Pages

Wednesday 4 April 2012

Dunluce Castle's Ponytailed Phantom


A-Z Challenge 2012 - D

Dunluce Castle’s Ponytailed Phantom

Dunluce Castle, a ruined medieval castle in Northern Ireland, sits on a basalt outcrop in County Antrim. This engraving shows it in a dramatic light.

Dunluce Castle (1848 Engraving)
The first castle on the site was built by the MacQuillans in the 14th century. However the castle is firmly linked to the MacDonnells who occupied it in the 16th. It was Sorley Boy MacDonnell who took the castle by force after the Battle of Orla in 1565. In 1584 Sir John Perrot, Queen Elizabeth I’s Lord Deputy of Ireland led an army which battered the castle into submission, He evicted Sorley Boy and installed Peter Carey as constable of the castle.

The Queen was not amused and granted the castle back to Sorley Boy in 1586. Sorley Boy promptly hanged Carey from the south-east tower’s ramparts. Carey’s ghost sporting a ponytail and clad in a purple cloak has wandered the tower ever since.

Sorley Boy’s son Randal; was made 1st Earl of Antrim by King James I. But in 1639 it was the second Earl and his Countess who were there when part of the castle and the kitchens fell into the sea; only one boy in the corner of the kitchen surviving. Subsequent to the impoverishment of the MacDonnells after the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 the condition of the castle deteriorated and has remained in ruins ever since.

Dunluce Castle 2005
Given by the Earl of Antrim to the Northern Ireland Government in 1928 Dunluce Castle has become a National Monument under the care of the Department of the Environment.



Hilary’s Castle for C is Croft Castle

Attribution
  • 1848 Engraving of Dunluce Castle, County of Antrim, by William Miller after John Thomson of Duddingstone. For the Members of the Royal Association for the Promotion of Fine Arts in Scotland.
  • Dunluce Castle 2005 by Kenneth Allen - Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 2.0
  • Video - Irish Rovers, Dunluce Castle

15 comments:

David Robinson said...

Hi Bob. Love the drama in that engraving. And the backstory is customarily gruesome.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Bob .. great story line here - accompanied by that wonderful video - aren't the words so true ..

What an amazing castle .. poor chap hanging forever in his purple cloak, only to walk the ramparts when inclined ..

Love it - cheers Hilary

Rosalind Adam said...

I love that video although it was a tad rousing for this early in the morning!

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

I love castles with their gorgeous architecture and amazing history.

Hold my hand: a social worker's blog said...

Castles are fascinating...!!

Thank you for stopping by my blog and for your kind comment.

We do have pet therapy at the nursing home. Plus we allow pets to be brought to the facility--well, friendly pets :-))

Will be following your blog posts.

Doris

Jo said...

Enjoying both castle posts from you and Hilary. Imagine losing your kitchen that way!!! Be a nasty shock if you had a roast in the oven LOL.

Bish Denham said...

I absolutely sure I've seen these ruins featured in some historical drama, but I can't for the life of me remember which one.

Robyn Campbell said...

Gorgeous Bob! That video is amazing. Poor Carey! Sad that he wanders around in the purple cloak.

Wonderful post. I love learning about all these spectacular castles.

ShaunaKelleyWrites said...

Really cool post! You've stirred my wanderlust.

DonnaGalanti said...

Love the history and photos. I lived in England long ago and visited many a castle...just cant have that experience in the US. Tintagel my most favorite to dream and write about. Nice to be in the A to Z with you!
A to Z
www.donnagalanti.com

Anonymous said...

I love your theme! There is such interesting history.

Susan Kane said...

Great post!

Love the info about the struggle of one clan against the other. Life was a struggle in every way.

Carolyn Twede Frank said...

I love all the great photos. Great blog--lots of fun.

Beth said...

Awesome. I love castles. New follower.

Monica said...

Simply beautiful, would love to someday see a castle.

Hope you're enjoying the A-Z Challenge,

Monica, Older Mommy Still Yummy