Broadstone Castle and Barony

Broadstone Castle stood half a mile east of Beith in North Ayrshire, within the old Barony of Giffen. Its ruins remained until about 1850, when stones were taken to rebuild Broadstonehall Farm. The site, known as Broadstone Crags, still shows where the castle once stood. An avenue of trees and traces of a garden survived until the farm was built. Mr W Kerr of Broadstonehall pointed out the castle’s location in 1855. The castle belonged to the Montgomerie family for centuries. John de Lyddale held Braidstone in 1452, and Sir Hugh Montgomerie was born there in 1560. He became Viscount Montgomery of the Great Ardes in 1622 and helped introduce linen weaving to Ireland. The Shaws later gained control of the estate through a mortgage in 1650. Broadstone Hall was home to Sir M. S. Stewart in the 1820s. Visitors today see the remains of the castle on Broadstone Crags. Nearby, Windyhouse Farm still stands with its retting pit for flax. The ‘Baney Hole’, a former quarry or bell pit, lies close by. The Powgree Burn flows through the area, where Crooked Dam once powered the barony mill. Marshaland, Craig and Geilsland houses overlook the land, and a memorial in Beith Auld Kirk honours the Browns of Broadstone.