Borthwick Castle, Scottish Borders facts for kids

This article is about the tower house near Duns. It is not to be confused with Borthwick Castle, Midlothian.

Borthwick Castle, Scottish Borders was a 16th-century L-plan tower house, about 1 mile (1.6 km) north west of Duns, Scottish Borders, Scotland.

History

The property belonged to the Cockburns. It was destroyed by quarrying, having become ruinous, after 1970, although it had been excavated before demolition. Near the site stands a commemorative stone. It is thought that it was a watchtower and small residence, rather than a place of strength.

Structure

Borthwick Castle had a courtyard surrounding the 16th-century buildings and a later house. There was a corbelled-out stair-tower in the re-entrant angle of the L-plan tower. The vaulted basement had a scale-and-platt staircase to the first floor. The tower’s dimension were about 17 metres (56 ft) by 11 metres (36 ft), with walls 2.4 metres (7 ft 10 in). Apart from narrow brick in the fireplace and window openings the building was constructed from mortared stone.

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