Dirleton Castle

Dirleton Castle lies in the village of Dirleton in Scotland.

This castle is said to be in origin one of Scotland's few 'proper' medieval castles. Its oldest parts date back to the 13th century and are built in the typical style of the period, characterized by thick-walled round towers. Most of the original towers have been destroyed or replaced, but the largest one remains, containing a beautiful gloomy lord's hall and with a vaulted stone roof.

The castle also contains the remnants of a spacious Renaissance house built in the 16th century in the courtyard and a long hall range which was constructed in several phases in the 14th and 15th century.

The castle was built by John de Vaux, a member of a Norman family who came here in the 12th century. In the 13th and 14th century the castle was besieged several times. In the middle of the 14th century the De Vaux family died out and the shattered castle passed into the hands of the Halyburton family who rebuilt the castle and kept it for the next two centuries.

In 1505 the castle passed into the hands of the Ruthven family. In 1650 came the last siege of Dirleton Castle by Cromwell's army. They demolished the castle after which it fell into decay.

This is a beautiful ruin if you like lots of stairways and doorways and rooms with a lot of very nice architectural details. It's owned by Historic Scotland. You have to pay a small fee to get in and there is a little shop.

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