
What is recorded here
Borthwick Castle rose in 1430 as a massive U-shaped tower house for Sir William Borthwick, its thick walls guarding a steep valley edge twelve miles south-east of Edinburgh. The fortress later became a stage for royal intrigue when Mary, Queen of Scots, married James Hepburn there in 1567 and escaped a siege by disguising herself as a male page. Though the east wall bears damage from 1650, the medieval structure remains remarkably preserved, still standing as the ancestral seat of the Borthwick family.
Scotland's National Record of the Historic Environment records Borthwick Castle as Tower House (medieval). The official map says its point is accurate as follows: NGR given to the nearest 1m. The record does not by itself mean that the public may enter the place.
Borthwick Castle, located in Midlothian, Scotland, was built by the powerful Borthwick family in the late 14th or early 15th century. It is important as a well-preserved example of a Scottish tower house and as the ancestral seat of the Borthwicks, a prominent noble family in the region.
The historic-place record does not grant public access. Check current conditions and ownership before entering land or a building.
Places near here
Borthwick CastleCross (medieval)(possible) · 23 yd
Borthwick Castle, GatewayGateway (period Unassigned) · 32 yd
Borthwick ChurchChurch (12th Century) - (18th Century), Church (18th Century), Sundial (18th Century) (1705), Tomb (medieval), War Memorial (20th Century) · 179 yd
Currie WoodWood · 187 yd
War MemorialMemorial · 196 yd
LoquhariotCropmark (period Unknown) · 869 yd
West WoodWood · 1.0 mi
Crichton CastleCastle (medieval) · 1.1 mi
Gorebridge, Harvieston CemeteryCemetery (20th Century) · 1.5 mi
Halk LawMountain / peak · 2.0 mi
Ruther LawMountain / peak · 2.6 miOther information
Photo: stephen samson · CC BY-SA 2.0