Hill forts · Scottish Highlands
Dun Carloway
Also known as: Dùn Chàrlabhaigh
Dun Carloway — broch on Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland, UK.
Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1 h–2 h
- Free entry
- Family-friendly
- Dog-friendly
About
Dun Carloway is a hill fort in the United Kingdom. Heritage designation: scheduled monument. Owned by Historic Environment Scotland. Managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Wikidata describes it as: "broch on Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland, UK". Coordinates: 58.2696°, -6.7940°.
Photo gallery
From Historic Environment Scotland
Get an overview of Dun Carloway, an impressive broch that saw more than 1,000 years of use. Visit the site today or contact Historic Environment Scotland for more information.
Read more on the official property page.
From the Wikipedia article
Dun Carloway (Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Chàrlabhaigh) is a broch situated in the district of Carloway, on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis, Scotland (grid reference NB18994122). It is a remarkably well preserved broch – on the east side parts of the old wall still reach to 9 metres tall.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
Most brochs were built in the period from 100 BC to 100 AD. Dun Carloway was probably built in the 1st century AD. It probably got its current name from the Norse Karlavagr ("Karl's bay"), a relic of its time as part of the Kingdom of the Isles. Through the centuries Dun Carloway remained in use until the floor level was too high due to build-up of the occupation layers. The broch was occasionally used in later times as a stronghold. The Morrisons of Ness put Dun Carloway into use in 1601. The story goes that they had stolen cattle from the MacAuleys of Uig. The MacAuleys wanted their cattle back and found the Morrisons in the broch. One of them, Donald Cam MacAuley, climbed the outer wall…
Architecture
Dun Carloway is built on a rock on a steep south slope at the height of 50 metres. The wall of the broch rises on the south side to 9.2 metres. Only Mousa Broch and Dun Telve have walls that are higher. The original height of Dun Carloway is unknown. The broch overlooks Loch Carloway. The external diameter is 14.3 metres; the internal diameter of the inner courtyard is 7.4 metres. The entrance is 75 centimetres wide and 1 metre high. The walls on this side of the broch do not much exceed the height of the entrance capstone and there are no stones on top of the large capstone. On the south side of the entrance-passage is a so-called "guard cell", a small side room in the hallway. The opening…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 58.2696, -6.7940
- District
- Na h-Eileanan Siar
- Postcode
- HS2 9AZ
- Parliamentary constituency
- Na h-Eileanan an Iar
- Official site
- www.historicenvironment.scot
Sources
- wikidata: Q1265209 (CC0)
- wikipedia: Dun Carloway (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Dun Carloway.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Dun Carloway?
- Dun Carloway is in the Scottish Highlands, United Kingdom (postcode HS2 9AZ).
- Who runs Dun Carloway?
- Dun Carloway is operated by Historic Environment Scotland.
- Is Dun Carloway a listed building?
- Dun Carloway is officially recognised as scheduled monument listed.
- Is Dun Carloway free to visit?
- Yes, Dun Carloway is free to enter.
- How do I get to Dun Carloway?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode HS2 9AZ. It sits within the Na h-Eileanan an Iar parliamentary constituency.