The name is probably derived from that of "Guthrum", a Scandinavian prince who settled here in the dawn of Scottish history. In the year 1299, the Northern Lords of Scotland sent Squire Guthrie to France to affect the return of Sir William Wallace to Scotland and resume the fight against the English. Guthrie embarked at Arbroath, landed at Calais, and returned to Montrose with his charge.

David II originally granted the barony to Sir David Guthrie, the King’s Treasurer, who subsequently obtained a warrant from James III of Scotland under the great seal to build a castle and a ‘yett’ (entrance gate) at Guthrie in 1468. It is an historic site and well known in Scotland.

The Castle and additions continued as the Guthrie family residence until the early 80’s. The Guthrie’s have been prominent in the ecclesiastical, military, and literary fields of Scotland since the early 1500’s.  The Pena Family purchased the Castle in 1984.

The Castle, as built originally by Sir David in 1468, consisted only of the square tower, the current site of the library, Guthrie suite, ancient bedroom, and now snooker room.  It is believed that the family gave up living in the tower and built a house close by around 1760.  In 1848, John Guthrie, with the help of architect David Bryce, connected the tower and the house, resulting in the finally panelled hall with the oak staircase leading to bedrooms above the well-proportioned west bedroom (Guthrie Suite).  The Castle has a reputation of being haunted!  The ghost was last seen by one of the present members of the Guthrie family when she was a little girl. There have been other experiences since the Pena’s first inhabited the Castle in September 1984.

The yett, which was the original entrance to the Castle, now hangs at the entry to the wild flower garden.  There are two gardens adjacent to each other – the historic walled garden and the wild garden.  No one knows the exact date of the construction of the horseshoe-shaped historic listed 2.2 acre walled garden, but one story is that Monks built it in the early 1600’s.  The garden contains many species of flowers and floribunda, the most notable are the 150-year yew hedges shaped in the sign of the Celtic Cross.