Castles · Scottish Islands
Keiss Castle
In or near John o'Groats.
Keiss Castle — castle ruins in Highland, Scotland, UK.
Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1.5 h–3 h
- Family-friendly
- Limited wheelchair access
About
Keiss Castle is a castle in the United Kingdom — fortified architecture from the medieval, Tudor, or Victorian-revival period. Heritage designation: scheduled monument. Wikidata describes it as: "castle ruins in Highland, Scotland, UK". Coordinates: 58.5381°, -3.1063°.
Photo gallery
Heritage listing
Keiss Castle is a partially ruined castle in Caithness, Scotland. It stands on sheer cliffs overlooking Sinclair's Bay, less than one mile north of the village of Keiss. It is protected as a scheduled monument. The old castle was replaced by Keiss House around 1755. The castle was constructed as a Z-plan tower house with 4 floors plus an attic and a vaulted basement. It had a pair of corner towers at opposite angles of a square central block, the main tower being very narrow for its height with tall chimneystacks.
From Historic Environment Scotland under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
Keiss Castle is a partially ruined castle in Caithness, Scotland. It stands on sheer cliffs overlooking Sinclair's Bay, less than one mile north of the village of Keiss. It is protected as a scheduled monument. The old castle was replaced by Keiss House around 1755. The castle was constructed as a Z-plan tower house with 4 floors plus an attic and a vaulted basement. It had a pair of corner towers at opposite angles of a square central block, the main tower being very narrow for its height with tall chimneystacks.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
The castle was built possibly on the site of an earlier fort in the late 16th or early 17th century by George Sinclair, 5th Earl of Caithness (1582-1643). It seems the castle was in existence in 1623 when James VI commissioned Sir Robert Gordon to enter Caithness with an armed force. The 7th Earl died in the castle in 1698 but it is reported that the castle was ruinous in 1700 and in 1726 as being in repair with 'at the side of it a convenient house lately built'. The estate was purchased by Sir William Sinclair, 2nd Baronet of Dunbeath early in the 18th century and in 1752 Keiss became his family seat. The current house was built about 1755 but had to be sold in 1765 because of financial…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 58.5381, -3.1063
- District
- Highland
- Postcode
- KW1 4AT
- Parliamentary constituency
- Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross
- Official site
- www.johnogroat-journal.co.uk
Sources
- wikidata: Q80661742 (CC0)
- wikipedia: Keiss Castle (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Old Keiss Castle ruins - geograph.org.uk - 574566.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Other places nearby
Keiss Castle
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Keiss House
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Archaeological sites · 0.5 km
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Keiss Castle
Archaeological sites · 0.6 km
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Kirk Tofts War Memorial
Memorials & monuments · 0.8 km
Keiss Baptist Church
Historic churches · 0.8 km
Keiss
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Kirk Tofts Broch
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Nearby
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The Barry Cairn — a memorial in scotland-islands, United Kingdom.
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Keiss House
Keiss House — a manor in scotland-islands, United Kingdom.
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Whitegate Broch
Whitegate Broch — archaeological in scotland islands.
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Keiss Castle — a archaeological site in scotland islands.
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📷 3Frequently asked questions
- Where is Keiss Castle?
- Keiss Castle is in the Scottish Islands, United Kingdom (postcode KW1 4AT).
- What is Keiss Castle?
- Keiss Castle — castle ruins in Highland, Scotland, UK.
- How do I get to Keiss Castle?
- Drivers can use postcode KW1 4AT.
- Is Keiss Castle a listed building?
- Keiss Castle is officially recognised as scheduled monument listed.
- Does Keiss Castle charge admission?
- Keiss Castle typically charges admission. Check the official site for current ticket prices and opening hours.
- How do I get to Keiss Castle?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode KW1 4AT. It sits within the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross parliamentary constituency.