Hailes Castle

Hailes Castle stands on a promontory above the River Tyne in East Lothian, about two and a half kilometres south-west of East Linton. Built mainly in the 14th century, it began as a fortified tower house founded by Hugo de Gourlay before 1300. The Hepburn family later became its principal owners, extending the castle in the 15th century with a massive four-storey West Tower and a lower East Tower. The curtain wall may date from the 13th century, and the castle once controlled a key route to Edinburgh. The castle has witnessed important events in Scottish history. In 1400 it resisted an attack by Harry Hotspur Percy, and in 1547 it was occupied by English forces during the Rough Wooing before being retaken and slighted. Mary, Queen of Scots, visited in 1567, and Oliver Cromwell partly slighted the building in 1650. The castle passed through several noble families, including the Stewarts and the Dalrymples, who used it as a granary in the 19th century. Visitors can walk around the ruined castle and see the remains of the West Tower, the 14th-century keep, and sections of the curtain wall. Inside the 13th-century wall stands a roofless chamber with signs of a chapel, including an ambry and a piscina. There is also a vaulted bakehouse and brewhouse from the 15th century, and the original tower was later used as a dovecot. The riverside setting and the castle’s strategic position add to the atmosphere of this historic site.