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Research dossier · Places & Architecture

Kerelaw Castle

building in Stevenston, Scotland

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 19, 2026
Entity authorityQ6393772 ↗
Source-derived summary

Kerelaw Castle is a castle ruin. It is situated on the coast of North Ayrshire, Scotland in the town of Stevenston.

History

This castle, variously named Kerelaw, Kerila or even Turnlaw, is said by Timothy Pont to have been held by the Lockharts from Richard de Morville, Constable of Scotland, as far back as 1191, after Stephen Lockhart or Loccard obtained a grant of land in Ayrshire. This land would be named Stevenstoune (later Stevenston) after himself, and their manor-place of the barony of Stevenston, named Kerelaw. The castle and barony were eventually passed on to the Campbells of Loudoun and later to the Cunninghames (or Cunninghams/Cuninghames) of Kilmaurs. It was in the Cunninghame's possession in 1488 that the castle was sacked and burned by the 2nd Lord Montgomerie, during the well documented and long-term feud between these two prominent Ayrshire families. The Cunninghames, led by the Earl of Glencairn burned Eglinton Castle to the ground in revenge in 1528.

Kerelaw was rebuilt sometime after 1488 and is reported to have contained a number of carved coats of arms of the Scottish nobility, taken from Kilwinning Abbey, Nine fishermen from Saltcoats were granted leases in 1545 in return for carrying the Earl's furniture to Finlayston on the Clyde every spring from the Creek of Saltcoats and bringing it back again in the autumn when the family returned to Kerelaw for the winter months. A half barrel of herrings was also to be furnished yearly to the Earl.

Abode of the Abbots

Local tradition is that the castle had been the residence of the Abbot of Kilwinning, which may have arisen from the fact that the third son of Alexander Cunningham, 1st Earl of Glencairn, became the Commendator of the abbey after the reformation and may have lived at Kerelaw.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Kerelaw Castle” as building in Stevenston, Scotland. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewMost useful as a place-based finding aid connecting the present description to earlier jurisdictions, maps and built evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1191, 1488, 1528, 1545—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1191. The account is most persuasive where Kerelaw, Castle and building can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as building in Stevenston, Scotland. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q6393772. Authority coordinates are 55.648, -4.752. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1191, 1488, 1528 and 1545.

Critical limits

Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Kerelaw Castle”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Kerelaw Castle primary sources, Kerelaw Castle archive and Kerelaw research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kerelaw Castle”?
  2. Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
  3. Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Kerelaw Castle” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.