Historic Places in Inverclyde

Duchal Castle near Kilmacolm in Inverclyde is a ruined medieval castle on a rocky promontory above the Water of Gryfe, the seat of the Lyle family and subsequently the Porterfields who held the estate throughout the medieval period. The rocky promontory with the river protecting three sides reflects the typical medieval preference for naturally defensible positions requiring minimal artificial earthwork. The ruins are now substantially overgrown with vegetation giving the site a romantic quality in its wooded valley setting, accessible on foot from Kilmacolm, a quiet commuter village in the Renfrewshire hills west of Glasgow. The surrounding area of the Renfrewshire hills is an interesting transitional landscape between the greater Glasgow conurbation and the rural character of Ayrshire.

Castle Levan is a ruined fifteenth-century tower house at Gourock in Inverclyde, associated with the Mortons of Cardwell who held lands in this part of Renfrewshire throughout the later medieval period. The castle occupies a hillside position with views over the Firth of Clyde toward Dunoon and the Cowal peninsula. The ruins stand to several storeys in places within a residential area on the hillside above Gourock and are accessible to the public, providing a fragment of medieval heritage within the modern suburban landscape. Gourock is a residential town and ferry port at the mouth of the Clyde, providing connections to Dunoon on the Cowal peninsula. The wider Inverclyde area has a strong industrial heritage associated with shipbuilding, sugar refining and maritime trade.