Roxburghshire

Scotland > South of Scotland > Roxburghshire

As you approach the Scottish Border from the south on the A68 through Northumberland, you reach a summit called Carter Bar the other side of which opens out a new green vista stretching for miles. This is Roxburghshire named after a once prominent market town between Jedburgh (Jethart of old) and Kelso, called Roxburgh.

This was once the largest market town between Newcastle and Edinburgh but two mysteries surround it. Firstly, why did it disappear almost entirely? Today it is a farming hamlet. Secondly, could the ruins of Roxburgh Castle set at the confluence of the River Tweed and Teviot Water have been the Camelot of national folklore fame? The debate will carry on for many years in the future.

Two geographical features dominate Roxburgh. The first is the River Tweed which flows through Kelso, Melrose and Galashiels (in Selkirkshire) all of which have harnessed the power of the river to operate their textile mills. Market forces being as they are, the textile industry has suffered badly over the last 20 years and many mills have closed. However, the River Tweed has flourished in its claim to being the best salmon and sea trout river in Europe. The income generated by the fishings is healthy and increasing annually.

The second feature is also near the River Tweed - the three hills that comprise the Eildon Hills, once known to the Romans who had a major fort here, as Trimontium. These hills can be seen virtually from anywhere in Roxburghshire and from a vantage point from almost the entire Borders region, especially Carter Bar!

Nowhere in the Borders was more "front line" that Roxburghshire. The county paid dearly in political, religious and sovereignty battles of the past - the ruined abbeys of Melrose, Jedburgh, Kelso and Dryburgh are evidence of that.

The south of Roxburgh lies within the Cheviot Hills, rising from Teviotdale, the valley of the Teviot Water which flows east by way of Hawick, Denholm, Ancrum and Roxburgh. In days past before Scotland became a sovereign nation, this would have been a kind of no man's land where land was kept or lost by force, a land of the Reivers. There are many castles and defensive towers in this part of the county especially down Liddesdale towards the uniquely designed town of Newcastleton. This is where Hermitage Castle is to be found - one of the more scary fortresses with a chequered history.

The towns of Roxburgh might all share the same county but there the similarity ends. Border towns are very jealous of their heritage and they all have their own historical festivals. Rivalry between towns is not uncommon but most of this competition comes on the field of play when local Rugby teams meet. Rugby is THE sport in the Borders and it was here in Roxburghshire, in Melrose , that the Rugby seven-a-side competition was born.

Roxburghshire is a great place to explore and an even better place to live in.