The Castle, which has been the home of the Murray clan since 1606, sealed by the marriage of Sir John Murray of Tullibardine to Dorothea Stewart, heiress to the Earls of Atholl, and has been the seat of the ancient name for over 400 years.

The current Duke of Atholl, Bruce Murray, is Chief of the Murray clan and still retains the unique honour of being head of Europe’s only legal private army, the Atholl Highlanders.

Kate Hannah, marketing manager for Blair Castle, commented: “We really wanted to mark Scotland’s Year of Homecoming in a novel and unique way, and what better way to do it than invite members of the clan, from all over the world, to visit their family seat. We want them to feel welcome when they visit so, as long as they have photographic identification that they are a Murray, then we’ll be happy to show them round their ancestral home.”

Murray is one of the top 100 most common surnames in the UK, currently ranking 68th, and ranks 123rd most common surname in the USA, as well as 53rd most common surname in Australia.

Murrays visiting the castle will be asked to show photographic identification that their surname is Murray before gaining access and, while the invitation is currently only being extended throughout April, if it proves popular the Castle may extend it for the rest of the season.

Kate commented: “Perhaps the most famous Murray in the world at the moment is Andy Murray, and we’d be delighted if he took us up on our offer. But we know there are many thousands of Murrays from all over the world who will be interested in the history of their clan name and where better to find out about it, than at its home.”

Blair Castle is one of Scotland’s most popular tourist destinations, with 700 years of history spanning 30 rooms, and has played a role in many major figures’ lives including Mary Queen of Scots, Bonnie Prince Charlie and Queen Victoria.

This year the Castle has also revealed a new Family at War exhibition which displays various artefacts and information about the individual family members during the war, including personal letters, photos and documents.

Visitors to Blair Castle will be able to view the exhibition as part of their Castle Tour. Murrays can, of course, visit free of charge.

The post Calling all Murrays appeared first on ScotClans | Scottish Clans.

Blaze at Blair Castle

Atholl Estates, which runs the castle, said that the actions of firefighters preveneted the blaze from having catastrophic consequences.

A statement released on Friday noted: “The swift action of the emergency services to a fire at Blair Castle averted a near catastrophe last night.

“Flames were spotted rising from the clock tower at the south end of the castle at around 8.45pm where a chimney fire had broken out above the castle’s wood chip boiler.

“Thankfully the castle was empty at the time and the few residents were quickly evacuated.

“Fears that the fire would spread to the rest of the castle failed to materialise and fire fighters had fully extinguished the blaze by 10pm.”

The interior of the clock tower was gutted in the blaze, while the roof also collapsed.

Power supply to the main castle offices was also cut off during the fire, however management are in discussions with insurers and emergency services to get this damage repaired as quickly as possible.

Six fire engines and an aerial platform battled the the flames.

Around 50 firefighters tackled the fire using breathing apparatus, while the roof of the clocktower fell into the building during the incident.

Atholl Estates also confirmed on Friday that the castle would be open from 9.30am to 2.30pm on Saturday.

Andrew Bruce Wootton, general manager of Atholl Estates that runs the castle, said: “The roof of the clocktower was substantially on fire, flames were rising quite high with sparks flying everywhere because of the strong winds.

“The area where the fire started is a contained part of the building and it did not spread any further. No one was injured and nothing of historical significance was damaged.”

The clock tower was built at the castle in the 19th century after a blaze ripped through the structure.

Rab Middlemiss, group manager of Tayside Fire and Rescue, said: “Our fire crews stopped the fire from spreading into the residential wings adjacent to the clocktower.

“Everybody got out of the building fine and after we extinguished the fire our crews went into the clocktower to assess the damage.

“We will now be carrying out a full investigation into the cause of the fire, but it does not appear to be suspicious.”

Blair Castle

Blair Castle is the ancient seat of the Dukes and Earls of Atholl and its history dates back around 740 years.

The post Fire at Blair Castle causes near devastation appeared first on ScotClans | Scottish Clans.

Fiona 21 (left) and Faye 18 (right)

The siblings Fiona and Faye Henderson from Kirriemuir practise at Blair Castle ahead of this weekend’s Glenfiddich Piping and Fiddle Championships. Fiona and Faye are finalists in the events, the most respected competitions of the piping and fiddle worlds.

Faye, was the first woman to win the Gold Medal at the Argyllshire Gathering, one of the top awards that can be bestowed on a piper. Fiona, is one of the country’s finest young fiddlers.

The post Henderson Sisters in final of Glenfiddich Piping and Fiddle Championships appeared first on ScotClans | Scottish Clans.