Bothwell Castle ***
Region: Glasgow & The Clyde
© Copyright M J Richardson and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Description:
This is one of Scotland’s most impressive medieval strongholds standing today and was built by the Moravia family (later Moray), who began constructing the Great Tower, or donjon, in the 1270s. They also owned Duffus Castle near Inverness. In the 1290s, the castle was taken by the English after the deposition of John Balliol. King Edward I of England brought 6,800 soldiers to lay siege to the castle using a giant engine called le berefrey (the belfry), which was a tall wooden tower with ladders inside that was placed next to the castle, enabling the English soldiers to fight their way onto the castle battlements and retake the castle. The Bothwell Castle became the headquarters of Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke and Edward I's Warden of Scotland. After Robert the Bruce's victory at Bannockburn in 1314, the Scots retook Bothwell Castle, and the donjon was partially demolished to prevent it from being defensible by the English in the future.