Publication Account

Date 1981

Event ID 1017705

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Publication Account

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1017705

The castle of Annan has ancient origins. It is first mentioned in the c.1124 grant of David I to Robert Bruce of the lands of Annandale and its castle (ESC, 1905, 49). During the Wars of Independence, the castle reputedly stood in ruins (Miller, 1887-8, 241). Shortly after his coronation at Scone in 1332, the pretender Edward Balliol seized Annan castle and from there demanded the homage of Scots nobles. His triumph was short-lived. Under the silence of night the Earl of Douglas and a group of retainers swept down on the structure and captured it. In the fray Edward Balliol escaped, but his brother Henry was killed. The reporter in the New Statistical Account noted that the ruins of Annan Castle with the exception of a part of the wall built into the town house 'finally disappeared about forty years ago' (1841, 184). It is unknown when the castle ceased to function.

An alleged fragment of the castle of Annan which has caused some controversy is incorporated in the fabric of the burgh hall. Because of the date on the stone '1300', many local historians have assumed that the castle was rebuilt at this period. However, because of the Wars of Independence and the supposed English occupation of the area, this is unlikely. Furthermore the Investigators of the Royal Commission on Ancient Monuments observed that the 1 1300 1 date was not original, but the Lombardic lettering (which spells out the name and title of Robert Bruce) 'could only have been not earlier than 1292 nor later than 1296 1 (1920, 3).

Information from ‘Historic Annan: The Archaeological Implications of Development’, (1981).