Duchal Castle

About

The ruins of the large courtyard style Duchal Castle lie circa 1.5 miles south-west of Kilmacolm in the Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The castle stands at the bottom of the valley of the River Gryfe on a peninsula created by the Blacketty and Green Waters which have their confluence beyond the two deep gorges.

The castle was held from the 12th century by the Lyle, L'Isle, Lyell or Insula family. It seems unlikely that they were of the same Lisle family which had first settled in Northumberland. Ralph de Insula of Duchal is recorded in the reign of Alexander II (1198 – 1249) and he may have built the first castle here. In the mid 15th century Lord Lyle was ennobled by James II and a successor, Sir Robert Lyle became Lord Chief Justice and a Privy Councillor to James III. Lord Lyle had died in 1470 and his heiress had married Alexander Lyle of Craigbate. In 1513 James IV and his natural son James (see below), Archbishop of St Andrews, both died at the Battle of Flodden. The title of Lord Lyle passed to the descendants of Sir Neil Montgomerie of Lainshaw near Stewarton who had married Jean, daughter...