Scottish Castles Association

Knock Castle is situated on the edge of a ravine on the Ayrshire coast near Largs.

The original castle was a 17th-century Z-plan tower house with an oblong main block of four storeys and distinctive circular towers at either end.

One part is in ruins and the other part is roofed having been transformed into a garden folly in the 1850s. The red rubble walls are peppered with shot holes and there is a gun loop above the door to the stair tower. The basement is vaulted but the upper floors have been modernised.

Knock Castle LEFT: Windows in tower provide superb views over the Clyde Estuary

RIGHT: Work in progress to convert Knock into a holiday let

Stones built into the walls provide some key dates in the building’s history: ‘1603’, ’1604’, ‘Repaired in 1853’ and ‘2013’.

At present Knock Castle is undergoing work which will convert it into a property suitable for let and provide for its long-term future.

The old castle stands in the grounds of its successor finished in 1852. This is a Tudor-castellated pile which, according to the RIAS, is 'undoubtedly among the most successful 19th century mansions in Scotland’.

The superb Knock Castle of 1852

Article by SCA member Brian McGarrigle.