The Twelve Towers of Rule:
Life and strife in the Valley of Rulewater in the late mediaeval period
Prof. Jane Bower, FRSE
HALKETT HENDRIE MEMORIAL LECTURE
Jointly presented with Peeblesshire Archaeological Society
Tuesday, 10th December 2024
Eastgate Theatre, Peebles, 7.30 p.m.
The 16th century was a period of great turbulence in Scotland. What was it like for a community to live through this time of major change in a rural valley in the Southern Borders?
The team campaigning for a Scottish Borders National Park were intrigued by the story of the devastation of Tweeddale and Teviotdale in 1545. Inspired by a contemporary report of the burning of “The Twelve Towers of Rule” in the Valley of Rulewater, the team enlisted the help of Roger Curtis of Historic Environment Scotland and Archaeology Scotland to begin an investigation of the remnant structures which hold clues to everyday life in the Valley.
The team had the good fortune to attract support which allowed them to involve young people and others as volunteers to help, and to learn archaeological techniques, as well as to gain insights into the lives of the past at Fulton Tower, Bedrule Castle and now a bastle on Bonchester Hill.
Professor Richard Oram and Tom Turpie have reviewed the archival records, which are helping to flesh out the story of the area in the late mediaeval period.
Jane Bower is not a historian, nor an archaeologist. She is a molecular geneticist who manages a 2500 acre hill farm, Gorrenberry, which has a herd of Belted Galloways (great beef) and which is also an ecological restoration project.
She chairs the Campaign for a Scottish Borders National Park.
