Dingwall Castle

Dingwall Castle was a medieval fort and royal castle in the town of Dingwall, eastern Ross-shire, Scotland.

The castle is believed to have been established by Norse settlers in the area in the 11th century.

During the Wars of Scottish Independence the castle was garrisoned by the forces of king Edward I of England. However it was later captured by Scottish forces for king Robert I of Scotland (Robert the Bruce) led by Uilleam II, Earl of Ross.

From the castle, the Earl of Ross (chief of Clan Ross) led the men of Ross to fight against the English at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. As a reward in 1321 King Robert granted Dingwall Castle with the town and lands of Dingwall to the Earl of Ross.

In 1370 a feud arose between William de Moravia, 5th Earl of Sutherland (chief of Clan Sutherland) and Iye Mackay, 4th of Strathnaver (chief of Clan Mackay). A meeting was arranged for them to meet at Dingwall Castle to resolve their issues. However, Iye Mackay and his son Donald Mackay were both murdered in the castle while they were asleep by Nicholas Sutherland, brother of the Earl of Sutherland. See page: Iye Mackay, 4th of Strathnaver for a detailed explanation of the feud.

Sometime at the beginning of the 15th century a duel is said to have taken place between the governor of the castle, who had been appointed by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany and Thomas Munro, brother of Hugh Munro, 9th Baron of Foulis (chief of Clan Munro). The two met at the village of Maryburgh and after an argument dirks were pulled and a duel took place in which Thomas Munro killed the governor of Dingwall Castle. The Scottish Castles Association states that the new governor of the castle was "assassinated" by one of the Munroes and replaced by a Mackay.

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