Uttershill Castle facts for kids
Uttershill Castle is an old castle that is now mostly a ruin. It was built in the 1500s and is known as a tower house. You can find it about half a mile south of Penicuik in Midlothian, Scotland. It sits south of the North Esk river and west of the Black Burn. Sometimes people call it Utters Hill or Outtershill Castle.
Contents
The Castle's Story: A Look Back in Time
Who Owned Uttershill Castle?
For a long time, Uttershill Castle belonged to the Preston family, who also owned lands in Gorton and Craigmillar. Later, in 1646, a noblewoman called the Countess of Eglinton lived there. In 1702, the Clerk family, who were important people from Penicuik, bought the castle.
When Did Uttershill Castle Become a Ruin?
By the early 1800s, Uttershill Castle was already a ruin. Even though it was falling apart, it was still used for something important. It became a storage place for gunpowder. In October 1994, people did an excavation, which is like digging carefully to find old things. They did this because there were plans to fix up the castle.
What Uttershill Castle Looked Like
How Was the Castle Built?
Uttershill Castle was built on flat ground. One side, the north-east, had a small slope about 0.8 meters high. The castle had at least two floors. It might have even had a courtyard, which is an open space surrounded by walls.
Inside the Castle Walls
The castle had a vaulted basement. This means the ceiling of the basement was curved like an arch. Above the basement, on the first floor, there was a main hall. You could reach this hall by a straight staircase.
In the 1600s, a kitchen was added to the castle. It had another room above it. However, this kitchen and the room above it were later taken down and are no longer there. The castle was made from rough stone called freestone rubble. It was probably covered with a rough plaster called harl.
The Castle's Shape and Size
Uttershill Castle was shaped like a rectangle. From the outside, it measured about 65 feet from north-east to south-west. It was about 23 feet wide. The main door to the castle was on the south side, right at ground level.
