Auchans Castle, Dundonald, Ayrshire

The birthplace of Colonel James Wallace, the one-time Governor of Belfast who was sacked when the authorities found out he was a Presbyterian. Below are an old engraving and two photographs I took this afternoon.

Auchans looks a lot like Monea Castle in County Fermanagh. It's fenced off but you can access it via a lane which runs from the main road between Loans and Dundonald, and you can walk the the whole way round - a very impressive building. It's set within a (now mainly ruined) walled enclosure which surround it, about 100 yards away from the building on all sides.

Colonel Wallace lived at Ballycarry in County Antrim and led the Covenanters at Rullion Green in 1666, where his name is inscribed on the metal plaque.