Castle Lachlan new
New Castle Lachlan stands on the shore of Loch Fyne in Argyll, one of the most beautiful sea lochs in Scotland, and is the seat of the MacLachlan clan whose connection with this land extends back many centuries. The present building, a Georgian-era castle house constructed in the early nineteenth century to replace the older medieval tower nearby, sits within a wooded estate on the loch shore and presents an attractive whitewashed facade to the water. The MacLachlan family still occupies the castle, giving it the distinction of continuous family residence that sets it apart from many Scottish historic properties.
Loch Fyne is one of the longest sea lochs on the west coast of Scotland, penetrating deep into the Argyll hills and providing the surrounding landscape with its characteristic combination of wooded hillsides, dark water and distant mountain views. The loch is famous for its herring fishery, which sustained the communities along its shores for centuries and gave rise to the kippers and smoked fish still produced in the area today. The atmosphere of the loch shore is quiet and deeply scenic, and Castle Lachlan fits naturally into a landscape that has changed relatively little in its essential character over many centuries.
The MacLachlan clan has one of the more poignant histories of the Jacobite period. The chief at the time of the 1745 Rising supported the Young Pretender and fell at the Battle of Culloden, after which the old castle was bombarded from the loch by a government warship. That history connects the building and the family directly to the defining crisis of eighteenth-century Highland Scotland and adds a particular resonance to the peaceful loch shore setting today.
The grounds of the estate include established woodland walks and access to the loch shore, and the combination of the two castle buildings, the old ruin on the promontory and the newer family house, provides an interesting architectural narrative spanning several centuries of change in the design of Scottish country houses.