Keiss Castle, 16th-century castle in Highland, Scotland
Keiss Castle is a four-story fortress in the Scottish Highlands with two round towers at opposite corners of a square central block. The thick stone walls are pierced with shot-holes designed for defensive gunfire.
George Sinclair, the 5th Earl of Caithness, built this fortress between the late 1500s and early 1600s as a strategic defense near Sinclair Bay. It served military purposes until around 1700, when it was abandoned for the newly constructed Keiss House.
The castle reflects how Scottish nobles built their strongholds with a Z-shaped design, a common defense layout in the Highlands of that era. The rounded corner towers show the building methods that were popular for protection in remote areas.
The ruins sit about 7 miles north of Wick on a clifftop, accessible through minor roads branching east from the A9 highway. Sturdy footwear is important, as the terrain is rough and windy, and access around the structure may be limited.
The castle was originally built with direct views of the sea, using its isolated location to monitor the bay below. Today the ruins stand alone on the cliff, offering views of the raw coastline that has remained largely unchanged for centuries.
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