harry potter visits skelmorlie and wemyss bay

8/14/2019 Harry Potter Visits Skelmorlie and Wemyss Bay

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HARRY POTTER VISITS

SKELMORLIE and WEMYSS BAY

Though the tale of "Harry Potter and The Triangle Prophecy", a 'fan-fiction', first published onSchnoogle.com and on the HP Psych Yahoo Group websites around 2003, seems to have a few

geographical and historical errors, it is nonetheless interesting in that the extract here focusesnot on steam trains but on CalMac's Wemyss Bay to Rothesay ferry, its route just as scenic asthat of The West Highland railway and the crossing allowing passengers to view the shores offour former counties bounding on to The Firth of Clyde, it once described somewhaterroneously in the 1960's Clyde Steamer brochures as 'Scotland's Inland Sea' ! - The moral ofeverything being to 'always check the facts' !

Finally they were able to switch to the M73 and then, soon after, the M8. They pulled ontothe High Street (should be "reached the Shore Road") in Skelmorlie just after seven o'clock, toswitch drivers again. There was just one more leg of the trip, to Wemyss Bay, where theywould get the ferry to the Isle of Bute.

When they reached the quay ("pier") in Wemyss (Bay), it was seven-forty and the bar waslowered, so that no more cars could drive onto the ferry. Katie pounded the steering wheelangrily, "Damn ! That's the last ferry ! We'll have to wait until tomorrow morning now !"

Harry couldn't believe it. "No, we won't", he said briefly, getting out of the car and stridingto Maggie's car behind them. He rapped on Arthur Weasley's window and he (Arthur) rolled itdown, looking concerned.

"What is it Harry ?" he smiled at him.

"We're about to miss the last ferry of the day unless you do something", Harry told himurgently.

Arthur nodded briskly, then discreetly pulled out his wand. Harry returned to Katie's car and aminute later the barrier rose and both cars were permitted to pull onto the ferry. They paidtheir passage (fares) and, after the cars were taken care of, the eight of them went up ondeck to look at the scenery and breath the sea air. Harry gave Mr Weasley a conspiratorialsmile.

"Thanks. I'm sorry I did that but, well, I'm not really. I just couldn't wait one more day to . . ."

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"That's all right Harry", said Mr Weasley, clapping him on the shoulder, "I understandcompletely, glad to help".

It took only about half-an-hour to reach the port of Rothesay and soon they were trundling thecars off the ferry and on to dry land again. Harry took out the directions Sirius had sent him tothe castle and showed Maggie.

"Oh ! That's where we're going ?"

"Right. My god-father . . . "

"But, but, it's a ruin ! I have this book, 'Picturesque Ruined Castles of Scotland' and no onecould possibly live there. It's just a pile of rubble. It used to be a tower house (VERY WRONG).It was sacked sometime in the mid-seventeenth century (1544 to be exact) and then . . . "

" . . . and then they killed the survivors in Dunoon", he finished, knowing the story full wellsince it was Lucius Malfoy's favourite bloody clan story. Literally.

"Right. So how could your god-father possibly . . . "

Harry grinned mischievously at the woman who forty-eight hours earlier hadn't known thatanyone in The World other than her had the sort of abilities she had.

"One word", said Harry, continuing to smile, "Magic".

THE REAL HISTORY OF ROTHESAY CASTLE

According to the ever-useful Wikipedia, Rothesay's castle has been described as "one of themost remarkable in Scotland", for its long history dating back to the beginning of the 13thcentury and its unusual circular plan.

The castle comprises a huge curtain wall, strengthened by four round towers, together with a

16th century forework, the whole surrounded by a broad moat. Built by the Stewart family, itsurvived Norse attacks to become a royal residence and, after falling into ruin after the 17thcentury, the castle was repaired by The Marquess of Bute before passing into the care of thestate last century.

The castle was built either by Alan, High Steward of Scotland (d.1204), or by his son WalterStewart (d.1246), ancestor of The House of Stuart or Stewart. Alan was granted the lands ofthe Isle of Bute by William I in 1200. A wooden castle was constructed first, but the stonecircular curtain wall was in place by the 1230's, when the castle was attacked and taken byNorsemen under Gillespec MacDougall, known as 'Uspak' in Norse, grandson of Somerled.

