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How a Ladder Ruined a Famous Castle Attack

author icon By George Ghidrai

Published: 29.01.2026



You’re about to capture Scotland’s most important castle... but your ladder is too short.

During the Jacobite Rising of 1715, a small force attempted a night attack to seize Edinburgh Castle.

They bribed three guards to open the back gate....and climbed the steep cliff to reach the castle.

But near the top... disaster.

The ladder they carried was too short, leaving them stranded partway up the sheer rock.

A night guard spotted the struggle and raised the alarm.

The entire plan failed... all because someone mis-measured a ladder.


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A mysterious Bohemian fortress built far from borders and trade routes with legends of a sealed abyss beneath it.

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