Balvenie Castle

Nothing is documented as to how the Black Douglases first acquired the castle but the most likely account is that it came with the marriage of the heiress Joanna Murray to Archibald 'the Grim' , 3rd Earl of Douglas in 1362.

Earl James's death in 1443 signalled a resumption of the hostility between the royal Stewarts and the Black Douglases.

The Battle of Arkinholm in May 1455 saw the defeat of this, the main Douglas line by an army loyal to James II.

[1] Today, the remains of the castle are managed by Historic Environment Scotland as a scheduled monument.

[2] However, ownership continues in private hands; the current owner is Jeremy Duncan Nicholson, Baron of Balvenie, who resides in Atlanta, Georgia in the United States.