "coining house". To the west, the main parts of the castle are arranged around the quadrangular Inner Close: the Royal Palace to the south, the King's Old Building on the west, the Chapel Royal to the north, and the Great Hall to the east.
Royal Palace
To the left of the gatehouse, and forming the south side of the principal or upper court, is the Royal Palace. The first Renaissance palace in the British Isles, this was the work of King James V. With its combination of Renaissance architecture, and exuberant late-gothic detail, it is one of the most architecturally impressive buildings in Scotland, covered with unique carved stonework. It was begun in the 1530s, and was largely complete by the time of James' death in December 1542. The Master of Works, until his execution in 1540, was Sir James Hamilton of Finnart, who also financed part of the work,in return for land and favours from the king. Further work was carried out during the regency of Mary of Guise, and the upper floor was converted to provide an apartment for the castle governor in the 18th century.
The architecture is French-inspired, but the decoration is German in inspiration, and sources for the statues have been found in the work of the German engraver Hans Burgkmair. The statues include a line of soldiers on the south parapet, and a series of full-size figures around the principal floor. These principal figures include a portrait of James V, the Devil, St Michael, and representations of several planetary deities. Their arrangement on the north, east and west faces of the Palace has been interpreted in relation to the quarters of the heavens. The 19th-century architectural historian R. W. Billings described the statues as "the fruits of an imagination luxuriant but revolting".
Internally, the Palace comprises two apartments, one each for the king and queen. Each has a hall, presence chamber, and bedchamber, with various small rooms known as closets. The Renaissance decoration continued inside, although little has survived the building's military use. The ceiling of the King’s Presence Chamber was originally decorated with a series of carved oak portrait roundels known as the Stirling Heads, described as "among the finest examples of Scottish Renaissance wood-carving now extant." The carvings were taken down following a ceiling collapse in 1777, and of an estimated 56 original heads, 38 survive. Many of them are preserved in the castle, some in the Smith Institute in Stirling, and three in the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh. Some of the portraits are believed to be of kings, queens, or courtiers, and others are thought to show classical or Biblical figures. As with the exterior carving, similarities to German sources have been noted, and in particular to a ceiling in Wawel, Poland. There are plans to eventually re-instate the ceiling as close to its original form as possible.
Great Hall
On the east side of the upper court is the Great Hall, or Parliament Hall, built by James IV, and restored to its original appearance in 1999 after many decades' use as a barracks. The first example of Renaissance-influenced architecture in Scotland, it includes renaissance details, such as the intersecting tracery on the windows, within a conventional medieval plan. It is , making it the largest such hall in Scotland, with a completely restored hammerbeam roof, and two oriel windows flanking the dais at the southern end.
Chapel Royal
The renaissance Chapel Royal on the north side of the upper court was built by Master of Works William Schaw for James VI in 1594, for the state christening of his son and heir Prince Henry, on the site of the medieval Chapel Royal.
Nether Bailey
Beyond the North Gate, the Nether bailey occupies the northern end of Castle Hill. Surrounded by defensive walls, the area contains gunpowder stores, a guard house, and the modern tapestry studio. There was formerly access to the Nether Bailey from Ballengeich, until the postern was blocked in response to the threat of Jacobite rebellion.
Gardens
There are two gardens within the castle, the southern one including a bowling green. Below the castle's west wall is the King's Knot, a 16th-century formal garden, now only visible as earthworks. The gardens were built on the site of a medieval jousting arena known as the Round Table, in imitation of the legendary court of King Arthur.
Modern use
The castle esplanade, or parade ground, has been used as an open-air concert venue for several noted acts, some of whom have used the Castle and the surrounding scenery to film "in concert" DVDs. Recent acts include R.E.M., Ocean Colour Scene, Bob Dylan, Wet Wet Wet, and Runrig. The esplanade also hosts the city's hogmanay celebrations.
An illustration of the Castle currently features on the reverse side of a current series of £20 notes issued by the Clydesdale Bank, with Robert the Bruce on horseback in the foreground.
Gallery
Bibliography
External links
- - Early Images of Stirling Castle
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