Skip to content
The Great Britain Guide

Castles · Scottish Lowlands

Crawford Castle

♿ Wheelchair: limited

Crawford Castle — castle in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, UK.

Crawford Castle, castles in Scottish Lowlands

Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence

Plan your visit

Typical visit
1.5 h–3 h
Nearest railway station
Leadhills · 9.7 km
  • Family-friendly
  • Limited wheelchair access

About

Crawford Castle is a castle in the United Kingdom — fortified architecture from the medieval, Tudor, or Victorian-revival period. Heritage designation: scheduled monument. Wikidata describes it as: "castle in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, UK". Coordinates: 55.4747°, -3.6559°.

Photo gallery

Heritage listing

Crawford Castle, substantially in ruins, is located on the north bank of the River Clyde, around 1⁄2 mile (800 metres) north of Crawford, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The ruins stand on an earlier motte and bailey earthwork. The castle is also known as Lindsay Tower, after its former owners, the Lindsay family. The strategic location of the castle, at NS954213, guards the strategically important Mennock Pass from England into the upper Clyde Valley.

From Historic Environment Scotland under OGL v3.

From the Wikipedia article

Crawford Castle, substantially in ruins, is located on the north bank of the River Clyde, around 1⁄2 mile (800 metres) north of Crawford, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The ruins stand on an earlier motte and bailey earthwork. The castle is also known as Lindsay Tower, after its former owners, the Lindsay family. The strategic location of the castle, at NS954213, guards the strategically important Mennock Pass from England into the upper Clyde Valley.

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Background

History

Archaeological excavations to the north-west of the castle have shown that a Roman fort, with a garrison of perhaps 300, existed at this site between 80 AD and 170 AD. This site was the administrative centre for the Barony of Crawford, at that time the largest and most influential barony in southern Scotland. The Barony was established before 1100 when records of the period show Sveinn as Lord of Crawford. Upon his death, his son Thor, Lord of Tranent and the Sheriff of Edinburghshire, is recorded as Lord of Crawford. Crawford Castle was in existence by 1175, and was probably built as an earthwork and timber castle some time before this by Thor, or indeed by Thor's father Sveinn. The…

Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Coordinates
55.4747, -3.6559
Postcode
ML12 6TZ
Parliamentary constituency
Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale
Nearest railway station
Leadhills9.7 km

Sources

Other places nearby

Loading nearby places…

Nearby

More castles in this region

Frequently asked questions

Where is Crawford Castle?
Crawford Castle is in the Scottish Lowlands, United Kingdom (postcode ML12 6TZ).
Is Crawford Castle a listed building?
Crawford Castle is officially recognised as scheduled monument listed.
Does Crawford Castle charge admission?
Crawford Castle typically charges admission. Check the official site for current ticket prices and opening hours.
How do I get to Crawford Castle?
Drivers can navigate to postcode ML12 6TZ. It sits within the Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale parliamentary constituency.