An unsung Scottish castle

I remember first clapping eyes on Dumbarton Castle from afar one cloudless spring day. The site loomed on the other bank of the River Clyde as we rode in a taxi from Glasgow to the port at Greenock for a cruise around the islands off Scotland’s west coast.

I made a mental note back then to visit Dumbarton the next time I was in the area.

And today is that day, although it looks very different now. This autumnal morning is, as the Scots say, “dreich”.

Drizzle tumbles from gunmetal-grey skies as we approach Dumbarton Rock, the jagged, mist-shrouded outcrop upon which the castle is set.

Like the better-known fortresses of Edinburgh and Stirling, this crowns the plug of an extinct volcano. Erupting around 340 million years ago, it was gradually eroded by the elements into its present shape.

Unlike the aforementioned castles, Dumbarton’s tends to elude travellers. The pull of Glasgow and Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park — both less than a half-hour drive from here — usually proves too strong.

But despite today’s dreariness, I’m happy we called in.

Showing us around is Rob, one of the volunteer guides with an encyclopaedic knowledge of this absorbing heritage site. He shares intriguing facts about its geology and tales of the characters said to have stayed here (Merlin and Mary, Queen of Scots), called in (Queen Elizabeth II), or sailed past (St Patrick).

“What many people don’t realise is that Dumbarton has the longest recorded history of any castle in Scotland,” says Rob, leading us from the 18th-century Governor’s House, through which visitors enter this site.

It also has a gift shop and an exhibition showcasing artefacts discovered at the castle, which rather than being one mighty fortress actually comprises a cluster of buildings and relics from various epochs.

Rob leads us away from a row of cannons pointing over the Clyde and shows us a Japanese cherry tree planted for Queen Elizabeth II’s 1953 coronation. It flowers a vibrant pink in May but now, in November, it has littered the adjacent paths and lawns with yellow and orange leaves.

Dumbarton Castle’s various levels are connected by stone steps and pathways that are today made slick by the rain.

We cross paths with six Australians in high spirits. They’ve come well-prepared, with waterproofs and umbrellas, and bid us good morning.

Even in these conditions, when visibility levels are relatively poor, you can still see for many kilometres in all directions.

It’s no wonder Dumbarton Rock was so sought-after in the olden days. It rises 73m above the confluence of the Clyde and another narrower river, the Leven, which runs here 10km from Loch Lomond.

Previously dubbed Alt Clut (“Rock of the Clyde”), the crag was later known by its Gaelic name, Dun Breatann (“Fortress of the Britons”), after the native tribes that occupied the site in the early Middle Ages, when it was a stronghold of the Kingdom of Strathclyde.

Among those to attack were the Vikings, who brought 200 longships up the Clyde in AD870 and laid siege for four months, eventually plundering the site for treasures and prisoners.

More than three centuries later, King Alexander II of Scotland reinforced Dumbarton’s defences to counter the threat of Norway, whose monarchs then ruled several of the islands in and around the Clyde.

Another significant chapter of Dumbarton’s history came in AD1305 when William Wallace was detained here by Sir John Menteith, the keeper of the castle. Fleeing from English troops, the Scottish warrior had been discovered in a barn near Glasgow and was later sent down to London to be executed.

Dumbarton’s importance declined in the following centuries, with Edinburgh and Stirling preferred as bases for the Stuart monarchs, who assumed power in Scotland and England.

But the passage of time didn’t dent its lofty stature and defensive prowess. New artillery fortifications were built here during the Jacobite rebellions; and in the Napoleonic Wars, the castle’s so-called French Prison housed a Gallic general captured by the Brits at the Battle of Bussaco in Portugal.

Even as late as World War II, Dumbarton acted as a military garrison for the British Army. The castle stood sentinel over the growing town of Dumbarton below, whose glassmaking, whisky and shipbuilding industries boomed in the Victorian age.

A key firm at the Dumbarton shipyards was William Denny and Brothers, which made paddle steamers, yachts, frigates and ferries for waterways at home and across the British Empire.

The most celebrated vessel completed here was the Cutty Sark, a sleek mid-19th-century clipper that exported tea from China and wool from Australia. It’s now a major tourist attraction in London.

Denny’s last ship to launch was GMV Aramoana, built in 1961 as a ferry for cars and freight wagons to cross the Cook Strait between New Zealand’s North and South islands.

We look down at the remnants of the shipyards and across the river at Dumbarton, a commuter town — population: 20,000 — on the edge of Glasgow.

Also catching our attention is the 2000-capacity stadium of Dumbarton Football Club, founded in 1872 and competing in Scottish League Two.

On match days, you’ll get a good bird’s-eye view of the action from here, though you’re too high up to make out the club badge on the players’ shirts. It features an elephant with a castle on its back — a nod to the fact that many think Dumbarton Rock is shaped like one. Instead of two flapping ears, however, the rock has two peaks, named White Tower Crag and The Beak.

Both grant superb panoramas. If you’re luckier than I, you’ll savour them on a bright sunny day. But even if you don’t, with its views and history, a visit to Dumbarton Castle cannot fail to captivate.

+ Steve McKenna was a guest of Visit Scotland. They have not influenced this story, or read it before publication. fact file + Dumbarton Castle is open daily from April 1-September 30, then daily except Thursdays and Fridays between October 1 and March 31. Buy tickets online for the best prices. Admission is £7.50 ($15.25) for adults, £6 ($12.20) for those aged over 65, and £4.50 ($9) for children aged 7-15. See https://www.historicenvironment.scot.

+ For more information on visiting Scotland, see visitscotland.com