Scotland’s Oldest Castle - Castle Sween, Argyll
Scotland’s oldest castle feels like it is in a rather understated location. First you park in a small, off road parking spot (only three spots available for visitors to the castle). Then you must follow a winding road through a holiday park, past static caravans, toilet facilities and a large bin area before you are finally delivered to the imposing walls of Castle Sween.
As I mentioned, Castle Sween (Caisteal Suibhne) is said to be the oldest castle in Scotland,with architectural details helping us date it to the 1100s. Suibhne/Sween comes from Suibhne Ruadh (Sweeney the Red, or Red-haired). It is likely that he was responsible for building the castle in the 1100s. Another fun fact about Suibhne Ruadh; his grandfather Aodh of Buirche’s nickname was ‘Hugh the Splendid’ making him a very hard act to follow.
At the time the castle was built, Argyll and the islands were controlled by King Magnus of Norway. This King was also called ‘Magnus Barefoot’ but think more ‘Barelegs’ because he was named for his fondness of western clothes, shorter tunics and jackets (and perhaps even kilts). Argyll and the castle were finally transferred to the King of Scotland, Alexander III in 1266.
The castle stands on a small, rocky outcrop in Knapdale, Argyll with great views over Loch Sween. The original castle is the central square portion, and its walls are six feet thick. You can see the incedibly thick walls in the photo below. The towers were added later.
Sadly, the castle has fallen into further ruin and the extensive scaffolding on the interior prevented us from seeing inside the towers, the bread oven, the quern stones in the kitchen, and the well. We did enjoy the impressive and very well preserved stonework (the corners alone are worth seeing!) and while there have more than likely been repairs, it has all been done very sympathetically.
Like many other parts of Scotland (that are only 30 minutes off a main road and have many people living there), I’ve seen Castle Sween described as ‘remote’. It’s not. And it’s well worth the visit.