ScotlandsPlaces Home

Scotlands Places

Map Search
County Search
Places A-Z

Liddel Castle

  • General view. Copyright RCAHMS
  • General view. Copyright RCAHMS
  • General view. Copyright RCAHMS
  • General view. Copyright RCAHMS
  • Plan of Liddle Castle earthworks, redrawn from Inventory illustration [1912] for publication with comparative plans of mottes and medieval earthwork monuments. KHJM, [1995]. Copyright RCAHMS
  • Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification and burial-ground, taken from the NE. RCAHMS Aerial Photography Date 1/12/1997 Copyright RCAHMS
  • Oblique aerial view of Castleton centred on a burial-ground and remains of an earthwork fortification, taken from the SW. Digital image of D/24606/CN. RCAHMS Aerial Photography Date 1/12/1997 Copyright RCAHMS


You may copy, display, store and make derivative works for personal use or use solely within an educational institution by staff and students, under these conditions: the ScotlandsPlaces website is attributed, there is no commercial use or sale, and no public distribution (for example, by hand, email, or web). Full licence details.

General view. Copyright RCAHMS
Item SC1270491

ViewView record in RCAHMS
PlotPlot record on map
KMLDownload KML
Organisation

The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland

Alternative Name(s)

LIDDEL MOTTE; LIDDLE

Canmore ID

67934

Site Type

EARTHWORK, FORTIFICATION

County

ROXBURGHSHIRE

Parish

CASTLETON

Council

SCOTTISH BORDERS, THE

NGR

NY 5097 8997

Latitude, Longitude

55.201543N, 2.771864W

Images

Archaeological Notes
NY58NW 2 5097 8997

(NY 5097 8997) Liddel Castle (NR) (Site of)
OS 6" map (1957)

A map in the British Museum, dated 1590, marks 'Castleton' with a tower symbol.
A Jeffrey 1864.

Only the impressive earthworks remains of Liddel Castle, occupying the summit of a bluff, projecting N and bounded on three sides by the Liddle Water and Kirk Cleuch Burn, a tributary. Two parallel ditches have been dug across the headland from flank to flank, leaving two isolated areas, the S one of which has a broad rampart still rising about 6 ft above the interior. The S ditches broad and flat-bottomed, while the N one is narrower. There are now no signs of structures, but in the N section is an oval in which appear a few fairly big stones, and it is reported locally that lower down there is a circular building, evidently a well (published as such on OS 6" 1916 at NY 5097 8999).
Liddel Castle was presumably built by Ranulph de Soules as the caput of the barony granted him by David I (1124-53), whom he accompanied to Scotland. There appear to be no records of it after the early 14th century.
RCAHMS 1956, visited 1931.

The castle earthworks, constructed to a motte and bailey plan, are generally as described and planned by the RCAHMS. The trapezoidal N section has an occupiable area of approximately 200 square metres, and the oblong and sloping S section is about 160 square metres. The substantial dividing ditch is up to 13.0m wide and 4.5m deep on the S side.
The oval feature and stones were not located, but the site of the well survives as a sub-square depression, 0.5m deep.
Surveyed at 1:10,000.
Visited by OS (JRL), 6 August 1979.


Related Material Information - Bibliographical References

Jeffrey, A (1855-64) The history and antiquities of Roxburghshire and adjacent districts from the most remote period to the present time, London; Edinburgh. Held at RCAHMS: D.1.3.JEF.R
RCAHMS (1956) The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. An inventory of the ancient and historical monuments of Roxburghshire: with the fourteenth report of the Commission, Edinburgh. Held at RCAHMS: A.1.1.INV/14

Related Material Information - Description of Collections

Photographs

RX543
General view. RCAHMS
RX542
General view. RCAHMS
RX541
General view. RCAHMS
RX540
General view. RCAHMS
D24610CN (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification and burial-ground, from NE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D24609CN (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification and burial-ground, from E. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D24608CN (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification, taken from the SSE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D24607CN (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification, taken from the SSW. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D24606CN (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Castleton centred on a burial-ground and remains of an earthwork fortification, from SW. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20690 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Castleton centred on a burial ground and remains of a church with the remains of an earthwork fortification adjacent, from E. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20689 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Castleton centred on a burial ground and remains of a church with the remains of an earthwork fortification adjacent, from S. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20688 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Castleton centred on a burial ground and remains of a church with the remains of an earthwork fortification adjacent, from SSW. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20691 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification with a burial ground and remains of a church adjacent, from NE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20687 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification with a burial ground and remains of a church adjacent, from ENE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20686 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification, taken from the ESE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20685 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification, taken from the SSE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20684 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification with a burial ground and remains of a church adjacent, from WSW. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20683 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification with a burial ground and remains of a church adjacent, from WNW. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
D20682 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification with a burial ground and remains of a church adjacent, from NW. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography

Print Room

RAB263/OP110
Photograph of the Motte of Liddel. RCAHMS collection General Collection

Prints And Drawings

RXD232/1 (1931)
Plan. RCAHMS
DC32495
Plan of Liddle Castle earthworks, redrawn from Inventory illustration [1912] for publication with comparative plans of mottes and medieval earthwork monuments. KHJM, [1995]. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS

Scanned Images

SC1270491
General view.
SC1270490
General view.
SC1270488
General view.
SC1270486
General view.
SC382013
Plan of Liddle Castle earthworks, redrawn from Inventory illustration [1912] for publication with comparative plans of mottes and medieval earthwork monuments. KHJM, [1995]. RCAHMS
SC759258 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Liddel Castle centred on the remains of an earthwork fortification and burial-ground, taken from the NE. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography
SC759257 (1/12/1997)
Oblique aerial view of Castleton centred on a burial-ground and remains of an earthwork fortification, taken from the SW. Digital image of D/24606/CN. RCAHMS collection RCAHMS Aerial Photography

Related OS 6-inch maps

Related OS 25-inch maps