Slains redirects here; note that the term can also be used to refer to the general area surrounding the castle

New Slains Castle

New Slains Castle is a ruined castle near Cruden Bay in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, overlooking the North Sea. This article is about ruins in Architecture; for other meanings see Ruins (disambiguation. A castle is a defensive structure seen as one of the main symbols of the Middle Ages. Cruden Bay is a Village in Scotland, on the north coast of the Bay of Cruden in Aberdeenshire, 26 miles North of Aberdeen. Aberdeenshire (Siorrachd Obar Dheathain is one of the 32 unitary Council areas in Scotland. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The North Sea is a marginal, Epeiric sea of the Atlantic Ocean on the European Continental shelf.

The remains stand perched atop tall, sea-facing cliffs, constructed around an existing tower house built in 1597 by the 9th Earl of Erroll. Towers are tall human-made Structures that are always taller than they are wide usually by a significant Margin. Francis Hay 9th Earl of Erroll ( 30 April, 1564 &ndash July 16, 1631) Scottish nobleman was the son of Andrew 8th earl and of Significant reconstruction of the castle has been carried out a number of times, lastly in 1837. Year 1837 ( MDCCCXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common It was altered in 1664 when a corridor was inserted within the courtyard and again in 1836 it was rebuilt and granite faced. At one time it had three extensive gardens.

Slains Castle at sunset, February 2008.

History

The Earls of Erroll, the Hay family, were a powerful family in the area for generations and prospered after William George Hay, the 18th Earl of Errol, married the daughter of King William IV. Clan Hay is a Scottish clan, associated with the regions of Perth and Aberdeen, which has played an important part in the history and politics of Scotland William IV (William Henry 21 August 1765 &ndash 20 June 1837 was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until The 9th Hay Earl of Erroll built it after James VI had destroyed his castle at Old Slains at Cruden Bay, after the Hays participated in the rebellion of 1594. James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625 was King of Scotland as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James But over time misfortunes befell the Hays and in 1916 the castle and contents were put up for sale. Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year

Current Slains Pursuivant, Peter Drummond-Murray of Mastrick, derives his title from New Slains Castle

The castle was then sold in 1916 and fell into disrepair in the first quarter of the 20th century, after more than 300 years of occupation by the Errolls. Slains Pursuivant of Arms is a private officer of arms appointed by the Chief of the Name and Arms of Hay – presently the Earl of Erroll, Lord High Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The twentieth century of the Common Era began on The castle was bought by Sir John Ellerman of the shipping line. Sir John Reeves Ellerman 1st Baronet, CH (1862&ndash1933 was an English shipowner and investor He in turn gave it up in 1925 and its roof was removed to avoid paying taxes. Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. That led to the inevitable ruin seen today. Once a major stronghold and occupying a large area, it consisted of a massive 15th century keep, a fragment of which survives, and a courtyard defended by ditches. The castle was originally a property of the Comyns but passed to the Hay Earls of Erroll early in the 14th century.

In the late 19th century, the 19th Earl of Erroll entertained many celebrities at the castle. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar It is documented to be Bram Stoker's inspiration for the castle of Count Dracula. Abraham "Bram" Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912 was an Irish writer of novels and short stories who is best known today for his 1897 horror Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker, featuring as its primary Antagonist the vampire Count Dracula. In 1948, the Earl of Erroll accorded the title Slains Pursuivant to his newly revived private officer of arms and appointed Michael Maclagan to the position. Slains Pursuivant of Arms is a private officer of arms appointed by the Chief of the Name and Arms of Hay – presently the Earl of Erroll, Lord High A private officer of arms is one of those Heralds and Pursuivants appointed by great noble houses to handle all heraldic and genealogical Michael Maclagan, CVO, FSA, FRHistS ( 14 April 1914 London — 13 August 2003 Oxford was Fellow and Tutor in The current holder of the office, Peter Drummond-Murray of Mastrick is a retired banker and an authority on heraldry.

Bram Stoker was staying in a local hotel in Cruden Bay when he heard of Slains Castle - which he saw as 'the castle of the dead' and was inspired to write his most famous novel, Dracula.

The ruin of the 13th century Old Slains Castle^[1] lie about 6 miles to the Southwest. The older castle, also a family seat of the Errolls, was blown up by James VI as a punishment for their part in the 1597 plot by the Earl of Huntly against him. James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625 was King of Scotland as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James Marquess of Huntly is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created on April 17, 1599, for George Gordon 6th Earl of Huntly, making it

Architecture

At first inspection the ruin appears to be a blend of several different architectural styles and periods, due to diverse masonry including older mortared granite, mortared medieval red brick, mortared sandstone and newer well faced granite. Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar, and the term "masonry" can also refer to the units themselves Mortar is a workable paste formed by mixture of Cement, Water and fine aggregate Masonry to bind construction blocks together and fill the gaps between Granite (ˈɡrænɪt is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, Felsic, igneous rock. In fact most of the architecture seems to derive from a rather cohesive interval 1597 to 1664, which construction is the most expansive and includes the mortared rough granite and medieval brick. The 1836 work adds smoother granite facing that contrasts with the older construction style.

The defensive works of the castle include use of the North Sea cliffs, an abyss to the west that functions as a deep impassable moat and a ruined rampart that would have been the main entrance on the south^[2]. The North Sea is a marginal, Epeiric sea of the Atlantic Ocean on the European Continental shelf. A moat is deep broad Trench, usually filled with Water, that surrounds a structure installation or town normally to provide it with a preliminary line of The rampART is a squatted Social centre in the Whitechapel area of East London. The ruins include reasonably well preserved elements of three and four story structural elements and a basement course over some of the range, especially at the eastern side. There are well preserved basement kitchen works with numerous firepits and masonry indented storage spaces. The firebox or firepit is the part of the fireplace where fuel is combusted in distinction to the Hearth, Chimney, mantle, Overmantle and

The internal doorways are primarily of well preserved wooden lintel construction, with numerous examples of mortared sandstone archways and medieval brickwork archways. For lintel as a decorative element see Lintel (architecture For beam as load-bearing member see beam Sandstone is a Sedimentary rock composed mainly of Sand -size Mineral or rock grains. The interior of the ground level is a maze of passageways and smaller rooms, reflecting a high state of occupancy in 17th century times.

Conversion into holiday homes

In October 2007, it was announced that the ruins of New Slains Castle have been fenced-off to the public prior to their conversion into holiday homes by the Slains Partnership. ^[3]

External links

• Photographic history of Slains Castle
• Local Photos of Slains Castle

References