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Clackmannan Tower

Castle (medieval), Tower House (medieval)
Clackmannan Tower
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What is recorded here

Clackmannan Tower rose from King’s Seat Hill in the 14th century as a Bruce stronghold, its L-shaped stone body watching the Forth valley for four hundred years. Lady Catherine Bruce knelt Robert Burns before her death in 1791, then abandoned the house to rot above hidden mines until engineers stabilized the crumbling frame. The parapet walk is open again, exposing machicolations that once dropped misery on attackers and now drop shadows across the valley at dusk.
Scotland's National Record of the Historic Environment records Clackmannan Tower as Castle (medieval), Tower House (medieval). The official map says its point is accurate as follows: NGR given to the nearest 1m. The record does not by itself mean that the public may enter the place.
Clackmannan Tower was built in the late 13th or early 14th century by the Comyn family, a powerful noble dynasty in medieval Scotland. It is important as a well-preserved example of a medieval tower house and as a site associated with the historical conflict between the Comyns and the Balliols during the Wars of Scottish Independence.

The historic-place record does not grant public access. Check current conditions and ownership before entering land or a building.

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Photo: Euan Nelson · CC BY-SA 2.0