Attractions
Castle Menzies
Castle Menzies was home to the Menzies Chiefs from 1488 to 1910. The Menzies have been in Highland Perthshire since records began from the middle of the 12th century.
The sixteenth century Z-shaped Castle Menzies, a short distance from Aberfeldy at Weem, was designed not only as a residence but also was required to provide some protection from enemies. You can see the Menzies Claymore (sword) used by the chief at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, the final battle in the Scottish Wars of Independence.
Castle Menzies survived through the Covenanter religious troubles of the mid-seventeenth century and the Jacobite rebellions of 1715 when it was occupied by the Jacobites and again in 1745, when Bonnie Prince Charlie stayed at Castle Menzies, on his way to the Battle of Culloden in 1746.
In 1910 the 8th Baronet, Sir Neil Menzies, died without heirs, which resulted in the extensive Menzies estates being divided and auctioned by his trustees in 1914. Castle Menzies with all its contents, including many Clan Menzies relics were bundled into lots and sold, scattering four hundred years of history around the world.
From 1914 Castle Menzies has had various owners and tenants, none of whom were able to maintain the castle properly. In 1957 it was bought as a ruin by the Menzies Clan Society for under £300.
The Menzies Charitable Trust was set up in 1993 and ownership of Castle Menzies was transferred to this Trust along with the Castle's original walled garden, which had been purchased in 1984.
The Menzies Mausolem set within the Old Kirk of Weem, the old church in Weem village is where many of the Menzies Chiefs who lived in Castle Menzies are buried.
Castle Menzies is open April to October each year.
