Location: Doune, Stirling Map
Constructed: late 14th century
Tel. 01786 841742
Open: Apr- Sep: 9:30am- 5:30pm daily
Oct- Mar 9:30am- 4:30pm Sat- Wed
(last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Closed: 21 Dec- 8 Jan
Doune Castle is situated in a town of Doune, Stirling district in central Scotland in United Kingdom. Doune Castle was constructed in late 14th century by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany (1340- 1420) on a site of ruins of an older castle that was destroyed during the Scottish Wars of Independence. In the 16th century citadel passed into hands of the Earls of Moray. Doune Castle played an important strategic role in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, Glencairn's rising and finally a Jacobite Risings in 18th century. The castle was largely abandoned in the 19th century and only in the late 1880's first reconstruction and preservation attempts began.
The site is defended by the river on three sides. The only possible approach is the north. The entrance to the castle is through a narrow door leading to a corridor 14 m long leading to a large central courtyard. The latter leave the stairs to the great hall (in English Great Hall ) overlooked by several servants' rooms and the kitchen. A staircase also from the central courtyard to the Lord's Hall and the stately apartments.
The castle was built for the most part in the xiv
th century by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany. His brother Robert III
of Scotland became unfit to reign so he did in his place from 1388 .
The youngest son of the king, under his tutelage, died mysteriously
in 1402 . When Robert Stewart died, power passed to his son Murdoch
in 1420 . However, when the successor of Robert III, King Jacques I
st of Scotland , returned from captivity in 1424 , he accused
Murdoch of treason who was imprisoned and beheaded.
The castle of Doune became a royal retreat and a hunting residence
for the monarchs, including Marie Ire of Scotland .
During the Jacobite uprising in 1745 , the castle became a prison
for government supporters captured by the Jacobites. Famous
prisoners include John Home , a Scottish writer who fled out of the
kitchen window with his sheets, and a Scottish minister named John
Witherspoon who later left for the American colonies where he became
one of the signatories of the Declaration of Independence of the
United States of America .
The castle is currently owned by the Scottish Agency for Historic
Monuments: Historic Scotland .
Location of filming
When Monty Python: Holy Grail! was shot in 1974 , producers were
allowed to film only in two Scottish castles, Doune Castle and
Stalker Castle . In desperation, they filmed the castle of Doune
from various angles very framed to give the impression of several
different castles in the film.
Doune Castle has become a place of pilgrimage for fans of Monty
Python who roam the castle trying to remember the passages of the
film.
According to the IMDb page devoted to the Ivanhoe film directed by
Richard Thorpe in 1952 , this castle would have been part of one of
the filming locations.
The castle was later used as a backdrop for the outdoor scenes at
Winterfell , Stark's castle in the Game of Thrones series , and
adaptation of George RR Martin's series of novels , The Iron Throne
.
It was finally used to represent Castle MacKenzie's fictional castle
, Castle Leoch, in Outlander , the television adaptation of Diana
Gabaldon's Chardon and Tartan series .