Bothwell Castle

One of the best castles in Scotland to visit is the Bothwell Castle. In South Lanarkshire, Scotland, above a bend in the River Clyde, Bothwell Castle is a sizable medieval fortress. It lies around 16 km southeast of Glasgow, between Bothwell and Uddingston. The clan Murray's forefathers started building the fortress in the 13th century to protect a crucial Clyde crossing. Bothwell, which changed hands numerous times, was crucial to Scotland's independence struggles.

Although the enormous cylindrical donjon was constructed in the 13th century, it was severely damaged during several sieges before the rest of the castle was finished. The castle was expanded during construction in the early 15th century, but by the 18th century, it had been abandoned. The current ruin is rectangular, with the later Great Hall to the east and the remnants of the donjon to the west. Round towers are located at the southeast and southwest corners of the courtyard, which is surrounded by lengthy curtain walls. Scottish archaeologist William Douglas Simpson referred to the castle as one of the "most prominent secular constructions of the Middle Ages in Scotland".

Even though the castle was never finished according to plan, the fact that it has a round keep gives it in common with the fortresses of Coucy, Kildrummy, and Dirleton. The keep, which is now in ruins, once had walls that were 4.6 meters thick and measured 25 meters high and 19 meters in diameter.

Location: Bothwell, South Lanarkshire, Scotland