[4] The southern front of the castle was erected about the year 1562 by John Mure of Rowallan and his Lady, Marion Cuninghame, of the family of Cuninghamhead.

This is possibly a rebus or jeu-de-mot on the Mure name, however it is suggested that it is a reference to some feat performed in the crusades against the Saracens.

[10] The Royal Arms of Scotland, fully blazoned, are carved over the main entrance, together with the shields of the Cumin family, from whom the Mures claim descent.

A folk etymology suggests, in connection with the rebus mentioned, there is a tale told of one Allan of Stewarton who was rowing a Scottish chief off the Ayrshire coast.

[22] Yet, a third suggestion is that 'Rowallan' is of Brythonic or Cumbric origin, especially in that this area of Scotland lived under these languages for over a thousand years before Gaelic began to take hold.

Sir William Mure wrote a history of his family and though an ardent covenanter, opposed the execution of Charles I, writing an elegy upon his death.

[13] As stated, Sir William befriended the Covenanters, and as much as possible protected his tenantry from the tyranny of the troopers who scoured the countryside at the period.

One day this fox encountered the local hunt and ran to cover in the tree, to the amazement and consternation of the hunters and hounds.

The housekeeper dislodged the poor animal, however it escaped the hunt and was back in its tree the following day as if nothing untoward had happened.

[27] Near to the castle, overlooking a chasm through which the Carmel runs, stood a stately 'marriage tree' on the bank known as 'Janet's Kirn', Scots for 'churn.'

Under this tree Dame Jean Mure of Rowallan was married to William Fairlie of Bruntsfield, an estate near Edinburgh.

[28][29] The stair leading up to the principal door of the castle has a crack that is best seen in wet weather, and tradition has it that this was the rent caused by the Devil himself.

A great box hedge was planted at Rowallan castle garden, possibly around 1687, and it was still a magnificent sight circa 1817; by 1847 however it was much decayed.

"In June 2015, Historic Scotland granted Scheduled Monument Consent (SMC) for the change in use of the castle to be used as guest accommodation."

The owner, Niall Campbell and family, had intended that the castle would be used for residential accommodation, but it was retained for some years in the guardianship of Historic Scotland.

Arthur Corbett, as he then was, had his second marriage annulled in 1970 on the grounds that his wife, April Ashley, a transsexual woman, was a man under then-current UK law.

The Herald newspaper reported (31 March 2017) from the trial that “Campbell gave himself away by leaving his DNA on sticky tape sealing an envelope”.