Publication drawing; Plan of Auchen Castle and earthworks, indicating construction phases.

Description Publication drawing; Plan of Auchen Castle and earthworks, indicating construction phases.

Date 16/3/1995

Collection Records of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinbu

Catalogue Number SC 382033

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of DC 32518

Scope and Content Redrawn for publication from DC 32476. Plan showing Auchen Castle, Dumfries and Galloway Auchen Castle overlooks the Garpol Water, some 500m to the west, and lies on a southward spur of Longbedholm Hill. It succeeded an earlier motte-and-bailey castle at Garpol Water as the base of the Kirkpatrick family, later becoming an artillery fortress. The stone curtain wall, some 3m thick, was probably built in the 13th century. Its entrance is protected by a 'dog-leg' forework, flanked by the round tower. The feature to the east with a connecting passage (A) may be a concealed gun-emplacement. When the castle became an artillery fortress in the late 15th or early 16th century, the stone curtain walls were covered with a thick layer of earth, a process known as 'vamuring'. This would have had the effect of reducing the impact of cannon balls. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/382033

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap