Cavers, Scottish Borders
| Cavers | |
|---|---|
 Cavers
|
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| Cavers shown within the Scottish Borders | |
| Population | 1,085 |
| OS grid reference | NT5407415636 |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Hawick |
| Postcode district | TD9 |
| Dialling code | 01450 |
| Police | Scottish |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| EU Parliament | Scotland |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
Cavers is a parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, in the former county of Roxburghshire, south and east of Hawick.
The name means "enclosure".
Robert The Bruce rewarded ‘The Good’ Sir James Douglas with lands spread across Scotland. These included Cavers, granted in 1320. Sir James had been Bruce’s trusted lieutenant at Bannockburn in 1314, and was key to his power base in southern Scotland.
The lands passed to James, 2nd Earl of Douglas, who, like so many other Douglases, was not to die in his bed, but on the field of battle, at Otterburn in 1388. James's sons and (a) daughter(s) were all illegitimate. To ensure their succession, he granted the lands of Drumlanrig (see Marquess of Queensberry) to his bastard son William and Cavers to Archibald.
Cavers remained in Douglas hands until 1975 when James Palmer-Douglas moved away from Cavers and the remaining lands of the once vast estates in Roxburghshire were put on the market.
Although little or nothing remains of the original materials, the evidence suggests the building was originally constructed in the later 15th or early 16th century as a five storey high tower, which is now known locally as the "Warden's Tower". It probably incorporated part of a 13th century castle and the foundations of the oldest part of the building date from 1200.
In 12th-13th centuries the castle was possessed by the Baliols, but in 1352-3 passed to William, Lord Douglas, with the barony, by grant of Kind David II. In 1511, King James IV granted a new charter to James Douglas for the town and lands of Cavers including the castle, manor and mill. The castle in this charter probably refers to the existing tower and this is again mentioned in a charter of 1576.
The tower was subsequently modernised and the removal of a vault above the first floor in 1890 revealed a fine 13th Century piscina-niche. This feature appeared to be in its original position, indicating that part of the tower wall is older than the tower itself. This may be a vestige of the Baliol castle.
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Wikipedia