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Hallforest Castle is a keep, one of the oldest in Scotland, as it dates from the 14th century. The castle is believed to have been built by Robert the Bruce as a hunting lodge; he is said to have granted it to Robert II Keith, Marischal of Scotland, the predecessor of the Earls of Kintore. Mary, Queen of Scots visited Hallforrest in 1562.
The castle was frequently attacked during the 17th-century wars. It may have been abandoned shortly afterward, although it remains the property of the Earls of Kintore.
Hallforrest is a plain oblong tower 15 m long and 11 m wide. It once had a parapet, and probably a stone roof resting on an upper arch. It had two vaults, divided by entresol floors. It seems that the entrance led to the first entresol floor. There are small gun-loops to the basement, which may have had a cattle door.
Originally the castle had six floors. There are windows on the south. There is no evidence of masonry stairs; ladders and hatches must have been used. The interior is now ruinous.
To the north there are traces of what may have been an enclosing wall, and to the north west traces of a possible ditch or moat.
References:The Beckov castle stands on a steep 50 m tall rock in the village Beckov. The dominance of the rock and impression of invincibility it gaves, challenged our ancestors to make use of these assets. The result is a remarkable harmony between the natural setting and architecture.
The castle first mentioned in 1200 was originally owned by the King and later, at the end of the 13th century it fell in hands of Matúš Èák. Its owners alternated - at the end of the 14th century the family of Stibor of Stiborice bought it.
The next owners, the Bánffys who adapted the Gothic castle to the Renaissance residence, improved its fortifications preventing the Turks from conquering it at the end of the 16th century. When Bánffys died out, the castle was owned by several noble families. It fell in decay after fire in 1729.
The history of the castle is the subject of different legends.