Argyll - The Rough Guide to Scottish Highlands and Islands - page 60

Inveraray
The traditional county town of Argyll, and a classic example of an eighteenth-century
planned town, INVERARAY was built in the 1770s by the Duke of Argyll, in order to
distance his newly rebuilt castle from the hoi polloi in the town and to establish a
commercial and legal centre for the region. Inveraray has changed very little since
and remains an absolute set-piece of Scottish Georgian architecture, with a truly
memorable setting, the brilliant white arches of Front Street reflected in the still waters
of Loch Fyne.

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Main Street
Despite its picture-book location, there's not much more to Inveraray than its
distinctive Main Street (perpendicular to Front St), flanked by whitewashed terraces,
characterized by black window casements. At the top of the street, the road divides to
circumnavigate the town's Neoclassical church: originally the southern half served the
Gaelic-speaking community, while the northern half served those who spoke English.

Inveraray Jail
Church Square • Daily: April-Oct 9.30am-6pm; Nov-March 10am-5pm • £8.95 • T 01499 302381, W inverarayjail.co.uk
The town's most enjoyable attraction is Inveraray Jail , comprising an attractive
Georgian courthouse and two grim prison blocks that, in their day, were the principal
ones in Argyll. The latter both ceased to function in 1889, though the courthouse
continued in one form or another until 1954. The jail is now a thoroughly enjoyable
museum , which graphically recounts prison conditions from medieval times to the
twentieth century.
Following a trawl through some of the region's most notorious crimes, you get to
listen to a re-enactment of a trial of the period, staged in the original semicircular
courthouse of some 170 years ago. More fascinating, though, are the prisons
themselves; built in 1820, the Old Prison housed all convicts - men, women, children,
the insane - until 1849 when the New Prison was built and whose twelve cells held
male prisoners only. In the courtyard stands the minute “Airing Yards”, two caged cells
where the prisoners got to exercise for an hour a day, though they were forbidden to
talk to each other.

Bell Tower
The Avenue • July to mid-Sept Mon-Fri 10.30am-4.30pm • £4 • W inveraraybelltower.co.uk
The one sight that often gets overlooked in Inveraray is the Bell Tower , a magnificent
126ft-high, free-standing structure adjacent to the All Saints Church. The tower was
originally built as a war memorial, in honour of members of the Campbell clan (it was
commissioned by Niall Campbell, the tenth Duke of Argyll), and not long after its
completion, the bells - allegedly the second heaviest peal of ten bells in the world after
those in Wells Cathedral - were cast. The bells remain the standout feature of the
tower, and you can view these close up as you make your way up the dizzying spiral
staircase. Having climbed the last of the 176 steps, you are rewarded with superlative
views of Loch Fyne and the forested hills beyond.

Inveraray Castle
A ten-minute walk north of Main St • April-Oct daily 10am-5.45pm • £10 • T 01499 302203, W inveraray-castle.com
Inveraray Castle remains the family home of the Duke of Argyll, the present
(thirteenth) incumbent being Duke Torquhil Ian Campbell. Built in 1745, it was