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Stirling CastleOuter Defences
The northern (right) half of this includes work from the 1550s. To the northern end is the French Spur, also dating from the 1550s, which provided further defence of the entrance. At the southern end is a low wall projecting out which was intended to enclose the esplanade, but this was abandoned. Through the entry gate is Guardhouse Square, a defensive pocket within the Outer Defences. Within the square are a guardhouse, a stable and straw store (now the shop) which were partly built in 1813. Behind the inner walls in the square, and also the higher wall at the northern end of the Outer Defences (where the restaurant is now), are a series of walls interconnected by stone vaults (known as casements) which strengthened the outer walls.
Through the gate in the Forework is the Outer Close, the lower of the two principal courtyards in the castle. |
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The
Outer Defences of Stirling Castle was mostly built between 1708 and 1714 as a barrier against
attack. It consists of a low wall with a ditch behind it. A single entry across
a drawbridge set in a larger wall that has sentry boxes placed along it.
From
the Guardhouse Square a further gate that was reached across a second ditch
leads into the Forework, which was built for James IV around 1500. This
consists of a central gateway with three gates and three-quarter round towers
on either side. This area has been frequently modified (it only rises to a third
of it's original height following damage from the siege in 1651) and the
existing battlements were built in 1810.
