- Blair Castle
"'Blair Castle stands in its grounds near the
village ofBlair Atholl inPerthshire inScotland . It is the home of the Murray family, who hold the title ofDuke of Atholl , though the current (11th) Duke, John Murray, (born 1929) lives inSouth Africa .The Castle is said to have been started in 1269 by
John I Comyn, Lord of Badenoch , a northern neighbour of the Earl of Atholl, who started building on the Earl's land while he was away oncrusade . Upon his return, the Earl complained about the interloper to King Alexander III, won back his land and incorporated the tower that had been built into his own Castle.It commands a strategic position on the main route through the Central Scottish Highlands. Lowland
Clan Agnew held Blair Castle, seat of the Duke of Atholl, against the Jacobites who laid siege to the castle during the Jacobite uprising of 1745-1746. They were besieged to near starvation until the Jacobite forces withdrew to fight the British Government forces at theBattle of Culloden .The Castle, one of Scotland's major stately homes, is open for visitors on a daily basis (entrance charge). Its many rooms feature important collections of weapons, hunting trophies, souvenirs of the Murray clan, ethnographica, paintings, furniture, needlework etc, collected by the Murray family over many generations.
The castle also provides the garrison for the
Atholl Highlanders , the private army of the Duke of Atholl, noted as the only legal private army inEurope .The Castle and Atholl Estates were used in the series
Conquer the Castle External links
* [http://www.blair-castle.co.uk/ Official site]
ee also
*
List of places in Perth and Kinross
*List of places in Highland
*List of places in Angus
*List of places in Aberdeenshire
*List of places in Stirling district
*List of places in Argyll and Bute * [http://www.wedding-video-perthshire.co.uk/directory/89283.html Blair Castle wedding info page]
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