A pink, turreted tower house in the Aberdeenshire hills, finished in 1626 and little changed since
Open to visitorscheck opening times and admission before you go
Standing remainssubstantial fabric survives to stand in front of
William Forbes, an Aberdeen merchant who made his fortune trading with the Baltic ports and was nicknamed Danzig Willy, bought a half-built tower here in 1610 and finished it in 1626. It is a tower house, a tall fortified family home rather than a castle built for war: seven storeys on an L-shaped plan, plain at the bottom and breaking out into turrets, corbels and little domed roofs at the top. Inside, the moulded plaster ceilings, with figures of the Nine Worthies, are counted among the finest in Scotland. The Forbes family lived here for about 350 years before selling it to the National Trust for Scotland in 1963. The pink lime render on the walls goes back to a restoration in the 1820s and has been renewed since. The castle is shown by guided tour only, in small groups during the summer season, but the woods and parkland trails are open all year, with views towards Bennachie. Alford is about 10 km to the north.
