Kindrochit Castle
Kindrochit Castle in Braemar in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, is a ruined medieval royal castle whose tower foundations date from 1390, built by Robert II of Scotland as a hunting lodge in the heart of the Cairngorms. The castle ruins in the centre of Braemar village are freely accessible and provide a direct connection to the royal use of Deeside as a sporting and recreational landscape that began with the Stewart kings in the fourteenth century and continues with the royal family's use of nearby Balmoral today. Braemar is famous for the annual Braemar Gathering Highland Games, one of the most celebrated traditional Highland Games events in Scotland, regularly attended by members of the royal family. The surrounding landscape of Royal Deeside and the Cairngorms National Park makes Braemar one of the most rewarding bases for exploring the Highland heartland.