Details

The monument includes the remains of West Lilburn tower, a late medieval tower
situated on a spur of land above the valley of the Lilburn Burn. Although the
ruins were conserved in 1933 and the upper storeys have largely collapsed, it
includes the remains of an original solitary tower house thought to be of 15th
century date.
The tower, built of ashlar blocks with a rubble core, is rectangular in
plan and measures 13.4m east-west by 9m north-south with walls 2.1m wide. Only
the north wall now stands to any great height; it stands three storeys high to
a height of c.11m for a length of c.6m and has an external chamfered plinth.
From the north west corner the west wall stands for 2.5m to a height of 1.5m
and has the remains of a splayed internal jamb of an opening. On the south
side is a fragment of wall core standing up to 1.2m high; this may be a fallen
fragment of masonry but it rests on in situ foundations. In the south east
corner there is evidence of a mural chamber which may indicate the position of
an entrance. A fragment of the east wall stands up to 1.2m high and elsewhere
the foundations are visible up to a height of 0.2m except at the north east
corner. Here, the remainder of the north wall has fallen outwards down to the
foundations and lies in several large fragments over a distance of 12m.
Although the basement of the tower has become partly infilled with rubble and
masonry from the collapsed upper storeys, the springing of a barrel vault is
visible on the internal face of the north wall. At first floor level there are
two doorways on the internal face of the wall, one giving access to a mural
stair, and part of a fireplace. Evidence of a cross wall suggests the tower
was divided into a hall and smaller service room. The base of the stair is lit
by a square window with sockets for a central iron bar; at second floor level
the stair is lit by a similar window. The second floor room appears to have
been undivided. Two garderobe chutes are visible in the north west corner, one
at second floor level combining with that at first floor level and exiting at
the foot of the wall. The tower is surrounded by a mound, up to 1.5m high,
which is probably composed of fallen masonry rather than a feature on which
the tower was originally built; the mound extends up to 5m beyond the walls of
the tower.
Documentary evidence records that a tower was built by the Lilburn family
c.1400. By the early 16th century two towers are recorded and in 1541 the
western tower is described in ruins whilst the eastern had been recently
burnt. It is uncertain which tower the present remains represent. The tower
was probably abandoned in the early 18th century when the forerunner of the
present house called Lilburn Tower was built. The tower is a Listed Building
Grade II.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Tower houses are a type of defensible house particularly characteristic of the
borderlands of England and Scotland. Virtually every parish had at least one
of these buildings. At many sites the tower comprised only one element of a
larger house, with at least one wing being attached to it. These wings
provided further domestic accommodation, frequently including a large hall.
If it was incorporated within a larger domestic residence, the tower itself
could retain its defensible qualities and could be shut off from the rest of
the house in times of trouble. Tower houses were being constructed and used
from at least the 13th century to the end of the 16th century. They provided
prestigious defended houses permanently occupied by the wealthier or
aristocratic members of society. As such they were important centres of
medieval life. The need for such secure buildings relates to the unsettled
and frequently war-like conditions which prevailed in the Borders throughout
much of the medieval period. Around 200 examples of tower houses have been
identified of which over half were elements of larger houses. All surviving
tower houses retaining significant medieval remains will normally be
identified as nationally important.

The tower at Lilburn is reasonably well preserved and despite being a ruined
structure, significant archaeological remains survive above and below ground
level. A large proportion of the collapsed masonry lies on the surface and
buried within and around the tower.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Dodds, M H, A History of Northumberland, (1935), 433-434
Ryder, P F, 'Berwick District' in Towers and Bastles in Northumberland, , Vol. 2, (1995), 22-23
Other
Department of the Environment, List of Buildings of Special Architectural and Historic Interest, Borough of Berwick upon Tweed, Lilburn parish, (1985)

Source: Historic England