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Tower houses in the Scottish Borders
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In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries the borders
area of Scotland was lawless, rather like Afghanistan today. The borders
saw frequent cross border incursions by the armies of Scotland and
England, laying waste to their enemy’s territories and terrorising the
inhabitants. The borderers became desensitised to violence and many
supplemented their meagre farming income by raiding adjoining valleys or
across the Border. The Border Wardens who were supposed to police this
troublesome area were often as corrupt as, and in league with, the reivers, as the bandit bands were called.
For their protection border magnates and the more prosperous farmers
usually had their own tower, a fortified residence designed for living
in and for defence. A far higher number of towers existed in the borders
than in any other part of the country. There is no definitive estimate
of the number of border towers, but there were certainly many hundreds.
Many have totally disappeared, the stone being reused in other building,
or only fragments of the towers remain. But some tower houses have been
incorporated into later buildings, or have been restored as unusual
family homes.
Tower houses were usually three or four stories tall, with thick stone
walls. They would usually have provision for a lookout to stand guard on
the roof, and a beacon which could be lit to warn neighbours and summon
help if the tower was threatened.
The only entrance was a door either on the ground floor, or sited above
the ground floor and accessible by a removable ladder to provide an
extra deterrent to the attacker. The entrance was usually protected by a
thick wooden door with an iron yett behind it. The yett is an iron grill
like a portcullis. Yetts are common in fortified houses in Scotland, and
a few are found in northern England. But whilst a portcullis is raised
and lowered vertically, a yett is simpler as it opens like a door. A
photo of a yett is attached.
Many towers had a courtyard called a barmkin attached, protected by a
wall of over 6 feet (about two metres) in height. The barmkin provided
an enclosed and protected area with accommodation for farm workers and
room for some prized livestock. The barmkin could be defended against
minor attacks, but in a major attack everyone would have to retreat to
the much more defensible tower.
Towers were dark places, with arrow slits or gun loops for defence, and
windows restricted to the upper floors. The external and internal
doorways were often below normal height, deliberately built so that an
attacker would have to slow down and stoop a little to get through,
making him vulnerable.
The first photo is of Smailholm tower. Smailholm is 5 miles northwest of
the town of Kelso in the borders. At five storeys high Smailholm is tall
for a tower house. It is set in a beautiful but rather bleak location on
a rocky outcrop, giving it an excellent all round view of the area, and
of any approaching danger. On a clear day from the parapet it is
possible to see Bamburgh Castle, 33 miles away in England.
Smailholm, was originally owned by the Pringle family. The Pringles were
squires of the Black Douglases, and the land was granted to them by the
Earl of Douglas. Therefore the massive fireplace in the main hall has a
heart motif, the Black Douglas emblem.
Smailholm saw plenty of action. Smailholm’s farm was raided twice in
1544. In a major raid in November 1544 English reivers took 100
prisoners, 600 cattle and 100 horses from the area. It was raided again
in 1546, and again cattle were stolen and prisoners taken.
The tower has been restored to its past glory by Historic Environment
Scotland, but the barmkin wall and the buildings which would have
existed within it are ruinous.
See also:
•
Peles,
towers and bastles of the Scottish Borders (pdf)
by Sally Douglas
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Source
Sources for this article include:
Ian Douglas; This article was posted on Facebook 11th January
2019.
Ian Douglas is author of “Exploring History in the Scottish Borders”,
and “Exploring Mary’s Scotland”.
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
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