Ravenscraig Castle is an historically important castle for Scotland and the United Kingdom:
- It was the home of Mary of Guelders Queen of Scotland, the wife of King James II of Scotland. After her husband's death, Mary ruled as regent for their son James III of Scotland from 1460 to 1463.
- It is the only castle in Scotland the building of which was commissioned by a woman.
- Ravenscraig was built in volatile times for King James II and Scotland, as a last resort refuge for the Royal family with Falkland Palace deemed not entirely safe and Stirling Castle having been subjected to siege by the waring Douglas Clan following King James II stabbing William, 8th Earl of Douglas to death at a banquet in Stirling Castle.
- In 1471 in a very important transaction for Scotland and ultimately the United Kingdom, castle ownership passed from Scottish royalty to William Sinclair, Earl of Orkney and Caithness in return for surrender of Sinclair’s Orkney title. This exchange was part and parcel of the dowry in the marriage of King James III of Scotland and Margaret of Denmark (the daughter of King Kristian 1, King of Denmark and Norway). Ultimately the terms of the dowry lead Orkney and Shetland becoming part of Scotland rather than Norway.
- It is the first example of a castle built in Scotland, and one of the first in Europe of a castle built with artillery fortification to defend against gunpowder siege artillery and firearms. The high and massive round fronted tower house has a maximum thickness of 4.4 metres. This is the only Scottish pre-1513 gun looped work with an extraordinary reinforcement of wall thickness against bombardment threat.
- Kirkcaldy is also an economically challenged area (as recognised by the Scottish government). The restoration of the castle would restore the jewel in Kirkcaldy’s crown and could bring jobs to Kirkcaldy and potentially specialist apprenticeship opportunities, and post restoration tourism jobs.
- As recently as 1905 the castle was used in local customs as an important focal point for the gathering of townsfolk for Hansel Monday and New Years Day celebrations. As recently as 40 years ago the public could visit the rooms in the castle however the rooms are no longer open to the public. Indeed there is no access at all to the castle at the moment.
- The Castle is not currently in a good state of repair. The approach of Historic Environment Scotland to the castle appears to be one off managed decline or curated decay ie just a pile of stones to look at from the outside, rather than to preserve or restore.
Given the historical and military importance of Ravenscraig Castle it should be restored and preserved for future generations, like Edinburgh and Stirling Castles.
