Historical accounts, including those by William Forbes Skene and Alexander Macbain, suggest that William Mackintosh, the 15th of Mackintosh, set fire to Auchindoun Castle, the residence of the Earl of Huntly, leading to his execution in 1550. In March 1593, Patrick Gordon of Auchindoun was declared a rebel, resulting in Auchindoun Castle being granted to Sir George Home, whose wife, Elizabeth Gordon, was the stepdaughter of Patrick Gordon. In response, James VI ordered the slighting or demolition of Auchindoun, Slains Castle, Huntly Castle, and the Gordon castles of Abergeldy and Newton.