Ardclach Bell Tower

Ardclach Bell Tower seems to have been built by the local laird, Alexander Brodie of Lethen, presumably in 1655. He was a Covenanter, a man whose religious beliefs had a decade earlier made him, in the eyes of many, a traitor to King Charles I. As a result his home and lands were attacked several times in 1645, once by James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose en route to victory at the Battle of Auldearn. In July 1654 there was another Royalist uprising in the Highlands. This was swiftly defeated, but it seems likely that it brought back unhappy memories of a decade earlier and prompted Alexander Brodie to build a small bolt hole to ensure that in the event of future trouble, he and his immediate family would have a safe retreat. “MGB” records the initials of Brodie’s second wife, Margaret Grant Brodie.