Introduction
The name borne by the Castle and village today is popularly supposed to have derived from the period when it was a royal hunting ground. The word Fyvie is said to be of Gaelic origin, from
Fia-chein or 'deer-hill'. Another interpretation is that the name in Gaelic originally meant a wood or wilderness by a river; yet another is that it refers to one Reginald le Cheyne, or Chen.
The Fyvie Castle of today is a vast building which is curiously foreign in appearance, and you could be forgiven for thinking you had suddenly been transplanted to a chateau on the Loire. In the mid 1800's it was described in glowing terms: 'It is indeed one of the most noblest and most beautiful specimens of that rich architecture which the Scottish Barons of the days of King James IV obtained from France. Its princely towers with their luxurious coronet of coned turrets, sharp gables, tall roofs and chimneys, canopied dormer windows, and rude statuary, present a skyline at once graceful, rich and massive, and in these qualities exceeding even the far-famed Glamis'.
[Billings; Baronial and Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Scotland; 1848-52]
In 1885 an article appeared in the Times of February 5th, outlining the attributes of this wonderful castle:
'…..Its chief attractions are…archaeological, historical, legendary and romantic. Aberdeenshire is rich in fortified baronial residences of more or less pretensions; Fyvie Castle is by far the noblest of them all. In fact, with the solitary exception of Glamis, there is nothing in Scotland that is finer in the style. Like Glamis it has witnessed many stirring events and received many illustrious visitors under its roof; even more than Glamis, perhaps, it associates itself with Scottish history, through a long line of proprietors from days that are lost in the mists of antiquity. Like the Castle of Glamis it has its secret chamber; like the Palace of Holyrood it has a "murder room" with ineffaceable bloodstains on the floor. It has its spirit that haunts the great vaulted staircase, bringing warnings of death or disaster like the Irish banshee; and signs and portents are to be sought and found in the very stones of the ancient battlements.'
The history of Fyvie Castle is written permanently in its massive walls and tapering turrets - the enthralling story of a house which is part of the story of Scotland itself.
The years 1211 to 1329
Whilst it was not usually easy to determine the date of most early Scottish castles, Fyvie differed from most of its contemporaries in that its lands and barony were conserved as a royal chace right up to the time of Robert III. In those times when Fyvie was a Royal residence, there was also a Royal Burgh at Fyvie, and there are several notices existing in the 'Exchequer Rolls' – for example, there is mention of one Henry de Fyvin, who was requested to account for all the eels taken from the waters and marshes of Fyvin. These eels were highly prized and came from the Ythan river and the area that is now the Castle lake. Indeed, the Ythan sometimes yielded richer prizes - freshwater pearls from oyster beds in its depths. The finest specimen ever produced was at the junction of the Kelly burn with the Ythan, and in 1620 was gifted to King James VI. It now forms the largest pearl in the Royal Crown of Scotland.
The earliest mention of Fyvie Castle is said to be between 1211 and 1214; the exact date is not given, but within that period a charter was granted by William the Lion to the monks of Dunfermline of the Church of Abercromby in Fife; and it is endorsed apud Fiuene [Fyvie]. This means that William the Lion was in residence at Fyvie with all his officials of State, who were witnesses to this charter.
The next notice of Fyvie is in the reign of Alexander II, who was also in residence at the Castle when he signed a charter conferring benefits on the monks of St Thomas, on 22nd February 1221.
Seventy five years later we find Edward I of England within Fyvie's walls. Fyvie was in the possession of one Reginald le Chen or Cheyne, a noble of great importance, who had been Grand Chamberlain of Scotland from 1267-68. He escorted his feudal lord to Fyvie, arriving on 22nd July for a one-night stay. Subsequently, through the generations, a room in the oldest tower of Fyvie – now known as the Preston Tower – has been confidently pointed out as the actual chamber in which the 'Great Hammer of the Scots' rested when on his punitive expedition.
Bruce was crowned at Scone on 27th March 1306. He then went on to subdue the various factions – one of them was the Earl of Buchan – and it is recorded that he laid waste to the entire area with fire and sword in what has become known as 'the harrying of Buchan'. How far Fyvie escaped that 'harrying' will never be known. Whether the Castle that existed prior to this was partially destroyed and later rebuilt, none can say – there are no records. Being Crown property however, it is probable that although it must have suffered in the terrible vengeance wreaked on Buchan, the structure itself was saved from deliberate demolition.
The tradition is strong that Bruce, once firmly established on the throne of his ancestor William the Lion, visited Fyvie frequently, and made it a centre for the administration of justice. High up amid the beautiful hanging beech woods above the Castle there is a site still shown where the Bruce sat to legislate, while all from the area who required his protection or arbitration assembled on the steep slope of the hill beneath. And in the leafy silence of that haunted spot today imagination conjures up a motley crowd from the past – the romantic figure of the heroic king, his rugged chieftains and stalwart knights, the thanes and their followers in picturesque garb – all brave men who had fought with their overlords against Edward 'Hammer of the Scots' or his successor Edward II at Bannockburn and had won freedom for their land through blood and carnage. Bruce apparently continued his visits to Fyvie for many years, before dying of leprosy in 1329.
1329 to 1397 - James Lindsay
After the great Reginald le Cheyne there followed various owners or thanes who are known to us merely by a record of their payment of rent or tithes.
In 1380 Fyvie was transferred to Sir James de Lindesay or Lindsay, with whose possession of Fyvie we enter a period when fuller details are available about the owner of the burgh and Castle.
The Lindsays were a family of ancient lineage who had been allied to the reigning house of Scotland more than once.
Sir James Lindsay was a prominent figure at Court, due to his close relationship with the King; in 1371 we find him present at the coronation of his uncle Robert II, at Scone; and he was appointed Commissioner by Robert to deal with the English in 1374 and again in 1381. His importance was perhaps furthered by marriage to Margaret, daughter of Sir William Keith, Great Marischal of Scotland. The Keiths were among the oldest, most illustrious and powerful families in Scotland at that time.
Sir James Lindsay fought at the Battle of Otterburn but returned to Fyvie within 2 years. He appeared to remain in residence until his death in early 1397. How he died is not recorded.