What is recorded here

Menstrie Castle is a three-storey fortified house built around 1560 for the Alexander family, who later produced Sir William Alexander, 1st Earl of Stirling, the man who helped found Nova Scotia before dying bankrupt in London. The castle survived his failure, burned by Montrose in 1645, passed to the Holborne family, and still stands in Menstrie with rooms now used for housing and a small museum. Its history is a ladder of rises and losses: a poet born inside it, a colony sold through it, a fire that broke it open, and ordinary people carrying what remained forward.

Scotland's National Record of the Historic Environment records Menstrie Castle as Fortified House (period Unassigned), House(s) (17th Century). 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.

Menstrie Castle was built by the Menzies family in the 16th century and later held by the Drummonds in the 17th century. It is remembered as a significant example of a Scottish fortified house and for its historical association with prominent noble families in Clackmannanshire.

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