Benbecula, Borve Castle

Borve Castle.

Situated on the machair 2 miles north-west of Creagorry are the remains of Borve Castle, an oblong tower measuring 60 feet by 36 ½ feet over walls varying from 5 to 9 feet in thickness, which are still almost 30 feet in height and indicate that there were at least three storeys. The masonry is rubble heavily bedded in tenacious mortar. The walls are not homogeneous, but have been built in two skins; the inner, which was built first, 2 ½ feet thick. The entrance is in the south wall, is 4 feet wide and has been barred; west of it is a small window.

The ruin is so very great that the internal arrangement cannot be determined without excavation. (Fig. 153.)

Cf. "the residence of the lairds of Benbecula in ancient times. There is no tradition in regard to the time or person by whom it was built" (1). Ranald of Benbecula was known in 1625 as "of Castellborf" (2).

RCAHMS 1928, visited 26 July 1924.

OS map: South Uist xlvi.

(1) New Stat. Acct., xiv., p. 188.

(2) Cf. Clan Donald, iii., pp. 346, 348, 370.

NF 7700 5001 (1km square centred on) A desk-based assessment and walkover survey were carried out between 2004 and 2009 in order to identify archaeological features on Borve machair and Rudha na Sithean, and to establish if these sites merited further investigation. The majority of the sites identified have produced pottery sherds that are typical of Iron Age settlement in the Western Isles, but a sherd of Norse platter ware has also been recovered. The sites are currently being damaged by ploughing and rabbits.

Borve Machair The survey area included two scheduled ancient monuments; a medieval hall-house (Borve Castle, NF75SE 12), and a medieval chapel overlying an earlier settlement mound (Teampull Bhuirgh, NF75SE 13). The survey identified a further 13 mounds, the largest c100m across.

Rudha na Sithean The survey area included two scheduled ancient monuments; a cairn with a cist (NF74NE 12), and a settlement mound listed as a souterrain (NF74NE 10). The settlement mound is set within a rectangular stone-walled enclosure (52 x 38m). Approximately 70m to the SW, a distinct cropmark is visible on satellite images taken in September 2004. The cropmark consists of a rectangular structure, 35 x 17m with rounded corners. The structure is not visible on the ground. Two other large mounds are visible in this area. The survey also identified intertidal peat deposits on the foreshore. The peat had been exposed by coastal erosion and contained preserved wood.

Report: CNES SMR

Robin Volkers

NF 77336 50519 A programme of landscape, buildings and materials analysis is being carried out at Castle Borve, Benbecula, within the framework of this project. Surviving upstanding fabric at the castle is evident in three separate fragments of masonry walling and multiple large fragments of ex situ masonry tumble. In general, all of the upstanding fabric has been constructed of lime-bonded rubble-built masonry, with large volumes of constructional peat-fired shell lime mortars visible in continuous core, bedding and coating contexts. Several distinct and contrasting suites of building techniques and/or materials are also evident, however, and these suggest the main castle building is associated with at least three main constructional events, with an additional two subphases relating to a small structure in the south.

The three phases recognised in the main castle building display the following distinct suites of architectural and masonry characteristics: Masonry type A – wide walls; curving and battered wall profiles; informal masonry style without coursing; remarkably course ‘limecrete’ shell-lime constructional mortar; high concentration of window openings. This masonry is concentrated in the W of the surviving building. Masonry type B – very wide walls; straight and vertical wall profiles; moderately formal masonry style including massive rubble blocks and intermittent coursing; shell-lime constructional mortar with well-graded texture; no surviving window openings; rubble quoining but sandstone fragments in core and face contexts. This masonry is concentrated in the E of the surviving building. Masonry type C – narrow masonry walls; formal masonry style with regular through-courses; shell-lime constructional mortar with well-graded texture; sandstone quoining.

Fragments of this masonry are found on both sides of the upstanding building. Buildings analysis at Castle Borve is ongoing and our understanding of the monument is continuing to develop, but various stratigraphic relationships between the distinct constructional phases characterised above are also clearly evident. This includes an abutment in the S wall which suggests masonry type A (in the W) was constructed later than B (in the E). The external wall faces associated with masonry type C walls are also embedded within (and abutted by) the lime-bound core rubble of both main W and E walls of the castle building. In interim, this suggests that the more formally constructed type C fabric is the earliest upstanding masonry on site and should be ascribed to phase 1, that the type B E wall should be ascribed to phase 2, and the type C W wall to phase 3.

A programme of lab-based analysis was subsequently undertaken on material samples removed and collected from Castle Borve. This sample assemblage includes five core mortar fragments, three relict fuel inclusions and two sandstone fragments. Lab-based thin section petrographic analysis of the mortar, sandstone and one relict fuel sample presented further evidence consistent with the characterisation and phasing of the mortars summarised above, and suggested that none of these three main phases could be related to the primary construction of the southern ‘porch’. These analyses also indicated that at least two sandstone types had been used during construction of the building, and these materials are broadly consistent with known outcrops in Morvern and Mull. Archaeobotanical analysis confirmed that two of the probable relict fuel samples were wood-charcoal, further suggesting that the constructional mortar of at least one phase of the surviving building had been manufactured within a mixed fuel (wood/peat) limekiln charge.

Archive: NRHE (intended)Funder: University of Stirling and Historic Environment Scotland

Mark Thacker – University of Stirling (Source: DES Vol 19)