Doune of Invernochty

The Doune of Invernochty (also Dun or Done by Invernochty, or " citadel of Mar" called ) is a moth near the villages Bellabeg and Strathdon and the A944 in Aberdeenshire in Scotland. It was a stronghold of the Mormaer of Moray (English Mormaer ( rule ) of Mar ).

Expanded in the 12th century from a natural moraine hill to its present form, dominated the huge Norman Motte the confluence of the Nochty with the Don. The oval moth is more than 18 meters high and surrounded by a ditch and rampart. The remains of a strong wall enclosing the summit. The foundations of a large rectangular building, probably belong to a medieval church. Survived has a system of locks, through which the ditch with the water of a nearby lake was flooded.

The Doune of Invernochty was a Pictish power center before the Anglo-Norman infiltration. It is possible that the Duns were attractions for those missionaries who came with Kentigern ( 518-603 ) in the region and churches erected in important Pictish settlements.