Colquhonnie Castle

Colquhonnie Castle stands in the hills of Aberdeenshire, 16.9 kilometres north of Ballater. It is a ruined 16th-century tower house on a south-facing slope above the River Don. The building is shaped like an L and sits at an altitude of 285 metres. The Forbes family of Towie once owned the castle, and it later passed to Alexander Elphinstone, 1st Lord Elphinstone, in 1507. Tradition claims three lairds died during its construction, leaving it unfinished, though this is disputed. By the 18th century it was listed as a gentleman’s seat. The castle’s thick walls, up to 1.4 metres wide, enclose three vaulted basement rooms and a first-floor hall. The entrance in the south wall leads to a lobby and a narrow staircase. The kitchen in the north-west basement has a large fireplace and a slop drain, while two other rooms served as storage. The first-floor hall occupies the larger west wing, and the smaller east wing contains a vaulted chamber with its own fireplace and a tiny walled chamber lit by a slit window. A shot hole and gun loops protect the entrance, and a recess holds keys or a lamp. Visitors find the ruins on a moderately steep slope with wide views over Strathdon. The castle’s stone walls still show the layout of the lobby, kitchen, storage rooms and hall. Slit windows let light into the vaulted spaces, and traces of fireplaces and drains remain in place. The surrounding landscape is quiet, with the River Don flowing nearby. No moat survives, but the site’s position on the slope gives a sense of its former strength.