© Shutterstock

Eilean Donan Castle -

It may be one of Scotland's most beautiful castles, but the 13th-century Eilean Donal Castle, in the rugged western Highlands, is also one of the spookiest spots in the country. Built by the Clan Mackenzie and Clan Macrae to defend the area from marauding Vikings, it has a bloodied history.

© Shutterstock

Eilean Donal Castle -

The castle sheltered Robert the Bruce in the early 14th century, and saw gruesome beheadings in 1331, with decapitated heads displayed on the castle walls. Spanish soldiers garrisoned the castle during the Jacobite revolution, and locals believe one slaughtered soldier still haunts the place. He's not alone: the ghost of a former resident named Lady Mary is reportedly a regular guest in one of the castle's bedrooms.

© Shutterstock

Edinburgh Castle -

Cutting an imposing figure over the picturesque city below, Edinburgh Castle is one of the most-visited, and apparently most-haunted, places in the country. Former prisoners are rumored to haunt the castle's dungeons, and a headless drummer has been startling visitors for centuries.

© Shutterstock

Edinburgh Castle -

The ghostly drummer was first sighted just before Oliver Cromwell attacked the castle in 1650, and the sound of his drumming has been reported many times since. According to the Scottish tourist board, "his physical appearance is rare and is said to foretell danger for the castle."

© Shutterstock

Kellie Castle -

This picturesque 14th-century castle in Fife has a dark past: a resident named Anne Erskine died when she fell from an upstairs window. She apparently has unfinished business with her family home. 

© Shutterstock

Kellie Castle -

While she is rarely sighted, there have been many reports of the sound of footsteps running up the stairs of the bell tower from which she fell. As if that weren't spooky enough, a sighting of a pair of red shoes ascending the staircase has also been reported, as have ghostly apparitions in one of the mirrors.

© Shutterstock

Alloa Tower -

The Erskine family history is certainly is a ghostly one. They owned this 700-year-old tower in the 16th century, and legend has it that a curse was put on the tower and its inhabitants.

© Shutterstock

Alloa Tower -

Ghosts have been spotted in several rooms at the tower in Clackmannanshire, central Scotland, the most haunting apparition being the appearance of a man in chains in the tower dungeon.

© Shutterstock

Stirling Castle -

The beautiful hilltop castle in Stirling, central Scotland, welcomes visitors for afternoon tea. But linger after dark and you may come across an uninvited guest.

© Shutterstock

Stirling Castle -

The castle is said to be the stomping ground of a ghostly Highlander, dressed in traditional costume. The kilt-wearing ghoul is apparently so lifelike that tourists have mistaken him for a tour guide, approaching the figure for information, only for him to vanish into thin air. 

© Shutterstock

Blackness Castle -

Don't be surprised if you hear the ghostly rattling of prison chains at this impressive stronghold sitting on the water's edge at the picturesque Firth of Forth. The 15th-century castle once served as a jail.

© Shutterstock

Blackness Castle -

Local lore holds that a ghostly armored knight  guards the prison tower, and visitors have reported seeing the apparition jump out at them before disappearing again.

© Shutterstock

Hermitage Castle -

The foreboding exterior of Hermitage Castle in Hawick casts an appropriately dark air over this 13th-century site. Built to control border access between frequently-warring Scotland and England, it was said to overlook "the bloodiest valley in Britain." 

© Shutterstock

Hermitage Castle -

The sinister-looking building has long been associated with stories of black magic and gruesome torture, and vengeful spirits—including none other than Mary Queen of Scots—are said to haunt the place.

© Shutterstock

Barcaldine Castle -

These days it's a luxury guest house, but the friendly-looking Barcaldine Castle in scenic Argyll may be hosting a ghostly presence. Built in 1609, the castle is popular with ghost hunters, who have reported spooky sightings in the Great Hall.

© Shutterstock

Barcaldine Castle -

Local legend states that this is the spirit of Donald Campbell of the mighty Campbell clan. He was killed in the 1692 Massacre of Glencoe by his arch enemy, Stewart of Appin.

© Shutterstock

Skaill House -

Things go bump in the night with great frequency at this handsome 17th-century mansion in Sandwick.  The current owner and his dog have been spooked by unexplained apparitions, doors opening by themselves, and creepy sounds. 

© Shutterstock

Falkland Castle -

Once a royal country residence loved by Mary Queen of Scots, this grand Renaissance castle is haunted by a tale of doomed romance.

© Shutterstock

Falkland Castle -

Open to visitors, the castle's tapestry gallery plays host to a ghostly female figure shrouded in a gray glow. The story goes that she waits in vain for her soldier lover, who went off to battle but never returned.

© Shutterstock

Tantallon Castle -

A ruin since the 17th century, Tantallon Castle in East Lothian has had living residents for hundreds of years. But there is one unearthly man who apparently still calls it home.

© Shutterstock

Tantallon Castle -

There have been regular sightings of a man in period costume wandering within the crumbling grounds: he has even been snapped on two occasions, standing in a doorway.

© Shutterstock

Castle Menzies -

The ancestral home of the powerful Menzies clan is a favorite spot for ghost hunters, but it's not for the faint of heart. Visitors have reported ghostly voices, and one tour group even reported sighting a "glowing orb."

© Shutterstock

Castle Menzies -

But creepiest of all has to be the vision of three ill-humored women huddled in the castle's meat cellar. According to legend, they are a ghastly coven of witches.

© Shutterstock

Castle of Mey -

The Castle of Mey, in Caithness, was the preferred holiday home of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, but who knows whether she caught sight or sound of its ghostly inhabitant?

© Shutterstock

Castle of Mey -

Staff at the castle say it is haunted by the lovelorn figure of Lady Fanny, daughter of the 14th Earl of Caithness. When she fell in love with a local farmhand, her father banished him from the grounds and sent his daughter to the top floor, where her lonely ghost remains.

© Shutterstock

Dunrobin Castle -

It looks like something from a fairy tale, but there's a tragic tale to this grand castle in the northern Highlands. And it's shockingly similar to the story involving the aforementioned Castle of Mey.

© Shutterstock

Dunrobin Castle -

The upper floors of Dunrobin Castle are said to be haunted by the pained ghost of Margaret, daughter of the 14th Earl of Sutherland. When she fell in love with a stable boy, her father had her banished to the attic. The lovestruck Margaret fell to her death while attempting to climb from the tower to her lover, who waited on horseback below, ready to elope. She wanders the halls in pain to this day, with visitors reporting hearing her wails of pain.

© Shutterstock

Dunnottar Castle -

Magnificent Dunnotar Castle has a prime defensive position jutting out into the North Sea, and was the ancestral home of Earls Marischal, one of Scotland's most powerful families. It has played a key position in Scotland's battle-scarred history, from the Dark Age Picts to the Jacobite Revolution. Numerous ghosts have been spotted in the haunted halls and dungeons.

© Shutterstock

Dunnottar Castle -

Among the most frequently-spotted ghostly inhabitants is the Green Lady. The floating figure of a woman in a green tartan is said to be looking for her 'lost children,' who were Picts who converted to Christianity during the 5th century. A ghostly soldier is also often seen looking out to sea.

Sources: (Visit Scotland) (Cottages & Castles) (BBC)

See also: Why people see ghosts, explained

© Shutterstock