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The mid 15th century castle
shown here at Huntly is the last of the three castles built on the site to
protect the crossing of the river Deveron. The first Peel of Strathbogie was
an earth and timber motte and bailey castle built in the late 12th
century. The second was built on the bailey of the first in the 1400�s and
was a strong L-plan Stone Tower of the Gordon family. The third in the mid
15th century saw the erection of the Palace of Strathbogie,
which, was a stronghold for the Catholic Faith in Scotland for a
considerable time. The Castle was again remodelled in the 1550s and adorned
with oriels and armorials in the 17th century. The English
ambassador of 1562 said: �It is the best furnished house of any I have seen
in the country�.
Huntly Castle features prominently in
Scottish History with the visit of Sir Robert the Bruce in 1307 and again
James IV attended the marriage to the Pretender to the English throne. Queen
Regent Mary of Guise visited the Catholic Gordons in 1556 and by 1562 the
Castle was to become the headquarters of the Counter Reformation in
Scotland.
In that same year 1562, after the defeat
of the Earl of Huntly by Mary Queen of Scots the castle was pillaged and the
Treasure of ST Machars Cathedral, Aberdeen removed. In 1640 the Covenanters
occupied the Castle and in 1647 the �Irish Garrison was hanged with their
officers beheaded and marquis of Huntly and his escort shot against the
walls.
The castle is said to have the most splendid heraldic
doorway in the British Isles. |