Dunans Castle

Dunans Castle stands in Glendaruel on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The building began as a simple property in the 16th century and became a mock castle in 1864. The Fletcher Clan lived there for over two centuries after moving in between 1715 and 1745. The architect Andrew Kerr extended the mansion into a dramatic Franco-baronial castle with four main apartments and six bedrooms. In 1997 the estate was sold and split up, and the castle passed out of Fletcher hands. A fire in 2001 gutted the building, leaving only the west wing undamaged. The castle has three resident ghosts and once included a much larger estate of 3,000 acres. The Fletcher door from Achallader Castle was used in the private chapel and went missing in 1999. The fire started in the attic and destroyed three floors while the pre-Victorian west wing survived. The owner ignored fire safety warnings and the insurers refused to pay, so the building was abandoned. New owners now restore the site with support from the Dunans Charitable Trust. Visitors find a Category B listed ruin with ongoing restoration. A Victorian path network winds through the 16-acre grounds. Dunans Bridge, designed by Thomas Telford in 1815, leads to the castle and commemorates the battle of Waterloo. Nearby stands the Fletcher of Dunans Mausoleum in the gardens of Stronardron House. The estate also once included Dunans Lodge and Dunans Cottage, now privately owned. The owners run a scheme where people can symbolically own a square foot of land and use the title Laird or Lady of Dunans.