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Location
Near Ayr, Ayrshire, Scotland
Description
Culzean Castle sits on a cliff above coves, and is close to Maybole in Carrick, on Scotland's Ayrshire coast.
The castle is three storeys high and is protected by a tall wall. There is an abundance of plants around it, and its clock tower is visible from outside the keep. There are many, many windows in both rectangular and arched varieties, and several chimneys are visible on the roof.
Facilities
Culzean Castle is open to the public, and also serves as a hotel with a number of private suites. It accommodates for weddings and receptions as well as business functions and the like.
History
The earliest records of there being a tower on the estate are from the 1400s, but it is possible that there was a building there earlier still. It was once known as 'Coif Castle' or 'House of Cove' due to the coves lying beneath it. The history of Culzean on record stems from 1569 when the 4th Earl of Cassillis gave the Culzean lands to his brother, Sir Thomas Kennedy, who started to expand the tower in the 1590s. Culzean became more of a home than a castle and its gardens and terraces were constructed by the 1700s. Around this same time the name was changed to Culleane Castle. In the same century, the modest tower house was altered vastly and became the mansion of sorts that it is today.
The castle was given to the National Trust for Scotland in 1945.
The Arts
Culzean featured in the 1973 film, The Wicker Man. It has also appeared in Most Haunted in 2002.
Other Castles in the Area
Baltersan Castle, South Ayrshire
Brodick Castle, Ayrshire
Caprington Castle, Ayrshire
Cloncaird Castle, Ayrshire
Dundonald Castle, Ayrshire
Dunure Castle, Ayrshire
Greenan Castle, Ayrshire
Kildonan Castle, Ayrshire
Thomaston Castle, Ayrshire
Turnberry Castle, Ayrshire
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