|
One of the most picturesque Castles in the whole of Britain
is found near the town of Haddington in central Scotland, not
fsr from the City of Edinburgh. The Castle is never very busy
as it is quite hard to find and apart from the ruins there is
not much there.
The Castle is steeped in History. Mary Queen of Scots stayed there
on her travels. The Castle was also an important place during
the Scottish wars of independence and during the Oliver Cromwell's
rule after the English civil war.
 |
Enough of the building remains to give a good idea of what
the castle looked like when it was in use. The north side of
the castle has a river flowing past it which would have provided
some protection from attack as well as supplying water for the
people who lived there. |
| The south side of the Castle is dominated by the 14th century
Curtain Wall. This imposing stone work along with the
ditch which ran outside would have presented a formidable obstacle
to anyone attacking the castle from that side. |
 |
 |
Ultimately no amount of Stone could protect Hailes from it's
fate. The castle changed hands several times throughout it's
turbulent history. It's use as a fortress was effectively ended
by Oliver Cromwell's army who besieged the Castle until the defenders
surrendered then dismantled it so it could not be used. |
|
|
