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servants slept. One night the girl's mother, the
Countess, is supposed to have discovered what was going on and made her way across the bridge from the family's quarters in the western tower to the eastern tower to catch the pair. Dorothea heard her mother's footsteps on the bridge and, unable to return to the other tower by that route, made her way to the roof. Here she leapt from the tower to land safely on the battlements of the western tower and so return to bed where she was discovered by her mother. The distance between the towers was several metres and thus she accomplished quite a feat in leaping the distance. The following day the girl and her lover eloped and no records exist to tell us what happened to them.
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with a gap of about 3 metres between them. This second tower was L-shaped in plan and was connected to the
Huntingtower by a wooden bridge below the level of the battlements. It is thought that this construction was for defensive reasons: if one tower was attacked and taken, residents could flee into the second and draw up the bridge between the two. The space between the two towers was built up in the late 17th century resulting in the Castle as it stands today. At the same time the number and size of windows was greatly increased, particularly in the Western Tower.
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183:, the Ruthven home in Perth, by an overwhelming number of the king's armed men. This time, the king was less merciful: as well as seizing the estates, he abolished the name of Ruthven and decreed that any successors would be ineligible to hold titles or lands. Thus the House of Ruthven ceased to exist and by royal proclamation Ruthven castle was renamed Huntingtower.
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resided in the Castle, where his wife Lady Mary Ross bore a son 7 February 1717. The Castle began to be neglected and after Lady Mary died in 1767, it was abandoned as a place of residence except by farm labourers. The last inhabitants of the castle were the family of the castle custodian Niel Cowan.
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A second
Huntingtower legend concerns St Conval's Well, which is beside the road below the castle. The water from this well is meant to have the power to heal, but those who go to collect it must do so in silence: any word spoken on the outward or return journey renders the water useless. Those who
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The original 'Huntingtower' (now known as the 'Eastern Tower') was a free-standing building, constructed primarily as a gatehouse. It consists of three storeys and a garret under the roof. Around the end of the 15th century a second tower (the 'Western Tower') was built alongside the
Huntingtower,
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Huntingtower is said to be haunted by "Lady
Greensleeves", a young woman named Dorothea who was the daughter of the 1st Earl of Gowrie. The legend states that she was in love with a servant at the castle and that the two used to have clandestine meetings at night in the eastern tower, where the
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Among the features of interest at
Huntingtower are early 16th-century paintings which survive on the first floor of the Eastern Tower. These include fragmentary wall paintings showing flowers, animals and Biblical scenes, and a largely complete decorative scheme on the wooden ceiling. Among the
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A number of sightings of the figure of a tall young woman in a green silk dress have been seen in and around
Huntingtower over the years, usually at dusk but sometimes in full daylight. Her appearance is said to be an ill omen and a forewarning of some disaster to come. A traveller staying at
87:
in 1600 and the
Ruthven name was suppressed by Act of Parliament. As contemporary writers reported, the "prinsipall howse callyd Ryven is now callyd the Huntynge towre" and, "the House of Riven to be called Hunt towre". The Ruthvens also had a substantial townhouse in nearby
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James VI forgave Gowrie, but after a second abortive attempt by Gowrie and others to overthrow him, Gowrie was finally executed and his property (including
Huntingtower) was forfeited to the crown. Dorothea Stewart, Countess of Gowrie, was commanded to surrender
129:. On 22 or 23 August 1582, Gowrie and his associates seized the young king at Huntingtower, then known as "Ruthven Castle". James was held prisoner for 10 months in various locations. This kidnapping is known as the '
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showing the position of the roof against the Tower. The defensive walls that originally enclosed the Castle (and probably other vanished subsidiary buildings) have also been removed.
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The
Ruthven family papers : the Ruthven version of the conspiracy and assassination at Gowrie House, Perth, 5 August 1600, critically rev. And édited by Samuel Cowan. 1912.
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was brought up nearby. He was the Chief Engineer building the first railway from Calcutta (the then commercial capital of India): 541 miles to Benares en route to Delhi.
83:
family. It was known for several hundred years as the 'House (or 'Place') of Ruthven' or 'Ruthven Castle', or simply 'Ryffane', until the family was forfeited for the
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go to fetch water are also supposed to leave a small token behind at the well, such as a coin or charm. The well is in good condition and to this day runs clear.
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437-page memoirs published privately 1893, scanned copy held in the British Library, London on compact disk since 2007, with multiple references to Huntingtower
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noted. After around 10 days, there was news of plague in nearby Perth, where some of the servants were staying, and so the king and a few followers went on to
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The Fascinating History of My Direct Royal Ancestors and Their Descendants by Charles Harding, and The Strange Tales of Scotland by Jack Strange, Section 21.
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is believed to be the earliest of its kind to survive substantially in Scotland. Minor fragments of wall-paintings also survive in the Western Tower.
