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Welcome to the official website for Castle Stalker – a picturesque castle surrounded by water located 25 miles north of Oban on the west coast of Scotland. The castle is privately owned but we do run a limited number of tours each year – these can be arranged by prior appointment. Tour dates for the 2024 Season have now been announced ...
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Standing dramatically on a small island, Castle Stalker is a tall, massive and simple keep, rectangular in plan, of four storeys and a garret. A flush parapet was remodelled in the 16th century, and a gabled caphouse crowns the stair. The thick walls are pierced by shot-holes. There are two entrances. The first, at ground level, is defended by ...
Coordinates: 56°34′16″N 5°23′10″W. Castle Stalker ( Scottish Gaelic: Caisteal an Stalcaire) is a four-storey tower house or keep in the Scottish county of Argyll. It is set on a tidal islet on Loch Laich, an inlet off Loch Linnhe.
The tower-house, oblong on plan, measures 14.8 metres NE-SW by 11.8 metres over walls 2.7 metres thick. It consists of a ground floor, two upper storeys and a garret. The ground floor entrance is situated near the centre of the SE wall, and has provision for two doors of which the inner, probably an iron yett, was secured by a drawbar.
- Early History
- Current Times
- Interesting Castle Stalker Facts
Before Castle Stalker
The site where Castle Stalker stands today is said to have previously belonged to the MacDougallsback in 1320. This was back when they were known as the Lords of Lorn. This clan lost their title after being defeated by King Bruce in 1308 at the battle of the Brander Pass, but got it back in 1328. However, their lordship was short-lived as the title and the lands were then passed to the Stewarts. It was the Stewarts – specifically Sir John Stewart – that laid the foundation and built the Castl...
Through the Battle of Stalc
Sir John Stewarthad a son out of marriage with a MacLaren and it was when he was trying to legitimize him in 1463 that he was murdered by Alan MacCoul. He did, however, manage to get married before passing away, and his son Dugald took it upon himself to avenge him. It wasn’t until the Battle of Stalc that the Stewarts and the Macarens defeated MacCoul in 1468. This battle happened opposite the Castle Stalker and is even commemorated by a memorial stone in the Churchyard located at Portnacroish.
From one Stewart to Another
Stewart – who was also the Chief of Appin– was killed in a raid and succeeded by his son Duncan. It was during Duncan’s era that King James IV started making regular hunting trips to the Castle Stalker. He used it as a base to accommodate hawking and hunting, so it was during this time that significant changes were made to the architecture, including raising the roof and adding the top floor. This is also said to have been the time when the Coat of Arms was added to the main door. After the m...
Charles Stewart of Achara purchased Castle Stalker from the Campbells in 1908 and had it preserved. He was succeeded by Duncan Stewart, but he was murdered so the castle fell into the hands of his widow. It wasn’t until 1965 that it was purchased by Lt. Col. Stewart Allward. He spent most of the next ten years restoring it to its former glory with ...
Castle Stalker has appeared in many movies, including Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Highlander: Endgame.
Stalker was an important link for men and supplies between Inverary and Fort William, and following the Battle of Culloden in 1746 was used as a weapon surrender center and prison briefly. The last Campbell left Stalker in 1800, when they moved to Airds on the mainland. From 1800 to 1840 the castle was just a storehouse, until the roof either ...
Castle Stalker is a four-story tower house castle located on a tidal islet on Loch Laich, an inlet off of Loch Linnhe. The castle is privately owned but sometimes opens for visitors in summer. It is only accessible by boat when the tours are available.
