Scotland · Ruin
Cairns Castle
Cairns Castle is a 15th-century ruined keep on the northern slope of the Pentland Hills, near the south-west end of Harperrig Reservoir in West Lothian, Scotland. The building originally comprised a main rectangular keep with an adjoining wing, a vaulted basement, a ground-floor kitchen and a hall above, connected by a turnpike stair; an eastern entrance tower once stood beside it. The site is a scheduled monument.
Its prime
1450
Today
Ruin
As it stood in 1450
What Cairns Castle looked like in its prime.
A compact rectangular stone keep rising to at least three storeys with an attached lateral wing set into the hillside above Harperrig Reservoir. At prime the keep presented continuous masonry walls, a separate entrance tower on the east, and a corner turnpike stair linking basement, kitchen, hall and upper floors; the basement was vaulted and the ground floor contained the kitchen, with the great hall occupying the floor above. The castle sat exposed on the northern slope of the Pentland Hills overlooking the reservoir.
Its story
The story of Cairns Castle.
Cairns Castle is a ruined 15th-century keep on the northern slope of the Pentland Hills, at the south-west end of Harperrig Reservoir in West Lothian. The main rectangular block and its adjoining wing rose at least three storeys over a vaulted basement, with a kitchen on the ground floor and a hall above, all reached by a turnpike stair set in the corner between block and wing.
An entrance tower once stood to the east but no longer exists, and at some point the kitchen fireplace was converted into an entrance. The ruin may also have been known as Easter Cairns Castle, though that name may belong to another castle in the area. It has been a scheduled monument since 1981, and was a category B listed building until de-listed in 2015.
Step inside
8 places to explore in 1450.
The record describes 8 distinct spots at Cairns Castle, including 5 interiors: vaulted basement, ground-floor kitchen, great hall (first floor) and more. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.
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Cairns Castle on paper: the measured plan and period views.
The survey plan and photographs below are the ground truth this page's reconstructions are checked against, drawn and photographed while the castle was still a working garrison. Every image is public-domain or openly licensed, with its source named.
Fig. 1377. — East Cairns Castle. Plan of First Floor.
1892 · MacGibbon & Ross, vol. 5 (1892)
Public domain
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