Explore The Borders

Your gateway to the brilliant borderlands

Historic Borders

Step back into history

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If you enjoy history and exploring times gone by you will love the Borders.

Northumberland and the Scottish Borders was the most fought over land in Britain as the crossed swords marking local battlefields on maps of the region will show.

From the earliest times, when Agricola marched his Roman legions north from York around AD71 to Scotland and known to them as Caledonia, the Borders has been no stranger to turbulent times.

Once forming part of the powerful Kingdom of Northumbria the line that separates England and Scotland first appeared in 1237, a formal border agreed between Henry III and Scotland’s Alexander II.

Troubled relations between the two kingdoms were not finally laid to rest almost 500 years later when Bonnie Prince Charlie’s ill-fated uprising in 1745 ended at Culloden.

Before that the two sides crossed swords on countless bloody occasions including Otterburn (1388), Flodden (1513) and Ancrum Moor (1545).

During the Wars of Independence the Border region was key to the aspirations of William Wallace and later Robert the Bruce and it witnessed armies marching north – and armies readying to march south.

Interwoven with the high politics of warfare was the reign of the Border Reivers who had their own distinctive way of dealing with any local difficulties, north and south of the border, and held sway for over 300 years.

Infamously, they even contributed to the English language, giving us the words blackmail and bereavement!

The famous abbeys of the Scottish Borders at Jedburgh, Dryburgh, Melrose and Kelso suffered irreversible damage at the hands of Henry VIII’s rampaging soldiers in the 1540’s – the result of a right royal Tudor tantrum.

It was a time that became known as the ‘rough wooing’ and a result of the Scots refusal to ratify the betrothal of the infant Mary Queen of Scots to Henry’s son Edward, then at the tender age of seven.   

Turbulent times have, not surprisingly left a legacy of castles and fortified towers (top magnificent Bamburgh Castle and above Fatlips Castle) all with their own story to tell.

Explore the Borders turns the clock back on the history of the northern borderlands.

Hermitage Castle – a study in belligerence

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Hermitage Castle in the Liddlesdale Valley was once described as the embodiment of ‘sod off’ in stone.

It’s a wonderful description. Take a walk around its walls, still standing four-square against all-comers amid wild and remote countryside, and it’s obvious this structure was built to defy.

What’s more it has a history to match.

Originally a wooden defence, first mentioned in 1242, it was replaced in the late 1300’s by the imposing stone fortification now standing; a response to ever more hostile exchanges along the English-Scottish border.

The unusual architecture, designed to allow wood fighting platforms to run the length of the tops of the wall added to its all round aggressive appearance.

Over the years its been a home for William de Soulis, so hated by the locals he was boiled alive, and a tomb for Alexander Ramsay who was starved to death by Sir William Douglas in protest to his royal appointment as Sheriff of Teviotdale.

King David ll, it seems, took the hint and awarded Sir William the post!

In 1566, Hermitage, then the seat of the fourth Earl of Bothwell became entangled in in the muddled love life of Mary Queen of Scots.

On hearing the earl had been injured in a clash with border reivers, she rode 25 miles from her residence in Jedburgh, to be at his side. If walls could whisper what secrets Hermitage could tell.

Hermitage Castle is now a Historic Scotland property and well worth a visit. But, it’s a castle with many steps and is not easily accessible to visitors using wheelchairs.

Please check Historic Scotland website for opening times.

Bamburgh – a castle to upstage them all

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If there was an Oscar for a best supporting role for castles in films, Bamburgh would surely be a superstar.

It has undeniable screen presence, the perfect backdrop for historic blockbusters and has been a must for a host of award winning directors and actors over the years.

Hollywood giants Richard Burton and Peter O Toole filmed on the beach below the castle for Becket (1964), Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren walked the ramparts in El Cid (1961) while Elizabethan history has been represented here by Vanessa Redgrave as Mary Queen of Scots (1971) and Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth I (1998).

Pioneering director Ken Russell selected Bamburgh as the backdrop for his controversial shocker The Devils in 1971, while Roman Polanski filmed a blood drenched Macbeth the same year.

More recently it has provided a dramatic backdrop for Transformers: The Last Knight (2017) and The BFG (2016).

Standing on the castle ramparts, glowering over the North Sea, it’s easy to see how this building has cast its spell over so many. The sense of history and dominance is intoxicating. Seeing it in all its glory as you drive into Bamburgh is a draw dropping experience.

For centuries the basalt outcrop on which Bamburgh Castle was built was a royal seat of power dating back to the native Britons. Records of a fortification on the site go back to 547AD when it was taken by the Anglo Saxon king Ida of Bernicia. His son Hussa and then grandson Æthelfrith established the powerful kingdom of Northumbria.

Æthelfrith, recognised by historians as the first Northumbrian king, passed the site, known then as Din Guiare, to his wife Bebba, from whom the early name Bebanburgh was derived

Vikings destroyed Bamburgh’s original fortification in 993 and not until the arrival of the Normans was a new castle constructed on the site; a structure which was to form the core of what we see today.

Bamburgh became the property of Henry II, who is thought to have built the impressive castle keep. In 1464 during the Wars of the Roses, it became the first castle in England to be defeated by artillery during a nine-month siege led by Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick.

The castle then entered a deserved period of peace with the Forster family of Northumberland in residence for over 400 years. The family retained ownership until Sir William Forster was posthumously declared bankrupt, and his estates, including the castle passed to Lord Crew, Bishop of Durham, under an Act of Parliament in 1700.

The castle deteriorated but was restored by various owners during the 18th and 19th centuries. However, it was Victorian industrialist William Armstrong who finished the job and left his own unmistakable stamp on the building.

