Deskie Castle

Deskie Castle was a medieval tower house that is thought to have been near Bridgend of Livet, Moray, Scotland.

History

Little is known of the castle apart from a traditional rhyme:

Glenlivet it has castles three,
Drumin, Blairfindy and Deskie.

Structure

An irregularly oval knoll which is scarped and somewhat levelled is locally known as 'Deskie Castle'. The knoll runs about 90 metres (300 ft) north-west to south-east and about 36 metres (118 ft) north-east to south-west. The height is about 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in). There are traces of walling around the edges to the west and north. There is evidence of another 1-metre wide (3 ft 3 in) wall crossing the summit. It is all on a boggy slope which faces south-west, while a natural escarpment overlooks on the north and east. Away from the mound and strategically placed on the west and north-west, separate from the mound, there are three distinct short lengths of earthen banks, each around 9 miles (14 km) wide and 2 metres (7 ft) high. But it is not clear that the banks formed a continuous outer defence to the mound. While the earthworks are not of motte and bailey type, it is thought possible in view of the traditions associated with the site that they are the remains of a medieval stronghold. It is a scheduled monument.

See also

• Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
• List of castles in Scotland