Castle Lachlan and Strathlachlan
Castles, Dwellings and Memorials of Clan MacLachlan

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SAVE OLD CASTLE LACHLAN

Driving Directions From Inverary

From Inveraray on Loch Fyne, the shortest route is to take the main road A83 North from Inverary about 10 miles around the top of Loch Fyne. Then turn south on A815 for another 10 miles down the opposite shore of Loch Fyne to Strachur, the village closest to the castles. To visit Old Castle Lachlan and Kilmorie Chapel proceed south four miles on A886 along the shore of Loch Fyne, then turn down a single track road B8000 to Strathlachlan and Castle Lachlan.

single track road enroute to Strathlachlan	Inverary to Strathlachlan Map

The Old Castle

Click piper to play "Fyne Theme Medley - MacLachlan's Wedding/Stu's Hornpipe" by the Hawera Highland Pipe Band, the Official Band of Clan MacLachlan, NZ

• Built sometime between the 13th and 15th centuries; setting of the actual date is under scholarly debate.
• Has a unique design in Scotland. Outward appearance is of a large keep. Interior actually consists of two large tenements between which is an open court. Tenements are connected along the north side.
• Outside dimensions: 70' north to south, 54' east to west, 43' to top of battlements
• Situated on the eastern shore of Loch Fyne near the present day town of Newton. The castle is four miles from Strachur.
• Fortifications were constructed around the castle for protection.
• Four stories plus cellars and battlements. All floors shown. Great Hall on second floor is said to have been used as a "council room and gathering hall on festal occasions".
• Rain water was collected for communal use in the ground floor well (really a cistern system).

St. Bride's Chapel (Kilmorie) - Burying Place of the Clan Chiefs

• The chapel's roof was removed so the building would not be taxed.
• MacLachlan Chiefs are buried in the chapel. Many of the older graves are covered by stones as ornate as those carved by the Knights Templar.
• Renovation of the chapel was completed in 2006; the below photos were taken at the dedication.

Following the dedication ceremony, the Chief greets Daphne MacLachlan (left) from Australia, and the Lord Lieutenant MacKinnon in the restored inner crypt. The chapel was likely part of a medieval church, the stones of which, tradition says, were used in the construction of the present Strathlachlan parish church and possibly the present Castle Lachlan.

The New Castle

• Construction started on new castle in the latter half of the 18th century.
• Property is still owned by the MacLachlan Chief.

Castle Ewen - Castle of Clan MacEwen

• The current ruins are little more than a pile of rocks above otter ferry.
• Property is privately owned and not easily accessible.

Memorial Cairns Around the World

• (top left) Culloden Battlefield Cairn.
• (top center left) Cairn atop Grandfather Mountain in Linville, North Carolina. Each clan represented contributed a stone from their ancestral castle to build the monument.
• (top center right) The plaque on Grandfather Mountain cairn.
• (top right) Cairn dedicated to the 42nd Regiment of Foot (the Black Watch) was dedicated on July 5th, 1997, at Fort Ticonderoga in New York. Several MacLachlans were members of the Black Watch when the regiment fought the French in 1758 and 1759.

This site is maintained by the Clan MacLachlan Association of North America, Inc.
This page was last updated on June 22, 2010

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