Tantallon Castle

Tantallon Castle, high on the rocks looking out across the Firth of Forth towards the stunning sea-bird colony on Bass Rock, is both dramatic and impressive. The cries of seagulls as they swoop down fill the air, the waves crashing on the rocks far below echo around the battlements as you climb ever higher and view the magnificent scenery from one of the most breathtaking viewpoints along this section of the coast.
The very walls of Tantallon themselves hold within these ruins tales of a checkered past, history unfolding, changing with the tides, stretching as far back as the sea itself.
Tantallon is very much steeped in Scotland's heritage. Its origins date back to 1358 and the ennoblement of William, first Earl of Douglas. A split within the family of the Douglas Earls of Angus later left the castle under the control of the "Red Douglases" who found themselves sporadically in conflict with the "Black Douglas" side of the family - bit like a modern day computer game! And as if this were not enough, they constantly found themselves in conflict with the Scottish crown when relations with the English grew too close for comfort or their ambitions became too rampant. The castle suffered little damage when beseiged by James IV in 1491, an event carried out in reprisal for the fifth Earl of Angus agreeing to betray him to HenryVII of England. Relations were later repaired, but the castle again found itself under seige in 1528. James V was seeking revenge on his stepfather, Archibald Douglas 6th Earl of Angus, but once again the castle held strong against the royal forces. A year later James acquired the castle by clever negotiation, strengthening the defences to withstand the artillery of the day.
Bored yet? Well, I am going to continue the history lesson anyway. Quite enjoying it in fact. Not wanting to let the grass grow under its feet, Tantallon returned to the Douglas family in 1543, and once more set about betraying Scotland to its neighbour, allowing Henry VIII's ambassador to use it as a base during his "rough wooing" of Mary Queen of Scots.   
In 1650 the troops of Oliver Cromwell were busy conquering Scotland. Tantallon was occupied at this time by a small group of moss-troopers - bandits or guerillas depending on your allegiance or viewpoint. Said to be far more effective than all the regular troops opposing Cromwell across Scotland, they set to work destroying Cromwell's communication network across south-east Scotland. The inevitable retaliation followed, and in 1651 a force of 3,000, including almost all of Cromwell's artillery in Scotland, eventually succeeded in rooting out a garrison of less than one hundred men. The castle was left much as you see it today.
Okay, history lesson over for now. So what of the castle itself? Magnificent in its day - pretty magnificent even now - the castle is but a shadow of its former self. A twelve foot thick curtain wall, the large circular Douglas Tower with its six storeys of accommodation for the Douglas family, the five storey high East Tower and the Mid Tower also five storeys high and the best preserved of all the towers, can all be seen in various ruinous states. Remains of the hall block, the castle well, the outer ward with its dovecot, an artillery ravelin, all bear witness to the ravages of Oliver Cromwell. During its heyday the outer ward would have been home to all the accommodation and service buildings necessary for the efficient day to day running of Tantallon. And at the end of the headland is a sea gate which was designed to allow the castle to be supplied by sea in times of trouble. Protected by natural cliffs on three sides and a deep ditch cut through the rock on the fourth, it should have been virtually impregnable. But Cromwell obviously knew better.
If you visit Tantallon, and it is definitely worth a visit, climb the battlements, feel the wind in your hair, listen to the pounding of the waves and the songs of seabirds ducking and diving along the cliff face. Close your eyes and picture life as it was hundreds of years ago, the sounds of castle life, battle cries echoing around the walls, artillery vying with the restless sea for domination of Tantallon. And as with all Scottish castles of any note, Tantallon has its very own ghost, a "courtly figure dressed in a ruff" who wanders the ruins. A member of the Douglas family reluctant to leave ....... who knows. But wander he does, keeping watch over Tantallon for all eternity. But he seems happy to share his castle with all who pass through. So seek out this castle on the clifftop and soak up some good old Scottish history.