visited the castle in 1886, and much restoration work was undertaken by its then owner, Walter James Little Gilmour (d.1887). Craigmillar Castle has been in state care since 1946, and is now maintained by Historic Environment Scotland. The castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and the grounds of the castle are included on the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes, the national register of historic gardens. Description At the core of Craigmillar Castle is the 14th-century L-plan tower house, built on a rocky outcrop. Wrapped around this is the 15th-century courtyard wall, with ranges of buildings at the south-east, east, and west. Beyond the wall is a lower outer wall, enclosing a broad outer courtyard. This contained gardens and a chapel. Further gardens lay to the south, where the outline of a fish pond can be seen. The tower house The four-storey tower forms the keep of the castle, although it originally stood alone. It measures by , with a projecting wing, or jamb, of by , to the south. The walls are up to thick, and the second and fourth storeys have vaulted ceilings. The tower is built on the edge of a rock outcrop, with the original entrance door protected by a natural cleft in the rock. This would have been spanned by a wooden bridge, until it was filled in when the curtain wall was built. Above the door are the arms of the Preston family. A stair leads up from the entrance to a guard room in the jamb, which would probably have had "murder holes" through which missiles could be dropped on any attackers who gained entry. At ground floor level are cellars, which formerly had a timber loft above. The dividing wall and doors at either end are later additions. On the second floor is the hall, with a kitchen occupying the jamb, and later passages connecting to the east and west ranges. The hall has a large carved stone fireplace of around 1500, and once had a timber ceiling, probably painted. The kitchen was replaced by a larger one in the 16th-century east range, and converted into a bedroom. A smaller fireplace was inserted into the large kitchen hearth, and larger windows added. The next storey, accessed via a spiral stair, contained a windowless room in the vault above the hall ceiling. Above the kitchen is the lord's bedroom, the only original private