Cawdor Castle

Cawdor Castle

Cawdor Castle is a tower house set amid gardens in the parish of Cawdor. It belonged to the Clan Calder. It still serves as home to the Dowager Countess Cawdor, stepmother of Colin Robert Vaughan Campbell, 7th Earl Cawdor and 25th Thane of Cawdor. The castle is perhaps best known for its literary connection to William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, the title character of which was made Thane of Cawdor.

The earliest documented date for the castle is 1454, the date a building license was granted to William, Thane of Cawdor (or Calder, as the name was sometimes spelled). However, some portions of the castle may precede that date. Architectural historians have dated the style of stonework in the oldest portion of the castle to approximately 1380.

One curious feature of the castle is that it was built around a small, living holly tree, the remains of which may still be seen in the lowest level of the tower. Modern scientific testing has shown that the tree died in approximately 1372 (lending credence to the earlier date of the castle's first construction).

Shakespeare's play Macbeth took liberties with the story of the historic Scottish King Macbeth, who ruled Scotland after his forces killed King Duncan of Scotland in battle. The play, first written in 1606, drew from somewhat fanciful tales of King Macbeth written by the monk Andrew of Wyntoun in Fife, in his Cronykil (completed in 1406). Among the elements Shakespeare took from the monk's stories was the idea of the three prophesying weird sisters.

Although the name Cawdor will forever connect this classic work of literature to Cawdor Castle, the castle did not exist during the lifetimes of Macbeth or Duncan, and the events of the play are almost wholly fictitious. The castle's guidebook quotes the 5th Earl Cawdor (the 23rd Thane) as saying, presumably with some irony, "I wish the Bard had never written his damned play!"

Parts of Cawdor date back to the 14th century. The castle became part of the Campbell "empire" when Muriel Calder, heiress to the castle, was kidnapped at the age of 12 and married to the Earl of Argyll's son, Sir John Campbell in 1511. A ghost wearing a blue velvet dress has been reported in the castle though no one can say whether this is Muriel Calder

The first thing I see is this wooden fence with lichens and the colorful leaves beneath

I'll catch the castle after a couple shots of the scenery

And the castle stand before us

the maze

the garden path between trees and wall

The draw bridge

The castle is still occupied, so we enter the lower level

Because the Dowager Countess Cawdor, stepmother of Colin Robert Vaughan Campbell, 7th Earl Cawdor and 25th Thane of Cawdor, who lives here does not want visitors taking pictures within the castle,

the only photos are the beautiful gardens

This wrought iron gate is a work of art