Scheduled Monument

Struthers Castle, castle, park and doocotSM7471

Status: Designated

Documents

Where documents include maps, the use of this data is subject to terms and conditions (https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/termsandconditions).

The legal document available for download below constitutes the formal designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The additional details provided on this page are provided for information purposes only and do not form part of the designation. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within this additional information.

Summary

Date Added
29/10/1997
Supplementary Information Updated
12/11/2020
Type
Secular: castle; doocote, dovecote, pigeon loft; garden
Local Authority
Fife
Parish
Ceres
NGR
NO 37727 9681
Coordinates
337727, 709681

Description

The monument comprises the fragmented remains of Struthers Castle which once formed the nucleus of an extensive architectural landscape, together with a doocot to the W, terraced gardens to the E and a fine, enclosed park. The castle was the seat of the Lindsay family from the late 14th century to the mid 19th century.

The most substantial surviving fragment, the 16th-century NE gable, incorporates that of an earlier hall-house. At the angles of the gable, massive buttresses project outwards on which bartizans once stood, although only the lower mouldings now remain. Running at right angles to the range represented by this gable is the surviving S wall of another, contemporary, range characterised by large, round-headed windows inserted in the 18th century.

The lower courses of the W wall of this range are still visible. At the W of the site, a free-standing buttress is associated with the now completely lost W wing. To the south, the remains of outbuildings are outlined by scarps. The doocot is rectangular in shape, unroofed, with a single rat course and many of the nesting boxes still in situ.

The area to be scheduled is irregular in plan with maximum dimensions of 95m NW-SE by 100m NE-SW to include the castle, doocot and surrounding area where remains of the terraced gardens are likely to survive below ground. The surface of the track which runs NW-SE across the site is excluded from the scheduling.

The boundary follows the line of the stone dyke enclosing the pasture within which the remains stand, as marked in red on the accompanying map. The enclosing dyke is itself is not to be scheduled.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as the remains of an imposing, and architecturally complex, castle associated with a substantial architectural landscape incorporating the standing remains of a 16th-century doocot and evidence of terraced gardens. It has considerable potential to provide important information about domestic architecture and land-use over several centuries.

References

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NO 30 NE 2.

Reference:

MacGibbon and Ross, Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland, Vol. iii, 353-355.

About Scheduled Monuments

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Scheduling is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for monuments and archaeological sites of national importance as set out in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.

We schedule sites and monuments that are found to be of national importance using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Scheduled monument records provide an indication of the national importance of the scheduled monument which has been identified by the description and map. The description and map (see ‘legal documents’ above) showing the scheduled area is the designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The statement of national importance and additional information provided are supplementary and provided for general information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within the statement of national importance or additional information. These records are not definitive historical or archaeological accounts or a complete description of the monument(s).

The format of scheduled monument records has changed over time. Earlier records will usually be brief. Some information will not have been recorded and the map will not be to current standards. Even if what is described and what is mapped has changed, the monument is still scheduled.

Scheduled monument consent is required to carry out certain work, including repairs, to scheduled monuments. Applications for scheduled monument consent are made to us. We are happy to discuss your proposals with you before you apply and we do not charge for advice or consent. More information about consent and how to apply for it can be found on our website at www.historicenvironment.scot.

Find out more about scheduling and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

Images

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Printed: 19/05/2024 04:09