Craigievar Castle
- Emma Wilkinson
- Dec 6, 2024
- 3 min read
Scotland's iconic "Pink Castle" - a fairytale home in beautiful Aberdeenshire
Said to be the inspiration behind Walt Disney's Cinderella castle and catapulted into viral fame thanks to Britney Spears, Craigievar Castle has had a long history, a story that is still being written.
My first visits to the "Pink Castle" were as a little girl. I loved castles growing up (some things never change!) and the vision of Craigievar, sparkling pink and strikingly tall has stayed with me for many years. I have lots of lovely childhood memories clambering up the spiral staircases and exploring the nature trails through the surrounding grounds.
Your eye is first drawn to Craigievar from the approaching road. It is unmissable appearing from between the trees, there's magic here. Until the 1960s, Craigievar Castle had served as a family home for around 350 years. Work began in 1576 by the Mortimer family but by 1610 the castle was still incomplete and the Mortimers had fallen into poverty. In 1610, Craigievar was sold to Aberdonian merchant William Forbes, an ancestor of the Forbes Baronets - a prominent clan in Aberdeenshire with a number of iconic properties such as Fyvie Castle. Forbes completed the castle, adding further floors creating the seven storey tower house we see today. It has remained largely unchanged since and stands as a monument to the Scots architecture.
Craigievar's interiors are also notable! Each room is full of interesting antiquities, including two Sir Henry Raeburn portraits (with receipts!) pride of place in one of the main bedrooms. Never forget to look up....some of the ceilings are among the very finest in Scotland. The plasterwork showcases an incredible level of detail and storytelling, including family emblems and folklore from the Middle Ages namely depictions of the "Nine Worthies". Unlike lots of properties, Craigievar allows you to explore everywhere from the ground floor strong rooms, through the family's more formal living quarters, to giving you a glimpse into the servants bedrooms on the top floor.
As with any great Scottish caste, there have been tales of ghost sightings over the years! One room in particular has had a number of spooky events...said to be an apparition of a member of the Gordon clan who was pushed from the window of the blue room. Legend has it, this ghost has spent his afterlife in the buff! Unfortunately for him, he is said to have been caught red handed by "Red John", father of this gents lover, who took offence at the amorous events he uncovered and with sword drawn, cornered him by the window....with nowhere to run, he jumped from the 5th floor window to certain death. Every now and again, he is said to make a reappearance in the Blue Room, the events of that day replaying on an eternal loop.
The castle was almost lost in the early 1800s having fallen into disrepair and decay. Advised against demolishing it, repairs were made including some alterations to the outside...which were eventually restored back to their original 17th century design. It was during this period of renovation that the occupying generation of the family were advised to give the castle a pink wash (it would have been more of an off-white prior to this). This idea behind this being likely inspired but the pinkish granite mouldings you can still see today.- a stone widely found in this area of Scotland. This restoration saved the castle allowing us to enjoy it to this day. But before us...there was one very special visitor indeed, who showed up announced looking for a place to stay - Queen Victoria. During the summer of 1879, the Queen paid Craigievar a visit from her own Aberdeenshire estate Balmoral. Upon finding nobody home, she decided to enter anyway and had a wander around what she described as "this strange and curious old castle".
In 1963, the castle was sold to the National Trust for Scotland. The interiors are believed to be almost unchanged since the Queen's unannounced visit. While the exterior has continued to require restoration and upkeep. I first visited in the mid 1990s and continued to until the mid 2000s - in late 2000s the castle was closed for a number of years while improvements took place. The castle closed one again for two years, reopening in 2024, when I revisited to see how this old friend from my childhood was getting on - lots of memories came flooding back!
