Eilean Donan Castle is built in a small island where three lochs converge - Loch Alsh, Loch Long, and Loch Duich. Because there is a fresh water well on the island it has been inhabited from earliest times. The first fortified stronghold was built about 1260 by Alexander 2nd. In 1263 Alexander 3rd gave the Castle to Colin Fitzgerald who was the progenitor of the Mackenzies.
The MacRaes formed the bodyguard to the Earls of Seaforth and became known as Mackenzie's Coat of Mail. In 1719 the Castle had a garrison of 48 Spaniards sent over to help the Old Pretender regain his throne. The English sent three frigates up the loch to take the Castle, but it was only after they gained access and set fire to the Spaniard's arsenal that the Castle was blown up and became a ruin for the next 200 years.
Colonel MacRae-Gilstrap bought the ruined Castle in 1912 and with the help of Farquhar MacRae rebuilt the castle between 1912 and 1932. The countryside surrounding Eilean Donan is of exceptional beauty and grandeur, with breathtaking mountain, loch and forest scenery. |
Address:
Dornie
by Kyle of Lochalsii
Highlands
IV40 8DX
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