According to The Saga of Haakon Haakonsson, the Norsemen fought for three days to take

the castle, breaking down part of the eastern wall by hewing the stone with their axes andcertainly the eastern wall shows signs of damage. This saga is the earliest recorded accountof an assault on a Scottish castle.

In 1263, Rothesay was taken again by the Norse under Haakon IV before The Battle of Largs.Although the Battle of Largs was indecisive, Haakon's campaign was unsuccessful andeffectively ended Norse influence in western Scotland.

The early castle comprised only the roughly circular curtain wall, 3 metres thick and around43 metres across, built on a low mound, with a battlement on top accessed by open stairs.

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The moat was connected to the sea, the shoreline being some 100 metres further north-eastthan today. The broad crenellations can be made out within the walls, which were laterraised. Holes in the upper wall would have supported a timber bretasche, a projectingstructure serving as an extended battlement. This curtain wall was built of coursed ashlar andhad only two openings in its length. The main gate was an arched opening with a simpletimber door. The second opening was a small postern gate in the west wall, later blocked.

In the later part of the 13th century, the castle was strengthened by the addition of four round

towers, of which only the north-east survives intact. These three-storey towers had strongsplayed bases, with arrow slits below the crenellated parapet. A portcullis was added to themain gate.

During The Wars of Scottish Independence, Rothesay was held by the English, but was takenby Robert the Bruce in 1311. It then returned to English hands in 1334, before being takenagain by the Scots. Following the accession of the Stewarts to the throne of Scotland in 1371,the castle became a favourite residence of kings Robert II and Robert III, who died here in1406.

Robert II granted the hereditary keepership of the castle to his son John, ancestor of The Earlsand Marquesses of Bute.

Robert III made his eldest son David, Duke of Rothesay, in 1401, beginning a tradition ofhonouring the heir to thethrone of Scotland with this title. In 1462 the castle survived a siege by the forces of John ofIslay, Earl of Ross and the last Lord of the Isles.

In the early 16th century Rothesay Castle was strengthened again. Construction of agatehouse keep, extending from the north of the curtain wall, began around the turn of thecentury, to provide more modern accommodation for James IV.

The curtain wall itself was raised up to ten metres in height, the works continuing into thereign of James V. In 1527 the castle withstood another siege by The Master of Ruthven, which

destroyed much of the burgh of Rothesay. In 1544, the castle fell to The Earl of Lennox,acting for the English during the so-called "Rough Wooing".

The forework is an L-plan structure, which jutted into the moat and was accessed by adrawbridge. The lower floor comprised a vaulted entrance tunnel running into the older castlecourtyard. Above, the four storey tower contained royal lodgings and still bears the royal coatof arms above the door. Also in the early 16th century, a chapel was constructed inside theold castle. Simple in form, the chapel measured around 6 metres by 9 metres and is now theonly surviving structure within the curtain wall. The north-west tower was converted into adoocot and is known as the "Pigeon Tower", due to the nest boxes built into the outside wall.

Rothesay was garrisoned for The Royalists during The Wars of the Three Kingdoms, then for

the occupying forces of Oliver Cromwell, who invaded Scotland with his new 'Model Army' inthe early 1650's. On their departure in 1660, the troops partially dismantled the structureand what was left was burned by the supporters of Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyllduring his rising of 1685, in support of The Monmouth Rebellion against James VII.

Following a long period of neglect, The 2nd Marquess of Bute employed 70 men to excavatethe ruins, clearing large amounts of rubbish from the castle in 1816 - 1817, but it was notuntil the 1870's that the ruins were stabilised.

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The 3rd Marquess, a keen restorer of historic buildings, embarked upon a series of repairsand restorations, following surveys and advice from his regular architect William Burges. His"restorations" continued until 1900 and include the clearing and shaping of the moat as wellas the red sandstone additions to the forework, which reinstated the hall roof whilesignificantly altering the character of the building.

In 1961 Rothesay Castle was gifted to the state and is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument inthe care of Historic Scotland, the castle open to visitors year round.

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harry potter visits skelmorlie and wemyss bay

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