Finlaggan Castle

Finlaggan (NR 388 680, Scottish Gaelic: Port an Eilein) is a historic site on Eilean Mòr in Loch Finlaggan, on the island of Islay, around 4 km west of the ferry terminal at Port Askaig.

Finlaggan was the seat of the Lords of the Isles and of Clan Donald.

Two of the three islands in Loch Finlaggan, Eilean Mòr ("Great Isle") and Eilean na Comhairle ("Isle of the Council"), were the administrative centre of the Lordship of the Isles during the 13th to 15th centuries, until 1493 when the lordship of the Isles fell to James IV of Scotland, who administered the territory via a tenant-in-chief.

The Finlaggan Trust maintains the site and also refurbished a derelict cottage that has been converted into a comprehensive museum. The centre contains numerous artefacts discovered during archaeological excavations: from a sheep wool quilted aketon, worn under armour, to an ancient cross related to the lords.

The site has been the subject of recent archaeological investigations and hosted an episode of Channel 4's archaeological television programme Time Team in 1995. During summer 2008 the centre was extensively refurbished and extended. The stone walls of a medieval chapel dedicated to St Findlugan on Eilean Mòr have been stabilised and several 16th century graves put on display and covered by large glass panels. In May 2019, researchers at the University of St Andrews, working with the Finlaggan Trust and the National Museum of Scotland, announced the creation of a virtual-reality reconstruction of the settlement in the early 15th century, based on archaeological data. The reconstruction will be on show at the visitor centre.

Finlaggan Castle (Scottish Gaelic: Port an Eilein, English: Port of the Island), also known as Eilean Mòr Castle, is a ruined fortified house located on the isle of Eilean Mòr on Loch Finlaggan. It was once a residence and stronghold of Lord of the Isles and Clan Donald.

In the first half of the 7th century, a monastic community was established on Eilean Mòr, the largest of the three islands in the loch. This was either dedicated to or possibly founded by St Findlugan, an Irish monk and a contemporary of St Columba. St Findlugan is officially venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church.

The ruins we see today are from a castle built in the 13th century, with masonry walls.

Text adapted from “Finlaggan” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Finlaggan Castle ranks #3,137 of 8,134 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #109 of the 168 mapped in Scotland. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 1,785 times in the last 60 days, more than 64% of the atlas. 1 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. See how Scotland compares in the castle statistics.

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