Mr Monkey had a look at the Central Tower, then scampered inside. This was the main tower of the 15th century castle, where Sir George Crichton and his family lived. At least, they did until 1453, when James II annexed the castle and all Crichton's lands. When the South Tower was built as part of making the castle into an artillery fort, the Central Tower became a prison for high-status prisoners, one to each of the three floors. Mr Monkey thought that a whole floor of a tower, with a fireplace and a private latrine was pretty much luxury for a prison. But then the prisoners did include the Earl of Angus and Cardinal Beaton.
Copyright Rik Shepherd and Mr Monkey. This page last modified 5 September 2005