Having gone through the main entrance gate, you will find
yourself standing in the courtyard, facing the back of the north tower. The west
range has been cut out of the picture, as it is currently being renovated and
will not be completed until 2008. Nevertheless, most of the inside can still be
visited. It is called the kitchen tower and is another well-preserved example of
what a kitchen looked like in those days, with its massive fireplace. Above the
kitchen is a spacious chamber reputed to have hosted Mary, Queen of Scots.
After the forfeiture of Albany's son, Murdoch, the castle was
retained by the crown. James II used it as one of his residences. It was then
granted to Margaret of Denmark as part of her marriage agreement with James III,
and Doune castle was similarly granted to Margaret Tudor, wife of James IV. In
1528, Margaret Tudor appointed her new brother-in-law, Sir James Stewart of
Beith, as constable of the castle. He was succeeded by his son, who was a keen
supporter of Mary, Queen of Scots. He was created Lord Doune in 1581 and his son
married the daughter of the Earl of Moray, Mary's half-brother. He thus became
second Earl of Moray and since then, the title has been held by the Morays. |
