Nether Horsburgh Castle is a ruined tower house

Tower house

A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation.-History:Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountain or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strategic points with reduced forces...

 near Cardrona

Cardrona, Scottish Borders

Cardrona is a village on the A72 and B7062, between Peebles and Innerleithen, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland.Places nearby include Glentress, Kirkburn, Scottish Borders, Kirkhouse, Traquair, Walkerburn-See also:*Cardrona Forest...

, in the Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders

The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...

, in the former county of Peebleshire. It is situated at the back of a farmstead, 3.5 miles (5.6 km) southwest of the market town of Peebles

Peebles

Peebles is a burgh in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scottish Borders, lying on the River Tweed. According to the 2001 Census, the population was 8,159.-History:...

, at grid reference , on the A72 road

A72 road

The A72 is a major route in Scotland connecting Hamilton in South Lanarkshire, with Galashiels in the Scottish Borders.It travels for over 60 miles in a South-Easterly direction, along the Clyde and Tweed valleys, passing the towns of Larkhall, Lanark, Biggar and Peebles.-Hamilton to...

. Access may be gained by permission from the adjoining farmstead, Nether Horsburgh Farm.

Description

The remains of Nether Horsburgh Castle consist of a ruined, 16-century rectangular tower-house, at the foot of a rolling valley overlooking the River Tweed

River Tweed

The River Tweed, or Tweed Water, is long and flows primarily through the Borders region of Great Britain. It rises on Tweedsmuir at Tweed's Well near where the Clyde, draining northwest, and the Annan draining south also rise. "Annan, Tweed and Clyde rise oot the ae hillside" as the Border saying...

, with the Hope Burn flowing just a few meters to the east. Originally, the tower had an adjoining courtyard and ranges of buildings, traces of which can still be seen to the north of the tower.

Only three walls still survive, reaching a height of about 12 metres (39.4 ft), with the east wall being completely ruined to ground level. The existing structure appears to have measured about 10 metres (32.8 ft) by 8 metres (26.2 ft), with walls of about 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) thick. It is thought that the tower rose to a height of four stories, with an entrance situated at ground level on the northeast side of the building. This led into a vaulted

Vault (architecture)

A Vault is an architectural term for an arched form used to provide a space with a ceiling or roof. The parts of a vault exert lateral thrust that require a counter resistance. When vaults are built underground, the ground gives all the resistance required...

 cellar, studded with slit window apertures. Evidence suggests that access to the upper floors was gained by a staircase situated in the east wall.

A small courtyard was formed by a range of buildings continuing to the east for about 14 metres (45.9 ft), then north for about 22 metres (72.2 ft). All that remains of this is a small fragment of the northern segment, which now forms a part of the field boundary in which the castle stands.

History

The castle was built and occupied by the Borders family of Horsburgh, and was later sold to Sir Robert Stewart of Shillingshaws, due to diminished family fortunes.

Other castles owned by the Horsburgh family are to be found in the same part of Peebleshire. Less than 1 miles (1.6 km) to the west, on a grassy knoll, stands the remains of a small tower and wing. This is Horsburgh Castle

Horsburgh Castle

Horsburgh Castle, also known as Horsbrugh Castle or Horsbrugh Tower, is a ruined tower house castle by the River Tweed, on the A72 road from Peebles to Galashiels, near Glentress in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland...

, also of the 16-century, and just north of Peebles, high on the side of Mailingsland Hill, stands the remains of Hutchinfield Tower. A very dilapidated oblong block, again this is of the 16-century.