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Blackness Castle is 4 miles north of
Linlithgow, 16 miles west of Edinburgh,
built from the 1440s for George Crichton.
Blackness Castle is open for visits Apr to
Sept 9.30am to 5.30pm, Oct to Mar 10am to 4pm
with a small entrance fee. Postcode: EH49
7NH.
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Blackness Castle was built for Sir George
Crichton in the 1440s, with King James II
taking control of the Castle in 1453.
The images show the Castle when approaching
from Blackness Village. You can tour all the
old Castle buildings including the Great Hall
and go out onto the roof for great views
towards the Forth Bridges and Edinburgh.
A walk out onto the Jetty allows you to see
the Castle looks like a huge Boat from that
end. Some people have claimed this was
deliberate, so as to scare off any ships
raiding the area.
Blackness Village is built around a Square
with the Church just off the Square. The
Lobster Pot bar /
diner is the main attraction in the Village,
the yellow building in the Square.
Blackness Castle History:
1440s - Blackness Castle was built for Sir
George Crichton, a prominent landowner in the
area. The Castle was built at the small Harbour
that served as a port for the Town of
Linlithgow 4 miles inland.
The Crichton's were
close to the Royals, holding positions such as
Governor of Scotland, Governor of Stirling
Castle, and Constable of Edinburgh
Castle.
The Crichton's rival Clan was the Douglas,
with their stronghold of Tantallon
Castle being 30 miles east of
Edinburgh.
The Crichton main Castle was Crichton Castle
14 miles southeast of Edinburgh.
Many Scottish Clans had long running feuds
with neighbouring Clans, leading to destroying
each others Castles, stealing cattle, and
murder.
1439 - the Crichton's invited two Douglas to
Edinburgh Castle to meet the infant King James
II Stewart, then executed the two Douglas on
Castle Hill.
The Douglas Clan was seen as wanting to take
control of Scotland.
1452 - James II murdered Lord Douglas at
Stirling Castle to help keep the Stewart's in
control of Scotland.
1453 - King James II took control of
Blackness Castle and Crichton lands. One of the
Royals main residences was Linlithgow
Palace 4 miles inland.
Late 1400s - the Royals began using the
Castle as a State Prison, with many of the
first prisoners being involved in the
Reformation, when Scotland was ending Christian
Catholicism in favour of Christian
Protestantism.
Other prisoners were from disputes between
Scotland and England during the years of
Mary Queen of
Scots from the 1540s. King Henry VIII of
England wanted to unify Scotland and England by
having Mary mary his son Edward.
Battles with England over Mary continued
until Mary was executed in England in 1587.
1534 - 1540 - Blackness Castle
fortifications were extended using advanced
innovations of the time.
1650 - during the English Civil War, Oliver
Cromwell's Army besieged Blackness when they
invaded Scotland. Bombardment from land and sea
led to the defenders of the Castle surrendering
and the Castle being abandoned.
1667 - Blackness Castle was repaired to
serve again as a Prison, holding a number of
Covenanters, Scots that rebelled against the
King's interference in Scotland's Church
affairs.
1707 - the Union of Scotland and England led
to Blackness Castle being used as one of four
Scottish Fortresses of the British Army, along
with Stirling Castle, Dumbarton
Castle, and Edinburgh Castle.
1759 to 1815 - Blackness Castle was used to
hold French Prisoners during a series of
conflicts such as the Seven Years'
War and Napoleonic
Wars.
1868 - the cast-iron Pier was built with a
Gate and Drawbridge, one of the last of its
kind to be built in Britain.
1870 - Blackness Castle was used as an
Ammunition Depot for central Scotland. The
Castle was altered at this time, including the
building of Barracks that can be seen just
inside the main entrance.
1919 - after World War One, the Castle was
run by the Office of Works that oversee the
building and maintenance of Royal
Buildings.
1926 - 1935 - Blackness Castle was restored
to its pre 1800s condition.
Today - Blackness Castle is run by Historic
Environment Scotland, open to the public most
days of the year, with a small entrance
fee.
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