Dumbarton Castle II by danapommet

Photography • Historical • posted on Jul 15, 2011

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Description

This is the only path up, under the castle, through a defensive gatehouse and up to the fort itself. Defenders dumped boulders down on attackers - along with arrows and spears. I am adding more history mostly because of the names of the key players over the years. Zoom will not help. HISTORY - Alt Clut was the Viking name of area around Dumbarton and by 870, was home to a tightly packed British (Viking) settlement, which served as a fortress and as the capital of Alt Clut. The Vikings laid siege to Dumbarton for four months, eventually defeating the inhabitants when they ran out of water. The Norse king Olaf returned to the Viking city of Dublin in 871, with two hundred ships full of slaves and looted treasures. Olaf came to an agreement with Constantine I of Scotland, and Artgal of Alt Clut. Alt Clut 's independence may have come to an end with the death of Owen the Bald, when the dynasty of Kenneth mac Alpin began to rule the region. In medieval Scotland, Dumbarton (which means 'the fortress of the Britons') was an important royal castle. It sheltered David II and his young wife, Joan of The Tower after the Scottish defeat at Halidon Hill in 1333. In 1425 the castle was attacked by James the Fat, youngest son of Murdoch Stewart, Duke of Albany, who had been imprisoned by King James I of Scotland on charges of treason. James the Fat became a rallying point for enemies of the King, and raised a large rebellion against the crown. He marched on the town of Dumbarton and burned it, but was unable to take the castle, whose defender John Colquhoun successfully held out against James' men. In 1548, after the Battle of Pinkie, east of Edinburgh, the infant Mary, Queen of Scots was kept at the castle for several months before her removal to France for safety. In October 1570, Lord Fleming fortified the castle for Mary against the supporters of James VI of Scotland with stones he obtained by demolishing churches and houses in Dumbarton and Cardross. The castle's importance declined after Oliver Cromwell's death in 1658. Due to threats posed by Jacobites and the French in the eighteenth century, Britain built new structures and defences there and continued to garrison the castle until World War II. Info from Wikipedia. This 1995 photo was scanned. Thanks for stopping by my gallery, taking a look and for all your previous favs and comments. They are very much appreciated. Dana

Comments (32)

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jendellas

10:04AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Another great capture of this beautiful castle, thanks for the history too!!!

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fallen21

10:25AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Awesome view, wonderful capture!

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durleybeachbum

10:34AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

They were a fearsome lot, our ancestors! Another really fascinating photo.

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Feliciti

10:36AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

great captured this part !! like to read the history about !!

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rainbows

11:23AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Marvelous capture and history, dear Dana. A splendid work. Hugs. Di. xx

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moochagoo

11:52AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Very good historic story

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Texas3D

11:57AM | Fri, 15 July 2011

A beautiful view, nice capture

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kbrog

12:07PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Excellent POV and capture! :)

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jayfar

1:03PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Exellent picture and splendid information Dana, you have done your homework well.

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bmac62

1:11PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

This is a fascinating photo, but the narrative even surpasses the photo. My favorite character? Why James the Fat of course! ;-)

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jclP

3:47PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

wonderful capture!

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anmes

4:22PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Interesting POV

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m_j_s

5:10PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Wonderful POV here, nice shot!

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sandra46

5:28PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

great shot Dana

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qrud

6:11PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Very amazing pleace and excellent capture.

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bobrgallegos

6:23PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Awesome photo and story Dana!!!

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Faemike55

7:07PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Great photo and wonderful history lesson

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MrsRatbag

7:43PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

Fascinating stuff, and a wonderful image to go with it!

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npauling

9:01PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

A very impressive capture of this unusual castle. Amazing that the path goes right under the castle like that. Excellent clarity.

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CoreyBlack

10:32PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

I love those old names like Owen the Bald and James the Fat. It also gets me thinking about other lesser known people like Fred the Mildly Constipated, Tom the Boring, Steven the Deeply Strange and Joe the Totally Average... Amazing picture, almost inspires vertigo. And the history is fascinating!

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jocko500

10:50PM | Fri, 15 July 2011

wow lot of history is here. wonderful image of the place too

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eekdog

12:46AM | Sat, 16 July 2011

just love all the detailed info you provide dana, and always a great capture. thank you.

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Lashia

12:53AM | Sat, 16 July 2011

A beautiful home- thanks for sharing! :-)

Selina Photography™

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dakotabluemoon

6:26AM | Sat, 16 July 2011

Awesome job on this sweets.

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flavia49

8:37AM | Sat, 16 July 2011

gorgeous shot

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mariogiannecchini

9:01AM | Sat, 16 July 2011

Excellent capture and great story , Dana !

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dochtersions

12:04PM | Sat, 16 July 2011

A very special POV this is, and such high!!! A beautiful capture, Dana.

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goodoleboy

12:39PM | Sat, 16 July 2011

James the Fat? A most colorful cognomen, but doesn't sound very complimentary. Another stellar image from Scotland, this one displaying great POV, depth, clarity and texture, Dana.

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