Neidpath Castle: A Medieval Tower House in the Scottish Borders
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.6
- Popularity
- Low
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Primary era
- Medieval
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval, Early Modern
- Civilizations
- Kingdom of Scotland
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page7 sections
History
Neidpath Castle is a medieval Scottish castle in the United Kingdom, standing about 1.6 kilometres west of Peebles and overlooking the River Tweed. A probable early castle was built between 1263 and 1266 by Simon Fraser of Oliver Castle while he was High Sheriff of Tweeddale. The present building probably dates from the late fourteenth century and was likely constructed for Sir William de Haya.
Fraser and Hay Origins
The Hay family acquired the barony of Neidpath through marriage to a Fraser heiress in the early fourteenth century. Although the Hays later obtained Yester Castle, which became their principal family seat, Neidpath remained in use by the family until the seventeenth century.
Neidpath also received royal visitors. Mary, Queen of Scots, came to the castle in 1563, and her son James VI visited in 1587. During James’s stay, he summoned Sir John Stewart of Traquair and William Hay and persuaded them to resolve a long-standing feud.
Conflict and Restoration
In 1645, the castle was garrisoned against Royalist forces led by James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose. The following year, John Hay of Yester joined the King’s party and Charles II created him 1st Earl of Tweeddale.
Oliver Cromwell’s invasion of Scotland brought an attack on Neidpath in 1650. The circumstances of the surrender remain uncertain. It may have occurred without a fight, or after the longest assault needed to compel the surrender of any stronghold south of the River Forth. Artillery probably demolished the thirteenth-century tower and damaged the west wing.
During the 1660s, the 2nd Earl of Tweeddale remodelled the castle and added outbuildings. After he was declared bankrupt, he sold Neidpath in 1686 to William Douglas, 1st Duke of Queensberry. In 1693, Queensberry gave the castle to his second son, William Douglas, who later became 1st Earl of March. William Douglas, 2nd Earl of March, altered the building during the eighteenth century.
Decline and Later Associations
William Douglas, 3rd Earl of March, inherited the Queensberry title and estates in 1778. He subsequently leased Neidpath to tenants, including the philosopher and historian Adam Ferguson. Neglect followed, and by 1790 the upper storeys of the wing had collapsed.
William Wordsworth and Walter Scott visited Neidpath in 1803. Wordsworth condemned the felling of its old trees in a sonnet beginning “Degenerate Douglas!” After the Duke of Queensberry died in 1810, Neidpath and the earldom of March passed to the Earl of Wemyss, while the dukedom of Queensberry passed to the Scotts of Buccleuch. The castle remains associated with the Earl of Wemyss, whose heir uses the courtesy title Lord Neidpath. This is a traditional title for the heir and does not indicate an independently held peerage.
Tradition says that Neidpath is haunted by Jean Douglas, the youngest daughter of William Douglas, Earl of March. According to the story, she was forbidden to marry the son of the laird of Tushielaw and wasted away after he was sent away. She died of a broken heart when he returned without recognising her. Walter Scott referred to her as the “Maid of Neidpath” in a poem.
Neidpath Castle is a Category A listed historic building, the highest level of statutory protection in Scotland for buildings of special architectural or historic interest. It was also protected as a Scheduled Monument, a site recognised in law for national archaeological or historic importance, until 2018.
Remains
Tower House
Neidpath is a tall L-plan tower house, a fortified residence formed around a self-contained tower with two connected wings at right angles. Built of rubble and sandstone, it has rounded corners and one notably short arm of the L. Its battlements are roofed, while the sentry walk takes the form of a balustraded balcony. The castle has few windows, and two still retain iron protective bars.
The basement and the first-floor hall have vaulted ceilings. A wooden floor divides the hall into two storeys, and the basement contains a pit dungeon. The archway carries both the Hays’ goat-head emblem and the Frasers’ strawberry emblem, preserving the association of the building with the families who shaped its history.
Gardens and Terraces
Remains of a partly walled garden survive beside the castle. Terraces to the southeast and east form five levels, each set eight metres apart. They originally served as ornamental terraces and were apparently enclosed by a wall recorded in 1581. In 1815, they were described as a “sloping parterre.”
The terraces were remodelled between 1682 and 1686, when a summer house was built. During the 1660s, the 2nd Earl of Tweeddale planted an avenue of yew trees, one side of which is stated to remain. Small exhibitions at the castle include artefacts found in the surrounding locality.
