St Andrew's Castle is a picturesque
ruin located in the coastal
Royal Burgh of St Andrews in
Fife,
Scotland. The castle sits on a rocky
promontory overlooking a small beach called Castle Sands and the adjoining
North Sea. There has been a castle standing at the site since the times of
Bishop Roger (1189-1202), son of the
Earl of Leicester. It housed the
burgh’s wealthy and powerful
bishops while St Andrews served as the
ecclesiastical centre of Scotland during the years before the
Protestant Reformation.
The castle's grounds are now maintained by
Historic Scotland, and are entered through a visitor centre with displays on its history. Some of the best surviving carved fragments from the castle are displayed in the centre, which also has a shop.
Wars of Scottish Independence
During the
Wars of Scottish Independence, the castle was destroyed and rebuilt several times as it changed hands between the Scots and the
English. Soon after the
sack of Berwick in 1296 by
Edward I of England, the castle was taken and made ready for the
English king in 1303. In 1314, however, after the Scottish victory at
Bannockburn, the castle was retaken and repaired by
Bishop William Lamberton,
Guardian of Scotland, a loyal supporter of
King Robert the Bruce. The English had recaptured it again by the 1330s and reinforced its defences in 1336, but to no avail. Sir
Andrew Moray,
Regent of Scotland in the absence of
David II, recaptured it after a siege lasting three weeks. Shortly after this, in...
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