The remains of Boghall Castle at Biggar - geograph

Boghall Castle was a 14th century castle to the south of

Biggar, South Lanarkshire Biggar ( gd, Bigear ) is a town and former burgh in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, in the Southern Uplands near the River Clyde on the A702. The closest towns are Lanark and Peebles. Details The town was once served by the Symington, Big ...

, Scotland. Boghall became ruinous in the 19th century.

History

The courtyard castle was built in the 14th century by the Fleming family, to replace the

motte and bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy t ...

castle at Biggar. The castle was strategically sited where the valleys of the

River Tweed The River Tweed, or Tweed Water ( gd, Abhainn Thuaidh, sco, Watter o Tweid, cy, Tuedd), is a river long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with the R ...

and the

River Clyde The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...

meet. The foundations of two D shaped towers survive but the rest is ruinous.

Edward II of England Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to t ...

stayed at Boghall in 1310. During 1473 Queen Margaret, wife of

James III of Scotland James III (10 July 1451/May 1452 – 11 June 1488) was King of Scots from 1460 until his death at the Battle of Sauchieburn in 1488. He inherited the throne as a child following the death of his father, King James II, at the siege of Roxburgh C ...

, stayed the night at Boghall on her way to the shrine of St. Ninian in Whithorn.

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

stayed at Boghall in 1565.

Regent Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. A supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for hi ...

came to Boghall with an army on 11 June 1568 and the castle surrendered to him. He did not slight or demolish it, because

Lord Fleming Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

held

Dumbarton Castle Dumbarton Castle ( gd, Dùn Breatainn, ; ) has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It sits on a volcanic plug of basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high and overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton. History Dum ...

against him, and he hoped to negotiate. On 14 November 1569, Regent Moray gave soldiers commanded by James Cunningham 20 shillings in

drinksilver Drinksilver was a kind of tip or gratuity given to artisans in Early Modern Scotland, a sum of money suitable for buying drinks and celebrating. Records of payments give insights into labour, service, and patronage. Payments and contexts Buildin ...

for their labours confiscating the goods of Lord Fleming at Boghall. The farm stock taken from Boghall included 8 oxen, 13 cows, a bull, and a flock of 617 sheep. Regent Lennox sacked the houses of

Cumbernauld Cumbernauld (; gd, Comar nan Allt, meeting of the streams) is a large town in the historic county of Dunbartonshire and council area of North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is the tenth most-populous locality in Scotland and the most populated t ...

and Boghall in September and October 1570, and expelled Lord Fleming's wife Elizabeth Ross and her three infant children from her properties. An inventory of goods at Boghall Castle was made in October 1578 after the death of Elizabeth Ross, Lady Fleming, the wife of John Fleming, 5th Lord Fleming.William Hunter, ''Biggar and the House of Fleming'' (Edinburgh & Biggar, 1867), pp. 544, 617-8.

Citations

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boghall Castle 14th-century establishments in Scotland Demolished buildings and structures in Scotland Ruined castles in Scotland Castles in South Lanarkshire