As a tribute to Armstrong the castle now houses the fascinating Armstrong and Aviation Artefacts Museum.

Whether you are a tourist appreciating its beauty, a student reading its history or celebrating a wedding in its historic confines, Bamburgh Castle has something for everyone.

The credits are destined to roll for many centuries to come on this Northumbrian icon.

True grit – Northumbrian style

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Whatever elements you find yourself battling against when taking the coastal way to Dunstanburgh Castle one thing is for sure – getting there will be worth it.

Stepping through the kissing gate that sets you on your way from the fishing village of Craster – world famous for its kippers – the panorama that greets the visitor is testament to two things: the ever changing beauty of nature and the defiant permanence of history.

The coastal path runs parallel to the North Sea for about a mile from Craster to the castle which dominates the headland of Cullernose Point, an outcrop of Great Whin Sill (hard black basaltic rock) and itself a feature of great interest to geologists.

But it is Dunstanburgh Castle that steals the show.

There’s plenty of evidence to suggest that the area has historic roots going back to the Iron Age as the site of a promonotory fort and where Roman pottery finds have been made as evidence of later occupation.

No further significant footprint was made on the site until today’s building started life as a showpiece 14th century des-res for Thomas 2nd Earl of Lancaster: a stronghold that became a focal point for political intrigue, rebellion and plots against Edward II.

A cousin to Edward, Thomas was, through inheritance and marriage, second only to him in terms of land and wealth. Master of five earldoms he owned many key fortesses of which Pontefract Castle and Dunstanburgh Castle were the jewels.

At the start of King Edward’s reign Thomas was a loyal subject, but as the conflict between the king and nobles wore on, Lancaster’s allegiances changed. Following the King’s defeat at Bannockburn in 1314, a weakened Edward submitted to Lancaster, who in effect became ruler of England.

Lancaster was deposed four years later. In response a second rebellion led by Lancaster was launched but was met with complete annihilation at the battle of Boroughbridge. Thomas was taken prisoner on his way north, presumably to his northern stronghold, convicted of treason and executed near Pontefract Castle in 1322

The turbulance of the 14th century has prompted much debate about Dunstanburgh. History suggests it switched from an extravagant enclave to a formidable fortress on the back of Thomas’s ambitions. Vague remnants of a medieval dock below the support the theory that Dunstanburgh became a place of strategic retreat.

The fortress passed into the Royalist hands of John of Gaunt, ‘Lieutenant of the Marches towards Scotland’ where its defences were soon to be tested by fierce Scottish Border attacks in 1384. Following this period Dunstanburgh was held for the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses, before falling to the Earl of Warwick.

It was its strategic location that persuaded the Ministry of Defence to use Dunstanburgh as a top secret Battle of Britain radar station, protected by barbed wire and a minefield (now removed).

The castle is now owned by the National Trust and in the care of English Heritage. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and lies within the Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty which is home to a wide variety of local flora and fauna.

And along the path from Craster there’s the endless joy of rockpooling (children optional!) amongst the numerous boulders and coves.

This wonderful stretch of the fabled Northumbrian coastline was a favourite of the artist Turner who painted Dunstanburgh many times.

Once the prized possession of a mediaeval aristocracy, Dunstanburgh Castle now belongs us all and is an outstanding part of Northumberland’s rich history and heritage.

A joy to visit – whatever the weather.

Photographs: Lisa Beale

Wallace stands tall in the Scottish Borders

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There may be as much Hollywood as there is historical fact in Mel Gibson’s ‘Braveheart’ but it does nothing to diminish the stature of Scotland’s national hero, Sir William Wallace.

To the English he was an outlaw and murderer while in Scotland he is credited with laying the foundations for an independent Scotland under Robert the Bruce.

The son of a Scottish knight and minor landowner he came from a family whose motto was ‘Pro Libertate’ of For Freedom, and during an eight year period from 1297 until his capture in 1305 he waged his campaign against the English.

From his base in Ettrick Forest, he employed highly successful hit and run tactics against a more powerful foe – deeds that inspired others such as Andrew Murray in the north and fanned the flames of revolt throughout Scotland.

With much of Scotland marching down the path to liberation Wallace and Murray faced their sternest test in 1297 when they met an English army in open battle at Stirling Bridge.

They achieved a stunning victory leaving the English with 5,000 dead on the battlefield, including the despised treasurer Hugh Chessingham.

Wallace was appointed Guardian of Scotland in 1298, a ceremony that Selkirk claims to have taken place at its Kirk ‘o the Forest. In the years that followed Wallace laid waste to towns in northern England but was betrayed and eventually captured.

Taken to London for trial, the outcome a foregone conclusion, Wallace was found guilty and sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered. His head was impaled on a spike and displayed at London Bridge, his right arm on the bridge at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, his left arm at Berwick, his right leg at Perth, and the left leg at Aberdeen.

Edward I may have believed that with Wallace’s capture and execution, he had at last broken the spirit of the Scots. He was wrong. By executing Wallace so barbarically, Edward had martyred a popular Scots military leader and fired the Scottish people’s determination to be free.

The first memorial in Scotland to be built in Wallace’s memory was at Bermersyde, Dryburgh. It was paid for by David Steuart Erskine, the 11th Earl of Buchan and unveiled in 1814.

It remains an impressive piece of public art: 21ft of red sandstone, on a 10ft plinth, placed on a commanding position overlooking Dryburgh Abbey and the Tweed Valley towards the Eildon Hills.

It is easily reached, travelling through St Boswells to a left turn about a mile down the road following the Wallace Statue signs. There is a small car park and then a short walk through woodlands to the statue.

A short drive away is Scott’s View, a magnificent vista of the Borders countryside and said to be the favourite view of Sir Walter Scott.