However George's strong Catholicism and political independence were later to lead to his falling out with the Royal Court and personally with Queen Mary. She defeated him at Corrichie on the Hill o' Fare , and as Huntly Castle being a Gordon house had become the focus of Roman Catholic opposition to the Reformation, it was beseiged, damaged and looted as a result and the treasures carried off, including the silk tent in which Edward II had slept before Bannockburn, given by Robert Bruce to St Machar's Cathedral in Aberdeen; other furnishings went to the Kirk o' Field, the house in Edinburgh where the Queen's husband Lord Darnley was mysteriously murdered.
George himself was killed in the battle, and his younger son executed. The King's response was to attack the castle, damaging it again and blowing up the remains of the old tower house on the north side of the enclosure. This was but a temporary set-back for this resilient, exuberant family which, in the century between and , was counted as the richest in Scotland , and by George had made his peace with King James VI and been promoted to Marquis of Huntly.
His response was a further round of building work at the castle, designed to make the palace even grander and more decorative. George Gordon, the 6th Earl was created 1st Marquess of Huntly in after injudicious rebellion in , and completed the palace, his 'full fayre house' by An immense inscription commemorating the marriage of George to the princess Lady Henrietta Stewart was triumphantly emblazoned across the whole From his work little was preserved of the old buildings, and from the midth century tower only the three basement vaults and a dark pit-prison cut into the foundations remained.
Some early graffiti survived on the plaster of the corridor here, and the midth century work of the 4th Earl who had rebuilt the castle from the ground floor up, only scattered sections of the exterior walling were left, the rest that became the Palace was added by the Marquis.
The remodelling of circa included the remarkable fireplaces still on view in the palace, one of which is dated , and the decorative oriel windows and inscription on the exterior of the upper floor of the palace.
The "16" and "02" together, date the completion of this part of the work. Also dating to this remodelling, is the incredible carved frontispiece stretching vertically above the main entrance to the palace on the courtyard side, being a continental influence and unique in Britain. Within, is the finest heraldic doorway in the UK, and a range of finely carved fireplaces; the oriels themselves became the inspiration years later for Alexander Forbes-Leith who added the wing to Chancellor Seton's immense castle of Fyvie.
Set over the earlier vaulted basement and dank prisons are a ground floor devoted to kitchen, service cellars and within the huge round tower, the steward's suite from which access to the lord's private chamber above could be had. There is a suggestion that the central oblong space above the cellars may have served as the castle chapel, and one of the aims of the survey was to determine whether there was any architectural evidence for this interpretation. The cellars appear to be significantly older than the suite of rooms above, dating to the midth century.
Although in the rooms above there was little diagnostic evidence to be found in the windows and their mouldings, in the W wall of the central room there was a moulding which may have been part of a doorway into the expanded E range.
The plain, raised moulding is indicative of a 17th-century date and is found exclusively in the buildings of the E range, which are considered to be the most recent buildings in the castle. The style of moulding is seen on edge quoins, windows and doorways. The survey forms part of a wider archaeological evaluation prior to tree planting to replace trees which have been felled due to disease.
Resistance surveys were undertaken as the main survey technique, with selected ground penetrating radar GPR transects also being collected to aid interpretation. Within an area to the SW of the castle, a relatively well-defined linear high resistance response has been recorded which is consistent with wall footings, a path or a stone drain.
The GPR data suggest it is more likely to be wall footings or an old path than a modern service. Broader areas of high resistance have also been recorded along the southern limits of this survey area. Although there are rectilinear elements to the anomalies, it is thought that these responses are primarily due to tree roots, benches and the car park affecting drainage.
A broad area of low resistance has been recorded in the east of this area. However, it has an extremely well-defined western limit which does not suggest a natural origin. Although the resistance data is consistent with a broad ditch type feature, there is no clear evidence in the GPR data for a ditch type feature associated with the low resistance anomaly. Within the area surveyed to the SE of the castle, a wide range of responses have been recorded which generally follow the topographic changes of the area.