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The Castle remained in the possession of the crown until 1643 when it was given to the family of Murray of Tullibardine (from whom the Dukes of
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The Castle and lands were restored to the Ruthven family in 1586. The king visited for a week in September 1587. However, in 1600, the brothers
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Huntingtower in the 1930s is reported to have seen Lady Greensleeves in a corridor of the castle. The following day he resumed his journey to
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A great hall was built against the north side of the Western Tower in the 16th century, but nothing remains of it above ground except a
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Today, the castle can be visited by the public and is sometimes used as a venue for marriage ceremonies. It is in the care of
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Huntingtower Castle was built at least by the 14th century as it was one of the castles owned by the Lords of Badenoch.
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Gottfied von Bülow, 'Journey Through England and Scotland Made by Lupold von Wedel in the Years 1584 and 1585', in
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conspirators behind it hoped to gain power through controlling the king. James eventually escaped on 27 June 1583.
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was made keeper. James VI stayed in April 1601, writing the new name "Huntingtower" on his letters. In 1605 the
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heard that woods, yards or gardens, and windows of Huntingtower had been damaged by members of the
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In the summer of 1582, the castle was occupied by the 4th Lord Ruthven, who was also the
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he was summoned to Huntingtower (Ruthven) to the christening of James Ruthven, the heir.
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438:
383:, vol. 13 (Edinburgh, 1969), pp. 734 no. 583, 729 no. 588, TNA SP52/66 f.100 & f.96.
347:, K.M. Brown et al eds (St Andrews, 2007-2020), 1600/11/11. Date accessed: 3 April 2020.
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in 1912. He advised using a weak solution of gelatine to fix the flaking paint pigment.
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were accused, some say falsely, of attempting to kidnap King James, and were killed in
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The early preservation and conservation of the painted ceiling was conducted by the
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Later, in the 15th century the castle was claimed by the Huntly family, or by the
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The Cowan family of Niel, Margaret, Alexander and Lorraine left in late 2002.
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453:. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 301–302.
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James VI, Britannic Prince: King of Scots and Elizabeth's Heir, 1566–1603
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beside the A85 and near the A9, about 5 km NW of the centre of
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and was drowned when he fell from the ferry taking him across the
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394:'Scottish Itinerary of Mary Queen of Scots, 1542-8 and 1561-8',
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stayed at Huntingtower in September 1584, as a German traveller
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designs are grotesque animals (including a version of the
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Castles and Tower Houses of the Scottish Clans 1450-1650
480:, vol. 9 (London, 1895), pp. 223-247: Gordon Donaldson,
260:-style knotwork patterns on the overlying planks. This
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to report. There is no record of repairs in that year.
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Register of the Privy Council of Scotland: 1578-1585
345:The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707
722:Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Perth and Kinross
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520:Correspondence of Sir Robert Waus of Barnbarroch
52:. This castle is the subject for several local
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484:, vol. 8 (Edinburgh, 1982), p. 428 no. 2445.
478:Transactions of the Royal Historical Society
727:Historic house museums in Perth and Kinross
411:, vol. 5 (Edinburgh, 1907), p. 197 no. 202.
372:Moysie's Memoirs of the Affairs of Scotland
247:The painted ceiling at Huntingtower Castle
102:visited on 25 June and 16 September 1565.
440:"Gowrie, John Ruthven, 3rd Earl of"
409:Calendar State Papers Scotland: 1574-1581
737:Reportedly haunted locations in Scotland
625:Tales and Traditions of Scottish Castles
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187:David Murray, 1st Viscount of Stormont
482:Register of the Privy Seal: 1581-1584
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16:Castle in Perth and Kinross, Scotland
712:Houses completed in the 15th century
522:, vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1887), p. 408.
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503:Memoirs of the affairs of Scotland
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224:(open all year; entrance charge).
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538:, 13:2 (Edinburgh, 1969), p. 734.
398:, 117 (1987), microfiche, scanned
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74:Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan
32:, is located near the village of
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663:"Huntingtower Castle (SM90164)"
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437:McNeill, Ronald John (1911).
424:(Routledge, 2024), pp. 60–64.
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717:Castles in Perth and Kinross
602:National Records of Scotland
145:, Huntingtower ("Ruthven"),
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590:Mss of the Duke of Athole
374:(Edinburgh, 1830), p. 181
256:) on the main beams, and
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505:(Edinburgh, 1830), p. 51
494:Chronicles of Strathearn
450:Encyclopædia Britannica
154:Ludovic, Duke of Lennox
358:HMC Salisbury Hatfield
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63:Huntingtower Castle
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106:made a progess in
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706:Categories
676:56°24′34″N
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323:References
135:Protestant
133:' and the
679:3°29′18″W
302:River Tay
254:green man
210:Mansfield
125:, son of
92:, called
56:stories.
54:ghostlore
147:Cousland
143:Dirleton
46:Scotland
447:(ed.).
68:History
28:or the
238:raggle
206:Atholl
50:Crieff
443:. In
90:Perth
38:Perth
588:HMC
396:PSAS
298:Fife
208:and
175:and
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