Strome Castle (4 of 8)
The history of Strome Castle is a bit woolly and much of it has been 'lost in the mists of time'! This is probably because nobody that ever lived here or nearby was able to write until quite recently, and it is only when major events occurred that word got out to the historians in the wider world!
The castle is said to have been built in the early 15th century by the Earls of Ross. Another source states that Strome Castle was first recorded in 1472 as a stronghold of the Lord of the Isles. This appears confusing at first until one appreciates that, unlike other centuries, the Lords of Isles were the Earls of Ross in the 15th century! Sadly the great Lordship of the Isles was in terminal and self induced decline by this period. In 1462, John Macdonald, Lord of the Isles, rashly entered into a treaty with Edward IV of England, who, when in 1476 it suited him, revealed the details of this treaty to the Scottish crown. While his sentence of forfeiture was eventually reversed, the Lordship of the Isles was controlled by the crown from this date on. (And still is - Prince Charles is Lord of the Isles these days)
At about the time all this was going on, Alan MacDonald Dubh, 12th Chief of the Clan Cameron was made Constable of Strome by the MacDonalds. With the decline of the MacDonalds, the Camerons seem to have kept Strome, possession being confirmed to Camerons of Lochiel in 1495 by a Royal Charter signed by King James IV.
Strome Castle (4 of 8)
The history of Strome Castle is a bit woolly and much of it has been 'lost in the mists of time'! This is probably because nobody that ever lived here or nearby was able to write until quite recently, and it is only when major events occurred that word got out to the historians in the wider world!
The castle is said to have been built in the early 15th century by the Earls of Ross. Another source states that Strome Castle was first recorded in 1472 as a stronghold of the Lord of the Isles. This appears confusing at first until one appreciates that, unlike other centuries, the Lords of Isles were the Earls of Ross in the 15th century! Sadly the great Lordship of the Isles was in terminal and self induced decline by this period. In 1462, John Macdonald, Lord of the Isles, rashly entered into a treaty with Edward IV of England, who, when in 1476 it suited him, revealed the details of this treaty to the Scottish crown. While his sentence of forfeiture was eventually reversed, the Lordship of the Isles was controlled by the crown from this date on. (And still is - Prince Charles is Lord of the Isles these days)
At about the time all this was going on, Alan MacDonald Dubh, 12th Chief of the Clan Cameron was made Constable of Strome by the MacDonalds. With the decline of the MacDonalds, the Camerons seem to have kept Strome, possession being confirmed to Camerons of Lochiel in 1495 by a Royal Charter signed by King James IV.