Location: Ardfad Castle “Castle of the Long Height” is a wonderful situation upon a rocky ridge on the north shore of the Isle of Seil in Netherlorn. Ardfad Castle overlooks the Firth of Lorn and the isles of Mull and Kerrera to the north. The ruins of this ancient stronghold of the MacDougalls of Ardencaple are situated 550 yards (500 m) ENE of the much newer 1780s Ardencaple House.

Origin: Ardencaple in Netherlorn was Clan MacDougall land until their defeat by Robert the Bruce in 1308. In 1312, as Robert I King of Scots, he granted this land of the defeated MacDougalls to his supporter, Sir Dougal Campbell 6th of Craignish.  This Sir Dougal’s daughter Christine would some twenty years later marry Ewan the eldest son of John, the 5th MacDougall Chief. The MacDougalls of Ardencaple occupied the northern end of the Isle of Seil from the early 1500s and are descended from the MacDougalls of Raera a powerful area family. The seat of the MacDougalls of Ardencaple was once at Ardfad Castle before they moved it 550 yards (500 m) WSW to Ardencaple House. 

The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Scotland indicates that Ardfad Castle may have been a Hall House built by John MacDougall of Ardencaple, who died shortly before 1615. However, there were MacDougalls of Ardencaple occupying the northern end of Seil from the early 1500s, and it seems probable that Ardfad was their seat before the time of that John MacDougall. In 1647 Ardfad castle was besieged and fell to the Covenanters who sacked it. The MacDougalls of Ardincaple then moved from Ardfad Castle to the nearby Ardincaple House which they rebuilt in the 1780s.

Description: Little is known of the history of Ardfad Castle, the “Castle of the Long Height” on the north shore of Seil. Ardfad sits upon a long, sheer rocky outcrop which rises to 23 ft. (7 m) above the surrounding landscape. The high rock formation upon which Ardfad Castle once stood has been likened to a miniature Stirling, a cliff-sided island rising from a sea of closely cropped grass, clumps of straw-colored rushes and cotton grass.  Now there is not much left of the castle. 

The remains of Ardfad Castle measure c. 38 ft. (11.7m.) NW-SE by 16 ft. (5 m.) within walls 3 ft. (.9 m.) wide and up to 5 ft. (1.5 m.) high. Only the SW round tower now survives. The remains of a rubble curtain wall can be traced around the edge of the crag on the NE and E sides. Access is up a gradual slope from the SW by a slight cutting on either side of which there are traces of the boulder core of a possibly earlier wall suggesting that the site may have been occupied by an earlier structure than the castle.

Ardfad Castle was a well-built structure of stone and lime, occupying a prominent situation on a crag and tail giving its name Ardfad, “Castle of the Long Height”. In 1915, it was still fairly well preserved, with the walls standing to some height and two round corner towers, one on the E, and one on the W, sides of the building, and there were the usual arrow slits. Now there are no arrow-slits visible. Only a low fragment of the northwest gable remains. The outer courtyard on the south end of the rock was separated from the inner bailey by the castle building itself. A portion of the inner yard’s curtain wall, which followed the irregular perimeter of the rock, can still be seen on the northeast side.

Very little now remains of its Hall House structure.  A bit of wall rises in the center and a tree with wide spreading branches is silhouetted against the sky. The old entrance to the stronghold was from the southwest, up what appears to be a ramp through a purposefully widened gully to the top of the rock. The old curtain wall followed the perimeter of the rock, while the principal tower was 25 ft. (8 m) north and south and spanned some 45 ft. (14 m) E to W across the width of the rock. At the southwest side of the ruins is a well-defined foundation of what was a round stair tower. A walk around the base of the rock shows a few remaining courses of stonework rising from the natural rock.

References:

1 – Technical information has been provided by the Canmore Database site of Historic Environment Scotland and their Ardfad site may be visited at: https://canmore.org.uk/site/22589/seil-ardfad-castle

2 – Journeying in MacDougall Country by Walter M. Macdougall, Past President of the Clan MacDougall Society of North America on pages 85, 160, 163, 164, 214 contains descriptions and notes on this site. This excellent book is available from Lulu.com with profits going to the Dunollie Preservation Fund from its book sales at http://www.lulu.com/shop/walter-macdougall/journeying-in-macdougall-country/paperback/product-2242050.html