Description

The castle stands on a detached limestone rock, rising 15m above the foreshore on the left side of the mouth of the Boyne burn. A narrow causeway traverses a cross-ditch at the neck of the site. Just within the entrance, to the left is a masonry-lined pit, 1.5 by 1.2m and about 1.2m deep, which has been vaulted. Around the west side of the site, that is to say the part facing landwards, runs a low bank. Where excavated, this appears to represent remains of a broad earth- and-stone rampart, with a range of buildings constructed against it to the north of the entrance.

A garderobe vent can be seen on the cliff edge near the northwest corner of these buildings. Finds from the site indicate occupation in the later 14th to 16th centuries.

The Thanedom of Boyne was granted by David II to Sir John Edmonstone in 1368, and in 1486 the estate passed to Sir John Ogilvie. In 1575, Sir George Ogilvie acquired the estate from the elder branch of the family, and it may have been at this time that Craig of Boyne was abandoned in favour of New Boyne Castle, 700m inland.

The area to be scheduled consists of the whole headland, including the castle, ditch, causeway and an area to landward extending 20m horizontally from the bottom of the cross-ditch, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because of the evidence that it provides about the siting and layout of medieval castles and the development of medieval lordships. This importance is enhanced by its proximity to Boyne Castle, which appears to have continued to fulfil its functions from the 16th century onwards.

The monument is of further importance because of the opportunity that it offers for archaeological excavation, which has the potential to shed more light on the form of the castle, on its phases of occupation (the earliest of which may well be Iron Age or Dark Age), and the material culture and economy of its inhabitants in different periods.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NJ 66 NW 2.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland