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Urquhart Castle is a substantial medieval fortress situated on a headland projecting into Loch Ness in Inverness-shire, Scotland. The castle originated in the early 13th century and underwent successive phases of construction and modification through the medieval period, with significant structures including a keep, curtain walls, and domestic buildings arranged around a roughly triangular plan. The site commanded a strategically important position controlling access along Loch Ness and the surrounding territory, and saw military action during the Wars of Scottish Independence and subsequent conflicts. The castle was deliberately slighted in 1692 to prevent its use by Jacobite forces, after which it fell into ruin, leaving today the fragmentary but impressive remains of walls and towers that testify to its former importance.
Urquhart Castle is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90309. View the official record →
Urquhart Castle is a substantial medieval fortress situated on a headland projecting into Loch Ness in Inverness-shire, Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90309.
Urquhart Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM90309.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Upper Drumbuie, burnt mound 230m NNE of (3.1 km), Craig Mony,fort (3.2 km), 'Crusader', remains of jet-powered boat, 520m SE of Achnahannet settlement (3.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Urquhart Castle's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Urquhart Castle stands on Lower Old Red Sandstone, bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.