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Hawthornden Castle

Hawthornden Castle has two distinct phases of development. Standing on a rocky promontory jutting out above the River North Esk, the property belonged to the Abernethy family from the 13th century, passing to the Douglases in the 14th century.

The earliest part of the castle is a square tower, thought to have been built in the 15th century. Hawthornden Castle first appears in written records in 1433. The tower measures around 8m square, is three storeys in height and has a vaulted pit prison below. However Hawthornden Castle almost certainly has older origins, as the rock on which it stands contains numerous caves which seem to have been in use prior to the 15th century. Thought to date back to the Bronze Age, the caves were used for various purposes over the centuries, and are said to have harboured Robert the Bruce and Sir Alexander Ramsay of Dalhousie following raids on the English in the early 14th century.

Windows and gun-loops are apparently visible in the rock face. Two main caves are located under the former 15th century south range, which no longer stands and is now the courtyard. Within the courtyard is a well which cuts down through the caves. It is said that a trapdoor in the floor of the main hall in the south range gave access to the caves below, although this is no longer visible above or below ground.

The upper cave is known as the King’s Chamber, and was once possible to access it via a flight of 20 stone-cut steps descending the cliff face at the north-west corner of the site. The staircase is no longer visible and this area is now covered with thick ivy.

The King’s Chamber opens out into a complex of chambers of different shapes and sizes extending under the castle above. An in-depth description of the caves is available in Coles’ report in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, volume 45.

The lower cave, known either as the King’s Dining Room or King’s Gallery (it’s not clear which), is slightly to the west of the King’s Chamber, and can only be accessed through an entrance in the cliff face which requires a ladder to reach. The entrance measures just 0.7m tall by 0.5m wide, and is 2.4m above the bottom of the cliff face.

A single chamber, the walls of the cave are lined with some 370 square niches which have variously been described as for a doocot or a Columbarium (storage for cinerary urns). Given the fact that it’s a single chamber with a small, single entrance located high up away from predators it seems the former is the more likely option. Each niche opening measures 0.2m square, and they are between 0.4m and 0.6m deep.

Intriguingly the well shaft descends a further 5.5m beyond the floor of the lower cave, and at the bottom is the entrance to a stone-cut passage which extends south for almost 17 metres before it becomes blocked with rock and earth. This tantalisingly suggests another level of chambers, although it may represent another entrance which has now been sealed-up.

A third cave is located to the north east of the 15th century tower and features carved seats and cupboards, a fireplace and windows.

In the 16th century the castle was sold to the Drummond family, and in 1638 Sir William Drummond extended it, building an L-shaped north range connected to the earlier tower with a wall. It remained in the Drummond family until the 1970s, and underwent further additions in the mid-19th century.

The 15th century tower is now ruinous, but its 17th century neighbour is occupied and run as a retreat for writers.

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Alternative names for Hawthornden Castle

Hauthornden; Hawthornden House

Where is Hawthornden Castle?

Hawthornden Castle is in the parish of Lasswade and the county of Midlothian.

Grid reference:NT 28628 63671

Lat / long:55.860923,-3.141843

Bing Maps | Google Maps | Historic maps (NLS) | OpenStreetMap | Ordnance Survey | PastMap | Streetmap | Wikimapia

OS Map for Hawthornden Castle

OS map 344
Pentland Hills (Penicuik & West Linton)
OS Explorer map 344


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Directions to Hawthornden Castle

Enter a starting point

Weather at Hawthornden Castle

9°C
max 10°C / min 9°C
28km/h SW
1029mb
74%
75%
08:01 16:50

Broken clouds
Weather observed at Loanhead at 12:47

References (books)

The Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland Volume 4
David MacGibbon
Edinburgh, 1892
The Castles of Lothian and the Borders
Mike Slater
Malvern, 1994
The Castles of Scotland
Martin Coventry
Prestongrange, 2015

References (websites)

Listed Building record
Canmore
Wikipedia

Castles near Hawthornden Castle

Maiden Castle

0.7km away

Rosslyn Castle

1.5km away

Whitehill (site of)

1.9km away

Polton (site of)

1.9km away

Old Woodhouselee Castle

3.6km away

Dalhousie Castle

3.7km away

Cockpen (site of)

3.9km away

Broomhill House (site of)

4.0km away

Melville Castle

4.1km away
more castles....
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Ancient sites near Hawthornden Castle

Glencorse rock art

4.1km away

Castle Law souterrain

5.7km away

Castle Law fort

5.7km away

Camus Stone (site of) standing stone

6.0km away

Cat Stanes (site of) cairns

6.2km away

Caiy Stane standing stone and rock art

6.4km away

Buck Stane standing stone

6.9km away

Wright's Houses standing stone

8.3km away

Wester Craiglockhart Hill fort

8.6km away
more ancient sites....
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Pictish stones near Hawthornden Castle

Abernethy No. 2 Class III symbol stone

10.0km away

Abernethy No. 4 Class III cross shaft

10.0km away

Princes Street Gardens Class I symbol stone

10.6km away

Court Cave Class I rock carving

33.7km away

Doo Cave Class I rock carving

33.8km away

Jonathan's Cave Class I rock carving

34.0km away

Sliding Cave Class I rock carving

34.1km away

Scoonie Class II cross slab

39.2km away

Largo Class II cross slab

42.1km away
more Pictish stones....
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Pictish sites near Hawthornden Castle

Haddington silver chain

24.9km away

Whitlaw silver chain

26.4km away

Borland silver chain

28.4km away

Todholes (possible) silver chain

30.6km away

Traprain Law silver chain

31.7km away

Norrie's Law hoard

45.3km away

Hoardweel silver chain

50.2km away

Whitecleugh silver chain

64.3km away

Dunnicaer fort

135.0km away
more Pictish sites....
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Accommodation near Hawthornden Castle

Rosslyn Castle
self-cateringRoslin
1.5km away
Aaron Glen Guesthouse
bed and breakfastLoanhead
2.4km away
Laird & Dog Inn
hotel, pubLasswade
2.9km away
Dalhousie Castle Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barBonnyrigg
3.7km away
Premier Inn Edinburgh A7 (Dalkeith)
hotel, restaurantDalkeith
4.2km away
Kirkhill Mansion B&B
bed and breakfastArniston
4.5km away
The County Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barDalkeith
6.0km away
Midlothian Apartments
self-catering apartmentGorebridge
6.2km away
Liberton Tower
self-catering apartmentEdinburgh
6.4km away
Craigiebield House Hotel
hotelPenicuik
6.4km away

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Cafés, restaurants & bars near Hawthornden Castle

Laird & Dog Inn
hotel, pubLasswade
2.9km away
Dalhousie Castle Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barBonnyrigg
3.7km away
Premier Inn Edinburgh A7 (Dalkeith)
hotel, restaurantDalkeith
4.2km away
Dean Tavern
barNewtongrange
4.6km away
The County Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barDalkeith
6.0km away
Aaron Lodge
hotel, restaurantEdinburgh
6.8km away
Best Western Braid Hills Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
7.6km away
Morningside Glory
barEdinburgh
8.3km away
The Waiting Room
barEdinburgh
8.3km away
Leslie's Bar
pubEdinburgh
8.4km away
more food.... / more drink....

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Dunbar harbour and castle
Published on the 14th of May 2010 at 1:59 pm. Updated on the 20th of May 2021 at 5:09 pm.

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Andy Sweet above Fast Castle

Stravaiging around Scotland is written, photographed and researched by Andy Sweet.
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