Castle Cary Castle

Castle Cary Castle stands near Falkirk in Scotland, about six miles away and close to the Antonine Wall. A fifteenth-century tower house, it began as a simple rectangle before later wings were added. The site lies near one of the Roman forts along the Antonine Wall, and stones from that fort were reused in the castle’s walls. The castle has strong links to Scottish history and notable figures. Mary Queen of Scots reportedly visited and planted yew trees with Mary Livingston. It was later owned by the Livingstones, Baillies, and Thomas Dunbar, passing through marriages and changing hands over centuries. The antiquary Alexander Baillie was probably born here, and his sister Lizzie famously eloped from a third-storey window. Today the castle is a private residence, though traces of its past remain visible. The tower and later wing show defensive features like crow-stepped gables and a machicolated projection. Inside, a barrel-vaulted cellar and wall paintings survive, along with an iron grille from the original door. The surrounding ditch, once filled in, hints at the castle’s earlier defences.