Scottish Castles Association

Asgog Castle, Kyle, is a destroyed 15th century tower house which was once home to Clan Lamont. During the Civil Wars in 1646 the castle was besieged by the Campbells who, after a seige of one month, massacred the garrison and burned the castle down. A similar fate befell the Lamonts at nearby Castle Toward and the MacDonalds at Dunaverty in Kintyre but such were the times.

At the Restoration in 1660 Charles II had Archibald Campbell, Marquess of Argyll, beheaded and his head placed on a spike at the tolbooth in Edinburgh recently occupied by that of Montrose. He restored the Lamonts to their lands but Asgog was too ruined to reoccupy.

Left: Set beside Loch Asgog, a ditch has allowed water to ingress round the castle

Right: A solitary window slit can be seen in this view from the landward side

The castle is beautifully situated by the shores of remote Loch Asgog near Tighnabruich and is diffucult to reach over the boggy ground. It is now much dilapidated, roofless and walling in a state of  collapse. Asgog was cut off  from the land by a wet ditch and even today one has to struggle to reach it.

Asgog was on the market some years ago and offers invited but the fact that there was: ‘no vehicular access or services’ resulted in no takers! Today, in spite of its idyllic setting, it lies abandoned and in ruin.

Asgog Castle's entrance, viewed from the inside in October 2015

Article by SCA member Brian McGarrigle.