Saddell Castle is a 16th century tower house

Tower house

A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation.-History:Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountain or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strategic points with reduced forces...

 on the shore of the Kilbrannan Sound

Kilbrannan Sound

Kilbrannan Sound is a marine water body that separates the Kintyre Peninsula of Scotland from the island of Arran. Kilbrannan Sound is the western arm of the Firth of Clyde.-References:...

 near Saddell

Saddell

Saddell is a small Scottish village situated on the east side of the Kintyre Peninsula of Argyll and Bute, overlooking the Kilbrannan Sound and the Isle of Arran, 8 miles from Campbeltown on the B842 road to Carradale. The name Saddell is derived from the Norse for sandy dale.-Saddell...

, Kintyre

Kintyre

Kintyre is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The region stretches approximately 30 miles , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south, to East Loch Tarbert in the north...

, Argyll and Bute

Argyll and Bute

Argyll and Bute is both one of 32 unitary council areas; and a Lieutenancy area in Scotland. The administrative centre for the council area is located in Lochgilphead.Argyll and Bute covers the second largest administrative area of any Scottish council...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.

History

Built by David Hamilton

David Hamilton (bishop)

David Hamilton, Bishop of Argyll and Abbot of Dryburgh was a late medieval Scottish prelate. He was an illegitimate son of James Hamilton, Lord Hamilton, and brother of the James Hamilton, Earl of Arran....

, Bishop of Argyll

Bishop of Argyll

The Bishop of Argyll or Bishop of Lismore was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Argyll, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics. It was created in 1200, when the western half of the territory of the Bishopric of Dunkeld was formed into the new diocese. The bishops were based at Lismore...

, between 1508–1512, the castle was built from the stones of the ruined Saddell Abbey

Saddell Abbey

Saddell Abbey was a Cistercian monastery in Argyll, Scotland, founded in 1207 by Raghnall, son of Somairle mac Gille Brigte. It was established by monks from Mellifont Abbey in Ireland. Very little is known about the abbey and its history. It probably enjoyed several centuries of good monastic...

. The castle was gifted to James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran by Bishop James Hamilton

John Hamilton (archbishop)

The Most Rev. Dr. John Hamilton , Scottish prelate and politician, was an illegitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran....

, as payment of debts and taxes in 1556. The Earl of Arran exchanged it with the Chief of Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg

Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg

Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg, also known as Clan Donald South, Clan Iain Vor, Clan MacDonald of Islay and Kintyre, MacDonalds of the Glens and sometimes referred to as MacDonnells, is a Scottish clan and a branch of Clan Donald...

, James MacDonald

James MacDonald, 6th of Dunnyveg

James Mac Domhnaill or MacDonald in Scotland, 6th of Dunnyveg , a Scoto-Irish chieftain, who was the son of Alexander MacDonald, lord of Islay and Kintyre , and Catherine MacDonald, daughter of the Lord of Ardnamurchan....

 in exchange for James's lands on the Isle of Arran

Isle of Arran

Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...

. The castle was ransacked and burnt in 1558 by Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex

Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex

Thomas Radclyffe 3rd Earl of Sussex was Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland during the Tudor period of English history, and a leading courtier during the reign of Elizabeth I.- Family:...

, Lord Deputy of Ireland

Lord Deputy of Ireland

The Lord Deputy was the King's representative and head of the Irish executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and later the Kingdom of Ireland...

 under orders of Queen Mary I of England

Mary I of England

Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...

 in retaliation of James's involvement in Ireland against the English. The castle was later rebuilt and enlarged together with a trap door in the main entrance passage, which upon activation, sent unwanted visitors into a dungeon which had no exits. In 1607, the Clan Donald

Clan Donald

Clan Donald is one of the largest Scottish clans. There are numerous branches to the clan. Several of these have chiefs recognised by the Lord Lyon King of Arms; these are: Clan Macdonald of Sleat, Clan Macdonald of Clanranald, Clan MacDonell of Glengarry, Clan MacDonald of Keppoch, and Clan...

 lands in Kintyre, including Saddell, were conveyed by King James VI

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

 to Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll

Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll

Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll , also called "Gillesbuig Grumach", was a Scottish politician and military leader.-Biography:...

. The castle fell into disrepair when Saddell House was built c.1774. The castle was bought by the Landmark Trust

Landmark Trust

The Landmark Trust is a British building conservation charity, founded in 1965 by Sir John and Lady Smith, that rescues buildings of historic interest or architectural merit and then gives them a new life by making them available for holiday rental...

and the castle was restored. The castle can be rented out as a self-catering property from the Landmark Trust.