Rait Castle: A Ruined Hall-House Castle in Scotland
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.5
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Primary era
- Medieval
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Kingdom of Scotland
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page6 sections
History
Rait Castle is a ruined hall-house castle near Nairn in Scotland, United Kingdom. Built in the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century, it is a fortified residence organized around a principal hall, with storage space below and living space above. The castle’s history is associated with the Comyn, Mackintosh, and Campbell families, whose changing ownership shaped its later development.
The de Raits and the Mackintoshes
The castle was originally held by the Comyn family, who adopted the name de Rait. Sir Alexander de Rait killed the third Thane of Cawdor, the chief of Clan Calder, and fled south. There he married the heiress of Hallgreen. Rait Castle later passed from the de Raits to the Mackintosh family, and subsequently to the Campbell family of Cawdor.
In 1442, during the transfer of the castle from the de Raits to the Mackintoshes, a feast held at Rait ended in the slaughter of most of the Comyns and de Raits. A later tradition blamed the laird’s daughter for the violence. According to the story, he pursued her through the castle, and when she climbed out of a window, he cut off her hands before she fell to her death. The castle is consequently said to be haunted by her handless ghost.
Later references and protection
The last recorded reference to Rait Castle dates from 1596. The Duke of Cumberland, William Augustus, is said to have stayed there before the Battle of Culloden in 1746, during the government campaign against the Jacobites. The castle is owned by the Earl Cawdor. It is a scheduled monument, meaning that it receives protection under Scottish heritage law for its national historic or archaeological importance, and it is also a Category A listed building, the highest level of listed-building protection in Scotland.
Remains
The granite hall-house
Rait Castle is a two-storey granite building measuring approximately 20 by 10 metres and rising to about 11 metres. Its walls are nearly 1.8 metres thick. The ground floor was used for storage and has a straight, unvaulted ceiling, while the upper storey contained the principal hall, or great hall. An external stair led to the upper level, whose entrance was defended by a portcullis, a vertically descending gate, and a drawbar, a horizontal beam used to secure a door.
A tower projects from one corner of the building. On the west side, a garderobe tower projects nearly 4 metres from the wall. A garderobe was a medieval latrine, commonly placed in a projecting chamber so that waste could fall outside the main structure.
Courtyard and chapel
South of the hall lies a courtyard that incorporates a steep granite outcrop. Its surviving wall is about 2.7 metres high and approximately 0.76 metres thick. The courtyard-wall remains also include the remains of a Marian chapel, a chapel dedicated to or associated with the Virgin Mary.
Nearby sites
