Bastels, castle and Peles

For the next 300 years, Northumberland and the Borders were fought over by Scots and English. Law and order collapsed and the local economy was devastated. Everyone had to look to his own defence. The great lords built castles, lesser landowners constructed pele towers, church towers were fortified and farmers lived in strongly-built farmhouses called bastles. Bastles are found only in Northumberland and many were turned into farm barns when conditions settled down after the Union of the Crowns of England ad Scotland in 1603.

Ancroft – approximately 15 miles from the hotel

St. Anne’s Church at Ancroft is one of the best local examples of a church with a fortified tower complete with arrow-slits and battlements. The churchyard contains a memorial to some Catholic nuns who escaped from France during the French Revolution and found sanctuary at nearby Haggerston Castle .

Norham Castle – approximately 9 miles from the hotel

In the Middle Ages, Norham Castle gained the reputation of being the “most dangerous place in England ”. It was besieged and attacked by the Scots at least 13 times and was even bombarded (in 1497) by the great cannon Mons Meg, that can be seen today in Edinburgh Castle . Norham belonged to the powerful Prince Bishops of Durham and guarded a vital ford over the River Tweed. Its massive 12th century keep is one of the finest in northern England . The Castle is signed from the A698 between Cornhill and Berwick-upon-Tweed. It is an English Heritage property and is fully open to the public only at weekend and Bank Holidays during the summer. However, it can be viewed from close quarters at any time of the year.

Order of the Garter

Wark Castle – approximately 2 miles from the hotel

The castle at Wark (on the B6350 to Kelso) also has a turbulent history of siege and assault. Little remains today of the fortress that once stood on the prominent ridge in Wark village.

It is said that a ball was held to celebrate Wark being relieved by Edward III after a long Scots siege. During the dancing, Lady Salisbury dropped her garter from her leg. To avoid her embarrassment, the King picked up the Garter and announced “Honi soit qui mal y pense” (“Evil to him who thinks evil”), which he made the motto of his Order of the Garter.

Chillingham – approximately 20 miles from the hotel

Chillingham Castle offers a chilling experience. It is reputed to be inhabited by more ghosts than any other castle in England including the Grey Lady and the Radiant Boy. This is a truly atmospheric place where visitors can feel they have stepped straight back into the Middle Ages. The castle and gardens are open to the public in the summer months.

St. Peter’s Church in Chillingham contains the magnificent 15th century alabaster tomb of Sir Ralph Grey and his wife Elizabeth.

Close by is Chillingham Park, which for at least 700 years has been the home of a unique herd of wild white cattle. The herd is led by a king bull, who fights for the title with his younger rivals each year. The Park is open from Easter to October and visitors are taken to see the cattle on a tour escorted by a warden.

Smailholm Tower – approximately 17 miles from the hotel
Greenknowe Tower – approximately 20 miles from the hotel
Preston Tower – approximately 30 miles from the hotel

A Pele is a tower-house, three or more storeys in height, where a family lived and could defend itself against a band of raiders.

Smailhom Tower is perhaps the most romantically located example in the Borders. It stands beside a picturesque tiny loch on a hill overlooking the countryside north of Kelso. There are stunning views from the battlements.

Smailholm once belonged to the Pringles and then the Scott family, whose most famous son, Sir Walter Scott, spent much of his childhood at Sandyknowe Farm, in the shadow of the Tower.. The tales he heard there from his aunt and grandfather inspired his poetry and historical novels. The Tower is in the care of Historic Scotland and is open to the public at advertised times. It also contains a display of models depicting scenes from Scott’s “Minstrelsy of the Scottish Borders”.

Greenknowe Tower at Gordon is one f the best preserved peles in the area. It stands close by the A6105 Gordon to Earlston road and is accessible at any time, free of charge.

To see how one of these peles may have been furnished in the 16th century, visit Preston Tower, near Chathill. For a modest £2 visitors can explore the lovely gardens and the interior of the tower during daylight hours on any day in the year.

Flodden battlefield – approximately 4 miles from the hotel
Etal Castle – approximately 8 miles from the hotel

The borderlands are scattered with battlefields, the most famous of which is Flodden Field. A memorial cross on a hill near the village of Branxton marks the place where, late one September afternoon in 1513, the King and a generation of Scotsmen of all social ranks were cut down in a battle that lasted just two hours. The fallen are also commemorated in the words and tune of the famous lament “The Flowers o’ the Forest ”. Brown tourist signs from the A697 show the route. Discover the story of battle by exploring the series of interpretive panels around the battlesite.

After the battle, the captured Scots artillery was taken to Etal Castle , beside the River Till. Etal is a good example of a typical Border tower-house that grew into a small castle by adding curtain walls and extra towers. Etal is an English Heritage property and is open during the summer months.

Berwick-upon-Tweed – approximately 14 miles from the hotel

Berwick-upon-Tweed was once the richest seaport in Scotland . In 1296 it was captured by the English and then changed hands a dozen times. In 1558 Queen Elizabeth I ordered the construction of massive new fortifications around the town to ensure it would remain in English hands. Built to the latest Italian design, Berwick’s unique series of ramparts and bastions still stands intact today. A stroll round these unique walls offers views of the coast and the Tweed valley and is the ideal way to explore this historic town.

Berwick has many important historic buildings including the fine Georgian Town Hall, England’s first infantry barracks, completed in 1719, and the country’s only Puritan-style parish church, built in 1654 during Cromwell’s rule.