Castle Toward
| Castle Toward | |
|---|---|
| Caisteal an Toll Àird | |
Castle Toward
|
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 Castle Toward within Argyll and Bute
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| General information | |
| Status | Private |
| Type | Country House |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| Location | Toward, Cowal, Argyll and Bute, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| Country | Scotland |
| Coordinates | 55°52′10″N 5°00′50″W / 55.869554°N 5.0140108°WCoordinates: 55°52′10″N 5°00′50″W / 55.869554°N 5.0140108°W |
| Construction started | 1820 |
| Client | Kirkman Finlay |
| Owner | |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Stone |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | David Hamilton |
| National grid reference NS 11515 68151 | |
Castle Toward (Scottish Gaelic: Caisteal an Toll Àird) is a nineteenth-century country house on the southern tip of the Cowal peninsula, overlooking Rothesay Bay in Argyll and Bute on the west-coast of Scotland.
Built in 1820 by Glasgow merchant Kirkman Finlay, it replaced the late medieval Toward Castle, formerly the ancestral home of the Clan Lamont. It was greatly extended in the early 20th century, and in the Second World War it served as HMS Brontosaurus. After the war it was sold to Glasgow Corporation and was used as an outdoor education facility until its closure in 2009. After a failed community buyout, Toward Castle and the estate were sold by Argyll and Bute Council to private owners in 2016.
The original Toward Castle dates from the 15th century and was owned by the Clan Lamont until 1809. The castle was extended in the 17th century, but was abandoned after an attack by the Clan Campbell in 1646. The ruins lie around 500 metres (1,600 ft) south-east of the later Castle Toward. Toward Castle is a scheduled monument.
The present Castle Toward was built in 1820 for Kirkman Finlay (1773–1842), former Lord Provost of Glasgow, as his family's country house. Finlay purchased the Achavoulin estate and renamed in Toward in 1818. It is built in the castellated Gothic Revival style, and was designed by David Hamilton. Edward La Trobe Bateman was involved in garden design work here in the 1880s.
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