Leisure, Symbolism and War: Hermitage Castle, Liddesdale and the Anglo-Scottish Border

Citation

Oram R (2014) Leisure, Symbolism and War: Hermitage Castle, Liddesdale and the Anglo-Scottish Border. In: Ettel P, Flambard HA & O'Conor K (eds.) Château et frontière. Actes du colloque international d'Aabenraa (Danemark, 24-31 août 2012). Château Gaillard. Etudes de castellologie médiévale, 26. Turnhout, Belgium: Brepols, pp. 325-332. http://www.brepols.net/Pages/ShowProduct.aspx?prod_id=IS-9782841335022-1

Abstract
Originating as a 13th-century hunting-lodge in the lordship of Liddesdale, as Anglo-Scottish warfare turned the area into a contested border zone, Hermitage replaced the old caput at Liddel. The Earls of Douglas developed Hermitage into a symbolic projection of their power and status that contained spacious accommodation and a ceremonial forum in which to exercise lordly authority, gave security for their household and the defence of the region, and a base for the economic management of Liddesdale. Originally a bold statement of Douglas power, warfare, depopulation and climate change converted it from the centrepiece of a prosperous estate into a garrisoned frontier-post of declining significance. When Scotland and England were united in 1603, Hermitage was abandoned.