This page was last updated on 25 November 2023

Click here to 
Print this page

Biography finder

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

 

 

Index of first names

Timpendean Tower

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Timpendean Timpendean Tower Timpendean Tower



Timpendean Tower (tim-pen-deen) or Typenden Castle as it was once known, is a ruined 15th-century tower house near Lanton, around 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north-west of Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders. It is built on rising ground between the Teviot and Jed Water. It is a simple tower structure measuring 29 feet by 24 feet with four foot thick walls. It was a stronghold of the Douglas family.

Timpendean was burned by the Earl of Hertford's men in 1545, during the War of the Rough Wooing. The tower is surrounded by much older earthworks, the remains of a Roman fort which may have been used for its construction.  It sits high above the south side of the road, opposite the farm of Timpendean, which is on the other side of the A698. It can be reached via a farm track. There are several circular structures and ramparts on a hill just to the south.

The land here was long owned by the Douglases and was sold off by George, 12th of Timpendean in 1843 to the Marquess of Lothian, along with lands at Broomhall and Langton.

The tower consisted of three floors and a vaulted cellar. There is evidence of a previous addition, which has now disappeared, judging by projecting bond stones on two walls. The east door and basement fireplace are later additons to the original house. The first floor contained the great hall while the second floor consisted of sleeping quarters. Those floors were reached by a circular staircase on the east wall. Part of the nearby earthworks was dammed and filled with water for defensive purposes.


‘Hear the melody begin At the door of Cleikiminn,
East a mile or so of Timpendean.
Drown the echo of your grief In the joy of Lilliesleaf,
Or the merriment of Redfordgreen’ [WL]

The origin of the name is probably Old Welsh ‘din pen’ and Old English ‘denu’, together meaning ‘the valley by the hill with the fort’; it first occurs as ‘Tympenden’ in 1540, is ‘Tympenden’ in 1590 and 1610 and is ‘Timpendein’ on Blaeu’s 1654 map.

map Portion of 1791 Estate Map showing Timpendean Tower.

pdf logoI am indebted to Sally Douglas who has compiled a history of the Douglases of Bonjedward and Timpendean. This can be downloaded as a pdf or as a Flip Book..


description rates

In the 1880's, the Timpendean estate covered about 1,200 acres.

 

See also:  

a.  Douglas of Timpendean

b.  Map of the area, 1654

c.  Border Archaeology

d.  Peles, towers and bastles of the Scottish Borders (pdf)

 

 

 

Errors and Omissions

The Forum

What's new?

We are looking for your help to improve the accuracy of The Douglas Archives.

If you spot errors, or omissions, then please do let us know


Contributions

Many articles are stubs which would benefit from re-writing. Can you help?


Copyright

You are not authorized to add this page or any images from this page to Ancestry.com (or its subsidiaries) or other fee-paying sites without our express permission and then, if given, only by including our copyright and a URL link to the web site.

 

If you have met a brick wall with your research, then posting a notice in the Douglas Archives Forum may be the answer. Or, it may help you find the answer!

You may also be able to help others answer their queries.

Visit the Douglas Archives Forum.

 

2 Minute Survey

To provide feedback on the website, please take a couple of minutes to complete our survey.

 

We try to keep everyone up to date with new entries, via our What's New section on the home page.

We also use the Community Network to keep researchers abreast of developments in the Douglas Archives.


Help with costs

Maintaining the three sections of the site has its costs.  Any contribution the defray them is very welcome
Donate

 

Newsletter

If you would like to receive a very occasional newsletter - Sign up!

 
 
 


 

Back to top

 



The content of this website is a collection of materials gathered from a variety of sources, some of it unedited.

The webmaster does not intend to claim authorship, but gives credit to the originators for their work.

As work progresses, some of the content may be re-written and presented in a unique format, to which we would then be able to claim ownership.

Discussion and contributions from those more knowledgeable is welcome.

Contact Us

Last modified: Monday, 25 March 2024