LeJog Day#26 Dunrobin Castle

Today I rode for another 42 kilometers and passed by Dunrobin Castle from where I sent a quick postcard (see below). With only 84 kilometers left until the end, I will arrive either tomorrow or the day after depending how many kilometers my wake up time allows me to. Meanwhile here are some interesting facts about Dunrobin Castle :

Rich in both mediaeval and Jacobite history, the castle itself was probably named after Robert, the 6th Earl of Sutherland, who died in 1427. Mediaeval Scotland was a largely tribal society, and the arch manipulator of the clans was Robert the Bruce, who planted the Gordon family – who were related to the legitimate Sutherland occupiers – in the castle temporarily to further his aims. 

The Sutherlands (the Gordons changed their name) were in trouble again in the 18th century, providing unpopular support to the British government during the Jacobite Rebellion rather than to the popular Young Pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie. Escaping literally by the back door, the 17th Earl lived to fight another day and joined the Duke of Cumberland’s army.

In more recent times, the Castle has served both as hospital during the First World War, then after restoration from fire damage, as a school for a brief period in the 1960s and 1970s. Today, the Sutherland family still live there, and much of the Castle is open to the public between April and October. See if you can catch one of the falconry displays given in the Castle grounds.