Castle Sinclair Girnigoe

History

Castle Girnigoe was likely built by William Sinclair, the 2nd Earl of Caithness, sometime between 1476 and 1496, and definitely before he fell at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. There are hints that it may have been raised on the remains of an even older fort. In May 1573, Olave Sinclair, the foud of Shetland, was carried there after a stroke left him paralysed. Four years later, in 1577, George Sinclair, the 4th Earl, locked up his own son John, the Master of Caithness, in the castle on suspicion of rebellion.

John spent seven years imprisoned, then his father fed him only salted beef with no water, driving him mad with thirst until he died. The rebellious Earl of Bothwell stayed at Girnigoe in December 1594. In 1606, a major expansion added Castle Sinclair, which included a gatehouse, other structures, and a curtain wall. This new part was linked to the older castle by a drawbridge crossing a ravine.

That same year, George Sinclair, the 5th Earl, asked the Scottish Parliament to rename the whole site Castle Sinclair, but both names were recorded in 1700 and have stuck ever since. Robert Sinclair described Girnigoe as a five-storey L-shaped tower house with crow-stepped gables, perched on a rocky promontory over Sinclair Bay. It also contains a hidden chamber in the kitchen's vaulted ceiling.

Did You Know?

• In 1606, George Sinclair, the 5th Earl, asked the Scottish Parliament to rename the site Castle Sinclair, but both names were still in use by 1700.
• Castle Sinclair Girnigoe is the only castle in Scotland listed by the World Monuments Fund.