Scottish Castles Photo Library
- Mains Castle, Dundee
Mains Castle, in Caird Park, Dundee, was built on land which at one time belonged to the Stewarts, then passed to the Douglas Earls of Angus in the 14th century.
Later, in the 16th century, it became the property of the Grahams and a castle was built by a David Graham - there is a date of 1562 over a doorway. At one time the castle was known as Mains of Fintry after the Grahams castle of that name in Stirlingshire. It originally had a courtyard, surrounded by buildings but most of these have been demolished. The unusually high stair turret is a 17th century addition - and may have been built to give views over hills to the south.
The estate was sold to David Erskine and renamed Linlathen as the "of Fintry" was a Graham title. In 1913, the estate and the castle (by now ruined) was bought by Sir James Caird (1837-1916). This wealthy Dundee jute manufacturer helped fund Shackleton's famous 1914-16 'Endurance' expedition. He was a philanthropist who donated a great deal of wealth, land and buildings to the city of Dundee including the Caird Hall. He handed over the estate to Dundee Corporation and it became Caird Park, open to the public for recreation (including a golf course). The castle was restored in the 1980s and is a fine looking example of a Scottish residential castle.
In 2007, Mains Castle was leased from Dundee City Council and the new owners (a Dundonian and his Siberian-born wife) now provide a venue in which couples can start their new life together by getting married in this romantic and historical building. See Mains Castle
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Mains Castle, East Kilbride.
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