Costumes, Castles and Community

Words & Photos by Kevin Monaghan

In what can only be described as a glorious mash-up of creativity, cosplay and historical geekery, the Dumbarton Castle Society joined forces with Bellsmyre Digital and a whole bunch of enthusiastic volunteers to transport Primary and S1 pupils back to medieval Scotland.

The event, which packed out every room in Dumbartonʼs Concord Centre, included the pupilsʼ colourful themed displays and papier mâché models, medieval weapon workshops, a foraging stall, period costume dress-up (along with photo opportunities courtesy of Dumbarton Cine video & Digital Club), and a retro games room and VR headset room so the kids could become noble warriors and clan chieftains within the safety of virtual reality.

The Strathleven Artizans with its merry band of volunteers in full medieval garb, brought history to life with their workshop which was complete with weapons, armour and costumes for the
pupils to try out.

Whether they were wielding swords and flails or attempting to walk in chainmail without falling over, it was equal parts educational and exciting.

Robert Aitken of the Dumbarton Castle Society came up with the idea three years ago.

He said: “Most of the work was actually done by the children. You will see this in their displays which they got support and direction from their teachers.

"Also, their parents and their grandparents have been drawn in as well."

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“We ask each of the schools to pick a specific topic of Scottish history, this has evolved into each school developing their own themes and not just sticking individually to one theme.

"So there's been a lot of creativity from the schools as well.

“The kids are getting to pick what creative output they want to work on. It's great getting to see them have fun with it.”

Kathleen Smith of Bellsmyre Digital summed it up well: “Year on year the schools have become much more competitive and their displays are becoming more ambitious - the stalls look great.

“The kids are having fun learning history of the local area in and around the Castle.

"And that's the important thing. It's all about the Castle and the rich history on our doorstep.”

First Time Castle Visits

Last year many families went to visit the Castle with the parents being brought along by the kids who took part in the event.

Kathleen added: “There are many adults who are Dumbartonians who have never in their lives been to Dumbarton Castle.

“The pupils are very knowledgeable and they've had fun learning, that's the best way kids should learn, they should learn how to have a bit of fun as they do.

“The great thing is that we have a mix of confident kids with kids that are a bit shyer.

"The shyer kids are coming out of their shell because they've been talking to people from around the community, itʼs very cool.”