EXCURSION VI. 133 



Castle Abhael and the Sui, gleaming now in the golden light 

 of sunset, and contrasting strongly with the dark slate 

 hills which encircle the bay. The place altogether has 

 a singulai-ly picturesque and unique aspect; the stranger 

 will say he has never seen such a hamlet and bay before. Yet 

 will he find most comfortable quarters at the unpretending 

 inn, and even luxuries not easily found elsewhere. 



The stranger who has got but one night at his disposal to 

 spend in Loch Ranza, should contrive to reach the place so 

 early that he will have time for a stroll along the sea-shore, 

 to the west, in the direction of Glen Catacol. Towards sun- 

 set, on a clear and still summer evening, the scenery appears 

 to the highest advantage. It has then a quiet but touching 

 beauty, which steals into the very soul. 



There are several objects of much interest about Loch 

 Ranza. The castle is a regular structure of stone and lime, 

 with thick walls, and is still in tolerable preservation, though 

 now roofless. There are several small apartments and a 

 large hall reached by a narrow stair. It must have been a 

 place of great strength before the use of artillery was known. 

 It stands on a bank of shingle, running across the mouth of 

 the bay, and forming the harbour. "We first find it men- 

 tioned as being a hunting-seat of the Scottish kings in 1380; 

 it was then reckoned one of the royal castles. But the date 

 at which it was erected is not known. In 1452 the lands 

 and castle of Loch Ranza, with the lands of Sannox, were 

 granted by the Crown in feu to Lord Montgomerie ; Ronald 

 M'Alister, who held them before, having refused to pay rent 

 on a plea not deemed sufficient. The Montgomeries of 

 Skelmorlie, ancestors of the Eglinton family, got a grant of 

 the property in 1685, with much of the north end of the 

 parish. They, however, lost the entire property, as an 

 unredeemed mortgage for 3600, to the Hamilton family in 

 1705. The Duchess Anne, then the head of that family, 

 built a chapel and established a missionary station at Loch 

 Ranza, for the maintenance of which she mortified a sum of 



