Cadzow Castle

Cadzow Castle, seen across the Avon Gorge from the Duke's Bridge

Cadzow Castle, now in ruins, was constructed between 1500 and 1550 at a site one mile south-east of the centre of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The earlier medieval settlement of Hamilton was formerly known as Cadzow or Cadyou[1] (Middle Scots: Cadȝow), until it was renamed in 1455 in honour of James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton.[2] The castle sits above a gorge overlooking the Avon Water in what is now Chatelherault Country Park, but was previously the hunting and pleasure grounds of the duke of Hamilton's estate of Hamilton Palace - this area being known as Hamilton High Parks. The ruin is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[3]

  1. ^ George Chalmers, Caledonia, Or, A Historical and Topographical Account of North Britain from the Most Ancient to the Present Times: With a Dictionary of Places, Chorographical and Philological, Vol. 6 (A. Gardner, 1890), p. 683.
  2. ^ Hamilton's royal past, South Lanarkshire Council
  3. ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "Cadzow Castle (SM90342)". Retrieved 27 February 2019.