There’s a picture hanging in the National Gallery of Scotland that depicts the Battle of Bothwell Bridge in 1679. Looking at the background, toward Blantyre, I was surprised to see a tall, stone looking building amongst the hills at that sparsely populated time. As I zoomed in, I could see it was a substantial tower. […]
This is an extract from an old charter dated 24th July 1557 which proves Blantyre had a Castle, right in the middle of it, where Janefield Place is now, near Stonefield Crescent and Hunthill Road. Taken from the Glasgow protocol records, there’s an intriguing early mention of Blantyre and specifically of a lost and forgotten Castle […]
The 16th Century “keep” or “Tower” is located on the west of the Castle on the left hand side, as you face its entrance. This may have replaced an even older structure belonging to the Lindsay or Hamilton family, for the basement and cellars are of a noticeably older construction than the tower itself above. […]
Now this may be a cleaning activity , rather than repairs but for some reason, there’s a huge ladder leaning up against the Tower of Calderwood Castle. Photographed by my second great grand Uncle, David Ritchie, from the Blantyre side of the Rotten Calder, is the back of Calderwood Castle around 1915. At the time […]
Five Centuries separate the two Bridges at the end of Blantyre, spanning over the Clyde at Bothwell. One is an ancient bridge, designated an ancient monument and steeped in history. The other is the road bridge built over the water when the final section of £12.2m East Kilbride A725 Expressway was built in 1983. The […]