Description:

The castle, bound on the west side by the River Nith and to the north side by Townfoot Burn was made even more defensible by a deep ditch running around the remainder of its boundary.

The lands originally belonged to the Edgar family, then passed to the Ross family who built the first castle here. The Crichton family obtained the lands during the reign of Robert the Bruce and they built Sanquhar Castle in the late 13th century. The name is derived from the Scots Gaelic Seann Cathair, which means “old fort.”

Sanquhar saw action on multiple occasions during the Scottish Wars of Independence. It was captured by both English and Scots in turn during the conflict. William Wallace visited the castle as did Robert Bruce. So too did Edward I of England and his son, Edward II. Centuries later Mary, Queen of Scots came to Sanquhar as did her son James VI.