Fast Castle

Fast Castle Details

Fast Castle, scant ruins of a C14 tower and courtyard of the Dunbars and Homes on a clifftop promontory; ruined by C18.

  • Closest To: Eyemouth, Cockburnspath
  • Access: Free Public Access
  • Grid Reference: NT861710

Fast Castle is a small fortified promontory on the Berwickshire coast which was built in the 14th century or earlier by the earls of Dunbar or their offshoots the Home family. It is accessible to the public, but reaching it involves a walk along a clifftop footpath that is unsafe in wet or windy weather. It is first mentioned in 1346, when it was in English hands.

The castle consisted of a gatehouse, hall and double courtyard with ancillary buildings, and access was via a drawbridge crossing a ravine – the whole was surrounded by a curtain wall, which has mostly fallen into the sea, and only stubs of masonry remain. A sally port accessed a set of stairs leading down to the sea. The castle was back in Scottish hands in 1410, and destroyed in 1515. A new version was erected by 1522, and remained in use by different parties until the mid 17th century – in 1605 King James VI was held prisoner here during the Gowrie Conspiracy. In 1682 the lands were sold without mention of the castle which had presumably fallen into ruin and out of use.

HES Canmore database entry

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