A very well-defined low resistance response has been recorded in the north of the area. This corresponds with a break in the medieval road, and topographic changes to the north, suggesting it could indicate a ditch type feature, it coincides with an area of surface damage caused by recent tree felling.
GPR transects over this response indicate no suggestion of a ditch type feature suggesting it is most likely due to recent ground disturbance and associated repairs. A wide range of values have been recorded within a third area to the NE of the castle. However, it is thought that most of these are associated with the toilet and store block, and associated landscaping. Dictionary of Scottish Architects People. Mason's Marks Project.
Aberdeenshire Historic Environment Record. Dictionary of Scottish Architects Building. Skip to main content. Login Register. Background Colour Default Contrast. Close Reset. Huntly Castle. Details Collections Images. Toggle Aerial View on large map.
Correction Favourite. Digital Images. DP The Great Facade. DP Aberdeenshire, Huntly Castle. General view from SW. SC Huntly Castle. Oblique aerial photograph taken facing south-west. SC Interior view of fireplace in state room at Huntly Castle. SC Huntly Castle, Aberdeenshire. SC Estate Exchange. Detail of carved heraldic panels. DP The Great Chimneypiece. SC View from S. Oblique aerial photograph taken facing south-east. DP Oblique aerial view. Detail of carved lettering.
Powered by Every Castle - All rights reserved! Huntly Castle towers - Photos: geograph. Ballindalloch Castle. Balvenie Castle. Braemar Castle. Brodie Castle. Castle Fraser. Corgarff Castle. Crathes Castle. This was probably the first masonry structure on the site and would have consisted of a vaulted store on the ground floor, Great Hall on the first floor and accommodation on the levels above. Alexander died in and was followed by his son, also called Alexander, who took Gordon as his surname.
This prompted an attack on Huntly Castle by Archibald Douglas, Earl of Moray who burnt the castle causing significant damage. However, by the Black Douglases were broken leaving the Earl of Huntly as undisputed master of the north-east. This was reflected in the castle with construction starting on the southern range which would eventually become the main Palace.
The design was inspired from the continent and there was possibly some link with Suscinio Castle in Brittany which closely resembles the design of Huntly Castle. In James IV granted a charter formally changing the name of the site to Huntly Castle in order to synchronise with the Earldom. In the decades that followed further upgrades were made to the castle with the southern range evolving into a Palace as a direct replacement for the accommodation in the Tower House.
However, by the mid-sixteenth century the wealth of the Earl of Huntly was starting to been seen as a threat by the Government and opportunities were sought to limit his power. An opportunity arose through the Scottish Reformation which saw the suppression of the Catholic faith.
George Gordon, Fourth Earl of Huntly remained a staunch Catholic and continued to hear the mass despite its ban by the Reformation Act In October a Royal army was sent north to deal with the Earl and, following a short action at Corrichie, he was captured.
He died in an accident on his way south to Edinburgh to answer for his actions but, not to be denied a court hearing, the Government put his embalmed corpse on trial for treason. He was convicted and Huntly Castle was raided. This revealed spectacular wealth including the treasures of Aberdeen Cathedral which had been sent to the castle for safe keeping as the reformation got underway.
Despite the fate of the fourth Earl, the Gordons remained in control of the castle and also continued their support for the Catholic cause. Although the Protestants triumphed, George was able to retain his estates and died peacefully at the castle in However his son, also called George, participated in the Spanish Blanks plot, an attempt to seek foreign support to counter the effects of the Scottish Reformation. Huntly Castle was attacked by Royal forces and badly damaged including the destruction of the fifteenth century Tower House by gunpowder.
To mark his new found status the Marquis substantially enhanced the appearance of Huntly Castle restyling the south range to include oriel windows and the prominent inscription.
He added the Loggia and also started work on the East Range. However, his work was never completed for he became embroiled in the Wars of Three Kingdoms. Throughout he supported Charles I resulting in Huntly Castle being occupied, and subsequently vandalised, by Covenanter forces in It was briefly taken by Royalist forces during the campaign of James Graham, Marquis of Montrose in late but was soon abandoned.
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