Castle Menzies

 Castle Menzies in Scotland is the ancestral seat of the Clan Menzies and the Menzies Baronets. It is located a little to the west of the small village of Weem, near Aberfeldy in the Highlands of Perthshire, close to the former site of Weem Castle.

The sixteenth-century castle, built as a Z-plan castle, was the seat of the chiefs of clan Menzies for over 500 years. Strategically situated, it was involved in the turbulent history of the highlands.

Castle Menzies was embroiled in the Jacobite rebellions, with members of the clan fighting on both sides during both the first rebellion in 1689 and the 1715 uprising. During the latter the castle was occupied by Jacobite forces prior to the Battle of Sheriffmuir. And then during the second Jacobite rising the Castle first hosted both Bonnie Prince Charlie, who rested on his way to Culloden in 1746 and then, just four days later, the Duke of Cumberland, son of the British Monarch and commander of the Government forces.

During the 1745 rebellion the Menzies chief - Sir Robert Menzies - opposed the uprising, although many of his clan took part under the leadership of Ian Menzies of Shian. Sir Robert was married to Mary Stuart, a daughter of the Earl of Bute and a relation of the deposed Royal family, and it was perhaps for this reason that he extended his hospitality to Prince Charles Stuart on his way north after his ill-fated invasion of England. The Prince stayed at Castle Menzies for two nights (4-5 February 1746) before marching onto Blair Castle and thence to Inverness where his forces were defeated at the Battle of Culloden.

Rescued as a ruin in 1957 by the then recently re-formed Menzies Clan Society, the Castle has been lovingly restored by generations of Society members and was placed into a charitable trust in 1993.  It is open to all as a visitor attraction, museum, Clan centre for the Menzies Clan and venue for weddings, concerts and other hire.  

Because it has been restored from a ruin, you will find the Castle much less furnished and decorated than most other Scottish castles you may visit. But as a result, you get a much better feel for how it was built and what it's made of.

Getting There

Location

Castle Menzies

Weem

PH15 2JD

What3Words reference

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