Tour Scotland Photograph Sunset Castle Stalker

Tour Scotland photograph of sunset behind Castle Stalker, Scotland. The original castle was a small fort, built around 1320 by Clan MacDougall who were then Lords of Lorn. Around 1388 the Stewarts took over the Lordship of Lorn, and it is believed that they built the castle in its present form around the 1440s. The Stewart's relative King James IV of Scotland visited the castle, and a drunken bet around 1620 resultied in the castle passing to Clan Campbell. After changing hands between these clans a couple of times the Campbells finally abandoned the castle around 1840, when it lost its roof. Then in 1908 a Stewart bought the castle and carried out basic conservation work, and in 1965 Lt. Col. D. R. Stewart Allward acquired the castle and over about ten years fully restored it. Castle Stalker remains in private ownership and is not generally open to the public, although visits can be made by appointment.



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Tour Scotland Photograph Blackfriars Chapel

Tour Scotland photograph of Blackfriars Chapel, St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. Located on South Street, this is all that remains of a mid 15th Century foundation for Dominican Friars. The chapel dates from the 16th Century.

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A fascinating and comprehensive history of St Andrews, from the dawn of Pictish times to the present, based on several decades of residence in the burgh and on original study of its thoroughfares and byways. The book focuses on a lively selection of colourful characters who have made St Andrews what it is, from doughty residents Sir Hugh Lyon Playfair and Cardinal Archbishop David Beaton to illustrious visitors like Mary, Queen of Scots, John Knox and Samuel Johnson. Thousands of others, from artisans to golfers, have contributed to St Andrews' past, to make it a burgh whose history forms the core of Scotland's story. St.Andrews: City by the Northern Sea.

Tour Haunted St Andrews Cathedral Scotland

Tour Haunted St Andrews Cathedral, Fife, Scotland. St Andrews Cathedral, dating from the twelfth century, lies in ruins now but was once the largest cathedral in Scotland and a powerful and influential religious center. In all, building work took almost two hundred years. The royal burgh of St Andrews, in which the cathedral stands, is a very old and beautiful university town, of great interest both to the historian and the ghost-hunter.

The female ghost is a white lady who has been seen in the grounds of the cathedral. The ghost was observed to be wearing white gloves. Some of the sightings may well have been fanciful, perhaps fuelled by alcohol, as they were made by students returning from late-night revelries. Nevertheless, the White Lady has also been seen by more sober citizens of the town from time to time over a period of nearly two centuries. The identity of the White Lady is not known, but it may be that her burial place is very near. In 1868, historians investigating the tower opened a sealed vault there and discovered it to be a burial place. There were six or so coffins inside it. They also found, it is claimed, the mummified body of a young woman wearing white gloves. The vault was re-sealed, but it appears that the historians had discovered part of the answer to the mysterious appearances of the White Lady of St Andrews.



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Haunted Scotland

Tour Haunted St Rules Tower St Andrews Cathedral Scotland

Tour Haunted St Rules Tower, St Andrews Cathedral, Fife, Scotland. St Andrews Cathedral, dating from the twelfth century, lies in ruins now but was once the largest cathedral in Scotland and a powerful and influential religious center. In all, building work took almost two hundred years. The royal burgh of St Andrews, in which the cathedral stands, is a very old and beautiful university town, of great interest both to the historian and the ghost-hunter.

In the grounds of the cathedral at St Andrews is St Rule's Tower, a remnant of St Rule's Church, which was build before the cathedral and used to hold the relics of St Andrew. It is here that the male ghost can be seen. The tower is quite high, and the view from the top, looking over the town, is well worth seeing, so it is quite a popular visiting place. One visitor to the tower several years ago was startled by a figure in a cassock who appeared as he was climbing to the top. The tourist lost his footing on one of the steps and stumbled. Far from wishing to frighten the tourist, the cowled figure had genuinely intended to be helpful, for the tourist heard him offer to give him his arm on the way up the stairs. The tourist, swiftly recovering his balance, refused politely, and the figure stepped to one side to allow him to pass and then vanished without trace. When the tourist came out of the tower at the end of his visit, he asked the man at the door whether anyone else had been in the tower at the same time as himself. The man at the door said there had been no one else there, but he knew who, or what, the tourist had seen. The tourist discovered that the figure he had seen was well known to those who knew the tower. He was a monk who would appear from time to time at St Rule's, not a malevolent spirit at all, it would seem, but a kindly ghost who liked to make sure that visitors made their way safely to the top of the spiral staircase.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Haunted Scotland. Collected over many years, the author retells stories that have evolved through the mists of time, while others he recounts are based on interviews with those who claim to have experienced real-life paranormal encounters. Divided into geographical chapters covering the Borders, the South West, Strathclyde, the South East, the Central Belt and Trossachs, the Eastern Highlands, the Kingdom of Fife, the Western Highlands, the North, the Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Inverness, Roddy Martine examines stories of paranormal activity and the legends and folklore of haunted Scotland. Haunted Scotland.

Tour Scotland Photograph David John Robertson Gravestone

Tour Scotland photograph of the David John Robertson gravestone in Caputh, Perthshire, Scotland. Erected by Mary Scott in memory of her husband David John Robertson, Chief Petty Officer, R.N., who died during diving operations at Loch Fyne on 11th August, 1930, aged 28.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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