The castle was first built in the 13th century, with a curtain wall enclosing the rock promontory, and a four-story tower house followed in the late 14th century. The eighth chief, Alasdair Crotach, added the Fairy Tower around 1500, and Ruairidh Mòr built new ranges from 1623. The old tower was abandoned for a period until the late 18th century.
Remodeling began then and was largely complete by around 1840. The article says it gave the castle a mock-medieval, baronialised look, with mock battlements and a drawbridge approach. It names no architect or materials. The rock stands about 50 feet (15 m) above the sea, and a landward ditch is about 18 feet (5.5 m) deep.
It is the residence and seat of the MacLeod of MacLeod, chief of Clan MacLeod. It is a Category A listed building on the Isle of Skye.
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