If you have spent most of your life in a relatively young country like I have, then the concept of exploring a building that has been in use for thousands of years instead of the just hundreds is very intriguing. When you tour a few of these ancient buildings like the famous Scotland castles during a Scotland vacation you would find each has a rich history with friendly guides that are more than happy to fill you in.

The Purpose of Castles

The first Scotland castles were simple fortifications to keep one group of people safe from all the other groups of people out to get them. In the beginning these forts were thrown up using tall wooden palisades cut from nearby trees. Wood was also the material used to erect the tower within. These groups tried to pick the best spots for there fortifications like the top of a hill, a sharp bend in a river, or a nice sea cliff. But if those were not available the people would build there own hills and redirect the river to circle part of there keep.

As time went by and these groups grew larger and stronger they would replace the wooden tower with one made of stone, then the wooden fortification walls would be replaced with stronger stone ones as well. Often in Scotland the tower itself would be built in such a way that outer walls were no longer necessary. The people that would live inside the safety of these towers were the ones that were considered the leaders while the ones that lived outside the walls were the farmers. When danger was on its way, in the form of other clans or the Vikings, everyone that could, would quickly spill into the fortification and the large gates would be closed behind them. Wouldn’t you have hated being left outside those gates?

You can visit these ancient Scotland castles and hear all there stories and legends while looking at the actual structures yourself.

Above photo of Castle Stuart, Inverness, Scotland by conner395

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