Border Reivers at Tosson Tower

Mangerton Tower was a defensive pele of the Laird of Mangerton, an Armstrong who was one of the most feared and respected villains of the sixteenth century. There are just a few grey bits of grey stone wall remaining of the tower today but it’s easy to imagine the Laird looking out down the Liddel water towards England from this strong vantage point as he saddled up his horse for another raid. The Armstrongs were at Mangerton from around 1376 and were described as ‘ever riding.’ They, along with the Elliots, were probably the most active and bloodthirsty of all the Scottish reivers of the dangerous valley. It’s reckoned that the Armstrongs could rely on up to 3,000 horsemen for a raid, making them a very dangerous clan to cross. Not many did and lived to tell the tale.

Johnnie Armstrong of Gilnockie is one of the most celebrated of all the Border reivers and he was hanged for dressing better than a King. The golden tassels on Johnnie’s hat so affronted the stroppy teenage James V that he had the folk hero and his men strung up from the trees at Carlanrig in 1530. Of course, it was about much more than that, with Johnnie’s power such that he was reputed to be levying protection money as far away as Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. But Armstrong, the youngest son of the Laird of Mangerton, reckoned that he’d never robbed in Scotland as he tried to talk his way out of the tricky situation. However, when the Regent saw how finely Armstrong and his gang were dressed, he’d said to have uttered the famous words: “What wants yon knave that a King should have.” His fate was sealed. Gilnockie Tower is an impressive grey stone tower that stands in the hamlet of Hollows a couple of miles from Canonbie on the west bank of the river Esk and it is open all year rou...

Hermitage can be a dark, brooding and imposing sight on a day when the mists are lying low and the dew is heavy on the grass. Even when the sun is shining, the castle with a reputation as the most sinister in Scotland has a glowering presence in the countryside. The Keeper of Liddesdale that had responsibility for keeping the unruly clans in check resided at Hermitage, a place with a grisly past. It was built by the Norman family of de Soulis sometime around 1240. William de Souils had a gruesome reputation for witchcraft and legend will have you believe that the locals boiled him in molten lead at the nearby megalithic stone circle of Ninestane Rigg. By 1594, Sir Walter Scott of Buccleuch, known as the Bold Buccleuch, was the Keeper of Liddesdale and owned Hermitage from which he not only dispensed justice, but also rode out on his own raids. It remained with the Scott family until 1930 and now belongs to Historic Scotland. Hermitage can be visited from April 1 s...