Forres Castle

Forres Castle was a royal castle near Forres in Moray, Scotland. Built as a motte and bailey fort, it stood on a raised earth mound with an enclosed courtyard. The site dates back to at least the 12th century, when King David I made Forres a royal burgh. Before the castle, a Viking raid destroyed an earlier fort there in 850. Scottish kings including William the Lion and Alexander II stayed at the castle in the 12th and 13th centuries. David II visited in 1346, soon before the castle was burned in 1390. The castle changed hands many times. After the Wars of Independence it was held by the Dunbars of Westfield until the 17th century. Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, set fire to it in 1390. Earlier, in 1297, supporters of William Wallace demolished the castle. By the 17th century it had fallen into ruins and no visible remains survive above ground. Today the castle site is a grassy mound beside Forres town centre. A small park marks the spot where the motte once rose. Visitors can walk around the mound and see the outline of the bailey walls in the ground. The town itself preserves the royal burgh layout from the 12th century. From the mound there are views over Forres and the surrounding Moray countryside.