Inchgall

Lochore Castle is built on what was once an island named Inchgall and may have been a crannog.

The first recorded owner of the lands of what was known as Lochoreshire was Robert de Burguinn or Bourguignon in the first quarter of the 12th century. It’s likely that he was a French knight and received a grant of the lands from either Alexander I or perhaps David I. He witnessed several charters during the reign of David I (1124 to 1153).

At that time the extent of Loch Ore was much greater and this site was an island known as Inchgall from “innis gall” or “island of foreigners”, which was perhaps a nod to the French origins of its 12th century owners. It is likely that Robert de Burguinn supplanted an existing native landowner and it has been speculated that their dwelling may have been a crannog.

Later a castle was built on the island, possibly as early as the 12th century and certainly by the early 14th century.

Following an archaeological investigation in 2015 radiocarbon dating of shoreline deposits suggested that the island may have been occupied during the 10th or 11th centuries AD.