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Castle
Caerlaverock was built between 1280-90 by the Maxwells, and due to its
location less than 10 miles from England (as the crow flies), its
history is long and eventful! By 1300 was
already besieged by Edward I during his war against John
Balliol, his appointee as the Scottish king. This war is
still remembered for the brave resistance put up by the
Scots under Sir William Wallace. When the constable, Sir Eustace
Maxwell,
suddenly sided with Balliol's rival Robert the Bruce, the
castle was back in Scottish hands by 1312, and dismantled at Bruce' request and it
deteriorated. This castle is the only triangular castle
in the United Kingdom. The castle was repaired in the 1330s, and in 1347
Herbert Maxwell submitted to King Enward III. However, just 10
years later Roger Kirkpatrick retook the castle for the Scots. He
was later murdered there. The Maxwells were by no means done with
Caerlaverock: between 1452 and 1488 Robert, 2nd Lord Maxwell, did
extensive remodeling, including machicolating the towers, strengthening
the massive gatehouse, adding residential
quarters, and inserting gun-ports to aid in the
defense of the castle.
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