Waterfall by Dunnottar Castle from approach path:-

Cliffs to south from approach path:-

Rocks below Dunnottar Castle:-

Cliffs to north and sea inlet, from Dunnottar Castle, Stonehaven War Memorial on hilltop:-

Stonehaven War Memorial on hill:-

After our visit to Dunnottar Castle we took a footpath which (eventually) leads to Stonehaven. This afforded more views of the northern cliffs:-

And of the Castle looking back:-

Northern cliffs again:-

Cistern in courtyard. This ensured the castle’s water supply:-

Cistern from upper floor of main building:-

Interior (with windows):-

Window seat:-

View from a window:-

Sundial and Lintel:-

Sundial and coat of arms information board:-

Fireplace. Inscribed, “In commemoration of the defence of the honours of Scotland Sep 1651 – Aug 1652 by George Ogilvy of Barras, Governor of Dunnottar and of the help given by his wife Elizabeth Douglas and her kinswoman Anne Lindsay.” Scroll down for the story.

Part of Restored Ceiling (Regi et Regno):-

Restored ceiling (In Defens):-

Castle buildings:-

Small window in above:-

From sea end of site:-

Courtyard area from outside its wall:-

Remains of chapel:-

Interior of chapel:-

Remains (with arch; garden area in foreground):-

Garden area with buildings beyond. (Stonehaven War Memorial on hill in background):-

Buildings (chapel to right):-

Late afternoon shadows (sea beyond):-

Dunnottar Castle lies just south of Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire. We had been meaning to visit there for some time but it wasn’t till January last year we finally made it.

Dunnottar Castle from approach path:-

As luck would have it we visited the National Gallery of Scotland shortly after and saw this stunning painting of the castle by Waller Hugh Paton:

As you can see it is perfectly situated from a defensive point of view, as it is perched on a rock poking out into the sea.

Castle entrance:-

Pattern in Stones on path leading up to castle:-

There’s a small tunnel like construction to go through before you reach the interior and the castle buildings:-

I posted photos of the exterior of Auckland Castle/Palace and of its chapel here.

Proceeding from the chapel into the Palace proper you come into the impressive Bishop’s Throne Room:-

Fireplace and painting:-

Ceiling:-

The Castle/Palace interior has been updated/redecorated over the years and some of the older fixtures and fittings have been kept.

Old wallpaper:-

Fireplace, chairs and table:-

Fireplace tiles:-

I can’t now remember if this stained glass window was in the chapell or elsewhere:-

Eventually the route through the Castle takes you to the Dining Room where the Zurbaran paintings are kept.

Dining Room:-

Dining Room linoleum:-

Dining Room Ceiling:-

Zurbarans Information Board:-

The last of the rooms accessible to the public is the 1930s study of the then bishop:-

Outbuildings looking back towards Castle:-

Outbuildings as seen from east:-

Chapel?:-

The prominence on which the Castle and Priory stand made it an ideal point to place military defences.

Remains of World War 2 gun emplacements:-

World War 2 artillery piece on wall beyond old graves:-

The gun itself:-

We visited Tynemouth again in December 2019 and this time had a look round the Castle and Priory.

Priory ruins from entrance:-

Tynemouth Castle (entrance to complex) looking back from Priory:-

Main structure of Priory:-

More ruins:-

From seaward side:-

Stained glass window on small chapel:-

The chapel feels quite cosy inside. Stained glass window:-

More stained glass:-

Tynemouth Priory and Castle are the most prominent (former) buildings in Tynemouth, Tyne and Wear.

It stands on a promontory overlooking the mouth of the River Tyne:-

On our first visit, in June 2019, we did not enter the premises.

Tynemouth Castle as seen from Tynemouth town. The Priory is unseen behind the castle in this view:-

From northwest, Priory to left:-

Castle Campbell lies in the hills above Dollar, Clackmannanshire, at the top of Dollar Glen. We visited it in October 2019.

The road leading up to it is quite narrow and the car park is a shortish walk away from the castle itself.

It wasn’t busy the day we went but it may be more so in summer.

Castle Campbell from path:-

Part of castle (with loggia):-

Information board in courtyard:-

Former Great Hall:-

Castle gable:-

Doorway from courtyard to grounds:-

Castle from grounds below:-

A vaulted ceiling:-

This ceiling has two carvings of faces that look a bit like the Green Man. There are holes at the mouths and it’s thought that lamps probably hung from there:-

Part of roof:-

Information board on the history of the Campbell family:-

View down to Dollar and the valley of the River Forth beyond:-

Castle from its grounds:-

Main tower block:-

Apparently this is William Lord Hastings’s tower:-

We climbed it. All 23 metres of it via 96 fairly steep steps. Knackering. This is a video of the panorama from the top. (All through our visit those church bells were ringing. It was a Saturday – the bell-ringers must have been practicing):-

Formal Gardens information board. There was no way to avoid my shadow on it!:-

This tower was in one corner of the grounds:-

In its heyday the castle was a centre for “noble” sports:-

This nearby field is said to be the jousting ground where Walter Scott set his tournament in Ivanhoe:-