The Rock is in fact a plug of volcanic basalt jutting from the river but one with interesting fortifications, added up until the eighteenth century.
The original name, Dun Breatann, means ‘the fortress of the Britons’, although it had an even older name in the Dark Ages: Alcluith appropriately meaning ‘Clyde Rock’. This was a precarious time of raids and sieges. Strathclyde was in the middle of powerful kingdoms on all sides, such as Northumbria, Picts and Dalriadic Scots, as well as being plundered by the Vikings from Ireland. Then, in 1018, Malcolm II’s son, Duncan, took the throne of Strathclyde and governed Dumbarton until it finally became part of the Scottish Kingdom in 1034.
The Early Years of Dumbarton Castle
Because of its strategic position on the river, Dumbarton was a stronghold and entry port for the west of Scotland. It was also a royal castle as proved by a charter of 1238, which was given to the Earl of Lennox, the local magnate.
The castle soon caught the interest of Edward I who appointed the governor Sir John Menteith to keep it under his control. This was the Menteith who was subsequently involved in the capture of William Wallace in 1305. Many assume that the famous freedom fighter may have been kept at the castle at some point, although this has never been confirmed.
The castle’s relative seclusion offered protection to many a royal, such as King David II who, after a Scottish defeat, later sailed to France with his consort. During the fifteenth century, this small fortress was under siege time and again. Used as a bargaining tool by Walter de Danyelstone, who hoped to be appointed bishop of St Andrews, it was then seized by Patrick Galbraith who took the castle in 1443 after killing the keeper.
Dumbarton Castle and James IV
James IV first attacked the castle in 1489 when it was controlled by Lord Darnley, son of the earl of Lennox. After his second attack, James forced the surrender of the castle. He recognised that the castle’s situation on the water’s edge was perfect as a shipbuilding base for his new navy, from whence he sailed to western parts of the country. The castle’s relative peace was soon destroyed once more when James IV was killed at Flodden.
Dumbarton Castle in the 16th Century
Through much of the sixteenth century, Dumbarton castle passed between English and French allegiance, even playing host to the infant Mary Stewart, Queen of Scots, in 1548 when she was brought to the castle some months before being taken to France.
Despite further changes of hand, the castle was held for Mary after her return to Scotland, until her final flight to England in 1568, accompanied by the governor of Dumbarton, Lord Fleming. Once again, the castle’s relative calm was short-lived, with two more attempts to seize it. This culminated in the execution of one of Mary’s main adherents, John Hamilton, the archbishop of St Andrews. Dumbarton Castle was now no longer a stronghold for Mary, Queen of Scots.
Seventeenth Century Covenanters and Royalists
During the greater part of the seventeenth century, the castle was a place of dispute, as was much of the country, between Covenanters and Royalists. During the ‘Bishop’s War’ of 1639, the Covenanters captured the governor and insisted he surrender the keys. An official document, The Treaty of Berwick, ensured that the castle was returned to the Royalists. It made little difference in the end, as the castle changed hands twice more inside two years!
All these sieges and skirmishes left their toll on the castle and grounds, continuing over the next century. Once General Cromwell took control of Scotland, Dumbarton Castle soon followed in 1652. Even then, however, its disrepair and change of hands continued as before, when it was retaken by a Royalist raid in 1654.
The French Wars
The following hundred years left the castle in poorer condition, although certain improvements were gradually carried out. By the 1790s, the country was in the midst of the French wars and the castle was made ready once more to defend the Scottish coast. However, the castle was largely abandoned in 1865, only being used for a time by the military during World Wars I and II.
The fortifications surviving to the present day on Dumbarton Castle are worth a visit.
Further details from Historic Scotland and their booklet on Dumbarton Castle.
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