Did Queen Elizabeth buy a castle in Scotland?

The Castle of Mey was the property of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother from 1952 until 1996, when Her Majesty generously gifted it with an endowment to the Trust. The castle is situated on the north coast of Caithness, in the parish of Canisbay, about 15 miles east of Thurso and six miles west of John O'Groats.



Queen Elizabeth II did not personally "buy" a new castle in Scotland during her reign, as she inherited two of the most significant royal properties in the country. She inherited Balmoral Castle, her beloved private summer retreat in the Highlands, which was originally purchased by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1848. She also had the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh, which is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland and is owned by the Crown. However, her mother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, famously purchased the Castle of Mey in Caithness in 1952, shortly after her husband's death, to save it from ruin. Queen Elizabeth II spent many happy summers at Balmoral and it was her final residence before her passing in 2022. While she didn't buy new castles, she was deeply involved in the meticulous maintenance and modernizing of the Balmoral estate, which spans 50,000 acres and remains the private property of the reigning monarch rather than being part of the Crown Estate.

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